Senate Panel to Introduce Keystone XL Bill
The head of the Senate energy committee plans to introduce a bill next week to force approval of the Keystone XL oil pipeline, though the full chamber faces a battle in obtaining needed votes to overcome any veto by President Barack Obama. Keystone supporters say they picked up votes for TransCanada Corp's $8 billion project in November's midterm elections, including Republicans Shelley Moore Capito, from West Virginia, and Joni Ernst, from Iowa. That means this year's bill will likely have a few more than the 60 votes needed to pass, but lack the 67 votes needed to overcome any presidential veto.
Senate Panel to Introduce Keystone XL Bill Next Week
The head of the Senate energy committee plans to introduce a bill next week to force approval of the Keystone XL oil pipeline, though the full chamber faces a battle in obtaining needed votes to overcome any veto by President Barack Obama. Senator Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican and the new head of the energy committee, will introduce the bill next week after a hearing on TransCanada Corp's $8 billion project, her spokesman said. "I mean in a matter of hours, or days," the energy committee will mark up the bill after the hearing on Wednesday and move it to the senate floor…
Keystone Debate: Obama Rhetoric Rings Half True
President Barack Obama's sharpest criticism yet of Keystone XL this weekend included a controversial contention that the huge pipeline would be used to pump Canadian oil sands crude to global markets, not to U.S. refiners. TransCanada Corp., the pipeline giant that has been waiting six years for U.S. approval to build the $8 billion line, strongly denies it and says it is constructing the 1,179-mile (1,900-km) conduit only to serve import-dependant Gulf Coast refiners, weaning them away from supplies of heavy crude from Saudi Arabia and Venezuela. The truth, experts say, lies somewhere in between.
U.S. Senate to Vote on Keystone Pipeline
Backers of the Keystone XL oil pipeline hope a vote in the U.S. Senate late on Tuesday will send a bill to the desk of President Barack Obama. With the chamber apparently stuck at 59 votes in favor of Keystone XL, Senator Mary Landrieu worked hard on Monday to gather one last vote. Late in the day it seemed the Louisiana Democrat would come up just short, likely hurting her chances of winning a new six-year term in a December run-off election. Backers of the bill in the 100-seat Senate need 60 votes to prevent a filibuster by opponents.
Keystone US Senate Vote Hangs in Balance after Obama Remarks
Supporters of the Keystone XL pipeline in the U.S. Senate scrambled on Monday to gather votes to pass a bill that authorizes the project to help send Canadian oil to the U.S. Gulf, a task made harder after President Barack Obama made his toughest comments yet on the topic. With her chamber stuck at 59 votes in favor of Keystone XL, Senator Mary Landrieu, a Louisiana Democrat, worked hard to gather one last vote needed to pass a bill that the House of Representatives approved on Friday. The Senate is expected to vote as early as 6:15 p.m.
US House Set to Pass Keystone, but Senate a Vote Shy
The Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives prepared to approve the Keystone XL pipeline on Friday, but a similar bill struggled to get enough support in the Senate and President Barack Obama indicated he might use his veto if the bill does get through Congress. Republicans were confident of passing the House bill, which would circumvent the need for approval of TransCanada Corp's $8 billion project by the Obama administration. "We are going to make it as easy as possible for the Senate to finally get a bill to the president's desk that approves this long-overdue Keystone XL pipeline…
US Senator to Propose Vote to Approve Keystone Pipeline
U.S. Democratic Senator Mary Landrieu said she will propose debate later on Wednesday and a vote on Thursday to approve the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada. Landrieu of Louisiana, who faces a runoff election in December to retain her seat, said on the Senate floor she was "confident" she has the votes to pass a bill on TransCanada's $8 billion project. "I believe it is time to act," said Landrieu, chair of the Senate Energy Committee. A Senate leadership aide said there was no decision yet on the timing of a potential vote on the Hoeven-Landrieu bill…
Joe Barton: Lift Oil Export Ban
A senior U.S. Congressman from Texas has come out in full support of the United States lifting the 40-year old ban on crude oil exports, putting him at odds with fellow House Republicans wary of weighing in on the controversial issue. Rep. Joe Barton, who until now has maintained a relatively neutral public stance on a topic that has divided Republican members of the House energy and commerce committee, told Reuters in a statement that the time was right for the United States to overhaul its long-standing restrictions on exporting crude oil.
Oil Producers Hope DC Talks Ease Export Ban
Recent meetings between U.S. oil producers and Commerce Department officials have fueled industry hopes that the Obama administration may soon begin to ease a longstanding ban on oil exports. Although it would require an act of Congress to end the four-decade export ban, some analysts and executives believe the White House may be getting ready to open up the taps a bit, allowing some export of a super-light form of oil known as condensate, which falls into a regulatory gray area. Executives…
U.S. Senate Moves To Debate Energy Savings Bill; Keystone Bid Stalls
The U.S. Senate agreed on Tuesday to advance a bipartisan energy efficiency bill, but it could die unless lawmakers end a stalemate on how to proceed with the long-delayed Keystone XL oil pipeline project. The Senate voted 79-20 to move toward a debate on the energy bill, making it the first big energy legislation to reach the Senate floor since 2007. Sponsored by Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Republican Senator Rob Portman of Ohio, the White House-backed bill would save energy through tougher building codes and by making the federal governmentinstall new technologies.
US Senate Democrats Press For Speedier LNG Export Permits
The Obama administration must speed up approvals of liquefied natural gas exports to help boost global supplies and help U.S. allies, five Senate Democrats said on Friday. The lawmakers, all from natural gas-producing states, urged the Energy Department to place additional weight on national security matters in its review of LNG export applications. The Democrats said they wanted to show the White House that there is significant Democratic support for speeding up gas exports, even though Republicans typically lead the chorus.
US Senators Push for Keystone Pipeline Approval
In the latest effort by U.S. lawmakers to breathe life into the long-delayed Keystone XL oil pipeline, Senator John Hoeven re-introduced legislation on Thursday that would force congressional approval of the controversial project. Hoeven, a North Dakota Republican, said he has 55 co-sponsors for a bill that would take the power to approve the TransCanada Corp's pipeline out of the hands of the State Department and put it in the hands of Congress. The tally includes all 45 Republican senators plus 11 Democrats in the 100-member Senate, but is short of the 60 votes needed to clear procedural hurdles.
Obama urged for Early decision on Keystone
Eleven U.S. Democratic senators on Thursday called on President Barack Obama to make a final decision on whether to approve TransCanada Corp's Keystone XL pipeline from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast no later than May 31. The group included several lawmakers expected to face tough re-election battles this year, notably Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, who chairs of the Senate Energy Committee. "We need a definitive timeline laid out, a timeline that reduces the comment period for federal agencies, officials and other entities," the senators wrote to Obama.
U.S. Democratic Senators press Obama for Keystone decision
Eleven U.S. Democratic senators on Thursday called on President Barack Obama to make a final decision on whether to approve TransCanada Corp's Keystone XL pipeline from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast no later than May 31. The group included several lawmakers expected to face tough re-election battles this year, notably Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, who chairs of the Senate Energy Committee. "We need a definitive timeline laid out, a timeline that reduces the comment period for federal agencies, officials and other entities," the senators wrote to Obama.
Industry Urges Senate for Vessel Discharge Legislation
On March 13, a diverse coalition of 59 national and regional organizations representing a wide array of business, maritime and labor interests signed on to a letter to Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee leadership, Chairman John Rockefeller (D-WV) and Ranking Member John Thune (R-SD), thanking them for cosponsoring S. 2094, a bill that would establish a uniform national framework for the regulation of ballast water and other vessel discharges, and urging swift Committee consideration and approval. S. 2094, introduced on March 6 by Sens.
AWO Praises Vessel Discharge Legislation
The American Waterways Operators, the national trade association representing the tugboat, towboat and barge industry, praised yesterday’s Senate introduction of a bill calling for the enactment of a uniform national standard for the regulation of ballast water and other vessel discharges, legislation widely viewed as essential to ending the existing confusing, costly and ineffective patchwork of state and federal rules. AWO specifically called attention to the instrumental leadership of the bill’s lead sponsors, Sens.
Offshore Insights from OMSA's Ben Billings
Ben Billings serves as President & CEO of the Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA), a nationwide trade association headquartered in New Orleans that represents more than 200 member companies. OMSA’s membership includes approximately 100 firms operating more than 1,200 vessels that provide transportation services to the offshore oil and gas industry in the Gulf of Mexico and around the world. It’s arguably a very good time to be at the helm of OMSA, with a resurgent U.S. Gulf of Mexico deepwater market…
