EPA considering hitting largest US oil field with pollution regulation
The United States’ largest oil field may be in violation of pollution standards and required to act...
The United States’ largest oil field may be in violation of pollution standards and required to act by the Environmental Protection Agency, which critics argue could threaten production at a time when gas prices remain high and the world’s oil supply is being pinched.
The Permian Basin, located across western Texas and parts of New Mexico, accounts for roughly 40% of domestically produced oil. The EPA recently announced it is considering a “discretionary redesignation” of the Permian Basin, which would require Texas and New Mexico to come up with plans to reduce ozone in three years.
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a frequent critic of the Biden administration, sent a letter to the president telling him to stop the EPA.
Large fire at Oklahoma gas plant forces major evacuations
A large fire Saturday afternoon engulfed a natural gas plant in...
A large fire Saturday afternoon engulfed a natural gas plant in the small northern Oklahoma town of Medford. Video posted to social media showed heavy flames and smoke billowing hundreds of feet into the air. The fire occurred at a "natural gas liquids fractionation facility" operated by ONEOK, a company spokesperson confirmed in a statement to CBS News. ONEOK said it was "unaware of any injuries." All residents within a two-mile radius of the plant were asked to immediately evacuate, the Grant County Sheriff's Office reported. The number of people being evacuated was unclear, although Medford has a population of about 930 people, according to the latest U.S. Census data.
Michael and Brittany Stone captured this video of an explosion in Medford, Oklahoma, near the Kansas border. This gas plant fire caused evacuations and road closures #KWCH12pic.twitter.com/V8Cy8FbYfM
Germany is rationing hot water and turning off the lights to reduce natural gas consumption
Last year, Germany relied on Russia for ...
Last year, Germany relied on Russia for 55% of its natural gas imports. Germany has since been able to reduce that number to 35%, but with Russia seemingly prepared to further cut gas shipments to Europe, German officials are having to make some difficult choices.
This week, a city official in Hamburg—Germany’s second-largest city—warned that “warm water could only be made available at certain times of the day in an emergency,” forecasting the possibility of a severe natural gas shortage. And on Friday, residents in the eastern German state of Saxony were told by their housing association that they could take hot showers only between 4 a.m. and 8 a.m., 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., and 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. each day, the Financial Times reported.
It isn’t just hot water that’s being rationed. In addition to shorter shower times, officials are asking city councils nationwide to turn off traffic lights at night, stop illuminating historic buildings, and go easy on using air conditioners in a bid to conserve electricity, according to the FT.
U.S. drillers add oil and gas rigs for fourth week in five
U.S. energy firms this week added oil and natural gas rigs for the fourth time in five weeks amid high...
U.S. energy firms this week added oil and natural gas rigs for the fourth time in five weeks amid high crude prices although the growth in rigs has been small and crude production has been slow to recover to pre-pandemic levels.
The total oil and gas rig count, an early indicator of future output, rose two to 752 in the week to July 8. U.S. oil rigs rose two to 597 this week, their highest since March 2020, while gas rigs were unchanged at 153.
Benchmark U.S. crude oil for August delivery rose $2.06 to $104.79 a barrel Friday. Brent crude for September delivery rose $2.37 to $107.02 a barrel.
Wholesale gasoline for August delivery rose 3 cents to $3.45 a gallon. August heating oil was unchanged at $3.67 a gallon. August natural gas fell 27 cents to $6.03 per 1,000 cubic feet.
