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Exporting US Oil to Mexico

Exporting US Oil to Mexico Mexico could become a major export destination for surplus US light crude oil, despite being one of the largest oil suppliers to the US, mainly of heavy oil. If structured as an exchange for other barrels, such exports might not require re-writing US oil export regulations, unlike sales to non-neighboring countries. Two of the biggest energy stories of the last twelve months have been the reform of Mexico’s oil sector after 75 years of state monopoly and the US oil industry’s drive to gain approval to export a growing surplus of domestic light crude oil. The prospect of exporting US oil to Mexico connects these developments in a surprising way. It should make sense geographically and economically, though regulatory hurdles remain. Yet it could also increase tension between US oil producers and refiners over the merits of exporting crude versus refined products. At first glance, the idea […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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The Consequences Of Fracking: Two Clashing Views

The Consequences Of Fracking: Two Clashing Views Two academic studies of the health dangers of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, have produced different conclusions. One, conducted by Yale University, said people living near fracking sites report increased health problems . The other, by Penn State University, says fracking water stays underground, far below the groundwater supplies that people use for drinking, and poses no threat . Both studies were conducted in Pennsylvania, part of the Marcellus Shale formation in the sprawling Appalachian Basin in the eastern United States. It holds enormous reserves of gas and has been a focus of fracking activity and protests. In the Yale study, former Yale medical professor Dr. Peter Rabinowitz reported in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives that residents living near a fracking site in southwestern Pennsylvania were more than twice as likely to report skin problems and respiratory illnesses than those living farther away. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Fixing Climate Change May Add No Costs, Report Says

In decades of public debate about global warming, one assumption has been accepted by virtually all factions: that tackling it would necessarily be costly. But a new report casts doubt on that idea, declaring that the necessary fixes could wind up being effectively free. A global commission will announce its finding on Tuesday that an ambitious series of measures to limit emissions would cost $4 trillion or so over the next 15 years, an increase of roughly 5 percent over the amount that would likely be spent anyway on new power plants, transit systems and other infrastructure. When the secondary benefits of greener policies — like lower fuel costs, fewer premature deaths from air pollution and reduced medical bills — are taken into account, the changes might wind up saving money, according to the findings of the group, the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate . “We are […]

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Canadian Natural Allowed to Resume Production at Troubled Site

CALGARY, Alberta— Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. will be allowed to resume production at an oil-sands site in northern Alberta plagued by unexplained leaks of crude that seeped to the surface, the province’s chief energy regulator said Monday. The decision partially lifts restrictions on the company’s operations that had been in place since mid-2013 after mysterious leaks of crude were detected at four separate locations at the site, which is about 217 miles (350 kilometers) northeast of the provincial capital of Edmonton. It comes a month after Canadian Natural lowered its annual production forecast, citing delays in the resumption of operations at Primrose East, the field where the heavy oil seepages occurred on the grounds of the Canadian armed forces’ Cold Lake Air Weapons Range. The Alberta Energy Regulator approved the company’s application, which was submitted July 29, to restart production using low-pressure steam injections to extract oil embedded in […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Study: Leaky Wells, Not Fracking, Taint Water

WASHINGTON (AP) — A new study says that the drilling procedure called fracking didn’t cause much-publicized cases of tainted water, blaming contamination on leaky natural gas wells instead. The study finds that eight hydraulically fractured wells in the states of Pennsylvania and Texas leaked gas because the piping and cement seals in the wells themselves weren’t working properly. The process of pumping highly pressurized chemicals and water underground to get valuable natural gas trapped in shale has become highly charged as contamination complaints initially surged. Ohio State University geochemist Thomas Darrah and colleagues used certain elements to trace where the leaks came from. He said finding them in the wells rather than the fracking process, means contamination is more preventable and fixable. The study is published in Monday’s Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences. Copyright 2014 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, […]

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Uneven effects seen from new Appalachian pipelines

HOUSTON, Sept. 15 09/15/2014 Producers in the Appalachian basin will benefit unevenly from markets opening for natural gas from the Marcellus and Utica shales , according to a Canaccord Genuity analyst. Pipeline projects due on stream soon will alleviate a surplus in the southwestern part of the basin, wrote Karl Chalabala in a mid-September report on an updated supply-demand model. But the gas price will remain weak in the northeastern Appalachian basin until markets begin opening for supply there in 2016—unless operators ease drilling or curtail production. Chalabala said pipeline capacity will begin to exceed need in the southwestern Appalachian basin at the end of this year. Overall system expansions beneficial to northeastern operators won’t occur until the second half of 2016, according to an analysis that focuses on takeaway capacity by omitting projects that will move gas largely within the region. Most capacity expansions directly benefiting producers in […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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New petroleum technology revitalizes Powder River Basin oil production

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration and Drillinginfo, Inc. The Powder River Basin, well known for its abundant coal supply, is experiencing a turnaround in oil production. Production has rebounded from a low of 38,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) in 2009 to 78,000 bbl/d during first-quarter 2014. Although U.S. oil production growth is occurring primarily in the Bakken, Eagle Ford, and Permian Basins , the Powder River Basin is among other regions of the country that have also benefitted from the application of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing . The increase in Powder River Basin oil production is largely attributable to production growth in the Turner, Parkman, and Niobrara-Codell formations, which collectively increased from 4,700 bbl/d in 2009 to 36,300 bbl/d in first-quarter 2014, increasing their share of total Powder River Basin oil production from 12% to 46%. Three other formations—the Shannon, Sussex, and Frontier—also rose from 2009 to 2014, […]

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Study Links Increased Drilling With Earthquakes

The aftermath of an earthquake in Segundo, Colo., in 2011. Scientists have linked the magnitude-5.3 quake with nearby wastewater injection, a process used in drilling. Associated Press A magnitude-5.3 earthquake that hit Colorado in 2011 was likely caused by the injection of wastewater into the ground, a process used in natural-gas drilling, according to new research to be released Tuesday. The new study, published in the Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, adds more detail to a growing body of work seeking to establish and explain the connection between human activity and seismic events, known as induced quakes. Geologists have been intensely focused on the field in the past few years, as some states, including Oklahoma, Ohio, Colorado and New Mexico, have seen a rise in quakes that coincides with an uptick in activities associated with oil and gas extraction, scientists say. According to the American Petroleum Institute, […]

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Homes Near Gas Wells in Texas Face Worsening Water Issues

Homes in a Texas community face worsening water contamination caused by nearby gas production, according to a study released today. The findings from an analysis by independent academics counter statements by driller Range Resources Corp. (RRC) and state regulators, who have said their evidence shows gas drilling wasn’t responsible for the presence of explosive methane in the homeowners’ water wells. Separate testing that found evidence of contamination from drilling at seven areas in Pennsylvania also was included in the study. “People’s water has been harmed by drilling,” Rob Jackson, professor of environmental and earth sciences at Stanford University and Duke University , said in a statement. “In Texas, we even saw two homes go from clean to contaminated after our sampling began.” The case in Weatherford, Texas, has drawn international media scrutiny, intervention by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that was later shelved and lawmakers’ scrutiny of the EPA’s […]

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Shell notes strong ties to Russian energy

MOSCOW, Sept. 15 (UPI) — A spokesman for Royal Dutch Shell said Monday the company was reviewing what impact, if any, sanctions would have on its ties to the Russian energy sector. "We are proud of our strong partnership with Russian companies," the spokesperson said. "We will explore the latest sanctions and their possible impact on our business." The European Union last week enacted tighter sanctions on Russia’s energy sector in response to ongoing crises in Ukraine. The measure was enforced in coordination with Washington. Russia’s government relies heavily on oil revenue. A spokesman for Shell told state news agency RIA Novosti the sanctions were under review. The Russian currency was trading at a record low against the U.S. dollar as sanctions started to take their toll on the Russian economy. Shell is working alongside Russian energy company Gazprom on the Sakhalin liquefied natural gas project in the Far […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple