Author's posts
Texas Avoids Billions in Energy Rebates with Supreme Court Decision
The State of Texas is likely to save billions of dollars in rebates after the Texas Supreme Court turned aside a request for a sales tax refund sought by Midland-based Southwest Royalties. The nine Republican justices ruled unanimously that the energy company should not be exempted from paying sales tax on equipment used in its …
Washita River Bridge to be Detonated on Tuesday
The old State Highway 19 bridge over the Washita River near Lindsay will be blown up Tuesday by the State Transportation Department. It’s being replaced and crews will detonate controlled charges on the center span of the bridge at 8 a.m. The bridge was damaged in heavy flooding more than a year ago. If things …
Nation’s Oil Rig Count Grows with $50 Oil Prices
The nation’s oil and gas rig count grew by 10 over the past week as oil prices remained steady around the $50 a barrel mark. Oklahoma’s count remained steady at 58 compared to last week, according to figures released by Baker Hughes Company of Houston, Texas. The nation’s count grew to 424, …
A Flood of Subpoenaed Documents for House Committee Investigating WOTUS
An investigation by Rep. Steve Russell and others on the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has produced more than 30,000 pages of internal records into the EPA’s Waters of the U.S. Rule. “We stand for openness and transparency,” said Chairman Jason Chaffetz. “I think the American people have a right to see these …
Opposition Surfaces to Pipeline in Cleveland County
Opponents of a proposed pipeline from Cushing to Longview, Texas plan to voice their concerns at a Monday afternoon meeting of the Norman Floodplain Permit Committee. The developer is the same company responsible for the Santa Barbara, California pipeline spill that led to grand jury indictments on 46 criminal counts. It is opposition to the …
Not One Mining Engineer Employed by EPA
Ten months after the Environmental Protection Agency’s Gold King Mine Disaster, the US House Committee on Natural Resources has passed three bills adding what members called “systemic problems in mining development and reclamation.” One is the Mining Schools Enhancement Act which focuses on the steady reduction in mining and mineral engineering programs across the country. …
Captain Planet? It’s what One Newspaper Calls Oklahoma’s Secretary of Energy
Spreading the word about Oklahoma’s earthquakes and what might be causing them. it’s what Secretary of Energy and Environment Michael Teague is doing and recently spoke in Ardmore. “That’s not natural,” said Teague in an address at the Southern Oklahoma Leaders Luncheon in the Ardmore Convention center. He was referring to the fact that there …
Leaking Storage Ponds Prompt Judge to Allow Lawsuit by Environmentalists
A judge in Billings, Montana is allowing environmentalist to proceed with a lawsuit against operators of a coal-fired power plant that continues leaking contaminated water from storage ponds. District Judge Robert Deschamps made the ruling after learning that contaminated water was still leaking form the ponds of the Colstrip Power Plant four years after an …
Dallas Firm Gets Partners to Finance National Energy Effort
Dallas-based Discovery Midstream Holdings LLC says it is partnering with Old Ironsides Energy LLC of Boston to pursue midstream infrastructure acquisition and greenfield development opportunities across the U.S. It’s a long-standing relationship the two firms have. Five years ago, Discovery President Mike Davis partnered with the Old Ironsides team to construct the Wildcat Sabine Pipeline …
Governor Fallin Stops $250,000 Salary to New CEO at State’s Anti-Tobacco Group
The screeching of brakes you heard at the State Capitol are coming from the office of the governor in a flap over the high salary to be paid to a former energy regulator. If Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin has anything to say about it, the $250,000 salary the State Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust wants to pay …