More than 6 months after Tulsa-based Williams Cos. and Dallas-based Energy Transfer Equity LP called off their $38 billion pipeline merger, the Williams lawsuit is still in the courts. Williams is still arguing it was wronged by ETE. This week, Williams attorneys were before the Delaware Supreme Court arguing that ETE breached its duty to …
January 2017 archive
SEC Fines Aerospace Contractor for Bad Bookkeeping
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission wields a lot of power including those over energy companies all over Oklahoma. Sometimes its power involves transportation such as the $1.6 million fine against an aerospace company that provides aircraft for the Oklahoma Air National Guard and Fort Sill, to mention a few. In Wednesday’s announcement, the SEC …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
