Regulation

Mexico Shuts Off Natural Gas Supply to Brazil's Braskem

Mexico has cut off natural gas supply to Braskem's Mexican operations, the company and government said, intensifying a dispute between President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and the Brazilian petrochemical company.

Enbridge Starts Construction on Line 3 Pipeline in Minnesota

Enbridge began construction on its Line 3 crude oil pipeline replacement in Minnesota on Tuesday, a day after state regulators approved the final permit for the $2.6 billion project amid legal challenges from lactivist and Indigenous groups.

Biden Plan to End U.S. Fossil Fuel Subsidies Faces Big Challenges

President-elect Joe Biden's promise to end U.S. fossil fuel subsidies worth billions of dollars a year could be hard to keep due to resistance from lawmakers in a narrowly divided Congress, including from within his own party.

Minnesota Gives Final Green Light to Line 3 Pipeline

Minnesota regulators approved the final permit Monday for Enbridge Energy’s Line 3 crude oil pipeline replacement across northern Minnesota, giving the company the green light to begin construction on the $2.6 billion project.

Norway's DNV GL Suspends Nord Stream 2 Work over U.S. Sanctions Fear

Norway's risk management and quality assurance firm DNV GL said it has suspended work on the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project led by Russia's Gazprom for fear of being sanctioned by the United States.

Enbridge Sues Michigan Over Oil Pipeline Shutdown Order

Enbridge filed a legal challenge to Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's recent demand that the company shut down its Line 5 oil pipeline that crosses the waterway connecting Lake Huron and Lake Michigan.

API Pledges to Fight Possible Biden Fracking Limits

If U.S. President-elect Joe Biden tries to restrict development of oil and gas drilling on federal lands, the American Petroleum Institute will use "every tool at its disposal" including legal action, chief executive Mike Sommers said

Court Allows Construction to Continue on Mountain Valley Pipeline

The U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a motion to stay a permit for the $5.8-$6.0 billion Mountain Valley natural gas pipeline from West Virginia to Virginia.

Trump Pushes New Environmental Rollbacks on Way Out the Door

Down to its final weeks, the Trump administration is working to push through dozens of environmental rollbacks that could reduce protections for migratory birds, expand Arctic drilling and hamstring future regulation of public health threats.

TC Energy: Keystone XL Pipeline Fits Biden Agenda

The creation of union jobs and support by Indigenous investors will help convince U.S. President-elect Joe Biden that the Keystone XL pipeline fits into his “Build Back Better” agenda, an executive with TC Energy said.

Italy Drafts Guidelines for National Hydrogen Strategy

Italy has set out guidelines for a national hydrogen strategy to help de-carbonize the economy as it phases out coal and boosts renewables, a change that would rely on existing pipeline infrastructure.

Environmental Groups Appeal Illinois Approval of DAPL Expansion

Environmental groups are appealing a decision made last month by Illinois regulators to allow the expansion of the Dakota Access oil pipeline (DAPL), according to documents filed with the state.

Beneath the Bustling City, Pipelines Operate Largely Unnoticed

Within cities, utilities considering pipeline replacement or expansion must have it all, including great communication, a solid plan, the latest technology and a smart public awareness strategy.

Managing Complex Pipeline Compliance with Software Solutions

From maintenance and testing to record-keeping and audits, operators often underestimate how complex and time-consuming the path toward compliance will be.

Control Rooms Faced with Navigating the Pandemic

We asked over 300 controllers from 13 U.S. and Canadian control rooms for first-hand accounts of how their companies responded to the pandemic and controller needs.

Interstates Worry About Inspecting Farm Taps

Will transmission pipelines now have to worry about complying with distribution pipeline regulations in addition to their own? That is the concern with one of the key provisions in a proposed rule from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).

FERC Wants Limit on State Consideration of Quality Permits

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) plans to apply the new federal Clean Water Act requirement to transmission pipelines, limiting state challenges to construction projects in and around wetlands.

Bakken Restart: Back to Basics with Idle Wells

Abandoned wells have long been a part of the more-than-a-century-old American oil and gas industry, but industry and state regulators have become more thorough in mitigating and remediating these retired well sites.

Michigan Governor Seeks Shutdown of Great Lakes Oil Pipeline

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer took legal action to shut down the Line 5 pipeline, which carries oil beneath a channel linking two of the Great Lakes.

Mexico Sets Condition for Sempra LNG Export Permit

Mexico will give the local unit of U.S.-based Sempra Energy an export permit for an LNG facility in northwest Mexico, as long as the company helps offset an oversupply of gas in the area, the president said on Friday.

Minnesota Approves Enbridge Line 3 Pipeline Project

Minnesota regulators approved Enbridge's $2.6 billion Line 3 pipeline replacement project, clearing one of the last remaining hurdles for U.S. construction to begin.

DAPL's Future Uncertain as Biden Presidency Looms

The election of Democrat Joseph Biden could create more headaches for the Dakota Access Pipeline's (DAPL) owners, who are already embroiled in legal battles to keep the main conduit for flowing oil out of North Dakota running.

Meet the New FERC Chair: James Danly

Get to know James Danly, who was named by President Trump to be chairman of the Federal Regulatory Commission after the demotion of Neil Chatterjee.

Nord Stream 2 Sanctions Included in U.S. Defense Bill

Sanctions that could hinder one of Moscow's most important projects in Europe, the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline, have been included in the annual U.S. defense policy bill, two congressional aides said on Wednesday.

Biden's Environmental Agenda Could Push Oil Prices Higher - Vitol CEO

The world's largest oil trader Vitol expects the Biden presidency's environmental policies could push oil prices higher over the long term as supplies fall.

Russia's Gazprom Proposes Gas Price Rise for Poland

Poland's dominant gas company PGNiG said its biggest supplier, Russia's Gazprom , had proposed increasing prices for its gas in an existing long-term delivery deal, at a time of heightened tensions between Moscow and Warsaw.

Energy Leaders Leave Door Open to More Cuts as Virus Spikes

Saudi Arabia's energy minister said Monday that global energy producers have the ability to tweak an agreement on production cuts that could be extended through the end of 2022, signaling the anticipation of continued weakened demand for oil as the coronavirus pandemic peaks again in Europe and the United States

Trump Demotes FERC Chair After Carbon-Market Comments

President Donald Trump demoted Neil Chatterjee, the Republican head of an energy regulation panel, after he promoted the use of carbon markets by U.S. states to curb climate change.

Rolling Back Trump's Rollbacks: Biden Seen Reversing Climate Deregulation

Joe Biden could erase much of President Donald Trump’s four-year legacy of energy and climate deregulation with the stroke of his pen, according to regulatory experts, but replacing it with something new and durable may prove trickier.

Republicans Retain Tight Grip over Texas Oil and Gas Regulator

A Texas Republican businessman swept to victory in the Texas Railroad Commission over a Democratic energy lawyer who had sought to put climate change on the state energy regulator's agenda.