** U.S. oil bosses generally collected huge paychecks last year on the back of high energy prices and record profits, with Exxon Mobil Corp’s chief executive winning a 52% increase. The largest U.S. oil company on Thursday disclosed Chief Executive Darren Woods was paid $35.9 million last year.
** The Texas Senate passed a bill that will cap how much bitcoin (BTC) miners can participate in demand response programs, under which they get paid to curtail their operations at times of high energy demand. “The Hash” panel discusses the potential impact on the bitcoin mining community.
** The Biden administration approved exports of liquefied natural gas from the Alaska LNG project, a document showed, as the United States competes with Russia to ship natural gas from the Arctic to Asia. The Department of Energy approved Alaska Gasline Development Corp’s (AGDC) project to export gas to countries with which the United States does not have a free trade agreement.
** The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that it’s investing $177 million to create 17 technical assistance centers around the country to help environmental justice organizations successfully apply for federal funds.
** U.S. greenhouse gas emissions rose 6 percent in 2021 as much of the country reopened as the COVID-19 vaccine became available, according to a federal analysis released Thursday.
World
** Russia lost over $15 billion in oil and gas revenue in the first quarter of 2023 – but that gaping hole in the Kremlin’s budget can be filled over the next few months, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
** Wealthy nations can lead by example in cutting carbon emissions, though much faster action is needed to stem global warming, U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said Friday in an interview with The Associated Press.
** OPEC+ production cuts are likely to drive up oil prices and inflict more pain on consumers already squeezed by high inflation, the International Energy Agency said.
** Global oil markets will see a sizable supply deficit this year, as the production cutbacks of major exporters begin to kick in. The world will be short by about 2 million barrels a day in the fourth quarter, more than reversing an expected surplus of 300,000 barrels a day in the second quarter, according to OPEC data cited by Bloomberg.
