Calgary Herald. In a decision that concluded tolls cannot increase every year to offset lower volumes moving through a pipeline, the National Energy Board has rejected sweeping changes put forward by pipeline giant TransCanada on its fee structure to move natural gas in Canada.
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Our Friends at Resource Development Council for Alaska (RDC) Alert Us About Tomorrow’s Deadline:
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has begun the scoping process for the Donlin Gold LLC project Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The Corps is accepting comments, questions, and suggestions to be considered and used to help identify concerns and benefits of the project in the draft EIS. Comments will be accepted through this Friday, March 29. Action requested: RDC encourages citizens to submit written comments urging the Corps to include social and economic benefits, and other potential opportunities that development of Donlin Gold may create, in the EIS. Please consider personalizing your comments by using your perspective and including specific examples of the potential benefits resulting from development of the project. For more information and talking points, please visit: http://www.akrdc.org/alerts/
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Inquire Herald (AP) — Alaska’s credit
rating could take a hit if the group behind an in-state natural gas line can’t meet its obligations. So says Joe Dubler (NGP Photo-L), vice president and chief financial officer for the Alaska Gasline Development Corp. He told House Finance it would be a "big problem" for Alaska’s credit rating if the state failed to recapitalize a proposed reserve fund to help AGDC meet its debt obligations. An aide to Rep. Mike Hawker (NGP Photo) said the bill’s sponsors were prepared to offer an amendment to address concerns surrounding that. It’s not clear to what extent, or whether, the fund might be used..jpg)
(Former gov stumps for gas pipeline – Kenai Peninsula Online. Bill Shieffield (NGP Photo) voices support for an in-state natural gas pipeline during a … has appropriated $72 million for AGDC’s Alaska Stand Alone Pipeline, …)
Today’s energy news courtesy of Consumer Energy Alliance:
Houston Chronicle: Busted theory – As for environmental impacts, the EPA credits increased use of natural gas for reducing air pollution across the country. Carbon dioxide emissions are also at a 20-year low thanks to natural gas. State and federal regulators, meanwhile, have been nearly unanimous in stating that hysterical claims about hydraulic fracturing – including water contamination, air emissions, and health threats – are pure invention. The only bubble that’s about to burst – if it has not already – is the nationwide campaign against hydraulic fracturing, of which Owen’s op-ed was an unfortunate part.
Florida Voices: Florida, U.S. Making Big Gains in Renewable Energy – The national conversation on energy production over the past few years has focused — rightly so — on the boom in oil and natural gas. U.S. oil production is at a 15-year high and last year saw the greatest jump in production since the industry began in 1859. This energy boom is not limited to oil. Due to breakthrough technologies in hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling, U.S. natural gas production is also at an all-time high. This combined activity drove a whopping $138 billion in capital investment in 2011. It’s hard not to focus on these numbers. But the United States has another energy story to tell. The country’s renewable energy resources have grown steadily over the last several years as federal investments have helped the emerging wind and solar industries come into their own.
Houston Chronicle: Energy boom pushes states to top of income growth list – While no state came anywhere close to North Dakota for average personal income growth last year, Texas was a respectable second-place finisher, according to estimates released Wednesday by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. North Dakota, which is enjoying an energy boom and, consequently, a building boom, led the nation in personal income growth in 2012, according to the bureau. Personal income is the before-tax income received by every resident from all sources, including wages, rents and transfer payments.
Wall Street Journal: The End of Oil, For Real This Time – Peak U.S. gasoline is by now conventional wisdom. But is this all-American (and European) trend about to sweep the world? Could be. Citi’s commodity brain trusters released a report yesterday provocatively titled “Global Oil Demand Growth – The End is Nigh.” Their argument is that abundant natural gas is grabbing markets away from oil. Combine that with improving fuel efficiency in the automobile and truck fleet and global demand for crude oil may be hitting a peak before most expect. “The shift from oil to gas is already underway in the US, where the shale gas revolution is giving a large economic incentive to make the switch. As the US shift gains pace, politics, greater natural gas availability and environmental concerns are facilitating the trend into the global market,” they write.
Bloomberg: Oil-demand plateau seen as natural gas favored – Oil demand may reach a plateau worldwide by the end of the decade as cars, trucks, railroad engines and power plants increasingly use natural gas instead, according to Citigroup Inc. analysts. U.S. prices for the fuels provide an economic incentive to make the switch. Crude oil is about four times more expensive than gas for a similar amount of energy, measured in British thermal units, based on New York futures trading. The shift from oil to gas is already under way in the U.S.,” Seth Kleinman, the head of European energy research at Citigroup, and five other analysts wrote yesterday in a report. Other countries are poised to follow suit, they wrote, as gas becomes more plentiful and anti-pollution efforts intensify.
Houston Chronicle: Environmentalists push for broader Arctic drilling probe – Environmentalists say President Barack Obama’s nominee for Interior secretary should heed comments from more than 500,000 Americans who have spoken out against Arctic drilling. The protests, delivered as part of a coordinated campaign to “defend America’s Arctic,” came as the Interior Department was conducting a high-level review of Shell’s 2012 drilling program. That probe, finalized earlier this month, ultimately concluded that Shell did a poor job of overseeing contractors during its hunt for oil in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas last year, contributing to a series of embarrassing mishaps.
Associated Press: Shipping riskier than drilling in Arctic, senator says – More than 250 vessels operated last year in the Arctic Ocean and made 480 transits through the Bering Strait, and the increasing traffic poses more of a threat than Arctic offshore drilling, U.S. Sen. Mark Begich said Wednesday. News reports focused on drilling problems experienced by Royal Dutch Shell PLC, including the grounding of one of its two Alaska drill ships, but the unregulated ship traffic is a bigger concern, said Begich, D-Alaska.
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