Coal plants are facing a series of EPA regulations that are requiring owners to invest in pollution controls or shutter aging plants. The new standards apply to about 1,400 coal and oil-fired generating units at 600 power plants, reports Bloomberg. Following an April decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to uphold the Environmental
With their residential electricity prices climbing 43% from 2006 to 2013, European citizens are paying through the nose for electricity, especially when compared to U.S. residential electricity prices, which have climbed just 17% in the same time period. Average residential electricity prices in Europe are more than double prices in the U.S. “Regulatory structures—including taxes and other user fees, investment
It didn’t take much longer than a cup of coffee before the lawsuits began to fly after Illinois completed its new oil and gas rules last week, which would have opened the door to new energy development that some business leaders called a coming boom. Landowners and an environmental activist organization are suing the governor of Illinois and the head
If you happen to be an oil and gas operator ready to frac your well in Scotland, you could get an official notice from the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change that would make you scratch your head. Seismic restrictions were initiated after two small tremors were felt near Blackpool, Lancashire, after fracturing operations at a shale gas drilling
Groups say Bureau of Land Management was wrong to approve project The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance and the Sierra Club have filed an appeal challenging a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) decision in Utah, last Friday. The two groups say that the BLM was wrong to approve Fidelity Exploration & Production’s pipeline in the first place. “BLM’s decision to consider
After a Year of Haggling, Lawmakers Greenlight New Drilling Rules On Nov. 6, lawmakers in Illinois signed off on rules to regulate high-volume oil and gas drilling and completions, paving the way for what local industry hopes will result in unleashing the energy boom in southern Illinois. An Illinois “fracing law” was passed by the state legislature in 2013 and
Oil & Gas 360®’s chart of the week points to the differences in the average number of days to acquire a permit to drill on federal lands vs. various states. The Feds require 45 times longer to issue a permit than the State of Texas. Federal permitting time increased by almost 50% between 2005 and 2012. Congressman Fred Upton offered
UPDATE: The Texas Oil and Gas Association (TXOGA) has filed an injunction in state court in Denton to stop a fracing ban passed by the city. According to the TXOGA petition, “the ordinance … exceeds the limited authority of home-rule cities and represents an impermissible intrusion on the exclusive powers granted by the Legislature to state agencies.” Frac bans
From BBC News – By Kim Gittleson BBC Business reporter, Denver Longmont’s citizens voted in favour of a fracking ban, 60% to 40%, in 2012 After five towns in Colorado voted to ban fracking in 2012, it seemed the tide had turned against the process. But two years on, it’s a very different story. Colorado is one of the crucial “swing
Baker Hughes (ticker: BHI), the $26 billion (marketcap) oilservices provider with oil and gas operations in 80 countries, flipped the switch Wednesday on its new policy of disclosing 100% of the chemistry in its hydraulic fracturing fluids. The company said chemical disclosure will be done without detailing specific product formulations. For each fracturing job beginning on or after October 1, 2014,
In a press release out yesterday, the House of Representatives Energy & Commerce Committee warned there was bad news for New England households and businesses: electricity supplier National Grid told customers that they can expect to see significantly higher power bills this winter. The company is urging consumers to conserve energy to prepare for the cold temperatures and high rates
Yesterday, Governor Hickenlooper’s hand-picked Task Force regarding State and Local Regulation of Oil and Gas Operations met for the first time. The 21 members are people within the Colorado community who represent oil and gas companies, environmental groups, the farming and homebuilding communities, civic leaders, attorneys and government leaders. The task force was created to smooth out the bumps in
