** The FBI began tracking Native American opponents of the Keystone XL pipeline as early as 2012 as part of a sweeping law enforcement strategy to counter civil disobedience aimed at fossil fuels.
** A federal trial begins this week in North Dakota to determine whether the U.S. government will reimburse the state for emergency response costs related to Dakota Access pipeline protests.
** Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm issued a warning Wednesday in an interview on CNBC about China’s hold on the mineral supply chain, saying the U.S. is “very concerned.”
** Two central Minnesota counties approve one-year moratoriums on renewable energy projects as plans for a high-voltage transmission line spur interest in wind and solar.
** Tribal leaders appear at a federal courthouse in Chicago to challenge Enbridge’s attempts to keep Line 5 operating and build a tunnel under the Great Lakes.
** The $26 billion Diamondback-Endeavor merger underscores recent consolidation in the Permian Basin’s oil and gas industry, as just 10 companies will now control the equivalent of more than 6.4 million barrels of oil per day.
** Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis blames electric vehicles for a 20% year-over-year increase in the cost of auto insurance.
** U.S. oil and gas producer Occidental Petroleum beat estimates for fourth-quarter profit on Wednesday, aided by higher production in the Permian basin and Rocky mountains.
World
** The Canadian government, seeking to defend its signature carbon tax from opposition attacks, on Wednesday announced a new branding strategy to underscore that the policy means most people receive rebates.
** The International Energy Agency warned Thursday of plummeting oil stocks even as global growth in demand loses momentum.
** A large fleet of oil tankers used to export Russian crude oil is grinding to a halt, potentially as a result of increased U.S. sanctions on the Russian oil market, Bloomberg reported on Feb. 13. Nearly half of the 50 tankers sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury back in October have not loaded cargo since they appeared on tracking sites.