Texas at risk of blackouts as ERCOT calls for energy conservation
The Texas electric grid operator has warned of possible blackouts on Monday due to sweltering...
The Texas electric grid operator has warned of possible blackouts on Monday due to sweltering heat driving record demand.
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, said it was asking for voluntary conservation between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. local time due to record high electricity demand because of the heat wave, and also because of low wind. ERCOT said current projections show wind generation coming in less than 10% of capacity.
The National Weather Service said temperatures will reach or exceed 105 degrees Fahrenheit in areas ranging from the Big Country to Central Texas regions. A heat advisory is in effect for the Dallas-Fort Worth region into East Texas, where temperatures will reach or exceed 103 degrees.
Evacuation Order Reduced after Fire at ONEOK Gas Plant in Oklahoma
Oklahoma authorities on July...
Oklahoma authorities on July 10 narrowed the scope of an evacuation order near the ONEOK natural gas plant following a fire on July 9.
The Deer Creek Volunteer Fire Department told people on July 9 to avoid major U.S. Highway 81 in the area “due to a major fire at the ONEOK plant,” posting an image of a large plume of dark smoke.
The evacuation decree, which previously covered areas two miles around the facility, has been set for a one-mile vicinity of the site, which is located near Medford, close to the border with Kansas, the City of Medford said on its Facebook page. Part of Highway 81 south remained closed, it added.
Putin warns West: sanctions risk energy price spike catastrophe
President Vladimir Putin warned the West on Friday that continued sanctions against Russia over the war...
President Vladimir Putin warned the West on Friday that continued sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine risked triggering catastrophic energy price rises for consumers around the world.
Putin, who casts the sanctions imposed on Russia as a declaration of economic war, said that Western calls to reduce reliance on Russian energy had made global markets "feverish" with spikes in oil and gas.
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
