Trump Nominates Brouillette as New Energy Secretary
The U.S. Department of Energy said on Thursday that President Donald Trump had formally nominated Deputy Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette, a former vice president of Ford Motor Co and Louisiana state energy regulator, to head the department.If confirmed by the Senate, Brouillette will replace Rick Perry, who said last month he would step down by the end of the year. He is expected to keep advancing Trump's policy of maximizing oil, gas and coal output while slashing regulations on energy facilities."If confirmed, I will further Secretary Perry's legacy of promoting energy independence…
US Energy Secretary Perry to Step Down
U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry, who told President Donald Trump last week he would resign late in the year, intends to step down on December 1, the energy department said on Monday."While Secretary Perry continues to serve at the pleasure of the President, it is his intent to depart DOE December 1," an energy department official said in an email.In recent weeks Perry has found himself engulfed in the impeachment probe threatening Trump's presidency over his work in Ukraine.
US Considering Sanctions Over Nord Stream 2
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he was considering sanctions over Russia's Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline project -- which the United States has told European companies to avoid -- and warned Germany against being dependent on Russia for the fuel."We're protecting Germany from Russia and Russia is getting billions and billions of dollars from Germany," Trump told reporters at an appearance with Polish President Andrzej Duda at the White House.Nord Stream 2, a 760-mile (1,225-km) pipeline project to ship gas from Russia under the Baltic Sea to Germany…
Oil Falls Near 2% as U.S.-China Trade War Intensifies
Oil prices slipped nearly 2 percent on Tuesday, on track to fall to their lowest levels in over a month as renewed doubts over U.S.-China trade talks stoked concerns over global growth and demand even though U.S. sanctions on Iran and Venezuela tightened supply and helped stem losses.Brent futures were down $1.36, or 1.9 percent, at $69.88 a barrel by 10:39 a.m. EDT (1439 GMT), while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was down $1.14, or 1.8 percent, at $61.11 per barrel.If the futures close at their current levels, it would be the lowest settle for Brent since April 4 and WTI since March 29.U.S.
DOE Approves Port Arthur LNG Project
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the signing of a long-term order authorizing the export of domestically produced liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Sempra Energy’s Port Arthur LNG export project to be built in Port Arthur, Texas. The U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry signed the authorization allowing Port Arthur LNG to export approximately 13.5 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of LNG to countries that do not have a free-trade agreement (FTA) with the U.S. during the first U.S.-EU Energy Council High-Level Energy Forum in Brussels…
Tellurian Clears Hurdle for LNG Export
Texas-based natural gas company Tellurian has announced that the US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy has issued the long-term authorisation for Driftwood LNG to export domestically produced LNG from its proposed export facility to non-free trade agreement (non-FTA) countries.U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry said, “I am pleased to announce the order signed today authorizing Driftwood, owned by Tellurian Inc., to export up to 3.88 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas as LNG, to any country that does not have…
US LNG Opens Floodgates to Europe
The United States has nearly tripled its natural-gas exports to the European Union (EU) since July and signed new licenses seeking to establish American energy as an EU mainstay. US exports of LNG surged following a meeting between Donald Trump and Jean-Claude Juncker in July 2018.In their Joint Statement of 25 July 2018 in Washington D.C., President Juncker and President Trump agreed to strengthen EU-U.S. strategic cooperation with respect to energy. They came in particular to an understanding on the benefits of expanded exports of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the EU gas market.Since the first cargo in April 2016 U.S.
U.S. FERC Approves Two New LNG Export Terminals
The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on Thursday approved construction of two proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminals, Tellurian Inc's Driftwood in Louisiana and Sempra Energy's Port Arthur in Texas.Tellurian said in a release it planned to make a final investment decision on its $30 billion Driftwood project, which includes pipelines and production fields in addition to the liquefaction plant, in 2019 with first LNG production expected in 2023.Sempra has said it planned to make a final investment decision…
DOE Chief Perry: OPEC Bill Could Spike Oil Prices
The United States needs to be cautious about pending legislation that would allow the Justice Department to sue OPEC and other oil producers over supply cuts because it could result in higher prices in the long term, U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry said on Thursday."We need to be really careful before we pass legislation that may have an impact that goes way past its intended consequences," Perry said at a news conference.The bill could curtail supply management by oil producers in global markets, possibly leading to a petroleum glut and lower prices.
US Offers Oil from Emergency Reserve
The U.S. Energy Department said on Thursday it is offering up to five million barrels of sweet crude oil from the national emergency reserve in a sale mandated by previous laws to raise funds to modernize the facility.Laws passed by Congress in previous years require the department to hold sales to pay for improvements to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve which is held in caverns on the coast of Texas and Louisiana.The delivery period for the oil will be from May 1 to May 14 for oil from the reserve's West Hackberry and Big Hill site, and from May 1 to may 31 from the Bryan Mound site.
DOE: $28M Available for Floating Offshore Wind
The U.S. Department of Energy announced up to $28 million in funding for a new Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) program, Aerodynamic Turbines, Lighter and Afloat, with Nautical Technologies and Integrated Servo-control (ATLANTIS). ATLANTIS projects will develop new technologies for floating, offshore wind turbines (FOWTs) using the discipline of control co-design (CCD).“The United States has 13,000 miles of shoreline, which is a huge opportunity to lead the world in capitalizing offshore wind,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry in a press release.
DOE Streamlines LNG Export Requirements
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) would now only require U.S. LNG exporters to report the country or countries of LNG deliveries, not country of end-use, to satisfy the DOE’s destination reporting requirement.Further, DOE announced additional efforts to streamline the reporting requirements for LNG export supply sales and contracts.“With the United States now being the world’s top producer of oil and natural gas, it is imperative that U.S. LNG companies have all the tools they need to get their American product into the international market,” said U.S.
Sempra Energy's Port Arthur LNG in Pact with PGNiG
Poland's state-owned gas company Polish Oil & Gas Company (PGNiG) and Port Arthur LNG, LLC, a subsidiary of Sempra Energy, have entered into a definitive 20-year sale-and-purchase agreement for liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the Port Arthur LNG liquefaction-export facility under development in Jefferson County, Texas. The agreement defines basic terms and conditions of a 20-year contract to be finalized between the parties for the sales and purchase of two million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of LNG, which equals about 2.7 billion cubic…
Poland Sees First Nuclear Power After 2030
Poland expects its first nuclear power plant to start operating after 2030 as the country aims to cut its use of coal in producing electricity, Deputy Environment Minister Michal Kurtyka said.The east European country, which hosts global climate talks in December, generates around 80 percent of its electricity from coal in outdated power plants, many of which will have to close in the coming decade.Poland has considered building a nuclear power plant for years, but has yet to take a binding decision on the project."The discussion over launching the nuclear power plant has accelerated. It is mostly about the international partnership.
U.S. Calls on Hungary and Neighbors to Shun Russian Gas Pipelines
U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry called on Hungary and its neighbours to reject Russian gas pipelines which Washington says are being used to cement Moscow's grip on central and eastern Europe.Energy diversification would be crucial for the region, as Russia has used energy as a weapon in the past, he said."Russia is using a pipeline project Nord stream 2 and a multi-line Turkish stream to try to solidify its control over the security and the stability of Central and eastern Europe," Perry added during a visit to Budapest.Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said Turkish stream…
US warns sanctions still an option against Nord Stream 2
The United States could yet impose new sanctions to try to block construction of the Russian Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline across the Baltic Sea to the European Union, the U.S. ambassador to the EU said on Tuesday.Asked if Donald Trump could take further measures to thwart a project which the president has said would leave EU countries even more beholden to Moscow for their energy, Gordon Sondland said: "We have not deployed the full set of tools yet that could significantly undermine if not outright stop the project."Addressing an audience at the European Policy Centre think-tank in Brussels…
US Allows Williams More Time for NY-Penn. Natgas Pipeline
U.S. energy regulators gave Williams Cos Inc two more years until December 2020 to get the approvals needed to build its long-delayed Constitution natural gas pipeline from Pennsylvania to New York, according to a federal filing made available on Tuesday.Before it can start building the project, Williams still needs water quality certification. New York state denied the permit in 2016, saying the company failed to provide sufficient information to determine whether the project would comply with state water standards.Williams sued in federal court…
Japan Spent $4 Bln to Back Global LNG Infrastructure Push
The Japanese government along with private companies have spent $4 billion in the past year on liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects, mainly in Asia and across the supply chain, to help spur demand for the fuel, the country's trade minister said on Monday.Hiroshige Seko, speaking at the annual LNG Producer-Consumer Conference in Nagoya, Japan, said Japan offered training to 200 people from 15 countries to develop a workforce to work in the LNG supply chain.Seko announced a year ago that Japan would offer $10 billion to support projects…
Bill Allowing US to Sue OPEC Drawing Renewed Interest
With oil prices hitting fresh four-year highs, long-dormant proposals to allow the United States to sue OPEC nations are getting a fresh look in Congress, though they were once considered a longshot to becoming law.A U.S. Senate subcommittee on Wednesday will hear testimony on the so-called No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels Act, or NOPEC, which would revoke the sovereign immunity that has long shielded OPEC members from U.S. legal action.The bill would change U.S. antitrust law to allow OPEC producers to be sued for collusion; it would make it illegal to restrain oil or gas production or set those prices - removing sovereign immunity that U.S.
Oil Rises as Investors Fret Over Iranian Supply Gaps
Oil edged higher on Thursday, driven by the prospect of a shortfall in global supply once U.S. sanctions against major crude exporter Iran come into force in just five weeks' time.U.S. President Donald Trump this week demanded that OPEC raise production to prevent further price rises ahead of key congressional elections in early November.Analysts say the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and partner Russia appear unlikely at this point to respond immediately to Trump's demands, while U.S energy secretary Rick Perry has also ruled out using U.S.
