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Cherokee Tribal Council Votes to Support Indian Protest of North Dakota Oil Pipeline
The Standing Rock Sioux tribe fighting the construction of the Dakota Access oil pipeline across North Dakota and three other states is getting support from Oklahoma’s Cherokee Nation. The Cherokee Nation’s Tribal Council voted this week in favor of a resolution of support for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s protest of the pipeline. Chief Bill John Baker …
Lexington to Finally Get Clean Drinking Water
Thanks to a big loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the city of Lexington will finally soon have clean drinking water. Rep. Bobby Cleveland announced this week the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation has entered into a contract to sell drinking water to Cleveland County Rural Water district Number one. It will bring an …
Insurance Commissioner Cautions Against Earthquake Rumors
From Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John Doak: Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John D. Doak wants to alleviate concerns about six-month moratoriums on purchasing earthquake insurance. The concerns were raised after a 5.8 magnitude earthquake in Pawnee on Sept. 3. A moratorium is a temporary suspension on issuing new earthquake insurance policies. “While touring earthquake damage in Pawnee, …
$11 billion Water Bill Gets Amendments from Sen. Inhofe
What Politico’s Morning Energy Report says about the water bill under consideration in the Senate. “ON-WRDA: The Senate’s water infrastructure bill is on track to pass this week after an overwhelming procedural vote Monday night to keep it moving along. The last issue to work out is a dredging dispute between Connecticut and New York …
Feds’ Reaction to Pipeline is Called ‘Unprecedented’
Could the federal government’s handling of the protest by Native Americans of the $4 billion Dakota Access Pipeline be a sign of things to come in the remaining months of the Obama administration? Oklahomans are among those who joined other Indians in North Dakota in fighting the four-state pipeline that a federal judge initially refused to block …
Anadarko Increases Deepwater Gulf Assets
Houston-based Anadarko Petroleum Corp. says it’s paying $2 billion to acquire the deepwater Gulf of Mexico assets belonging to Freeport McMoRan Oil and Gas which is a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. based in Phoenix. The deal is to be concluded before year’s end and will double Anadarko’s ownership in the Lucius deepwater development to 49 …
Total Replaces Chesapeake Energy in Barnett Shale
With the pullout of Oklahoma City’s Chesapeake Energy from the Barnett Shale, Total, the French-owned oil company is moving in to replace it. As a result, France’s largest oil company will be the only company with hydraulic fracturing in the Barnett. Ironically, Total is not allowed to conduct hydraulic fracturing in Europe. In order to …
5,000 Drilled but Uncompleted Wells in the U.S.
A new report by the federal government indicates there are nearly 5,000 drilled but uncompleted wells nationally. The U.S. Energy Information Administration released its monthly Drilling Productivity Report showing DUC counts at the end of august totaled 4,117 in the four oil-dominant regions. Another 914 are in the three-gas-dominant regions. The estimated DUC count in …
OSAGE Tribe Reviewing EPA Well Shutdown Plan
An Osage tribal leader is reviewing earthquake and wastewater injection well plans produced in the wake of the historic 5.8 magnitude earthquake near Pawnee. At the same time, Everett Waller, Chairman of the Osage Minerals Council is promising to do what he can to protect his people. “The safety and welfare of our people is …
OERB Sails Through State Audit
The Oklahoma Energy Resources Board gets a passing grade from State Auditor and Inspector Gary Jones. “The Agency’s internal controls provided reasonable assurance that expenditures were accurately reported in the accounting records,” stated Jones in a recent audit covering July 1, 201 through June 30, 2015. “No exceptions were noted as a result of our …