President Trump’s recent executive orders have benefited the oil pipeline industry in a number of ways, including most notably, giving the final “okay” to the Dakota Access Pipeline. But some legislative mandates have been out of the reach of the President’s pen. On April 27, the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (“PHMSA”), within the Department of Transportation, released a final rule revising its maximum penalties for violations of pipeline safety laws. The rule titled, Pipeline Safety: Inflation Adjustment of Maximum Civil Penalties, was issued pursuant to the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015, which requires federal agencies to adjust their civil monetary penalties annually to account for changes in inflation. So what’s changed?
Continue Reading Some Not-So-Good News Out of Washington, D.C. for Pipeline Operators – Feds Increase Fines for Pipeline Safety Violations
LNG
BLM Proposes “Commonsense” Rule to Limit Methane Emissions from Oil & Gas Operations
By Shannon Morrissey, Mike Mills & Eric Skanchy on
Posted in Oil & Gas, Regulation
On Friday, January 22, 2016 the federal Department of the Interior’s (“DOI”) Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) issued a proposed rule on reducing waste and methane emissions in oil and gas operations. The rule would limit oil and gas flaring, venting, and leaking on federal and Indian lands. While the U.S. has become the largest natural gas producer in the world and U.S. oil production is at its highest level in nearly 30 years, the current regulations hearken back to the mid-1980’s, when gas production and greenhouse gas concerns were very different than they are today.
The proposed rule is composed of “commonsense and cost-effective measures,” according to Janice Schneider, Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management. Broadly, the proposed rule would require operators to adopt currently available technologies in order to limit the rate of flaring at oil wells, and would require operators to inspect for leaks and replace equipment that vents methane emissions into the air.Continue Reading BLM Proposes “Commonsense” Rule to Limit Methane Emissions from Oil & Gas Operations
Senator Landrieu Ready to Take Chair’s Gavel on Powerful Senate Energy Committee: A Positive Outcome for the Oil and Gas Industry
By Mike Mills on
Posted in Oil & Gas
Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA) has confirmed today that she will take the position as Chair of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee as soon as next week. (See previous post dated December 31, 3013.)
The previous chairman – Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) – is expected to be approved as Chair of the Finance Committee…
A Tale of Two Pipelines: This Week in the News
By Mike Mills on
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…for two pipeline projects in the West.
TransCanada was successful in the Tenth Circuit on Thursday in its continuing efforts to defend against a preliminary injunction brought by the Sierra Club, Clean Energy Future of Oklahoma, and the East Texas Sub Regional Planning Commission.
DOE-Commissioned Study Endorses LNG Exports, Says U.S. Economy Will Benefit
By Mike Mills on
Posted in Natural Gas Storage
Via my colleague Erin Anderson:
Liquefied natural gas (“LNG”) exports will benefit the U.S. economy according to a NERA Economic Consulting study commissioned by the U.S. Energy Department (“DOE”). Posted on Wednesday, December 5, the two-part study concluded that the economic benefits of LNG export will outweigh the impact of potentially higher natural gas…