Category:

Energy Regulator Alleges Total Manipulated U.S. Natural Gas Market

American regulators have accused French oil company Total SA of manipulating the price of natural gas in the U.S. southwest, the latest move in a widening crackdown on energy-market machinations. From 2009 to 2012, the French company’s Houston-based subsidiary made money-losing gas purchases intended to move prices in a way that helped it make money on other trading positions on at least 38 occasions, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said. According to the regulators, the alleged scheme was conducted by traders on the Total Gas & Power North America West Desk, led by supervisors Therese Nguyen and Aaron Hall. FERC didn’t reveal how much money it believed Total made from the trades, or whether consumer bills were affected. The French oil company issued a written denial, saying it was convinced that no Total employee “committed any of the FERC’s allegations.” Total said it is “fully cooperating with the U.S. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

U.S. Gulf of Mexico share of global active offshore rigs declines since 2000

graph of weekly propane and propylene inventories, as explained in the article text Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, based on Baker Hughes Inc. Note: GOM is Gulf of Mexico. In response to the decline in crude oil prices since mid-2014, the number of active offshore rigs has declined worldwide, dropping close to 20%—304 offshore rigs were operating in August 2015, down from 377 in August 2014. During this period, the number of active offshore rigs in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico (GOM) dropped more rapidly, falling by 46%. Over the past 15 years, the U.S. GOM’s share of active offshore rigs worldwide has declined significantly—from almost half of all active offshore rigs worldwide in 2000 to less than 20% since 2008. In the U.S. GOM, technology advancements accelerated the development of the deepwater (areas where the water depth is greater than 1,000 feet). The move to deeper waters prompted […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

California drought and impending El Niño raise fears of levee breaks

LOS ANGELES — California’s historic drought is in its fourth year and gloom-and-doom scenarios of its impact on everything from killing the state’s vegetation and triggering bug infestation to destroying farming jobs have been trickling in daily. Now, there is another fear: The prolonged drought may have weakened California’s more than 13,000 miles of levees, which could result in floods and affect the quality of water for millions of Californians. That’s a scary prospect for parts of the state that could get doused with torrential rain this winter, thanks to an El Niño weather front triggered by unusually warm Pacific Ocean temperatures. And the mere mention of levee breaks evokes terrifying images of the devastation Hurricane Katrina wreaked on New Orleans 10 years ago. A Mississippi State University civil engineer sounded the alarm in a recent article in Science magazine . “If the drought ends with heavy rainfall-induced flooding, […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Study calls for US natural gas pipeline replacement to reduce GHG emissions

As energy industry and government officials alike wrestle with the best way to limit the release of methane into the atmosphere, a new study reveals that US cities with programs calling for the replacement of aging natural gas pipeline have 90% fewer leaks per mile than cities without such programs. The study, led by researchers from Stanford University and published in the journal "Environmental Science & Technology Letters," demonstrates "how well pipeline replacement programs have worked," Rob Jackson, the study’s author, said in an interview Monday. Researchers studied programs to replace pipelines made of cast iron and other outdated materials in three US regions, the cities of Durham, North Carolina and Cincinnati, Ohio, and Manhattan Island in New York City. "We identified 132, 351 and 1,050 leaks in Durham, Cincinnati and Manhattan, respectively, across 595, 750 and 247 road miles driven," the study reported. Article continues below… Gas Daily […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Texas’ Earthquake Study Gets Off The Ground

The $4.5 million study is intended to provide big picture information on whether there is a link between hydraulic fracturing’s disposal wells and seismic activity. Work is underway on the multi-million dollar TexNet Seismic Monitoring Program, designed by Texas lawmakers to gather and disseminate research on any relationship between disposal wells and an unexpected spate of earthquakes in North Texas. State Rep. Rafael Anchia, a Democrat from Dallas, wrote the legislation this year, which passed as part of the state budget and became effective in September. “Our community is rightfully concerned about the unusually high seismic activity in Dallas, Irving and Farmers Branch,” Anchia said in a statement. The “study should help us get to the bottom of it.” Bringing industry, academia and the government together will ensure that different perspectives will be represented, said Scott Tinker, director of the Bureau of Economic Geology at the University of Texas. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Total Cuts Oil Output Target as Low Prices Expected to Persist

Total SA, Europe’s second-biggest oil company, scaled back its production target for 2017 as it announced a further round of investment cuts and project delays to protect its dividend. Total expects to produce 2.6 million barrels of oil equivalent a day, compared with a previous forecast of 2.8 million barrels a day, the company said Wednesday before holding an investor day in London. The measures are a sign that oil majors are extending their belt-tightening into next year and 2017 after companies from Chevron Corp. to Royal Dutch Shell Plc announced large spending cuts for 2015. "We are preparing the group to face low oil prices for a long time," Total Chief Financial Officer Patrick de La Chevardiere told reporters in London. Total said the new measures will allow it to fund dividends by 2017 from the cash it generates pumping, refining and selling oil, without the need to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Wyoming Seeks More Funds to Clean Up Abandoned Wells

Wyoming is moving forward with sweeping new rules to double the money oil and gas companies must put aside before drilling new wells, a measure prompted by the large number of abandoned wells that litter the state. The new regulations, which would increase the amount of bonding fees companies must pay from $75,000 to $150,000, were given initial approval this month by the state’s oil and gas conservation commission. They are still subject to a 45-day public comment period and a final vote by the commission, which is chaired by Gov. Matt Mead. The office of Mr. Mead, a Republican, didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday, but state regulators say he supports the proposed changes. For years, Wyoming and other states have struggled to plug tens of thousands of wells abandoned after the energy booms. Without financially solvent parties to take ownership of the wells, they become […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

US Catholic groups debate divesting from fossil fuels

When Pope Francis speaks to Congress on Thursday, environmentalists expect him to renew his call for rich countries to do more to combat climate change, and some believe that effort should begin with Catholic institutions in the U.S., which are facing a small but vocal effort to pressure them to divest from the fossil fuel industry. “The [divestment] conversations are happening now at a level they weren’t a year ago,” said Kevin Ahern, a religious studies professor at Manhattan College. “Pope Francis is trying to ask the church institutions, ‘How do we really embody what we’re teaching?’” Pope Francis puts GOP in a corner on climate change Pope’s comments on climate sparks debate on coal In an encyclical issued in June, the pope delivered a dramatic and unambiguous rebuke of humanity’s environmental stewardship . “We know that technology based on the use of highly polluting fossil fuels … needs […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Fitch Ratings: Russian gas pipeline faces obstacles

Ratings agency questions durability of Russian plans to twin existing Nord Stream gas pipeline through the Baltic Sea. File photo by Kodda/Shutterstock MOSCOW, Sept. 22 (UPI) — Funding and market challenges could get in the way of further progress in Russian plans to add on to an existing European gas pipeline, Fitch Ratings says. The existing twin Nord Stream pipeline through the Baltic Sea to Germany carries about 1.9 trillion cubic feet of gas per year to the European market. An expansion, Nord Stream II, would relieve geopolitical constraints on conventional gas network through Ukraine, which hosts about a quarter of the Russian gas headed to Europe. "We believe raising multi-billion dollar project financing for Nord Stream II in the capital markets would probably be much harder now," Fitch Ratings said in a statement. "This is because Western sanctions have significantly hindered international funding to Russian corporations, even those […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Oil Prices Fall on Crude Oversupply Concerns

By Georgi Kantchev LONDON–Oil prices slid on Tuesday pressured by continuing concerns about the global oversupply of crude. Oil has been trading in a narrow band in recent weeks after falling to more than six-year-lows in the summer on worries about an economic slowdown in China, the world’s second largest consumer of crude. Dropping U.S. output has provided some support for crude, but inventory levels in the U.S. remain elevated, especially in petroleum products like gasoline. That suggests the glut is unlikely to abate soon. Meanwhile, producer heavyweights like Saudi Arabia have continued to pump oil at a rapid pace in a bid to secure more market share. "The oversupplied fundamentals have taken center stage during the last 3-4 months, with bears regaining control," said David Hufton of brokerage PVM. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, fell 1.7% to $48.86 a barrel on London’s ICE Futures exchange. On the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple