U.S. Energy Department Announces Crude Oil Purchase to Test Market

U.S. Interior Department’s New Mexico Oil, Gas Lease Sale Nets $8.3 Million

The Bureau of Land Management’s quarterly oil and gas lease sale in New Mexico generated net proceeds of $8.28 million, according to an Aug. 28 press release. Nearly half the revenue from the sale is allotted to the states where the oil and gas activity takes place namely, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. The remainder…...

U.S. Added 5 Billion Cubic Feet Per Day of Gas Pipeline Capacity in First Half of 2020: EIA

U.S. Added 5 Billion Cubic Feet Per Day of Gas Pipeline Capacity in First Half of 2020: EIA

About 5 billion cubic feet per day of new natural gas pipeline capacity came online in the U.S. during the first half of 2020, according to an Aug. 24 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. At the same time an estimated 8.7 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of pipeline projects were canceled in…...

Michigan Regulator Approves Energy Efficiency Programs for Low-Income Utility Customers

Michigan Commission Approves $110 Million Rate Hike for DTE Gas

The Michigan Public Service Commission on August 20 authorized a settlement allowing DTE Gas to increase its revenues by $110 million, which is about 46 percent lower than the utility’s original request. The new rate, effective Oct. 1, will raise monthly residential bills for customers using 100 cubic feet of gas by about $2.97 or…...

FERC Issues Final Environmental Review for Alaska LNG Project

Alaska LNG Project Wins U.S. Energy Department Approval to Export Natural Gas

The U.S. Energy Department on Aug. 20 authorized the Alaska LNG Project LLC to export liquefied natural gas in a volume equivalent to 929 billion cubic feet per year from a facility to be constructed in south central Alaska. The authorization allows Alaska LNG to export natural gas to non-free trade agreement countries for a…...

New York Governor Announces $90 Million in Federal Aid for Home Heating During Winter

Florida Commission Authorizes Peoples Gas’ Request to Track COVID-19 Costs

The Florida Public Service Commission on Aug. 18 approved Peoples Gas Systems’ request for an accounting mechanism to track and record additional costs brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. The mechanism allows the utility to request approval of cost recovery through rates at a later time. The implementation of this tracking system provides a method…...

oil and gas lease sale

Trump Administration Approves Oil and Gas Leasing Program in Alaska’s Wildlife Refuge

The U.S. Interior Department on Aug. 17 issued a decision approving oil and gas leasing activities in the 1.56 million-acre Coastal Plain area in Alaska’s 19.3 million Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The move follows the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which directed the Secretary of the Interior to establish a competitive program for the…...

U.S. Interior Department Announces Colorado Oil, Gas Lease Sale

U.S. Interior Department Issues Final Review of ConocoPhillips’ Alaska Oil, Gas Project

The U.S. Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management on Aug. 14 issued a final environmental review for ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc.’s proposed Willow Master Development Plan, an oil and gas development project in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. The project is expected to produce up to 590 million total barrels of oil during its 30-year…...

U.S. Power Plants Switched From Coal to Natural Gas

Over 85 Percent of U.S. Power Plants Switched From Coal to Natural Gas Since 2011: EIA

From 2011 to 2019, the U.S. repurposed 121 coal-fired plants to burn other fuels, of which 103 switched to natural gas, according to an Aug. 5 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The agency attributed the trend to stricter emission standards, low gas prices, and more efficient natural gas turbine technology. Of the 316.8-gigawatts…...

FERC Allows $5-Billion Atlantic Coast Pipeline to Restart Work After Federal Agencies Revise Permits

U.S. Energy Department Invests $33 Million in Natural Gas Pipeline Retrofitting Technologies

The U.S. Energy Department on August 6 announced $33 million for 10 projects under the Rapid Encapsulation of Pipelines Avoiding Intensive Replacement, or REPAIR, program to develop natural gas pipeline retrofitting technology. The initiative will rehabilitate cast iron and bare steel transmission pipes with new, durable pipes within the existing ones. The REPAIR program, launched…...

Fossil Fuel Power Plants

PSEG Plans to Sell Nearly 6.8 Gigawatts of Fossil Fuel Power Plants, Retain Nuclear Generation

Public Service Enterprise Group is exploring alternatives to 6,750 megawatts of fossil generation in New Jersey, Connecticut, New York and Maryland, and its 467-megawatt Solar Source portfolio across 14 states, according to a July 31 press release. The New Jersey utility intends to retain its existing nuclear fleet, in order to help the state achieve…...

U.S. Energy Department Extends Third Set of Natural Gas Export Authorizations Through 2050

U.S. Energy Department Extends Natural Gas Export Term to 2050

The U.S. Energy Department on July 29 announced a policy statement that extends the term for exporting liquefied natural gas through 2050. This marks a shift from erstwhile export terms, which were customarily designed in increments of 20-year terms. The department proposed the 2050 term extension earlier this year in February in response to policy…...

California Commission Launches Initiative to Address Emerging Energy Policy Issues

California Commission Launches Initiative to Address Emerging Energy Policy Issues

The California Public Utilities Commission on July 29 announced a new research, development, and deployment initiative to bolster the relationship between ratepayer-funded projects and emerging policy issues. This shall manifest itself within four new workstreams pertinent to advancing the state’s energy agenda: equity, wildfire mitigation, transportation electrification, and utility safety power shut offs. In doing…...