San Antonio based ETC Texas Pipeline, Ltd. was fined $1.3 million as part of a settlement agreement it reached with the New Mexico Environment Department over regulatory and permit violations at the company’s plant near Jal, New Mexico. New Mexico had cited ETC for illegally permitting more than 3.1 million pounds of pollutants including …
Interior Secretary marries longtime partner
Interior Secretary Deb Haaland was married over the weekend in her native state of New Mexico. She married longtime partner Skip Sayre in a Saturday ceremony at the Santa Ana Pueblo located north of Albuquerque, reported Native News Online. Click here for Native News Online.
Huge wind project close to completion in East Central New Mexico
A mammoth wind project in east central New Mexico is nearing completion upon which time wind-power will provide electricity for California markets. Pattern Energy’s Western Spirit project should be fully operational in December and include not only four wind farms but a transmission line that will be one of the largest such projects to …
Energy news in brief
** Nearly 95% of Gulf Coast oil and gas production was offline as Hurricane Ida hit New Orleans and the Deep South. ** Top oilfield services firm Schlumberger Ltd. is asking U.S. employees to disclose their COVID-19 vaccine status and said more customers are mandating vaccinations as a condition for working on their job sites, the …
Pollution controls too costly for Ameren?
Rather than go ahead with an $833 million court-ordered anti-pollution project for its second largest coal-fired power plant, St. Louis based Ameren might simply shut down the place and put it into mothballs. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports experts contend the pollution controls will be too costly for the company. Click here for St. …
Unconstitutional fees result in refunds for Kansas Evergy solar users
Recent action by the Kansas Corporation Commission means Evergy customers with solar panels on their homes will soon get refunds because of a Kansas Supreme Court ruling. The justices ruled Evergy’s actions of requiring solar uses to pay charges to the utility were unconstitutional according to the Kansas Reflector. Click here for Kansas Reflector.
Colonial temporarily shut down lines as Hurricane Ida made landfall
Colonial Pipeline Co. temporarily closed two fuel lines as Hurricane Ida hit the Gulf Coast on Sunday. The firm said the move was just a precaution. It’s at least the second time this year that Colonial’s fuel lines have been turned off. In May, a ransomware attack paralyzed the system, prompting a panic …
Almost 600 Louisiana sites with toxic chemicals lie in Hurricane Ida’s path
An analysis showed that nearly 600 Louisiana industrial sites with toxic chemicals were in the path of Hurricane Ida as it came ashore Sunday. The sites included refineries, storage tanks and other infrastructure that could have released oil and other liquids into the environment. A Times-Picayune | New Orleans Advocate analysis of industrial data …
Longtime PSO spokesman to retire
After 37 years as a spokesman for Public Service Company of Oklahoma, Stan Whiteford is about to retire. He announced over the weekend the selection of long-time journalist Wayne Greene as his successor as PSO’s Region Communications Manager. Whiteford indicated he will “be around through the end of October.” “It’s been my pleasure …
New Mexico AG faces fraud probe over power company merger
Complaints filed by five environmental and civic groups contend New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas violated state fraud laws by hiring the firm of an old friend to work on the proposed merger of Public Service Company of New Mexico and Avangrid. The five environmental and civic groups behind the complaint are asking …