Exxon Mobil was working to clean up thousands of barrels of oil in Mayflower, Arkansas, after a pipeline carrying heavy Canadian crude ruptured, a major spill likely to stoke debate over transporting Canada’s oil to the United States.
Exxon shut the Pegasus pipeline, which can carry more than 90,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil from Pakota, Illinois, to Nederland, Texas, after the leak was discovered on Friday afternoon, the company said in a statement. Keep reading →
A new revenue-sharing bill – the FAIR Act – would enable coastal states to receive a share of offshore energy revenue and put onshore renewable energy on the same scale as onshore fossil energy to ensure equitable revenue-sharing to encourage clean energy efforts.
On March 20, Senators Mary Landrieu (D-La.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) introduced the Fixing America’s Inequity with Revenues (FAIR) Act to provide states with a share of revenue from energy developed on federal land and waters. Under the FAIR Act, coastal states would be entitled to 27.5% of revenue from offshore energy developments, including fossil, wind, and wave energy, and an additional 10% if they establish funds to support clean energy and energy conservation programs. The federal government would receive the remaining 62.55% to address budget deficits. Keep reading →
The energy sector has heated up in recent years as natural gas drilling technology has resulted in increased supply and the power sector has revolutionized in the face of monitoring and mobile technology that boosts the promises of smart grids. Firms are hiring, investments are going ahead at both the national and international level, and the industry is attracting attention as consumer technology advances filter into the “industrial internet.”
Recognizing its role in promoting the future of the industrial internet, the Department of Energy launched a manufacturing initiative it claims will help boost the prospects of the clean economy. The Clean Energy Manufacturing Initiative is small by comparison to the controversial payouts under the stimulus in the first Obama administration, but it signals a sustained commitment by the White House to the concept of a revitalized manufacturing sector driven by cleantech. Keep reading →
With a bipartisan majority vote of 62-37, the Senate demonstrated its support for Keystone XL pipeline construction for the first time.
On March 22, the US Senate voted in favor of an amendment that supports construction of TransCanada’s Keystone XL project, a 1,700-mile pipeline that would transport crude oil from Canada to Texas refineries. The amendment, introduced by Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) and Max Baucus (D-Montana), passed the Senate by a 62-37 margin, with 17 Democrats joining all Republicans in the vote of support. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) abstained from the vote due to illness. Sens. Hoeven and Baucus also have proposed a separate bill that would facilitate Congressional approval of the project under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution, bypassing the decision-making authority of President Obama. Keep reading →
At least twenty-two of the 29 state renewables standards have been attacked by legislators or regulators in the last year or are now under attack.
Known as a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) or a Renewable Energy Standard (RES), these mandates require utilities to obtain a portion of their power from renewable sources by a certain date. Research shows they add less than 5 percent, on average, to the cost of electricity bills and are an effective driver of renewables growth. Keep reading →
Dear Editorial Board,
The state of Connecticut is about to consider its Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) – which currently requires at least 20 percent of electricity come from renewable sources like wind and solar by 2020. A hearing on legislation to update the RPS was held last week, with the Energy & Technology Committee scheduled to act on energy bills on March 28. At issue: What types of energy should be included in the RPS, and is there a role for large Canadian hydropower? Keep reading →
A group of Senate Democrats requested the Administration to reconsider EPA’s proposed emissions regulations that would essentially ban construction of new coal-fueled power plants in the U.S.
Four Senate Democrats, led by Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), wrote to President Obama seeking amendments of EPA’s proposed New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for new power plants. The letter – released on March 18, 2013 – explains that implementation of the current draft would effectively ban construction of new coal-based power plants. Drawing attention to provisions that place new coal-fueled plants and natural gas-fueled plants in the same standard, the Senators called for different emissions standards based on fossil fuel type. Keep reading →
A Department of Interior (DOI) report on Shell’s 2012 Arctic operations reveals inadequate management oversight and details key recommendations for conduct and oversight of future exploration projects.
On March 14, 2013, DOI released its 2012 assessment of Shell’s Arctic operations. The review identifies inadequacies that led to a series of problems related to containment system deployment, marine transport, and grounding of drilling rigs. DOI also provides key recommendations to recommencement of Shell’s drilling program and future exploratory activities in the Arctic. The U.S. Coast Guard is currently conducting a separate marine casualty probe to assess the currently grounded Kulluk drilling rig. Keep reading →
The Colorado Public Utilities Commission on Thursday ruled that Xcel Energy will not be able to collect the $16.6 million balance it says it is owed for work performed on the SmartGridCity project in Boulder.
The ruling is in line with an earlier decision by an administrative law judge that the utility should not be allowed to collect the remaining $16.6 million in costs it incurred in the project because it had not met established criteria demonstrating customer benefits, according to a story in the Boulder County Business Report. Keep reading →
Crude oil production in Alaska has been steadily declining for years with potentially dire consequences for the Trans Alaska Pipeline System and the state’s tax revenue base.
“Alyeska today is working to respond to the challenges posed by declining throughput. Throughput peaked at 2.1 million barrels a day in 1988. It has only steadily decreased since. In 2011, Alyeska on average moved about 600,000 barrels per day. With the lower flow levels, the crude oil takes longer to reach the Valdez Terminal – about 2 weeks, on average – and the oil is colder on arrival. The slower, colder oil has more potential for water and wax to settle and drop out, and as throughput declines further, the potential for ice to form during shutdown or flowing conditions increases,” according to operator Alyeska Pipeline Service Company’s website. Keep reading →
