Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee TODAY Releases the Majority's Priorities (Videos)

Chinese Corruption And An Alaskan Irony

Van Meurs Hosts A June Shallow Water Leasing Workshop In Mexico City

TODAY's Consumer Energy Alliance relevant energy news links!


Seattle Is A Nest Of Alaska Friends and Critics

by

Dave Harbour 

Associated Press: Seattle Mayor Ed Murray: Port needs new permit to host Shell's offshore Arctic drilling fleet
Mayor Ed Murray threw a wrench into plans for a 400-foot oil-drilling rig to arrive in Seattle when he announced Monday that the Port of Seattle can't host Shell's offshore Arctic fleet until…. Environmentalists have already sued over the plan, saying the port broke state law in February when it signed a two-year lease with Foss Maritime, whose client is Shell, without doing an environmental review.  (More….)

Our friends and critics in Seattle have one thing in common: they like the money Alaska generates for their economy.  

But the critics can't have it both ways: all will suffer if they persist in sending negative economic signals North (i.e. as they have over the years) and opposing our OCS, ANWR, NPR-A, mining, timber and other, reasonable and lawful, natural resource activities that help both economies.

One of Alaska's good friends is the Seattle Chamber and its long-time Alaska Committee.

In 2002, the operations director for the Transportation Institute, Richard Berkowitz, asked your author to address the Alaska Committee on the subject of Seattle's relationship with Alaska.  The Chamber's members appreciate the symbiotic relationship shared by their city and Alaska.

The Consumer Energy Alliance released a new poll today sampling the feelings of Iowa and New Hampshire voters on the subject of offshore drilling above the Arctic circle. It’s a subject which should be of particular interest to both voters and presidential aspirants as recent moves by the Obama administration, along with the Departments of the Interior and Energy seem to be edging us back into the game….  (Find the poll here.)

Today, Rich alerted us to a position adopted by the City of Seattle that a new permit was needed for Alaska OCS related dock operations controlled by the Port of Seattle (See AP story above).  

The oil company involved has not yet commented, but we have observed that even small delays can deliver a mortal blow to Arctic, seasonal exploration activities.

Alaskan business and governmental decision makers who monitor environmental strategies will likely be offended if not outraged that the City's leadership could undertake to irrationally bite one of the hands that feeds its hungry economy.

We also provide a copy of the letter the Institute dispatched, challenging the city for attacking a state whose economy is joined so tightly to their own.

This reminded us of that speech we gave over a decade ago on this same subject.  We attach it here because it gives our readers a good deal of background on the subject of Seattle-Alaska relationships.  Readers will also be interested in having for their research files some background on the broken promises of statehood.

We hope Alaska's corporate and governmental leaders (i.e. both here and in Congress) can calculate a way to reasonably but forcefully respond to the Seattle's misguided position…and thank our friends at the Transportation Institute for educating city leaders.       

 


Commentary: Please note irony in Chinese/Alaskan approaches to state control of energy projects

As Chinese communist leaders seek to expose corruption in state owned entities and move toward a market driven economy, Alaska's leaders move toward more state ownership of energy projects ranging from competing gas pipelines (?) and gas distribution system to hydro to geothermal to wind.  

State ownership is a seductive but dangerous undertaking.  

Since money spent does not belong to bureaucratic and politically appointed decision makers, investors can trust in one thing: that outcomes and risks will be much harder to anticipate — and they will not necessarily reflect the judgment of prudent persons with personal skin in the game.  

Should government participants begin arranging jobs or contracts for friends, the risks could become much greater.  (See yesterday's Commentary which partly involves the concept of corruption in state-owned enterprises.)  -dh  

Calgary Herald Bloomberg Report by Aibing Guo.  

… What happens next to China’s energy sector is the subject of much speculation. CNPC and Sinopec Group’s listed units spiked on April 27 on rumors they could merge after a newspaper reported that China may cut the number of its state-owned enterprises to 40 from 112. In March, people familiar with the government’s plans told Bloomberg that reform could see companies bundled by industry and their control handed to state asset-management firms.

The reforms are part of China’s bid to bolster flagging economic growth and Xi’s insistence that market forces play a more decisive role. State-owned companies account for roughly a third of the economy and more than a quarter of them are loss- making, Barclays Plc analysts said in August. (More….)      

 

 

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee today released the third installment in its video series highlighting the priorities of its Republican members. In today’s video, U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, outlines his plans to increase local control and management of Utah’s natural resources.   

 


Pedro Van Meurs, Mexico, Shallow Water Leases, Photo by Dave HarbourMexico is not 'northern' but many of our northern gas pipeline readers will be interested in this new workshop offering by our friend, Pedro Van Meurs.  -dh

The final terms for the first shallow water bidding round will be announced on May 29.   At the same time, the terms for the areas allocated to PEMEX are also known.  This means at that date the first Mexican commercial-fiscal package for petroleum will be complete.

On June 8 and 9, 2015 in Mexico City, Van Meurs will host a workshop providing an independent analysis and evaluation of these terms.  This workshop will be beneficial for all those interested in investing in Mexico’s petroleum industry.   

Click here for more information about this workshop.


Your NGP one-stop-shop presents today's relevant Consumer Energy Alliance energy news links:

The Consumer Energy Alliance released a new poll today sampling the feelings of Iowa and New Hampshire voters on the subject of offshore drilling above the Arctic circle. It’s a subject which should be of particular interest to both voters and presidential aspirants as recent moves by the Obama administration, along with the Departments of the Interior and Energy seem to be edging us back into the game….  (Find the poll here.)

Digital Journal: Poll: Iowa and New Hampshire Voters Support Arctic Drilling, Say Energy is Important Issue in 2016 Race  
Continuing the trend of energy policy as a key issue in nationwide elections, voters in Iowa and New Hampshire showed overwhelming support for U.S. energy leadership in Arctic offshore energy production. The results show offshore energy policy is an important focus even for both Iowa and New Hampshire voters, just as Presidential candidates start canvassing the states.
 
Hot Air: POTUS contenders take note: Iowa and New Hampshire voters support Arctic drilling 
The Consumer Energy Alliance released a new poll today sampling the feelings of Iowa and New Hampshire voters on the subject of offshore drilling above the Arctic circle. It’s a subject which should be of particular interest to both voters and presidential aspirants as recent moves by the Obama administration, along with the Departments of the Interior and Energy seem to be edging us back into the game. Some of the loudest voices on the Left are already up in arms and Hillary will be forced to answer their demands at some point.
 
Platts: OTC 2015, Day 1: Elected officials ask oil and gas to keep improving communication 
Every hero needs a sidekick, every dog needs its day, and every oil and gas conference has to talk about bettering communication with the public, it seems. The 2015 Offshore Technology Conference in Houston this week is no exception. Today is the first day of the conference, which regularly brings in about 90,000 attendees (or more) to hear from industry execs and elected officials and to learn about the companies, organizations and countries represented in booths and demonstrations.
 
Houston Chronicle: OTC: Beyond cheap oil *OTC Panel Coverage
The annual Offshore Technology Conference could be the biggest ever despite the lowest oil prices in years. Exhibitors filled 696,000 square feet at the 2014 Offshore Technology Conference, and the exhibition space is larger for this year's event beginning Monday at NRG Park.

San Antonio Express-News: Gov. Pat McCrory at OTC: Drilling dollars essential to sell offshore exploration along East Coast *OTC Panel Coverage
When it comes to offshore drilling, money talks. That’s the message North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory delivered to the Offshore Technology Conference on Monday, as he insisted that coastal states supporting drilling near their shores will demand a share of federal oil and gas revenues from the activity.
 
E&E News: N.C. governor eager to see permits, rules for Atlantic exploration *OTC Panel Coverage
North Carolina will continue to press the federal government on expediting permits for offshore seismic surveys and to radically alter the recent proposal to expand drilling to the Atlantic Ocean, the governor vowed yesterday. Speaking to offshore energy industry insiders at the annual Offshore Technology Conference here, Gov. Pat McCrory (R) said he would like to see seismic surveys off his state's shoreline underway by the fall of this year. More modern and advanced surveys are required to get a better sense of what offshore oil and gas potential may lie off North Carolina, he said.
 
Oil & Gas Journal: OTC: Federal, state cooperation vital for offshore energy development *OTC Panel Coverage
US coastal states and the federal government will have to continue having an open and honest dialogue about the safe and reliable exploration and development of offshore oil and gas resources, panelists agreed May 5 in an opening session at the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston.
 
Fuel Fix: Gov. Pat McCrory at OTC: Drilling dollars essential to sell offshore exploration along East Coast *OTC Panel Coverage
When it comes to offshore drilling, money talks. That’s the message North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory delivered to the Offshore Technology Conference on Monday, as he insisted that coastal states supporting drilling near their shores will demand a share of federal oil and gas revenues from the activity.
 
JDNews.com: Governor McCrory Urges More Federal, State Cooperation in Offshore Energy Development *OTC Panel Coverage
Governor Pat McCrory participated in a panel discussion today on U.S. offshore energy development at the annual Offshore Technology Conference in Houston. The governor was joined by U.S. Senator Thom Tillis (NC), House Committee on Natural Resources Chairman Rob Bishop (UT) and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Director Abigail Ross Hopper.
 
Consumer Energy Alliance: Poll: Key Primary Voters Support Arctic Drilling, Say Energy is Important Issue in 2016 Race
Continuing the trend of energy policy as a key issue in nationwide elections, voters in Iowa and New Hampshire showed overwhelming support for U.S. energy leadership in Arctic offshore energy production.  The results show offshore energy policy is an important focus even for both Iowa and New Hampshire voters, just as Presidential candidates start canvassing the states.
 
The New York Times: E.P.A. Carbon Emissions Plan Could Save Thousands of Lives, Study Finds
New carbon emissions standards that were proposed last year for coal-fired power plants in the United States would substantially improve human health and prevent more than 3,000 premature deaths per year, according to a new study.
 
Associated Press: Obama's carbon plan could save 3,500 lives annually
The Obama Administration's hotly debated plan to reduce heat-trapping carbon dioxide from the nation's power plants will save about 3,500 lives a year by cutting back on other types of pollution as well, a new independent study concludes.
 
New York Times: Chemicals Detected in Pa. Drinking Water
An analysis of drinking water sampled from three homes in Bradford County, Pa., revealed traces of a compound commonly found in Marcellus Shale drilling fluids, according to a study published on Monday.The paper, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, addresses a longstanding question about potential risks to underground drinking water from the drilling technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. The authors suggested a chain of events by which the drilling chemical ended up in a homeowner’s water supply.
 
Dallas Morning News: Bill to limit Texas cities’ rules on fracking heads to governor
Senators delivered a sweeping victory Monday to oil and gas operators in a fight that has roiled North Texas and pitted a key state industry against communities’ desire to restrict fracking. The Senate gave final approval to a measure to pre-empt cities from banning fracking and enacting a variety of other oil and gas-related ordinances, sending the bill to Gov. Greg Abbott on a 24-7 vote. He is expected to sign it.
 
Associated Press: Texas Legislature acts to stop cities from limiting drilling
Texas moved Monday to ban its own cities from imposing prohibitions on hydraulic fracturing and other potentially environmentally harmful oil and natural gas drilling activities within their boundaries — a major victory for industry groups and top conservatives who have decried rampant local "overregulation."
 
Associated Press: Seattle Mayor Ed Murray: Port needs new permit to host Shell's offshore Arctic drilling fleet
Mayor Ed Murray threw a wrench into plans for a 400-foot oil-drilling rig to arrive in Seattle when he announced Monday that the Port of Seattle can't host Shell's offshore Arctic fleet until it gets a new land-use permit. Royal Dutch Shell PLC has been planning to base its fleet — including a drill rig and two tug boats — at the port's Terminal 5 for six months each year, when they're not being used in the Arctic. Environmentalists have already sued over the plan, saying the port broke state law in February when it signed a two-year lease with Foss Maritime, whose client is Shell, without doing an environmental review.
 
Daily Caller: RFK Anti-HF Group Has Ties to Company in Corruption Probe
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s environmental group that heavily opposed allowing hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in New York has ties to a company being investigated by federal agents. The Arizona-based AbTech Industries is at the center of a federal investigation for its business dealing with Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, the leading Republican in the state Senate, and his son Adam. But even more interesting is that AbTech has strong ties to Waterkeeper, an environmental group that has opposed fracking in New York State.
 
Forbes: Crude Oil Rail Shipments Sabotage Freedom of Information Act
New regulations from the U.S. Department of Transportation declare that details about crude oil rail shipments are exempt from public disclosure (Tri-City Herald). This ends DOT’s existing regulations that required railroads to share with state officials, and the public, information about shipping large volumes of dangerous crude oil by rail. These disclosure requirements were put in place last year after a Bakken crude oil train-wreck in Lynchburg, Virginia.
 
The Hill: Schumer wants faster oil train changes than Obama
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is introducing legislation to require faster implementation of a series of regulations regarding the transportation of crude oil that were unveiled last week by the Obama administration. Schumer's legislation would require freight rail companies to phase out older rail cars that have been blamed for numerous high-profile disasters within two years, instead of the eight-year deadline that was set by the Obama administration.
 
E&E News: Greens go all-out to influence crude-by-rail rule
Earlier in the month, representatives from the environmental group Earthjustice sat down with OIRA to call for a ban on the oldest, least crash-worthy type DOT-111 tank cars still used to haul thousands of barrels of crude across the country each day. Other organizations present at the March 13 meeting included ForestEthics, Riverkeeper and the Sierra Club, all of which have voiced concerns about a string of recent oil train derailments and explosions. Earthjustice again met with OIRA on April 15, just two weeks before the release of the final rule.
 
UPI: U.S. shale players doing more with less
Though net profits and spending are down, companies working in U.S. shale basins are finding well costs going down while production forecasts grow. The low price of oil is forcing energy companies to spend less on exploration and production efforts.
 
Breitbart: Recent California quakes not linked to drilling
Although many speculate that a series of earthquakes erupting in the Baldwin Hills region of Los Angeles are tied to drilling activity in nearby oil fields, scientists inform that they are not connected. The 3.8 trembler (revised from the 3.9 reported on Sunday) that rattled Los Angeles on Sunday and two others that struck the area in the last three weeks, were deep enough below the earth’s surface not to be linked with the Inglewood Oil Field–the largest contiguous oil-producing site in greater Los Angeles—according to Seismologists.
 
Washington Free Beacon: Report: Federal Oil and Gas Production Down Significantly Under Obama
Oil and gas production on federal land continues to decline even as the United States experiences unprecedented growth in overall fossil fuel extraction, according to a federal report released on Monday.
 
Bloomberg: Energy Loans to Deteriorate Further, Bankers Say in Survey
The condition of oil and gas loans held by U.S. banks is poised to worsen if commodities fall in line with futures prices, according to a Federal Reserve survey of bankers. About 59 percent of senior loan officers in the U.S. surveyed in April said the quality of loans made to drilling and extraction firms in the oil and natural gas industry is likely to “deteriorate somewhat,” according to the Fed’s quarterly survey. Loan restructurings, reductions in the size of outstanding credit lines and demands for additional collateral may mitigate losses, the loan officers said.
 
E&E News: To right their course, supermajors pass the pain on to oil field services
Big Oil wants to slash costs this year, and that will mean putting heat on the companies that do much of its technical work. The world's largest international oil and gas companies, the "super majors," have faced nearly a decade of rapidly escalating operating and equipment expenses, but rising oil prices and ever escalating profits over the same time period concealed or offset the effects of an expensive business climate.
 
Denver Post: Liquified natural gas may boost Western Slope producers' fortunes
Natural gas fields on Colorado's Western Slope have been battered by low prices for almost six years, but turning that gas into liquid and selling it in Asia may be a way to revive the region's fortunes. "Liquefied natural gas is one of the best options we've seen," said David Ludlam, executive director of the West Slope Oil & Gas Association, a trade group. What is buoying Western Slope hopes is the proposed Jordan Cove LNG plant in Coos Bay, Oregon.
 
UPI: New refinery online in North Dakota
A new refinery in North Dakota, the first of its kind in the country in nearly 40 years, will help drive the state's economy forward, MDU Resources said. The Dakota Prairie refinery is designed to process 20,000 barrels of oil per day from the state's Bakken shale reserve. Up to 7,000 bpd worth of production in the form of diesel fuel will be sold to in-state customers.
 
Kalamazoo Gazette: Michigan earthquake not caused by fracking, scientists say
The state official who oversees regulation of oil and gas wells says he is certain thatSaturday's earthquake in Kalamazoo County is unrelated to fracking or other drilling in the area. "I am extremely confident there is no connection," said Hal Fitch, a geologist who is director of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality's Office of Oil, Gas, and Minerals.
 
Shreveport Times: Old gas field opens up new opportunities
What's old is new again when it comes to the Cotton Valley sands formation in north Louisiana. An old field that's produced natural gas since the 1940s and '50s, the Cotton Valley formation has opened up new opportunities for drilling for operators in Caddo, DeSoto and even Lincoln parishes looking for more economical ways to extract the resources during the stagnant energy market.
 
Shale Plays Media: Ohio infrastructure sees no slow down
While oil and natural gas prices have affected the industry greatly, oil and gas companies in Ohio are still investing billions into new infrastructure. According to a report published by Bricker & Eckler LLP, a Columbus, Ohio-based law firm, investments in oil and gas infrastructure has increased by $6 billion since last fall. The increase is driven by the development going on in the Utica and Marcellus Shale Formations, which both happen to be extremely rich in natural gas.
 
Wilkes-Barre Times Leader: U.S. must take advantage of energy industry now
Abundant, affordable and available resources have made us a world leader in energy. And the U.S. oil and natural gas industry is ready to work with elected officials, policymakers and residents in Pennsylvania to ensure the moment lasts and creates a strong American energy future. Rather than adding additional taxes that constrict opportunities for the commonwealth’s economy to grow, we should support energy policies that grow the market for Pennsylvanian businesses.
 
WRAL: Carolinas clear first proposals for offshore oil surveys
State regulators in both Carolinas have signed off on proposals by companies to conduct seismic testing for oil and natural gas off the Atlantic coast, subject to some conditions. The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control last Friday certified a proposal by Spectrum GEO. Earlier the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources certified proposals for surveying by both Spectrum and GX Technology.
 
Argus: Virginia governor vetoes coal tax credit extension
Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe (D) has vetoed legislation extending the state's tax credits for coal producers and users by two years. McAuliffe vetoed the bill on 30 April, saying the incentives have not had the desired effect of supporting coal mining employment. Lead sponsors of the bill and the Virginia Mining Association did not immediately return requests for comment.