Hunter Biden contacted US ambassador in 2016 over Burisma deal, NYT reports
Hunter Biden contacted the U.S. Ambassador to Italy in 2016 while his father Joe Biden was Vice President, to discuss a geothermal energy project with the Ukrainian company Burisma where Hunter Biden served as a board member, according to an article by the New York Times, which cited records obtained by the newspaper. The newspaper reported that Hunter Biden sent at least one letter to the ambassador of the U.S. Embassy at Rome in Rome's name on behalf Burisma Energy Company. Abbe Lowell told his attorney on Wednesday that Hunter Biden…
Trump Calls for Plan to Give Money to U.S. O&G Industry
U.S. President Donald Trump called on the federal government to come up with a way to pay out the U.S. oil and gas industry on Tuesday, the day after crude oil prices hit a historic low, dipping into negative territory for the first time ever."We will never let the great U.S. Oil & Gas Industry down. I have instructed the Secretary of Energy and Secretary of the Treasury to formulate a plan which will make funds available so that these very important companies and jobs will be secured long into the future!" Trump tweeted. (Reporting by Tim Ahmann and Susan Heavey Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
Chevron Cleared to Stay in Venezuela
The Trump administration said on Friday it has renewed Chevron Corp's license to drill for oil and gas in Venezuela despite sanctions, signaling it sees value in having the U.S. oil producer operate in a country on the verge of economic and political collapse.The Treasury Department said it renewed the license for three months for Chevron, the last U.S. oil company operating in Venezuela, a member of the OPEC producer group. The license runs through Oct. 25, 2019."Our operations in Venezuela continue in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations…
Trump Thanks Saudi Arabia Over Oil Prices
U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday praised Saudi Arabia over recent oil prices and called for prices to go even lower, likening it to "a big tax cut" that could boost the U.S. and global economies."Oil prices getting lower. Great! Like a big Tax Cut for America and the World. Enjoy! $54, was just $82. Thank you to Saudi Arabia, but let’s go lower!"(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Lisa Lambert Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
US Grants Temporary Iran Oil Waivers to Eight Countries
The United States has granted exemptions to eight countries allowing them to temporarily continue buying Iranian oil, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Monday, as Washington reimposed sanctions on Iran's banking, energy and shipping industries.Some of the eight countries - China, India, Greece, Italy, Taiwan, Japan, Turkey and South Korea - include OPEC member Iran's top customers.Pompeo said more than 20 countries have already cut their oil imports from Iran, reducing purchases by more than 1 million barrels per day.(Reporting by Lesley Wroughton, Susan Heavey and Humeyra Pamuk; Editing by Frances Kerry)
Trump Administration Proposes Rolling Back Obama's Clean Power Plan
The Trump administration on Tuesday proposed replacing the Clean Power Plan, the centerpiece of former President Barack Obama's regulatory efforts to combat climate change.The proposal released by the Environmental Protection Agency is now open for a public comment period. A final EPA rule is expected later this year.The effort to re-write the plan is the latest move by the EPA under President Donald Trump, a Republican, to roll back environmental protections put in place by Obama, Trump's Democratic predecessor.EPA's proposal…
Trump Renews Attack on OPEC, Says Oil Prices Too High
U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday renewed his attack on OPEC and again criticized the coalition of petroleum producing countries for rising oil prices."Oil prices are too high, OPEC is at it again. Not good!" Trump wrote in a post on Twitter.(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Doina Chiacu)
Trump Administration Seeks $100 bln Cut in U.S.-China Trade Deficit -WSJ
The Trump administration last week asked a top Chinese economic official for a $100 billon reduction in the U.S.-China trade deficit, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. The report comes one day after U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday tweeted that China had been asked to develop a plan to reduce its trade surplus with the United States, but cited "a One Billion Dollar reduction." Wrting by Susan Heavey
Trump's Tariff Announcement on Track for This Week
U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement on steel and aluminum tariffs is on track to come by the end of this week, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters on Wednesday. Trump is also seeking to sign a presidential proclamation on Thursday in an effort to set his tariff plan in motion, Axios media outlet reported separately, citing two senior administration officials. Reporting by Susan Heavey
Trump Troubled About Oil Flow into North Korea
U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said he was "very disappointed that China is allowing oil to go into North Korea" and that such moves would prevent "a friendly solution" to the crisis over Pyongyang's nuclear program. "Caught RED HANDED - very disappointed that China is allowing oil to go into North Korea. There will never be a friendly solution to the North Korea problem if this continues to happen!" Trump wrote in a post on Twitter. China earlier on Thursday said there had been no U.N. sanction-breaking oil sales…
Statoil to Pay a $4 Mln Fine Over Swaps Manipulation
Statoil ASA will pay $4 million to settle U.S. charges that the energy company tried to manipulate a key propane benchmark in order to benefit its NYMEX-cleared swaps position, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said on Tuesday. In a statement, the U.S. regulatory agency said Norway-based Statoil in late 2011 had attempted to manipulate the Argus Far East Index, a key index of propane prices. Reporting by Susan Heavey and Tim Ahmann
US Army Takes Steps to Review Dakota Access Pipeline
The U.S. Army on Wednesday said it had taken initial steps to "expeditiously review requests for approvals to construct and operate" Energy Transfer Partners LP's Dakota Access pipeline, but that the move does not mean the project's easement has been approved. "The Assistant Secretary for the Army Civil Works will make a decision on the pipeline once a full review and analysis is completed in accordance with the directive," it said in a statement. (Reporting by Susan Heavey)
Trump Economic Adviser: Coal Can Be Competitive Again
U.S. President Donald Trump's top economic adviser on Friday said the nation's withdrawal from the Paris climate accord will help keep energy markets competitive, allowing for a potential comeback in coal prices and the U.S. coal industry. Speaking in an interview on CNBC, National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn said that despite competition from cheap natural gas, "at some point in the cycle, coal will be competitive again," adding: "We need to keep our options available to have the cheapest available energy" on a global market. (Reporting by Susan Heavey and Mohammad Zargham)
US Charges Penn West Petroleum with Accounting Fraud
U.S. securities regulators on Wednesday filed civil accounting fraud charges against Canada-based oil and gas company Penn West Petroleum Ltd and several of its former top finance executives. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleged Penn West Petroleum, which this week changed its name to Obsidian Energy, moved hundreds of millions of dollars from operating expense accounts to capital expenditure accounts. That maneuver, the SEC said, artificially reduced the company's operating costs by as much as 20 percent at times, and improved metrics for oil extraction efficiency.
US Fines Exxon Mobil Over Ukraine-related Sanctions Violations
The U.S. Treasury Department on Thursday announced a civil penalty against Exxon Mobil Corp and its U.S. subsidiaries for violating sanctions regulations related to Ukraine in May 2014, fining the global oil company $2 million. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) found ExxonMobil had not voluntarily self-disclosed the violations, "and that the violations constitute an egregious case," it said in a statement posted online. The heads of the company's U.S. subsidiaries dealt with someone "whose property and interests in property were blocked…
Plume from Flooded Arkema Chemical Plant 'incredibly dangerous'
U.S. emergency officials said on Thursday the plume caused by two explosions at the flood-hit Arkema SA chemical plant in Crosby, Texas, was "incredibly dangerous," noting officials were still trying to evaluate the hazards. "Right now, the question is whether or not we can actually get in and assess the full scale of the impact from an environmental standpoint to an infrastructure stand point," Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Brock Long said at a news briefing. "By all means, yes, the plume is incredibly dangerous." Reporting by Susan Heavey and David Alexander
US Seeks Faster Approval of Small-scale Natural Gas Export
The United States is proposing to speed up approval of small-scale exports of natural gas, including liquefied natural gas (LNG), the U.S. Department of Energy said in a statement released on Friday. The department said the proposed rule would "expedite the review and approval of applications to export small amounts of natural gas in the emerging small-scale LNG export market," which it said includes the Caribbean, Central America and South America. To date, most applications for export approval have been for larger-scale natural gas exports, but Central and South American markets require smaller volumes, the Energy Department said.
About 5-6 mln Without Power Post-Irma
Five million to 6 million power customers lack electricity after Hurricane Irma swept through the Florida and other parts of the U.S. southeast, leaving about 15 million people without power, federal emergency officials said on Tuesday. "Obviously, power restoration is one of the biggest goals," Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Brock Long told reporters at a news conference. He added that he was traveling to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands to meet with their governors later on Tuesday. Reporting by Susan Heavey and Doina Chiacu
U.S. Interior Chief Seeks Changes at U.S. Monuments
The head of the U.S. Department of the Interior urged President Donald Trump to lift restrictions on activities such as logging and mining in or to shrink the footprints of 10 national monuments, according to the Washington Post. The Post, citing a copy of the recommendations, said late on Sunday that U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke had recommended reducing boundaries for Utah’s Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante, Nevada’s Gold Butte and Oregon’s Cascade-Siskiyou. Zinke also called for relaxing current restrictions within some of the national monuments' boundaries for activities such as grazing…
SolarCity to Pay $29.5 Mln to Resolve US Gov't Allegations
SolarCity will pay $29.5 million to settle a long-running investigation into allegations it violated federal law by submitting inflated claims to the government through a popular stimulus program set up during the Obama administration, the U.S. Justice Department said Friday. The department said there was no determination of liability as part of the settlement with SolarCity, now owned by Tesla Inc , and that the company would also drop related litigation against the government. The probe centered on whether SolarCity and other companies were making misrepresentations about the fair market value of solar systems that received grants.
