January 11, 2017 archive

Crude Oil Settlements Jump by Nearly 3% on Wednesday

Crude oil futures settled higher on Wednesday as data confirmed OPEC’s compliance with the curbed production agreement, according to Bloomberg MarketWatch. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, February West Texas Intermediate crude rose $1.43, or 2.8%, to settle at $52.25 a barrel. March Brent crude, the global benchmark, advanced $1.46, or 2.7%, to end trading at …

Continue reading »

Ice Storm in the Works for Oklahoma?

A nasty potential ice storm is in the works and it could play a big role in affect Oklahoma’s energy industry in the coming days. If the weather forecasters are accurate, central and northwest Oklahoma could see a major ice storm on Friday and Saturday. It already has the attention of electrical companies as they …

Continue reading »

Pruitt Meets With More Senators—–Democrats Are Skeptical of His EPA History

  Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt is making the rounds on Capitol Hill, meeting with U.S. Senators and trying to get support for his nomination to take over the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. But he’s run into some opposition among some skeptical Democrats who don’t like his reputation of taking on the EPA regarding his …

Continue reading »

EPA Proposes Another Rule Even as Pruitt Approaches Apparent Takeover

Another proposed rule by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is in the works, one that could target electricity companies in Oklahoma and across the nation. The EPA announced this week and in a notice published Wednesday in the Federal Register said the new rule will require chemical, petroleum products and electricity companies to prove they …

Continue reading »

Most Protesters Arrested at North Dakota Pipeline Site are from Out-of-State

The protests led by Native Americans against the Dakota Access oil pipeline in North Dakota hasn’t been costly just to the owner of the pipeline. And records show many of the protesters are out-of-staters and a large number have criminal records. Now the Morton County Sheriff’s office estimates that it has cost the state and …

Continue reading »

Texas Confronts Big State Budget Challenge

The state of Oklahoma’s not alone in confronting a budget challenge caused in part by the oil slump. Oklahoma’s budget hole could be close to $900 million dollars but in Texas, it could be nearly $6 billion. One Republican legislator, Rep. Drew Darby said the state of Texas will need another $5 billion to $6 …

Continue reading »

Russia Tried to Influence Battle Over Fracking in the U.S.

While most of the focus of the claimed Russian hacking has been on reported attempts to influence the U.S. Presidential election last year, slipping nearly unnoticed and under the headline was hacking attempts regarding energy….namely “fracking.” It’s buried deep in the recently-released declassified version of a report by the U.S. intelligence community. U.S. Sen. James Lankford …

Continue reading »

Williams Companies Announce Financial Repositioning, Issuance of New Stock

Williams and Williams Partners L.P. announced Monday an agreement to permanently waive payment obligations under the incentive distribution rights held by Williams and convert Williams’ economic general partner interest into a non-economic interest for 289 million newly issued Williams Partners common units. The estimated transaction value is approximately $11.4 billion, according to a company press …

Continue reading »

OIPA’s Energy Index Reflects Decrease Due to Lower Prices

The latest energy index from the Oklahoma Independent Petroleum Association indicates signs of hope remain for the state’s oil and gas industry despite its overall decrease. Released on Wednesday by the OIPA, the index showed oil and natural gas industry employment held steady for the month and drilling activity in Oklahoma increased from 72 to …

Continue reading »