June 2024 archive

Third and final hearing into OGE rate hike request scheduled for Thursday

  An Administrative Law Judge spent two hours Tuesday morning hearing testimony regarding Oklahoma Gas and Electric’s reduced rate hike request totaling $126.6 million before adjourning to hear oral arguments on Thursday. Judge Carly Ortel presided over the second hearing scheduled into the rate hike request that had originally totaled $332 million before the utility …

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Oklahoma gas prices hit $3 but remain among lowest in US

  Oklahoma has some of the lowest gasoline prices in the U.S. despite signs of increases in the past few weeks. The state’s average this week, according to AAA, reached $3 a gallon, up 3 cents for last week. A month earlier, the statewide average was $3.11. Prices in Oklahoma City average $3.01, 9 cents …

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FERC raises questions about Southwest Power Pool’s operations

  The Southwest Power Pool, the 14-state electricity grid of which Oklahoma is a member, is one of four grid operators coming under scrutiny by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The SPP, according to reports, might have questionable rules about the right of transmission owners to pay for and also earn a profit on network …

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Corn growers, oil producers and truckers file suit against EPA’s tailpipe rule

  One of the latest lawsuits against the Biden administration over its controversial tailpipe emissions rule comes from an unlikely alliance of oil, corn industry lobby groups and truckers. They’ve filed suit against the Environmental Protection Agency’s rule to dramatically cut planet-warming tailpipe emissions from cars and trucks. The top lobby groups for oil and …

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Energy briefs

** The Senate is poised to send a major energy bill to President Biden’s desk this week, which could allow for more nuclear power to be built throughout the U.S. The legislation seeks to reduce fees for companies that are proposing to build nuclear reactors and establishes a prize that aims to incentivize nuclear deployment. ** Fisker …

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States sue to block latest anti-oil and gas effort by Biden administration

  The Biden administration was sued this week by the states of Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi in a move to stop the proposed rule requiring the offshore oil and gas industry to come up with nearly $7 billion to cover costs of removing old infrastructure. The lawsuit was filed against the U.S. Bureau of Ocean …

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New Mexico utility says renewable energy will help avoid brownouts

  While temperatures soared to 107 degrees in parts of New Mexico on Monday, the state’s major utility indicated it did not anticipate brownouts even after the firm closed its main coal-fired power plant near Farmington. Public Service Co. of New Mexico credits the ability to avoid brownouts after the shutdown of its San Juan …

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ONEOK pipeline subject of federal lawsuit by environmental groups

  ONEOK is facing a legal challenge over its pipeline project designed to carry large amounts of methane gas from West Texas to Mexico. Critics say it will be dangerous and government approval came after flawed analyses. The Sierra Club and Public Citizen announced they filed suit against the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for its …

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Critics claim record oil and gas production in Texas only adds to growing heat waves

  Texas is pumping out so much oil and gas, it has reached record levels. It produced a record 5.7 million barrels a day of crude oil in May and also sold a record 32 billion cubic feet of gas. But, critics contend the oil and gas is adding to the country’s hottest summer on …

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Federal judge orders BNSF to pay $400 million to tribe over oil tankers

    Forth Worth-based BNSF Railway just got hit by a $400 million court order in Washington state for trespassing on Native American lands with transported crude oil. U.S. District Judge Robert Lasnik issued his ruling Monday after finding the railway company intentionally trespassed when it ran 100-car trains across the tribe’s reservation. The tribe …

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