NOIA Comments Support Offshore Leasing Program
he National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) has submitted comments which strongly encourage the Secretary of the Interior to proceed with lease sale planning in all 25 planning areas proposed in the Draft Proposed Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program for 2019-2024 (DPP). Specifically, NOIA supports the annual offering of all acreage in the Central and Western Gulf of Mexico and the opening of the Eastern Gulf of Mexico as soon as the current moratorium expires, and recommends conducting lease sales early in the plan in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas as well as in the Mid, South, and North Atlantic and Southern California Planning areas.
PHMSA Orders Further Keystone Analysis, Studies
A U.S. regulator's preliminary investigation into the biggest oil pipeline spill this year has raised a red flag that could trigger an extensive and costly inspection of tens of thousands of miles of underground energy lines. The 5,000-barrel leak on TransCanada Corp's Keystone pipeline on Nov. 16 in South Dakota might have stemmed from damage caused by a weight put in place when it was built in 2008, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration said in a report published on Tuesday. Weights are used to prevent pipelines from moving and reduce the risk of damage or ruptures when water tables rise.
California Wind Demand Energizes Transmission Firms
A firm controlled by Philip Anschutz, the billionaire entertainment and pro sports magnate, will soon build the largest wind farm in the United States to serve utilities in California, where officials have set ambitious green power goals. The $5 billion project, however, will be constructed 700 miles away in Wyoming, a state better known for coal mines and oil fields. The vast distance between the two states provides a different Anschutz-owned firm with another big opportunity: a $3 billion project building transmission lines to deliver the power - one of a dozen similar power-line projects by other companies across the West.
GM, Honda to announce Fuel Cell Technology Advance
General Motors Co and Honda Motor Co are expected on Monday to announce an expansion of their collaboration on fuel cell technology development, people familiar with the plans said following a notice of a press conference. GM and Honda on Friday said two senior executives would hold a news conference in Detroit with Michigan's Lieutenant Governor, Brian Calley. Mark Reuss, GM's executive vice president for global product development and Toshiaki Mikoshiba, chief operating officer for Honda's North American region, are scheduled to make "an important advanced technology announcement," the companies said. The statement did not elaborate.
SoCalGas Completes Aliso Canyon Well Tests
Southern California Gas said Wednesday it completed safety review tests at all wells at the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility in the Los Angeles area, which shut in October 2015 following a massive methane leak. The utility, however, said it would not be ready to request state regulatory approval to inject gas into the giant field until it "has met all of the requirements" of the state's comprehensive safety review. Reporting by Scott DiSavino
U.S. Task Force: 44 Recommendations to cut NatGas Leaks
A U.S. interagency task force on Tuesday issued recommendations aimed at reducing the risk of incidents involving natural gas facilities in the wake of a major leak from the Aliso Canyon storage facility in California last year. Operators should phase out 'single point of failure' designs, that hindered the ability to swiftly control and repair the leak at Aliso Canyon, at storage facilities, except under limited circumstances, the task force put together in the wake of the 2015 incident said in a report. The task force was co-chaired by Franklin Orr, Under Secretary for Science and Energy at the U.S.
SoCalGas Completes more California Aliso Canyon Well Tests
More wells passed safety inspections at the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility in Los Angeles, Southern California Gas Co said on Monday, but the company has more work to do before it can inject gas into the giant field the utility shut last fall due to a massive methane leak that was not plugged until February. Under state law, SoCalGas cannot inject gas into Aliso Canyon until the California Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR) approves the company's testing of the 114 wells at the facility to ensure their safety. Several local groups want the storage field permanently shut, as do many residents who had to evacuate their homes due to the leak.
Moyo, Austin Join Chevron Board
Chevron Corporation announced that Dr. Dambisa Moyo and Dr. Wanda Austin have been elected to Chevron's board of directors. Dr. Moyo's appointment is effective October 11, 2016; she will serve on the company's Audit Committee. Dr. Austin's appointment is effective December 1, 2016; she will serve on the company's Board Nominating and Governance Committee and Public Policy Committee. "Dr. Moyo and Dr. Austin bring unique insights that will be valuable to the board," said John Watson, Chevron's chairman of the board and chief executive officer. "Dr. Moyo has significant knowledge of macroeconomics, geopolitics and global markets. Dr.
California Power Grid Tested as Heat Soars
California's power grid operator extended its call for consumers to conserve electricity into Thursday as a heat wave continued to bake the state, especially the inland cities. Electricity supplies statewide were expected to be tight as consumers cranked up their air conditioners, the California Independent System Operator (ISO) said in a statement. The ISO said it was also dealing with power plant outages, reductions in transmission line capacity and the possibility of limited imports because of high temperatures in neighboring states. The ISO forecast that demand would reach 46…
PG&E California Natgas storage Facility Shut due to Leaks
Northern California power and gas company Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) said on Friday its McDonald Island gas storage facility in San Joaquin County remained out of service after the company detected small methane leaks from some of its wells in June. PG&E discovered the small leaks during an inspection the state required of gas storage operators after the massive leak discovered in October from Southern California Gas' (SoCalGas) Aliso Canyon storage facility in the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles. That leak, the state's largest ever, was not plugged until February and area homeowners had to relocate.
First Alaskan North Slope Cude Export Planned for Nicaragua
Alaskan North Slope (ANS) crude will be shipped to Nicaragua for the first time in July, two trade sources said on Friday, underscoring a shift in oil flows to and from the U.S. West Coast. A parcel of the medium grade crude is on its way to the Pacific Area Lightering (PAL) near southern California on Exxon Mobil Corp's Liberty Bay, a U.S. flagged vessel, according to the sources and Reuters vessel tracking data. From there, it will transfer to the Liberian-flagged Panamax tanker Chantal for delivery to Nicaragua, where Swiss commodities trader Trafigura Trading LLC will take the crude, said the sources who were not authorized to speak to the media about the matter.
BOEM, BSEE Find No Significant Impact from OCS Well Stimulation
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) today published a joint environmental assessment on the use of well stimulation treatments in federal waters off California. BOEM and BSEE completed a comprehensive environmental analysis evaluating the potential impacts from the use of well stimulation treatments on the 23 oil and gas platforms currently in operation on the Pacific Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), and based on the analysis in the Programmatic Environmental Assessment (EA), issued a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) from the use of specific well stimulation treatments in oil and gas activities in the region.
Long Beach Port : LEED 'Gold Status' for Conservation Efforts
Four structures at the Port of Long Beach’s newest marine terminal recently earned the coveted “gold” status in the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system, which encourages the use of Earth-friendly features that save energy, conserve water and use recycled materials. Located at Long Beach Container Terminal’s new Pier E facility at Middle Harbor, the four buildings function as administrative offices and meeting space, an information technology center, and maintenance and operations structures.
Venoco Files for Bankruptcy
U.S. petroleum company Venoco Inc filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Friday, joining more than 40 energy-related firms that have sought court protection from creditors since oil prices started plummeting 18 months back. Denver, Colorado based-Venoco listed assets worth between $100 million and $500 million and liabilities of between $500 million and $1 billion. Venoco, which was taken private in 2012, said on Feb. 16 that it was discussing debt restructuring options with its secured lenders after missing a $13.7 million interest payment on senior unsecured notes.
SoCalGas to Be Arraigned over LA Area Methane Leak
Southern California Gas Co is to be arraigned on criminal charges on Wednesday over a huge methane leak near Los Angeles that forced thousands of residents from their homes, officials said. SoCalGas, a division of San Diego-based Sempra Energy , faces four misdemeanor charges for failing to report the release of hazardous materials from Oct. 23 to Oct. 26, and discharging air contaminants beginning on Oct. 23. Attorneys for SoCalGas will attend Wednesday's arraignment in Los Angeles County Superior Court in Santa Clarita, company spokesman Javier Mendoza said.
California Gas Well Leak Fix Draws Closer
A calamitous natural gas leak near Los Angeles is inching closer to finally being plugged after months of trial and error with different techniques aimed at sealing a foul-smelling hole that has forced thousands of residents from their homes. Southern California Gas Co, a unit of Sempra Energy, this week said it will start drilling a second relief well on Monday. A second well, experts said, would offer a backup on the off chance that what is widely considered the company's fail-safe option - a relief well that is now less than 200 feet from intercepting the bottom of the leaky well - runs into trouble.
California Decision Looms on Rooftop Solar Energy
California, which boasts more than half of the households with solar panels in the United States, will decide on Thursday whether to stick with a policy that has allowed rooftop systems producing electricity to flourish or to implement reforms that would make it more expensive to go solar. The decision by California's Public Utilities Commission is being watched far beyond the Golden State, which has long led the nation on renewable energy policies. Though solar still makes up a small portion of the nation's power generation, government mandates to reduce…
Regulators Approve Health Study on California Gas Leak
Regional air quality regulators in California voted on Saturday to require the utility responsible for a ruptured underground pipeline in the Los Angeles area to underwrite an independent study on the health effects of a huge methane leak from the site. The natural gas leak in Aliso Canyon, just outside the Los Angeles neighborhood of Porter Ranch, began on Oct. 23 and ranks as the worst ever in California. Odorized methane fumes sickened scores of people and led to the temporary relocation of thousands of residents from the northern Los Angeles community near the leaking storage field in Aliso Canyon.
California Residents Vent Frustrations Over Gas Leak
California residents sickened and forced to evacuate their homes because of the biggest methane gas leak in state history will have a chance Friday to voice frustrations and demand answers from top officials at a community meeting. Neither the state nor the utility have been able to stop the leak that has affected thousands of residents since it was detected on Oct. 23 at an underground natural gas storage field in Porter Ranch in northern Los Angeles. Environmental activists such as Erin Brockovich have called it the worst leak in the United States since the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
California Officials Delay Plans to Mitigate Massive Gas Leak
Southern California air quality officials on Saturday delayed plans to capture and burn off natural gas leaking from an underground well near an affluent Los Angeles neighborhood, citing the possible risk of a fire. The move came at a public hearing where Porter Ranch residents, many of whom have been displaced or sickened by the methane leaking from the underground storage well, expressed frustration over the failure of the state or the utility, Southern California Gas Co, to stop the leak. The leak was first detected on Oct. 23 at an underground natural gas field in Porter Ranch, which is home to more than 30,000 people.
