** Rail cars carrying hazardous materials derailed in North Dakota on Friday and caught fire, the latest train derailment in the U.S. as concerns over railroads remain high. Twenty-nine cars of a Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) train derailed around 3:45 a.m. in a marshy area surrounded by farmland that’s about 140 miles northwest of Fargo, according to Andrew Kirking, …
July 2024 archive
Growing opposition to wind and solar farms and EVs
A new study finds waning support for renewable energy and EVs. The findings are from the Pew Research Center which concluded the support is slipping because Republicans are not enthusiastic about electric vehicles. Bloomberg News reported four years ago, there was 90% support for solar farms, but it has dropped to 78%. Wind farm support fell …
Xcel proposes $1.9 billion fire mitigation plan
First there was the Colorado wildfire that burned more than a thousand homes and killed two people. Then 300 lawsuits were filed against Xcel Energy. More suits are coming in the wake of the Texas Panhandle fire which burned more than a million acres of land in Texas and western Oklahoma. Xcel responded …
Louisiana’s Cancer Alley might be more dangerous than first thought
Louisiana’s so-called “Cancer Alley” might be far worse than originally thought. At least that’s according to environmental engineers from Johns Hopkins University whose recent study of air quality for pollutants in southeast Louisiana discovered the ethylene oxide gas produced in the industrial areas is more more toxid than believed. The researchers discovered that levels …
OGE’s rate hike arrived in the mail box over the weekend
The snail mail news of OG&E’s jump in utility rates arrived over the weekend. The utility slipped into the startling climb in rates by opening, ‘We know you depend on us to energize your home and business and that your top priority for us is reliability.” Further down in the letter came the …
Crude prices settled lower on Friday amid speculation of Gaza ceasefire
Instead of going off like Thursday’s fireworks on Independence Day, crude oil prices did the opposite on Friday, falling about 1%. Some analysts, according to Reuters, contended that crude prices dropped because of optimism of a ceasefire in Gaza and the optimism outweighed concern that Gulf of Mexico hurricanes would disrupt supplies. West Texas Intermediate …
US sees slight gain in oil and gas rigs while Oklahoma remains unchanged
The latest rig count from Baker Hughes Co. showed the national total gained four rigs to reach 585 while Oklahoma was unchanged with a total of 34 active oil and gas rigs. However, the numbers still reflect the fact that more oil and gas rigs are in storage compared to a year ago. Baker …
BNSF honors more than 100 firms for safe transportation
NGL Energy Partners of Tulsa was one of 109 customers of BNSF Railway Company honored with the railroad’s annual Product Stewardship Award for the safe transportation of hazardous materials by rail. Implemented in 1997, The BNSF Stewardship Award recognizes shippers who transport a minimum of 500 loaded tank cars of hazardous materials during the …
Coterra plans 2Q financial release in a month
Coterra Energy plans a release of its second quarter 2024 financial and operating results on Thursday, August 1 as investors wonder if things will be as strong as the previous quarter. The Houston-headquartered company, with operations in Oklahoma will make the release after the close of markets. Company leaders plan to hold a conference …
Helmerich and Payne to release 3Q earnings report
Investors in Tulsa-based Helmerich & Payne will learn third quarter earnings results later in the month. The company announced it will release the fiscal third quarter 2024 earnings report and hold a conference call on Thursday, July 25 at 10 a.m. central time. President and CEO John Lindsay will be joined by Senior Vice …
