The Bureau of Land Management is withholding more than 135,000 acres of federal land for resumed oil and gas leasing in the interest of protecting greater-sage-grouse. The BLM says 5,276 acres will be included in the sale of oil and gas leases but wants to defers plans to lease the 135,000 acres while it …
Not much change in Oklahoma and US rig counts
Rig activity across Oklahoma and the U.S. didn’t see much of an increase in the past week according to Baker Hughes. Oklahoma was unchanged at 51 rigs while the U.S. numbers increased only two to 695 oil and gas rigs. The number of oil rigs grew by one to 549 while the number of …
Cypress Environmental lands financial rescue
A lifeline was thrown to financially struggling Cypress Environmental Partners, L.P., the firm that publicly expressed concerns it might have to financially reorganize if it didn’t get help from its lenders over its more than $58.1 million debt. The Tulsa-based company announced its senior secured debt with seven existing lenders was acquired 100% by …
Raytheon’s overpayment on taxes to be refunded
The Oklahoma Supreme Court reversed a decision by the Oklahoma Tax Commission ordering it to make a more than $321,000 refund to defense contractor Raytheon because of a mistaken tax overpayment. The decision stems from Raytheon’s 2012 tax payments of $626,965 due on March 15, 2013. Raytheon discovered an accounting error in an overpayment of …
LyondellBasell announces plans to exit refining business
LyondellBasell says it’s getting out of the refinery business and will cease operation of its Houston Refinery no later than December 31, 2023. In the interim, the company said it will continue serving the fuels market, which is expected to remain strong in the near-term, and consider potential transactions and alternatives for the site. “After …
Laredo Petroleum proposed increase in shares
Tulsa’s Laredo Petroleum is asking shareholders to allow an increase in corporate shares to 40 million. In another proxy statement filing Friday with the Securities Exchange Commission, the company said the Board of Directors wanted to increase company shares from the current 22,500,000 and that the request was “routine.” The company’s scheduled annual meeting …
Crude prices slipped on Friday and took OK energy stocks with them
Crude oil prices closed the week with a drop following renewed diplomacy over Russia’s bloody invasion of Ukraine. They ended with a nearly 4% drop for the week, caused by a number of things including weaker global growth, COVID-19 lockdowns in China, and of course, the war in Ukraine. West Texas Intermediate crude …
Other US and world energy headlines
** President Biden commemorated Earth Day on Friday by unveiling a raft of new policies to combat deforestation, including the signing of an executive order that safeguards old-growth forests on federal lands. ** More than 80 percent of oil and gas well completions in the United States were horizontal or directional in 2021, and although the total number …
Halliburton warns of risks to its Russian assets
Halliburton Co. fears it faces Russian government seizure of its $340 million in assets in the country. On Friday, the oilfield services company came out with a warning about the possible loss of its holdings in Russia after it suspended operations there following the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine reported Reuters. Click here …
Spire and Evergy balk at Kansas City’s environmental move
Two utilities in Kansas City are not so eager to jump into the efforts of the city in its climate action plan. Spire and Evergy object to Kansas City’s move away from fossil fuels like coal and natural gas for heating and power to homes reported the Kansas City Star. Click here for Kansas …