Energy news in brief

**  Oil washed up along parts of a five-mile stretch of a beach on Florida’s Perdido Key on Saturday, less than two weeks after Hurricane Sally made landfall in the area. The U.S. Coast Guard said the oil was discovered Saturday, and samples were collected to determine the source of the oil.

** President Trump’s ban on offshore drilling along the southern Atlantic coast also prohibits leasing for offshore wind farms, an administration official confirms.

**  A vessel carrying some 100,000 barrels of gasoline that a shipping company suspected was destined for fuel-starved Venezuela arrived at a U.S. port on Monday, Refinitiv Eikon data showed, after a U.S. court approved a private sale of the cargo.

** U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler on Monday questioned California Governor Gavin Newsom’s plan to require all new passenger vehicle sales in 2035 be zero-emission models, according to a letter seen by Reuters. He said the plan “raises serious questions regarding its legality and practicality” and said it could cause problems for the state’s electrical grid.

** Friday’s court ruling that William Perry Pendley is illegally serving as director of the Bureau of Land Management could upend years of policy decisions, including an expansion of oil and gas drilling.

** Maryland utilities will begin sending shut-off notices on Oct. 1 as a COVID-19 moratorium ends, with service allowed to end on Nov. 15 or later.

** A federal judge allows a suit in Rhode Island to continue as plaintiffs allege Shell did not protect an oil storage tank from storm surges related to climate change.

** Critics say Enbridge hasn’t submitted enough documentation to the state of Michigan on the company’s plan to build a tunnel in the Straits of Mackinac for Line 5. 

** Some rural Illinois residents living amid wind projects raise concerns about potential falling debris after turbines break. 

** A Democratic Congress member from Illinois introduces legislation aimed at lowering transportation-sector emissions while boosting demand for biofuels. 

** A Southwest Arkansas electric cooperative unveils a completed solar array that will add about 2,250 MWh annually to its system.

** Chevron is reducing production and laying off workers at its largest U.S. refinery in Mississippi due to falling demand.

** Rising natural gas prices are increasing Xcel Energy bills in Texas, but a new wind farm is expected to bring prices back down next year.