** Crude oil prices are at their highest levels since the military campaign against Iran after climbing again overnight and this morning. The Energy and Treasury Departments will begin rolling out new efforts today to address energy price increases from the Iran conflict, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.
** AES Corp.’s share price dropped nearly 18% yesterday on news that a consortium led by BlackRock’s Global Infrastructure Partners and EQT would acquire the power heavyweight.
** Despite opposition to a proposed sand mining operation south of the northwest Oklahoma town of Mooreland, the Oklahoma Department of Mines has recommended approval of the permit filed by Croell, Inc.
** Cheniere Energy is the largest producer and exporter of liquefied natural gas in the United States. New tax records show the energy giant received $370 million in alternative fuel tax credits from the IRS, prompting criticism from experts and Democratic U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon.
** U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright touts the expansion of liquified natural gas export plants as a source of new jobs as the oil and gas industry has cut jobs in recent years.
** “Frankenstein financing”: Louisiana regulators reject a request to investigate whether Meta’s accounting to keep a $28 billion data center off its balance sheet could leave Entergy customers stuck paying for three natural gas-powered turbines to power it.
** New York’s state energy research agency finds that the state’s climate laws are infeasible and could, if implemented, cost consumers thousands of dollars in increased energy costs each year.
** Electric power company PacifiCorp announced a $575 million settlement to resolve government claims that its negligence caused six wildfires in Oregon and California that burned over 290,000 acres of public land.
WORLD
** Iran attacked energy installations on Monday in Qatar and Saudi Arabia, both key American allies in the Persian Gulf, ratcheting up its military campaign by targeting critical infrastructure.
** Eight OPEC+ countries agreed to a modest oil output boost of 206,000 barrels per day for April amid the ongoing war on Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory strikes. The group — comprising Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, UAE, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman — met on Sunday as per an earlier schedule to review global market conditions and outlook.
** Europeans are feeling the impact of the attacks on Iran as natural gas prices are spiking. The lack of LNG through the Strait of Hormuz and a halt of production by Qatar Energy are the cause. Their shutdown effectively removes roughly 20% of the world’s LNG export capacity from the market in one hit. Prices in Europe immediately shot up 50%.