The Trump administration took another step toward rolling back an Obama-era policy regulating how natural gas drillers handle methane. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said Sept. 11 the proposed changes will save the industry $75 million a year in regulatory costs between 2019 and 2025. Under the new proposal, methane gas emissions will increase by a total of 380,000 short tons between 2019 and 2025 compared with the EPA’s 2018 baseline estimate. In a statement, acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said, “These common-sense reforms will alleviate unnecessary and duplicative red tape and give the energy sector the regulatory certainty it needs to continue providing affordable and reliable energy to the American people.”
One person who definitely doesn’t approve of the EPA’s action is California Gov. Jerry Brown, who called the rule reversal “insane.” A day earlier, Brown signed a bill requiring California to source electricity from exclusively carbon-free sources by 2045, a move aimed at combating the Trump administration’s fossil fuel policies. The law makes California the largest global economy to officially aim for 100% carbon-free energy. Hawaii is the only other U.S. state to set a similar goal. Pacific Gas & Electric said California’s law could raise customer bills and make the grid less reliable. If it's not affordable, it's not sustainable, the utility’s spokeswoman, Lynsey Paulo, told Reuters.
Meanwhile, U.S. dry natural gas production should rise to an all-time high of 80.9 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2018, according to the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Short-Term Energy Outlook released this week. The latest September output projection for 2018 was down from the EIA’s forecast in August but would still easily top the current annual record high of 74.1 Bcf/d produced on average in 2015. The EIA also projected U.S. gas consumption would rise to an all-time high of 79.8 Bcf/d in 2018.
Finally, we’re keeping an eye on Hurricane Florence as it batters the U.S. southeast coast and tropical storms in the Gulf of Mexico. We’ll have updates on how the storms affect oil and gas production, demand and prices on Hart Energy’s family of websites.
Recommended Reading
Williston Warriors: Enerplus’ Long Bakken Run Ends in $4B Chord Deal
2024-02-22 - Chord Energy and Enerplus are combining to create an $11 billion Williston Basin operator. The deal ends a long run in the Bakken for Enerplus, which bet on the emerging horizontal shale play in Montana nearly two decades ago.
Exclusive: Is TG Natural Resources Looking to Snap Up More?
2024-03-27 - At Hart Energy's DUG Gas+ Conference and Expo in Shreveport, Louisiana, TG Natural Resources' President and CEO Craig Jarchow said the integration of the Rockcliff Energy acquisition is well underway and that "being acquisitive is certainly" in the company's future.
Exclusive: Frank Tsuru Reflects on Indigo's History, Impact in the Haynesville
2024-04-11 - Frank Tsuru, president and CEO of Momentum Midstream and former CEO of Indigo Natural Resources, looks back at the early stages of Haynesville development and the Indigo-Southwestern deal, in this Hart Energy Exclusive interview.
Exclusive: Rockcliff CEO on $2.7B TGNR Deal, Value of Haynesville M&A
2024-04-10 - Rockcliff Energy CEO and President Alan Smith discusses the ups and downs of executing the transaction with TG Natural Resources and what's on the Rockcliff III radar, in this Hart Energy Exclusive interview.
Exclusive: Pat Jelinek on Decarbonization Efforts, M&A Outlook
2024-04-16 - Oil and gas leader for EY Americas Pat Jelinek discusses trends in the Lower 48 like consolidation and why decarbonization is "more important" in the near term than the energy transition, in this Hart Energy Exclusive interview.