Regulation
Supreme Court Limits EPA’s Authority to Regulate Carbon Emissions
In a highly anticipated but not unexpected 6-3 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on June 30, 2022, that the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s authority under the Clean Air Act.
PHMSA Blocks Restart of Freeport LNG Plant Citing Unsafe Conditions
U.S. pipeline safety regulator PHMSA on Thursday said it found unsafe conditions at a Texas liquefied natural gas export facility and will not allow owner Freeport LNG to restart the plant until an outside analysis is complete.
Texas RRC Approves Rule to Ready Natural Gas Industry for Weather Emergencies
The Texas Railroad Commission (RRC), which oversees the state's oil and natural gas industries, approved a proposed weatherization rule to help protect Texans during emergencies that could occur any time of the year.
Demand for US Exports to Drive More Natural Gas Production
The reference case in the U.S. Energy Information Association’s (EIA’s) Annual Energy Outlook (AEO2022) projects U.S. natural gas production to continue to increase through 2050. The reference case is the baseline in AEO2022, and it projects energy trends based on current laws, regulations, and market conditions.
API Unveils Ten-Point Policy Plan to Restore US Energy Leadership, Fuel Economic Recovery
The American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday released a “10 in 2022 plan”—10 policies that policymakers can advance today to unlock American energy, fuel economic recovery, and strengthen national security.
Cheniere Gets OK to Place Sabine LNG Tank Back in Service
U.S. LNG company Cheniere Energy Inc. received permission from federal regulators on Wednesday to return one of two shut storage tanks to service at its Sabine Pass LNG export plant in Louisiana following a leak in 2018.
Texas RRC Commissioners Assess Unusually Heavy Amount of Enforcement Fines
The Railroad Commission of Texas assessed $1,008,396 in fines with pipeline operators and excavators ticketed $476,200 for violations of the Commission’s Pipeline Damage Prevention rules, the Commission said on Wednesday.
DOE Launches $8 Billion Program for Clean Hydrogen Hubs across US
The U.S. Department of Energy filed a notice of intent to fund the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s $8 billion program to develop regional clean hydrogen hubs – H2Hubs – across America, the DOE said in a press release on Monday.
NWP 12 Up for Review Again
The Army Corps of Engineers is undertaking a review of Nationwide Permit 12 (NWP 12), which allows gas and oil pipelines to avoid a lengthy, expensive environmental review when building facilities near wetlands.
PHMSA Finalizes New Remote Valve Requirements
After more than a decade of considering whether pipelines should install automatic shut-off valves (ASVs), the Pipeline & Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued a final rule; however, it fell short of what the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) wanted.
Iran Seizes Two Greek Tankers amid Row over US Oil Grab
Iranian forces seized two Greek tankers in the Gulf on Friday, shortly after Tehran warned it would take "punitive action" against Athens over the confiscation of Iranian oil by the U.S. from a tanker held off the Greek coast.
Denmark's Orsted Warns of Russian Gas Supply Halt After Spurning Ruble Payments
Orsted on Monday warned that Russia's Gazprom Export could stop supplying gas to the Danish energy company because it has refused to pay in rubles, but such a move would not immediately put Denmark's gas supplies at risk.
How to Choose a Regulator in Five Steps
Pressure regulators play a crucial role in many industrial fluid and instrumentation systems, helping to maintain or control desired pressure and flow in response to system changes.
Federal Pipeline Agencies Accepting Applications for Pipeline Safety Program
PHMSA has begun accepting applications for its new Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure Safety and Modernization Grant program, which will offer nearly $200 million in grants annually over the next five years to improve the safety of high-risk, leak-prone natural gas distribution infrastructure.
German Ex-Chancellor Schroeder under EU Pressure Over Rosneft, Gazprom
The European Parliament urged that former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder be blacklisted if he does not quit the board of Russian state-owned oil company Rosneft in a move also meant to dissuade him from taking a top job at Gazprom.
PHMSA Issues Proposed Civil Penalty to Colonial Pipeline Company
PHMSA issued a Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed Compliance Order to Colonial Pipeline Co., which includes multiple probable violations of Federal pipeline safety regulations. The proposed civil penalties amount to $986,400.
Ruby Pipeline Creditors Preview Bankruptcy Dispute Over Company Control
A lawyer for creditors of Houston-based natural gas pipeline Ruby Pipeline LLC in April questioned the company’s approach to its bankruptcy as it embarks on a Chapter 11 process with no concrete plan lined up.
Alberta Court Rules Canada's Environmental Impact Law Unconstitutional
The Alberta Court of Appeal said the Impact Assessment Act (IAA), which assesses how major infrastructure projects in Canada like pipelines impact the environment, was a “classic example of legislative creep.”
Russia Concerns Loom Over FERC and EPA Anti-Pipeline Efforts
Pipeline companies had already been pressuring the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine to rethink its two new policy statements on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and pipeline certificates.
Biden Sidelined Global Energy Partners with Record Emergency Oil Release
The United States announced a record-sized release of emergency crude oil reserves in March without consulting partners in the International Energy Agency, leaving them scrambling to match with releases of their own.
Swiss Court Rules on Which Gas Imports Are Subject to CO2 Tax
A Swiss court has ruled that natural gas imported to power turbines for compressing gas in the transit pipeline is not subject to the national carbon tax designed to curb the use of fossil fuels and protect the environment.
US Overturns Trump-era Policies for Arctic Alaska Oil Reserve
The Biden administration on Monday overturned a controversial Trump-era policy that would have opened new swathes of Arctic Alaska to oil development.
P&GJ Analysis: Biden’s ‘Big Project’ Environmental Reviews
With the Biden administration bringing back a stricter review process for pipeline and other major infrastructure projects later this month – it seemed like a good time to look at the origin of the policy and what the change will entail.
Rule Adds Protocols for Pipelines Near Sensitive Waterways
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued an Interim Final Rule (IFR) to the Federal Register in December that designated the Great Lakes, coastal beaches and marine coastal waters as “Unusually Sensitive Areas.”
API: Administration’s NEPA Rewrite Undermines Global Energy Security
The American Petroleum Institute (API) Senior Vice President of Policy, Economics and Regulatory Affairs Frank Macchiarola responded to the White House Council on Environmental Quality’s (CEQ) revised National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Phase 1 regulations.
St. Louis Natural Gas Pipeline in Jeopardy After SCOTUS Rejection
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear an appeal from St. Louis-based natural gas company Spire Inc. to keep the 65-mile pipeline up and running.
Biden Plan to Aid Europe with LNG Poses Risk to US Climate Goals
U.S. President Joe Biden’s plan to expand LNG shipments to Europe to cut the region’s dependence on Russian fuel risks undermining his administration's climate goals.
Mountain Valley Pipeline Wins Federal Approval for Stream Boring
Federal regulators approved MVP's permit request to bore under about 180 streams and wetlands it must cross to complete the 300-mile natural gas pipeline.
Texas Drilling Permits Rise for March vs. 2021
The March 2022 total includes 1,035 permits to drill new oil or gas wells, seven to re-enter plugged wellbores and 113 for re-completions of existing wellbores.
Supreme Court Reinstates Trump-Era Clean Water Rule
In a 5-4 split, the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday temporarily revived a Trump-era rule intended to fast-track big energy projects by limiting the states' power to curtail them under the Clean Water Act.
- Freeport LNG Plant Runs Near Zero Consumption for Fifth Day
- Biden Administration Buys Oil for Emergency Reserve Above Target Price
- Mexico Seizes Air Liquide's Hydrogen Plant at Pemex Refinery
- Kinder Morgan Declares Force Majeure on West Texas Gas Pipeline After Fire
- Enbridge Picks Contractors for Great Lakes Tunnel Project, Securing Line 5 Pipeline Route
- Pipeline Hydro Test Pressure Determination
- Venezuela Proposes Alternative Payment Plan as Weak Bids Surface in Citgo Auction
- Baker Hughes Wins Contract for Huge Aramco Gas Expansion Project
- Japan Looks at Developing Domestic Pipelines Sector
- Enbridge Picks Contractors for Great Lakes Tunnel Project, Securing Line 5 Pipeline Route
