** Years in the works, a massive petrochemical refinery in western Pennsylvania fed by the vast natural gas reservoir underneath Appalachia became fully operational Tuesday, oil and gas giant Shell plc said.
** A flotilla of ships is carrying distillate fuel to New York Harbor to shore up stocks ahead of the winter, according to traders and shipping data. Shippers are sending vessels to the U.S. East Coast, which uses more heating fuel than another other parts of the United States but where inventories have fallen to alarmingly low levels in 2022.
** US President Joe Biden is considering forcing the nation’s fuel suppliers to keep a minimum level of inventory in tanks this winter as a means of preventing heating oil shortages and keeping prices affordable. It may actually do the opposite.
** Electric vehicles (EVs) from Tesla Inc and other brands were among the least reliable vehicles in the United States, Consumer Reports magazine’s annual reliability survey showed on Tuesday.
** The Energy Department awarded nearly $74 million from the bipartisan infrastructure law for 10 projects to advance recycling and reuse of batteries for electric vehicles and other purposes. The funding will go to academic and commercial applicants in seven states, including four in California.
** Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf has signed a $2 billion tax credit package for the hydrogen production, milk processing, and biomedical research industries into law, capping months of quiet negotiations between the Democrat and top Republicans in the General Assembly.
World
** The European Union’s executive is considering proposing a maximum price ceiling for one of the world’s biggest natural gas hubs to help contain an unprecedented energy crisis and meet the demands of governments calling for the controversial tool.
** Indian refiners are wary of buying Russia crude oil loading after Dec. 5 when European Union sanctions take effect, pending clarity on the proposed G7 price cap mechanism, according to sources familiar with the refiners’ crude purchase plans.
** India can buy as much oil from Russia as it likes — even at prices above a G7 imposed price cap — but stringent conditions apply, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told Reuters Friday.
** An oil tanker associated with an Israeli billionaire has been struck by a bomb-carrying drone off the coast of Oman amid heightened tensions with Iran, officials told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
** The right of African countries to use their natural gas reserves should be reflected in any deal at the COP27 climate talks, the president of the African Development Bank told Reuters, even as some nations push to see use of the fuel curtailed.