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U.S. sets first major fracking rules on federal lands

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Obama administration on Friday unveiled its first major standards for oil companies that frack on federal lands, including beefed-up safety measures to protect groundwater, prompting industry complaints they will be a barrier to growth. The rules require energy companies to reinforce boreholes and otherwise prevent leakage and provide data on the cocktail of chemicals that helps extract crude oil and gas out of the ground. The rules will add transparency to the practice, long shrouded by companies reluctant to reveal "trade secrets." Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, a controversial process that involves pumping water, sand and chemicals into a well to extract oil or gas. Environmentalists say fracking poses health risks. Although only about 10 percent of fracking occurs on federal lands, the Obama administration is hoping the new rules will become a model for industry standards elsewhere, especially in states that do not have fracking […]

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US fracking rules seek shale boom balance

In this March 29, 2013 photo, a worker switches well heads during a short pause in the water pumping phase, at the site of a natural gas hydraulic fracturing and extraction operation run by Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc., outside Rifle, in western Colorado. Proponents of hydraulic fracturing point to the economic benefits from vast amounts of formerly inaccessible hydrocarbons the process can extract. Opponents point to potential environmental impacts, with some critics acknowledging that some fracking operations are far cleaner than others. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley) The Obama administration has taken its biggest step yet to regulate fracking on federal land by imposing new environmental safeguards on the technique that has turned America into a shale energy superpower and upturned global energy markets. In a move that will be closely watched by other countries debating shale development, the administration said on Friday that it would introduce new rules […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Fracking Rules Unveiled by Obama Administration

The rules will require disclosure of chemicals used at well sites. ENLARGE Photo: Getty Images WASHINGTON—The Obama administration on Friday issued comprehensive rules for hydraulic fracturing, seeking to set a national standard for controversial drilling practices that have helped fuel a domestic oil and natural-gas boom. The regulations, in the works since 2012, triggered criticism from oil and natural-gas companies that they were too onerous and from environmental groups that they didn’t go far enough. Two influential groups representing oil and natural-gas companies filed a lawsuit to block the rules just minutes after they were announced. The rules directly apply to a small percentage of oil and gas drilling on federal lands, which account for 11% of the natural gas and 5% of the oil the U.S. consumes, according to Interior Department data. Most hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, occurs on private or state land. But states and companies […]

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Oil Group Seeks to Set Aside Fracking Rules as Unscientific

(Bloomberg) — The Obama administration’s new fracking regulations were attacked in an oil industry lawsuit as lacking scientific and engineering evidence to support them. The Independent Petroleum Association of America contends regulations issued Friday are based on “unsubstantiated concerns” and asked a federal judge in Cheyenne, Wyoming, to rule them invalid. The new rules don’t take effect for at least 90 days. The rules require those drilling on federal lands to reveal the chemicals they use, meet well construction standards and safely dispose of contaminated water. Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, injects the high-pressure water and chemicals to free oil and natural gas from underground deposits. Mark Barron, a Denver-based lawyer for the Independent Petroleum Association, said the group may ask for an order blocking the rules from taking effect after it has reviewed them in detail. The Washington-based association named the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and Interior Secretary […]

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Rebels Plan Offensive in East as Ukraine Fortifies Key Port

A Ukrainian soldier walks near a position of the Ukrainian forces near the village of Pervomayske. Photographer: Anatolii Stepanov/AFP via Getty Images (Bloomberg) — Pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine are preparing for a new offensive to expand their territory, signaling a six-week-old truce is in danger of crumbling. “We’ll try to push them from here to hell because we’re tired of them killing civilians with indiscriminate fire,” Alexander Khodakovsky, who commands the 3,500-man Vostok Brigade, said in an interview at his headquarters in Donetsk. The campaign may start in the “foreseeable future,” according to Khodakovsky, who also heads the security council of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic. A rebel offensive would shatter the cease-fire negotiated last month in Minsk, Belarus, and raise the risk of escalating U.S. and European Union sanctions against Russia, which they blame for stoking the conflict. Ukraine and Germany, which brokered the accord with France, […]

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Oil Patch Jobs Resistant to Price Plunge For Now

An oil worker outside of Midland, Texas, in December. Even with sliding oil prices, Midland boasts the lowest metro jobless rate in the country. Bloomberg Midland, Texas, a symbol of the American oil boom that has recent run into shaky ground, still has the  lowest unemployment rate in the nation at just 2.6% in January, according to figures from the Labor Department published Friday. The Texan oil town was followed by Lincoln, Neb., a consistently stable employer, at 2.8%. That’s the same jobless rate as that of the state of North Dakota, also at the center of the energy sector’s expansion and still the lowest rate of any state in the nation , a separate report recently showed. Oil prices have plunged by more than 50% in the last eight months, raising concerns about the financial condition of some energy producers and refiners. In contrast, El Centro, Calif., has […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Texas RRC Report and Other Peak Oil News

The Texas Rail Road Commission has released its latest stats with production numbers through January. There is always a delay in these numbers and that is why you see the production graph lines seem to droop toward the recent months. Because of this I post six months data so the data can be compared in order to gain a better insight into which way production is heading. All Texas oil and gas data is through January. The Oil data is in barrels per day and the gas data is in MCF. Texas Condensate Texas condensate will likely show a small gain when the data is finally in. Either way it will not be enough to make much difference in the final C+C January production. Texas Crude Only I believe Texas crude only will be down in January. This shows a huge decline from the December incomplete data. The EIA […]

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API: February US petroleum demand is highest since 2008

WASHINGTON, DC, Mar. 20 Total US petroleum demand reached an average 19.3 million b/d in February—the highest level for the month since 2008, the American Petroleum Institute reported on Mar. 19. The amount represented a 1.5% year-to-year increase from February 2014’s nearly 19 million b/d. “Greater demand for gasoline and jet fuel and a colder-than-usual February brought total February deliveries back to pre-recession levels,” API Chief Economist John Felmy said. “At the same time, the continued strength of crude oil and refinery production ensured that stocks of crude and refined products remained high.” API said February’s US gasoline demand edged up 0.1% to an average 8.7 million b/d, its highest level for the month since 2009. Gasoline production averaged nearly 9.5 million b/d, a record for the month and 1.9% higher year-to-year. Distillate fuel production rose 3.8% year-to-year to a February record of more than 4.7 million b/d as […]

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Ruble Tops Global Currency Rally as Oil Bounce Adds to Taxes

(Bloomberg) — Russia’s ruble headed for the best weekly gain against the dollar globally on demand from companies rushing to meet a tax deadline and as oil prices rebounded. The ruble is poised for a 4.5 percent advance for the week, the biggest rally among 170 currencies tracked by Bloomberg. Crude oil, the nation’s main export commodity was poised for the first gain in three weeks, paring the decline this month to 12 percent. The ruble’s strength “doesn’t look logical from the fundamental point of view,” Vladimir Vedeneev, chief investment officer at Raiffeisen Capital asset management in Moscow, said in e-mailed comments. “The move seems rather technical. Exporters have been selling the foreign-currency revenue.” Russian companies must pay about 1.3 trillion rubles ($22 billion) in taxes this month, with the largest portion falling due on March 25, according to a Bloomberg survey of five economists. They must pay the […]

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Germany’s 2014 coal imports hit all-time high of 56.2 mil mt: VDKi

German hard coal imports reached an all-time record high of 56.2 million mt in 2014, up 6.2% on the year, according to statistics released by the German Coal Importers Association (VDKi) Thursday. Thermal coal imports into Germany increased by about 5% on the year to 41.9 million mt, while coking coal imports jumped 15% year on year to 11.7 million mt. Imports of coke declined by about 6% to 2.4 million mt. Russia was the largest shipper of thermal coal to Germany last year, delivering 13.7 million mt, up from 13.1 million mt the previous year. Article continues below… Platts Global Coal Alert brings real-time coal industry information to those who can’t afford to wait until tomorrow to get market coverage and pricing information. With it, you get up-to-the-minute news, overheard transaction information, and market commentaries, along with thermal coal markets pricing for regional and global markets. Thermal coal […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple