June 24, 2016 archive

Judge Rules ETE has Right to End Merger with Williams Cos.

A judge in Delaware has ruled against the efforts of Tulsa-based Williams Companies to continue with a $38 billion merger with Energy Transfer Equity of Dallas, Texas. Delaware Judge Sam Glasscock issued a 62-page opinion and denied the request of Williams to prevent ETE from ending the proposed merger over the lack of a needed …

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State and ConocoPhillips Reach $3.7 million Settlement in Double Dipping Lawsuit

Accused in lawsuits of profiting from pollution, ConocoPhillips has agreed to a $3.7 million settlement with the State of Oklahoma. The agreement was signed this week and in it, ConocoPhillips admitted to no wrongdoing nor liability, according to documents obtained by OK Energy Today. The agreement ended a 2013 lawsuit filed by the State accusing …

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AG Mum about Impact of VW Scam Settlement

Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt has yet to say whether the offer by Volkswage to pay more than $10 billion to settle claims in the emissions cheating scandal will apply to the lawsuit he recently filed in Oklahoma City federal court. A request by OK Energy Today for a comment from Pruitt’s spokesman was not …

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Another Plains All American Pipeline Spill in California

The latest oil pipeline spill along the Pacific coast of California again involves Plains all American Energy, the same firm whose pipeline resulted in a grand jury indictment over alleged lax operations. This time the spill involved about 29,000 gallons of crude oil near Ventura, California but the oil did not reach the beach. However, …

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Law Firms Across the Nation Hail the Judge’s Decision on Fracking in Wyoming

Law firms across the U.S. are hailing a Wyoming federal judge’s ruling that struck down the Obama administration’s fracturing rules as a huge win for the oil and gas industry. The U.S. District judge ruled the U.S. Department of the Interior had no legal authority to involve itself in creating fracking control rules on federal …

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Oklahoma and the U.S. Drop Rig Counts

Rig counts for the U.S. and Oklahoma fell over the past week with Oklahoma losing four and the national count dropping by three, according to data released by Baker Hughes Company of Houston, Texas. Oklahoma’s count slipped to 54 compared to the 105 oil and gas rigs the state had one year ago this week. …

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Senator Inhofe and Others to Hold EPA Accountable on Enforcement of Rules

  Coming this week in Washington, D.C.—–a hearing by a U.S. Senate subcommittee into the EPA’s enforcement and compliance programs. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S,.D.) will chair the Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Superfund, Waste Management and Regulatory Oversight hearing on June 29. The official hearing is called “Oversight of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency …

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Senators Fear Loss of Biofuel Production to Overseas Operations

  No Oklahoma Senators are among them, but 39 U.S. Senators have sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy urging her agency to ensure the final 2017 Renewable Fuel Standard rule promotes growth in the U.S. rather than overseas. The 2017 proposal calls on refiners to blend 14.8 billion gallons of …

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WTI, Brent Crude and Natural Gas Post Gains on Thursday

Oil futures climbed back above the key benchmark of $50 a barrel on Thursday, buoyed by traders who speculated that the United Kingdom would remain as a member of the European Union, according to Bloomberg MarketWatch. August West Texas Intermediate crude increased by 98 cents, or 2%, to end trading at $50.11 a barrel on …

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