Energy briefs

** Big Oil begins reporting fourth-quarter results this week, and outlooks for the coming year should reflect the dissonance between Trump’s oil and gas-maximizing agenda and investor expectations. The industry has pushed in recent years to drive down costs and increase production by using more efficient technology rather than drilling many new wells.

** Workers among the roughly 1,000 employed at one of the Houston area’s largest refineries began receiving layoff notices Thursday, a union representative said. The facility’s owner, chemical giant LyondellBasell, is preparing to start shutting down the refinery permanently this week as it seeks to reposition itself in a world expected to burn fewer fossil fuels.

**  Oil and gas companies would be liable for damages caused by climate change -related disasters in California under legislation introduced Monday by two Democratic lawmakers. The proposal, introduced by two Democratic lawmakers, claims that the oil industry intentionally deceived the public about the risks of fossil fuels on climate change that now have intensified storms and wildfires and caused billions of dollars in damage in California.

** Minnesota GOP lawmakers introduce legislation to lift the state’s 31-year-old moratorium on new nuclear plants, arguing that new plants are necessary to meet growing power demand.

** South Dakota House lawmakers advance legislation that would prohibit the use of eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines.

** A Missouri couple files a lawsuit claiming coal ash storage from a nearby power plant has exposed the community to toxic contamination for decades. 

** The Navajo Nation files a lawsuit challenging the Biden administration’s 2023 ban on new federal oil and gas leases around Chaco Culture National Historical Park, saying it causes financial hardship. 

** Ovintiv Inc. announced that Terri G. King has been named as an independent member of its board of directors, effective January 31, 2025. King, 63, retired from ConocoPhillips Company in 2023 as Chief Commercial Officer and Vice President. During her lengthy career with ConocoPhillips, she held various roles including President, Lower 48; President, Europe & North Africa; President, United Kingdom; and General Manager of Global Production.

World

**  Italy’s Enel and private equity group KKR (KKR.N), opens new tab are among potential bidders for Britain’s Cubico Sustainable Investments, people with knowledge of the process said. The renewable energy firm could be valued at about $6 billion or more.

** Russian refineries are processing more crude oil in the hope of boosting fuel exports after new U.S. sanctions on Russian tankers and traders made exports of unprocessed crude more difficult, two industry sources said and data showed. Russia has been trying to adapt to Western sanctions imposed in response to the invasion of Ukraine since 2022.

** Two oil tankers hauling crude from Russia made U-turns as they sailed past France and are now at a standstill near the northern port of Cherbourg.

** Japan’s Honda Motor plans to launch a small electric vehicle priced below $30,000 in North America by as early as 2026, the Nikkei newspaper said on Tuesday, as it plays catch-up in the battery-powered car market.

** Several independent oil refineries in eastern China have halted operations, or plan to do so, for indefinite maintenance periods as new Chinese tariff and tax policies plunge them deeper into losses, refinery and trade sources said.