EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 6/30/25

PIPELINE NEWS

• Reuters: US energy firms eye new Northeast natgas pipelines, buoyed by Trump and demand outlook

• West Virginia Public Broadcasting: Mountain Valley Pipeline Settles With Protester It Sued

• Iowa Capital Dispatch: More than 40 Iowa lawmakers urge for repeal of 45Q tax credits in budget reconciliation bill

• Reuters: Canada approves law to fast-track resource projects, faces Indigenous opposition

• CBC: First Nations on B.C.'s North Coast say they would not support a new pipeline

• KTVH: BLM approves planned NorthWestern Energy gas pipeline from Helena to Three Forks

• Associated Press: North Dakota considers 2 proposed natural gas pipelines that would stretch across the state

• Press release: TC Energy commences collection of tolls on Southeast Gateway pipeline

• Associated Press: NTSB Says Company Failed to Shut Down Oil Pipeline for Nearly 13 Hours After Pressure Dropped

WASHINGTON UPDATES

• E&E News: Senate races to pass Republican megabill

• E&E News: Mike Lee withdraws public land sales from megabill

• KPAX: Interior Secretary Doug Burgum tells Scripps News public land sales are not part of the Trump agenda

• E&E News: Dems plot megabill energy, environment amendments

• Press release: North America’s Building Trades Unions Statement on the U.S. Senate Republican Proposed “One Big Beautiful Bill”

• Inside EPA: Conservatives Take Wait-And-See Approach Over High Court’s NEPA Ruling

• Spectrum News: N.C., S.C. governors urge Trump administration to avoid offshore drilling

• Splash: US offering 15,000 blocks in upcoming offshore lease sale

• Alaska Beacon: Federal government will allow more harm to polar bears near oil facilities

• E&E News: The oil and gas industry has a water problem. EPA wants to help.

• E&E News: DOE hydrogen hub program lacks adequate staff, risk controls — IG

• E&E News: Park visitors pass on Burgum effort to root out ‘negative’ signage

STATE UPDATES

• Associated Press: Louisiana is latest state to redefine natural gas -- a planet-warming fossil fuel -- as green energy

• NOLA.com: This Louisiana lawyer is suing Big Oil for billions. But don't call him a tree hugger.

• E&E News: New gas export terminal planned for Texas coast

• Energynews: Port of Corpus Christi expands capacity for large oil tankers

• Politico: It’s Complicated: California still wants to break up with Big Oil — but it needs a ride first.

• WITF: Boots and drones deployed in hunt for orphan gas wells in Southwest Pa.

• Source NM: New report: New Mexico on the hook for millions, if not billions, to plug oil and gas wells

• Colorado Public Radio: State alleges Chevron subsidiary violated rules in April spill

EXTRACTION

• Wall Street Journal: The Oil Tycoon and the Philosopher Threatening Big Oil’s Carbon Capture Plans

• Associated Press: How carbon capture works and the debate about whether it’s a future climate solution

• Upstream: Global carbon capture market stalls amid policy delays

• OilPrice.com: Big Oil’s $1.2 Trillion Bet? WoodMac Predicts CCUS Market Surge

• Inside Climate News: Truckers Say Oil and Gas Companies Are Violating Hazardous Materials Transport Regulations

OPINION

• South Dakota Searchlight: ‘Beautiful’ bill is good for pipeline companies but ugly for the rest of us

• Ohio Capital Journal: Fracking Ohio state parks should not fund tax cuts for the rich
  

PIPELINE NEWS

Reuters: US energy firms eye new Northeast natgas pipelines, buoyed by Trump and demand outlook
Scott Disavino, 6/30/25

“U.S. energy companies are eying renewed opportunities to build natural gas pipelines to tap in to Appalachia shale formations in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia, buoyed by U.S. President Donald Trump’s pro-energy policies and expectations that demand for the fuel will rise in coming years.” Reuters reports. “...While the country helps meet fuel demand around the world, many consumers in the U.S. Northeast do not have access to gas due to a lack of pipeline infrastructure and instead continue to use heating oil in their homes and businesses. The Appalachia shale fields, which cover the Marcellus and Utica formations, have the largest gas reserves in the U.S., but energy companies have limited ability to move more of that fuel to the rest of the country because most existing pipelines are already near full. In addition, companies have found it tough to build new projects in the region due to legal and regulatory pushback from states and local and environmental groups. Output growth in the region, which produces about a third of the nation's gas, has stalled in recent years after some firms lost billions on delayed or canceled pipes. But now, as Trump rolls back regulations to boost domestic energy production, several U.S. firms, including Williams Cos, Boardwalk Pipeline, DT Midstream and EQT, have proposed building or expanding pipelines and other infrastructure in the Northeast. "We are actively evaluating opportunities to expand infrastructure," Amy Rogers, spokeswoman at EQT, the nation's second-biggest gas producer with operations in Appalachia, told Reuters… “Support from the Trump administration has already prompted pipeline operator Williams to begin reviving two canceled projects to transport gas from Pennsylvania: the 0.65 bcfd Constitution Pipeline to New York and the 0.4 bcfd Northeast Supply Enhancement to New Jersey and New York… "The Northeast does not need more gas pipelines that pollute our neighborhoods and leave us vulnerable to price spikes from global volatility, especially as gas demand locally is already beginning to wane," Jasmine Vazin, director of the Beyond Dirty Fuels campaign at the Sierra Club, told Reuters.”

West Virginia Public Broadcasting: Mountain Valley Pipeline Settles With Protester It Sued
Curtis Tate, 6/27/25

“The Mountain Valley Pipeline has reached a settlement with a protester it sued,” West Virginia Public Broadcasting reports. “Jerome James Wagner agreed to stay off the pipeline’s property and not interfere with its operations, in a settlement signed Thursday by U.S. District Judge Thomas Kleeh. Mountain Valley Pipeline took Wagner to court last year, first in Webster County, then in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia, alleging trespass and seeking damages. MVP alleged that Wagner engaged in “unlawful protest” at a pipeline worksite in November 2023.”

Iowa Capital Dispatch: More than 40 Iowa lawmakers urge for repeal of 45Q tax credits in budget reconciliation bill
Cami Koons, 6/27/25

“A group of Republican lawmakers, who have opposed carbon sequestration pipelines in Iowa, penned a letter to U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst this week asking her to remove a tax credit incentivizing carbon sequestration from the budget reconciliation bill,” the Iowa Capital Dispatch reports. “Repeal 45Q now!” the letter read, naming the section of tax code. The budget reconciliation bill, known as the “one big beautiful bill,” has removed or substantially altered a number of clean energy credits for things like wind power or solar projects, but it has retained the 45Q tax credit, which was initiated in 2008 and expanded under the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act… “Iowa lawmakers from both the House and the Senate have been opposed to 45Q credits and to the Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline project, which plans to lay nearly 1,000 miles of pipeline in Iowa alone to transport carbon dioxide captured at ethanol facilities to underground storage in North Dakota. Six GOP lawmakers from North Dakota also signed on the letter. A similar letter that circulated earlier this month was headed by lawmakers in South Dakota. The opponents in the Iowa-led letter said the federal tax credit “bankrolls private corporations” to “bulldoze our land, intimidate our communities, endanger lives, and bury opportunity.”

Reuters: Canada approves law to fast-track resource projects, faces Indigenous opposition
Anna Mehler Paperny and Wa Lone, 6/26/25

“Canada’s Senate passed a bill to fast-track approval for natural resource and infrastructure projects on Thursday despite opposition from Indigenous and environmental groups who have threatened protests and legal action,” Reuters reports. “The bill’s passage and implementation are a test for Carney, who was elected in April promising to transform Canada’s economy in the face of what he repeatedly called a national crisis due to U.S. tariffs. The Liberal government’s proposal speeds up approval of “national interest” projects, potentially including mines and oil pipelines, and eliminates some trade barriers between provinces… “The bill had raised the ire of eight environmental and Indigenous leaders Reuters spoke to, and threatens to upend years of work toward reconciliation between Canada’s government and its first peoples. Some groups have promised a legal fight over the legislation, while others have pledged demonstrations. “Prime Minister Carney is likely going to be followed by an Indigenous protest if he continues on this course,” lawyer and former Couchiching First Nation Chief Sara Mainville, whose clients are considering legal action, told Reuters… “This bill represents a major threat to First Nations rights,” Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak told Reuters.” “...Abram Benedict, Ontario regional chief with the Chiefs of Ontario, told Reuters there will “definitely” be legal challenges. “There will be challenges to the legislation itself, the constitutionality of the legislation. There will also be challenges once the bill is operationalized so that projects are started.”

CBC: First Nations on B.C.'s North Coast say they would not support a new pipeline
6/27/25

“The president of an organization representing First Nations along the north coast of B.C. says it would not support any new pipeline projects in northern B.C.,” the CBC reports. “...There is no project or proponents that would be acceptable to us on the North Coast," Marilyn Slett, elected chief councillor of the Heiltsuk Tribal Council, about 479 kilometres north of Vancouver, and president of the Coastal First Nations' Great Bear Initiative (CFN)—an alliance of nine First Nations on the north Pacific coast of B.C. to Haida Gwaii, told CBC. "Anything that proposes to send oil through the coast is a non-starter.” Many of the CFN First Nations were parties to a B.C. Supreme Court appeal that stopped Northern Gateway pipeline plans to ship crude oil from the port of Kitimat, B.C… "It is really concerning because some of these projects will have long-lasting impacts to many First Nations that would affect their territories [for] decades, if not hundreds of years," Terry Teegee, regional chief of the B.C. Assembly of First Nations, told CBC. Teegee told CBC First Nations need to be part of the decision-making process when it comes to large energy projects being considered and approved.”

KTVH: BLM approves planned NorthWestern Energy gas pipeline from Helena to Three Forks
Jonathon Ambarian, 6/27/25

“The U.S. Bureau of Land Management says it has approved a planned natural gas pipeline between Helena and Three Forks – after an “accelerated review,” in line with the Trump administration’s directive to speed up energy projects,” KTVH reports. “NorthWestern Energy is seeking to build the 74-mile underground pipeline. The company says it will link the western and eastern sections of their natural gas system, with the goal of increasing capacity and improving service reliability during extreme cold weather… “Earlier this year, President Donald Trump declared a “national energy emergency,” ordering federal agencies to speed up their permitting process for energy projects, including coal, oil and natural gas. In response, the BLM announced a shortened 14-day environmental review process. Construction on the pipeline is set to begin in spring 2026, though the BLM says you could see preparatory activity in the project area this year. The pipeline could be completed by 2029.”

Associated Press: North Dakota considers 2 proposed natural gas pipelines that would stretch across the state
Jack Dura, 6/26/25

“A state official briefed regulators Thursday on two separate underground pipelines that companies plan to build across hundreds of miles of North Dakota, bringing natural gas from the oil fields in the west to mostly industrial users in the more populated east,” the Associated Press reports. “Both pipelines — one by Intensity Infrastructure Partners and Rainbow Energy Center, the other by WBI Energy — would span about 350 miles (563 kilometers) roughly from the Watford City to Fargo areas. Segments would come into service in 2029 and 2030. The companies didn’t disclose the projects’ costs. The presentation to a state industrial panel of elected officials was among the first steps in a process for the state to sign on with a 10-year, $50 million-per-year line of credit. That is essentially a backstop so projects can proceed with the intent that the state back out one day when other users join. Companies won’t build a pipeline without firm commitments from users.”

Press release: TC Energy commences collection of tolls on Southeast Gateway pipeline
6/27/25

“TC Energy Corporation today announced that it has commenced the collection of tolls from the Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) for the Southeast Gateway pipeline and has been paid by the CFE for the month of May, on time in accordance with our contract. We continue to work with the newly constituted Comisión Nacional de Energía (CNE) to obtain the approval of our regulated rates as soon as possible, which is required to provide service to potential future interruptible service users on Southeast Gateway other than the CFE. The Southeast Gateway pipeline, a 1.3 Bcf/d, 715-kilometre natural gas pipeline, was constructed approximately 13 per cent under the original cost estimate in less than three years from the project’s final investment decision. Southeast Gateway was the first significant energy infrastructure project constructed under our successful public-private partnership with the CFE.”

Associated Press: NTSB Says Company Failed to Shut Down Oil Pipeline for Nearly 13 Hours After Pressure Dropped
Josh Funk, 6/28/25

“Roughly 1.1 million gallons of crude oil spilled from a pipeline into the Gulf of Mexico in November 2023 because operators failed to shut it down for nearly 13 hours after their data first hinted at a problem, the National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday,” the Associated Press reports. “The NTSB said the leak off the coast of Louisiana was the result of underwater landslides, caused by hazards such as hurricanes, that the pipeline owner Third Coast failed to address even though the threats were well known in the industry. “In the years leading up to the accident, Third Coast missed several opportunities to evaluate how geohazards may threaten the integrity of their pipeline. Information widely available within the industry suggested that land movement related to hurricane activity was a threat to pipelines in the Gulf of America, including the MPOG (Main Pass Oil Gathering) 18-inch pipeline,” the NTSB said in its final report, using the new name assigned to the body of water by the Trump administration… “Environmental groups raised alarm at the time about the leak and its impact on wildlife and the Gulf. NTSB estimated that the spill caused $30 million in damage.”

WASHINGTON UPDATES

E&E News: Senate races to pass Republican megabill
Manuel Quiñones, 6/30/25

“Senate Republicans may be hours away from sending their tax cut, energy and border spending megabill to the House after a weekend of intense negotiations and acrimony,” E&E News reports. “The chamber is preparing to launch an amendment vote-a-rama before final passage as soon as Monday evening. They’re mostly Democratic messaging proposals but also potential GOP amendments to tweak the bill — including to change energy tax credit restrictions… “Senate moderates are said to be pushing amendments to strip the new tax and tweak other language, an aide granted anonymity to speak candidly told E&E… “The legislation has a notable victory for hydrogen. It would extend incentives for clean hydrogen production to 2028, instead of eliminating them this year as the previous Senate version proposed… “When it comes to permitting, the megabill would accelerate National Environmental Policy Act reviews for companies that pay a fee. Other permitting provisions were cut by lawmakers or because of adverse rulings from Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough. She said proposals to allow companies that pay a fee to get certain litigation exemptions and bypass a key step in the natural gas export permitting process did not comply with budget reconciliation rules. Similarly, MacDonough ruled against text that would have exempted offshore oil and gas projects from NEPA review, as well as a provision that would have taken away the Interior Department’s discretion to reduce fees for renewable energy projects on public land.”

E&E News: Mike Lee withdraws public land sales from megabill
Garrett Downs, 6/28/25

“Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chair Mike Lee on Saturday gave up on a plan to sell public lands in the Republican megabill,” E&E News reports.”...Lee’s move comes after weeks of backlash from public lands groups and prominent Republicans in and out of Congress, which saw him whipsaw between fighting for his proposal and trying to appease his critics… “Lee’s decision preempts an amendment push by the Montana and Idaho Senate delegations to strip the land sales. It also avoids potential mutiny from five Republicans in the House, who had threatened to vote against the megabill if Lee’s measure was included.”

KPAX: Interior Secretary Doug Burgum tells Scripps News public land sales are not part of the Trump agenda
Jacob Gardenswartz, 6/27/25

“...In the interview, Burgum addressed a controversial provision in the proposed budget reconciliation bill that would facilitate the sale of public lands, saying he was agnostic about whether it passes as part of the package,” KPAX reports. “It wasn’t part of the core, original bill. It was not part of the House version. It’s not a central topic. I don’t think anybody is really spending much time thinking about it up there,” Burgum told KPAZ. “There’s a small percentage of the federal land we own that borders current urban areas that’s not used for recreational or national parks. It would make a ton of sense for that to be considered. But it doesn’t matter to me at all if it’s part of this bill — that wasn’t part of the president’s agenda to be part of this bill in the first place.”

E&E News: Dems plot megabill energy, environment amendments
Amelia Davidson, 6/30/25

“Senate Democrats will force a series of amendment votes Monday as Republicans look to push their reconciliation bill over the finish line,” E&E News reports. “The vote-a-rama will likely last through the day Monday, as Democrats look to put GOP members on the record on contentious issues — including related to the role of fossil fuels and renewables in the country’s energy landscape. It is the latest in a series of procedural techniques that Democrats are using to slow the passage of the Republican party-line tax, energy and border spending budget reconciliation package. Over the weekend, Senate Democratic leadership forced a reading of the entire 940-page bill. The process took aides almost 16 hours.”

Press release: North America’s Building Trades Unions Statement on the U.S. Senate Republican Proposed “One Big Beautiful Bill”
6/28/25

“Today, North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU) President Sean McGarvey issued the following statement: “The revised Senate draft released late last night is a massive insult to the working men and women of North America’s Building Trades Unions and all construction workers. This is not what they voted for. “If enacted, this stands to be the biggest job-killing bill in the history of this country. Simply put, it is the equivalent of terminating more than 1,000 Keystone XL pipeline projects. In some cases, it worsens the already harmful trajectory of the House-passed language, threatening an estimated 1.75 million construction jobs and over 3 billion work hours, which translates to $148 billion in lost annual wages and benefits… “We are especially outraged because all of this, all of these job losses for hardworking Americans, is being done for one reason only: to make room for more tax breaks for the wealthiest corporations and individuals in America. Among other troubling provisions, this proposal will also raise healthcare premiums through the inevitable cost-shifting onto our members caused by the cuts to Medicaid.”

Inside EPA: Conservatives Take Wait-And-See Approach Over High Court’s NEPA Ruling
6/26/25

“Conservative lawyers and scholars are taking a wait-and-see approach regarding how big of an impact the Supreme Court’s recent Seven County ruling will have on speeding National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reviews -- countering warnings of disastrous outcomes raised by environmentalists,” Inside EPA reports. “The conservatives, speaking at a June 18 Washington Legal Foundation (WLF) event, say the importance of the holding will not be known until lower courts issue decisions based on it. The answer to whether the ruling is historic “is maybe, and the maybe is that it depends on how lower courts are going to apply this case,” Mario Loyola, a professor at Florida International University and a former Trump White House Council on Environmental Quality official, told the WLF event. He added that a concurring opinion by liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor “boils down to, there is nothing to see here,” and lower courts that have only paid “lip service to deference” could agree.”

Spectrum News: N.C., S.C. governors urge Trump administration to avoid offshore drilling
Reuben Jones, 6/26/25

“North Carolina is known for its pristine beaches. They attract people from around the country and generate a lot of tourism dollars. There are concerns about what could happen to tourism if offshore drilling comes to the waters off North Carolina,” Spectrum News reports. “They want to look out on a pristine ocean. They don’t want to look out on drilling rigs,” N.C. State University professor Michael Walden told Spectrum… “Perhaps worried about another change of course, Republican Gov. Henry McMaster of South Carolina and Democratic Gov. Josh Stein of North Carolina joined in a letter this month reminding the administration of that moratorium, urging the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to keep it in place, writing “every North Carolina and South Carolina coastal municipality has passed a resolution opposing offshore drilling and seismic testing… we ask you to respect the wishes of our states.”

Splash: US offering 15,000 blocks in upcoming offshore lease sale
Bojan Lepic, 6/26/25

“The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has announced a proposed notice of sale for an upcoming oil and gas lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico,” Splash reports. “Lease Sale 262 will offer approximately 15,000 unleased blocks located between five and 370 km offshore across the Gulf’s Western, Central, and Eastern Planning Areas… “Offshore oil and gas play a vital role in our nation’s energy portfolio, with the Gulf supplying 14% of domestically produced oil,” said BOEM’s principal deputy director Matt Giacona.”

Alaska Beacon: Federal government will allow more harm to polar bears near oil facilities
James Brooks, 6/25/25

“The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will allow oil and gas workers to more intensely harass polar bears away from people and equipment near the Beaufort Sea,” the Alaska Beacon reports. “A new rule, scheduled to take effect Thursday, follows a series of lawsuits brought by environmental groups who claimed that the federal government failed to adequately justify prior rules that allowed lower levels of harassment. Under federal regulations, “level B harassment” takes place when someone annoys an animal enough to change its behavior, typically steering it away from an object or person. “Level A harassment” takes place when that annoyance has the potential to injure the animal… “But the change drew opposition from environmentalists… “It’s horrific that the Trump administration ignored the science to greenlight more harm to polar bears while also proposing to open up more oil drilling in their habitat. Polar bears were already being driven toward extinction, and Trump is hitting the gas pedal.” Kristen Monsell, oceans legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity, told the Beacon.”

E&E News: The oil and gas industry has a water problem. EPA wants to help.
Miranda Willson, 6/26/25

“Oil and gas companies are running out of options for disposing of polluted water they generate every day, a problem for the Trump administration’s “energy dominance” agenda. EPA is offering the industry a hand by promoting reuse of that wastewater,” E&E News reports. “The effort worries environmentalists, but it could draw crucial political allies in oil-producing states… “The goal is to allow the chemical-laden, super-salty brine to be substantially cleaned and reused for power generation, water-guzzling data centers and irrigating rangeland… “But while treatment technologies for produced water have progressed, critics told E&E they remain expensive and energy intensive. Environmentalists and some local officials also worry that EPA will not require testing for all potential pollutants lurking in the water, creating contamination risks. “EPA [has been] very upfront by saying that there’s a lack of data on the technology and its ability to effectively and reliably treat this fluid,” Dan Mueller, a Texas-based water resources engineer who has worked with the Environmental Defense Fund, told E&E. “That is a struggle, and I continue to make that advocacy point.”

E&E News: DOE hydrogen hub program lacks adequate staff, risk controls — IG
Brian Dabbs, 6/27/25

“The Department of Energy didn’t ensure enough staff or risk controls were in place to handle a high-profile $8 billion hydrogen program, the agency’s inspector general office said in a report released Thursday,” E&E News reports. “...The IG report, which is dated Monday, found that DOE’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations — which was also created in the infrastructure law — “did not adequately plan, resource, or develop controls to help ensure the H2Hubs Program met its goals and objectives.” “Additionally, the OCED and the H2Hubs Program had not conducted an assessment on its human capital posture to determine whether adequate staffing resources with the requisite skills and knowledge were available to meet current and future mission goals and objectives,” the report added. “The issues occurred, in part, because the OCED encountered numerous challenges as a newly created office within the Department.”

E&E News: Park visitors pass on Burgum effort to root out ‘negative’ signage
Heather Richards, 6/26/25

“Visitors to public lands have begun weighing in with gusto on the Trump administration’s management of national parks through an online form launched earlier this month to flag ‘negative’ depictions of U.S. history,” E&E News reports. “The nation’s tourists have told NPS they want better benches, cleaner concession stands and more history about Native Americans. But most of all they want the Trump administration to halt proposed budget cuts and tread lightly on how the National Park Services reworks its portrayals of the nation’s history, according to hundreds of submissions reviewed by E&E.”

STATE UPDATES

Associated Press: Louisiana is latest state to redefine natural gas -- a planet-warming fossil fuel -- as green energy
Jack Brook, Jennifer McDermott, 6/26/25

“Louisiana is the latest state to redefine natural gas as green energy under a new law the Republican governor signed this week, even though it’s a fossil fuel that emits planet-warming greenhouse gases,” the Associated Press reports. “Three other states led by Republicans— Indiana, Ohio and Tennessee— have passed similar legislation. In some Democratic-led states, there have been efforts to phase out natural gas… “Environmental groups told AP these new laws are part of a broader push by petrochemical industry-backed groups to rebrand fossil fuel as climate friendly and head off efforts to shift electric grids to renewables, such as solar and wind. It’s “pure Orwellian greenwashing,” Tim Donaghy, research director of Greenpeace USA, told AP.”

NOLA.com: This Louisiana lawyer is suing Big Oil for billions. But don't call him a tree hugger.
Alex Lubben, 6/29/25

“John Carmouche isn’t who you think he is. The Baton Rouge lawyer, who just won a $745 million verdict against Chevron for damaging wetlands, is taking on Big Oil in Louisiana and winning. But he’s no tree hugger. Nor, he says, a headline-chasing trial lawyer,” NOLA.com reports. “Through three governors’ administrations, he and his firm have navigated political headwinds to keep their lawsuits against oil companies alive. Carmouche has helped quash bills and candidacies that would have threatened his efforts. While his work seeks to make oil companies pay billions for damage they’ve done to the environment, he insists he wants the oil industry to thrive in Louisiana, as long as it doesn’t leave behind a mess. “I have a Democrat’s heart but I’m a Republican, because I understand business,” Carmouche told NOLA.com, seated at a conference table in his Baton Rouge office, a mosaic of photos of the Louisiana marsh on the wall behind him. “We want the state to thrive. We’re tired of our kids leaving. To bring this state back, we have to take away the oil companies’ liability.” That means suing them, and getting them to pay for the damage they’ve done to the coast, he told NOLA.com… “Carmouche, 57, and his firm have been suing oil companies for decades. But the April verdict in Plaquemines Parish, a historic win against the oil and gas industry, marks the beginning of a new phase of his fight. “This is one of the largest verdicts ever won by a local government for environmental damage — not only in the United States, but globally,” Michael Gerrard, the founder of Columbia University's Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, told NOLA.com after the verdict… “Carmouche describes himself as motivated by righteous anger, fueled by “knowing what they knew, and how they went about destroying the coast, and how they got away with it.”

E&E News: New gas export terminal planned for Texas coast
Carlos Anchondo, 6/30/25

“A developer of a new gas export project in Texas is proposing to equip planned facilities with carbon capture technology,” E&E News reports. “In an announcement Thursday, Coastal Bend LNG said the company is moving ahead on a project capable of producing 22.5 million metric tons of liquefied natural gas each year. If built, the Coastal Bend project would join the eight existing U.S. LNG export terminals dotted along the Gulf Coast and Atlantic Ocean, as well as several under-construction projects and even more approved facilities. Coastal Bend LNG said it expects to pre-file an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission sometime this year, according to a news release. Nick Flores, CEO of Coastal Bend LNG, said the company is responding to a “growing global demand for low carbon intensity” liquefied natural gas.”

Energynews: Port of Corpus Christi expands capacity for large oil tankers
6/26/25

“The Port of Corpus Christi, located in the US state of Texas, has announced the completion of a significant navigation channel improvement project,” Energynews reports. “Begun in 2017, the works involved deepening the channel from an initial depth of 47 feet (14.3 metres) to 54 feet (16.4 metres), while expanding its width from 400 feet (122 metres) to 530 feet (161 metres). The primary objective of this project was to enable simultaneous navigation of larger vessels, responding to increasing demand for hydrocarbon exports, particularly crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG)... “EPIC Crude officials indicate that the port’s expanded facilities strengthen their ability to offer exporting companies a broad range of delivery options, while simultaneously reducing transport-related costs to end markets. This logistical enhancement also allows the company to contemplate future expansions of its pipeline network to further increase hydrocarbon evacuation capacity from the Permian basin to Corpus Christi.”

Politico: It’s Complicated: California still wants to break up with Big Oil — but it needs a ride first.
Camille Von Kaenel, Alex Nieves, 6/27/25

“California Energy Commission Vice Chair Siva Gunda outlined his much-anticipated plan on Friday to keep gas prices from spiking as the state weans itself off of oil. TLDR: Support in-state crude oil production, boost imports of refined oil — and pause a profit cap on refineries passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2023,” Politico reports. “Newsom had already previewed the pivot when he asked Gunda to redouble efforts to keep in-state refineries operating profitably in April after two of them announced plans to close amid a long-term decline in demand. The recommendations on Friday not only mark a softening of the state’s fight against the oil and gas industry, but also a recognition that attacks from Republicans on gas prices are sticking.”

WITF: Boots and drones deployed in hunt for orphan gas wells in Southwest Pa.
Rachel McDevitt, 6/27/25

“Environmental groups will soon be canvassing six areas of Southwestern Pennsylvania by foot, car, and drone in an effort to find abandoned oil and gas wells,” WITF reports. “...The state has documented about 30,000 orphan or abandoned wells, but it’s estimated there could be between 300,000 and 700,000 others that are unknown to regulators, Adam Peltz, a senior attorney at Environmental Defense Fund, told WITF… “For the surveys, vehicles outfitted with methane detecting sensors will slowly drive through neighborhoods to identify leaks. Surveyors will follow up on foot with backpack magnetometers — basically a “fancy metal detector,” Peltz told WITF. The devices can locate metal used to build the wells. Drones with magnetometers will also be used where possible, which could help find wells under buildings or infrastructure… “Matt Dracup, a professional geologist manager with DEP’s Southwest Regional Office, told WITF if drones can help to pinpoint where emissions are coming from, “our mitigation systems can be more effective and last longer.”

Source NM: New report: New Mexico on the hook for millions, if not billions, to plug oil and gas wells
Danielle Prokop, 6/26/25

“New Mexico could face ballooning costs to address oil and gas wells abandoned by operators – sometimes called “orphan wells” — and the problem is poised to get bigger, a new report said, as more wells reach the end of their lifespans,” Source NM reports. “Current cleanup of 700 wells will cost $208 million and take close to a decade to complete, analysts from the Legislative Finance Committee estimated in a 47-page report released Tuesday. Future plugging of an identified 1,400 wells could cost New Mexico between $700 million dollars to as high as $1.6 billion. “On top of that, there are more than 3,000 wells on state or private land producing extremely small quantities of oil and gas whose expected cleanup costs far exceed their predicted future revenues, increasing their risk of being orphaned,” the report says.”

Colorado Public Radio: State alleges Chevron subsidiary violated rules in April spill
Ishan Thakore, 6/26/25

“Colorado energy regulators hit a Chevron-owned subsidiary with six alleged violations today for causing a massive oil spill near Galeton, Colo., in early April,” Colorado Public Radio reports. “...The notice was issued to Noble Energy, Inc., a Chevron subsidiary which operated the well. The state alleges six violations of Colorado rules governing oil and gas operations. The end result, according to regulators, is that a fracked well spewed around 1.05 million gallons of oil, natural gas, water and chemicals for nearly four days. The notice also lists out corrective actions the company must take… “It was not immediately clear how much those penalties might be, and regulators said there was no timeline yet on the enforcement hearing. Chevron is also staring down potential civil lawsuits for damages, and is on the hook for the site’s clean-up costs. Fourteen families evacuated the area around the spill. Most have since returned home.”

EXTRACTION

Wall Street Journal: The Oil Tycoon and the Philosopher Threatening Big Oil’s Carbon Capture Plans
Benoît Morenne, 6/28/25

“Exxon Mobil, Occidental Petroleum and other oil giants are expected to receive billions of dollars of incentives to collect and bury carbon emissions. Texas oil billionaire Ben “Bud” Brigham and pro-fossil-fuels activist Alex Epstein want to turn off the tap,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “Brigham, a serial entrepreneur and libertarian from Austin, is urging President Trump and the Republicans who are considering slashing a host of energy incentives to go further and nix tax credits for carbon capture. He says there is no climate disaster on the horizon, and that funneling public money into a nascent technology is a gift to oil behemoths… “It’s just taxpayer dollars that are going to virtue-signaling and are not having any meaningful economic impact at all,” Brigham told the Journal. The magnate is joining a motley coalition critical of carbon capture. From Iowa to the Dakotas and Colorado, representatives, landowners and environmentalists oppose the subsidies, citing concerns about carbon-dioxide pipelines, misuse of federal funds and the national debt. Now, tensions are erupting inside the oil industry. Oil giants, under pressure to curb their emissions, hope that collecting and trapping their own releases will allow them to stay in business… “Vicki Hollub, chief executive officer of Occidental Petroleum, is betting on a plan to suck massive amounts of CO2 from the air… “Hollub has visited the White House since Trump’s election and personally made the case for the incentives to him… “Hamm’s Continental Resources has invested $250 million in a multibillion-dollar plan to gather carbon emissions from dozens of ethanol plants every year… “At a December event organized by the Republican Study Committee, the largest conservative caucus in Congress, Hamm put on a forceful defense of carbon capture and sequestration as an environmental solution, according to attendees.”

Associated Press: How carbon capture works and the debate about whether it’s a future climate solution
Tammy Webber, 6/26/25

“...But it faces criticism from some conservatives, who say it is expensive and unnecessary, and from environmentalists, who say it has consistently failed to capture as much pollution as promised and is simply a way for producers of fossil fuels like oil, gas and coal to continue their use,” the Associated Press reports. “...The most commonly used technology allows facilities to capture and store around 60% of their carbon dioxide emissions during the production process. Anything above that rate is much more difficult and expensive, according to the IEA. Some companies have forecast carbon capture rates of 90% or more, “in practice, that has never happened,” Alexandra Shaykevich, research manager at the Environmental Integrity Project’s Oil & Gas Watch, told AP… “Environmentalists also cite potential problems keeping it in the ground. For example, last year, agribusiness company Archer-Daniels-Midland discovered a leak about a mile underground at its Illinois carbon capture and storage site, prompting the state legislature this year to ban carbon sequestration above or below the Mahomet Aquifer, an important source of drinking water for about a million people… “A 2021 study also found the carbon capture process emits significant amounts of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that’s shorter-lived than carbon dioxide but traps over 80 times more heat. That happens through leaks when the gas is brought to the surface and transported to plants… “The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis says one of the world’s largest carbon capture utilization and storage projects, ExxonMobil’s Shute Creek facility in Wyoming, captures only about half its carbon dioxide, and most of that is sold to oil and gas companies to pump back into oil fields… “The [tax credits] remain in the Senate Finance Committee’s draft reconciliation bill, after another version passed the House, though the Carbon Capture Coalition said inflation has already slashed their value and could limit projects.”

Upstream: Global carbon capture market stalls amid policy delays
Rebecca Conan, 6/30/25

“Development of the carbon capture and storage market has stalled amid uncertainty over government, regulatory and other policies, marine seismic companies have told Upstream. “We hear from clients that there is still that uncertainty in terms of funding, and there are also quite a few regulatory barriers that are delaying the growth of that market,” Irene Basili, chief executive at Shearwater told Upstream. “We still believe the market will develop, it is a must-win battle in the transition, but it is not following the hockey stick curve that we saw on wind a few years back.”

OilPrice.com: Big Oil’s $1.2 Trillion Bet? WoodMac Predicts CCUS Market Surge
Alex Kimani, 6/29/25

“Global research and consultancy group Wood Mackenzie has predicted that the global Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) market will surge 28-fold by 2050 to 2,061 million tonnes per annum, surpassing trillions of dollars in value,” OilPrice.com reports. “According to WoodMac, countries across the globe led by U.S., Canada and Europe have committed $80 billion for CCUS so far, with just 50 CCUS projects with a capacity to store 51 million tonnes of CO2 per year currently operational. WoodMac has also predicted that the gap between capture capacity and storage capacity will narrow from nearly 50% in 2030 to 20% in 2050. However, the analysts are less optimistic about near-term growth prospects for CCUS, and have revised their 10-year forecast down by 22% due to policy uncertainty in the U.S. coupled with slow policy evolution in Asia. Further, WoodMac has predicted that most countries that have set carbon capture targets will only be able to achieve 50-70% of their goals by 2050. Even more alarming: WoodMac says point-source capture will only be capable of abating 4% of total emissions by 2050, short of the 6% required to restrict global warming to 2.5C by 2050. Nevertheless, the explosive growth will offer fresh opportunities for oil and gas companies.”

Inside Climate News: Truckers Say Oil and Gas Companies Are Violating Hazardous Materials Transport Regulations
Kiley Bense, 6/29/25

“When Tom McKnight started working for the oil and gas industry as a truck driver in Ohio more than 10 years ago, he attended an orientation where someone in the class asked about the possibility of radiation exposure from fracking waste. The instructor told them there was more radiation risk from their cell phones than on the job,” Inside Climate News reports. “...McKnight would later learn that the company had misled him: The waste and wastewater generated by fracking can be highly radioactive and toxic, especially in the Marcellus Shale, the formation beneath Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia and New York that supplies fracking wells with gas. Years later, after he was diagnosed with cancer and doctors found nodules on his lungs, McKnight wondered if his illness was triggered by his time working for the fracking industry. He’ll likely never know the answer to that question. But he wishes he had been warned about the hazards of the waste. McKnight isn’t alone, Billy Randel, a retired truck driver and lead organizer with Truckers Movement for Justice, a group working to improve labor conditions for drivers across the country, told ICN… “Experiences like McKnight’s galvanized Truckers Movement for Justice to publicly call for the U.S. Department of Transportation to enforce existing rules for the transport of hazardous materials. The group wants DOT to conduct a safety audit of carriers dealing with oil and gas waste, investigate whether companies are properly labeling the waste and develop safety training for drivers and workers in the industry.”

OPINION

South Dakota Searchlight: ‘Beautiful’ bill is good for pipeline companies but ugly for the rest of us
Betty Strom is a landowner and retired teacher from Sioux Falls. She has spent years defending her land against pipeline companies and is a member of Dakota Rural Action, 6/28/25

“I may be best-known for my battles with pipeline companies, both Summit Carbon’s proposed carbon dioxide pipeline and the Dakota Access oil pipeline. I had the distinction of being named first in the landowners’ lawsuit against Summit’s efforts to force their way onto our land, which wound its way to the state Supreme Court, where we prevailed last year,” Betty Strom writes for South Dakota Searchlight. “It’s well-established that many South Dakotans do not care for the carbon dioxide pipeline, but the U.S. House’s budget reconciliation bill fails to repeal a massive handout to carbon companies with 45Q tax credits. This corporate welfare is why companies like Summit persist in pushing projects we don’t want. Our lone representative, Congressman Dusty Johnson, voted yes on the bill. It’s now under consideration in the Senate. He touted all the reasons this “big, beautiful bill” will be good for South Dakota, but good for whom, exactly? He doesn’t mention billions of dollars in 45Q tax credits at all, but cheerfully explains reductions to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Medicaid… “Thousands of South Dakotans already travel considerable distances for a doctor’s visit, and these cuts will make a bad situation worse if closures start. Plus, those are jobs lost from communities, another blow. I don’t think this bill is as beautiful as Rep. Johnson makes it out to be. The pipeline companies got a rosy deal, but it looks pretty ugly for the rest of us.”

Ohio Capital Journal: Fracking Ohio state parks should not fund tax cuts for the rich
Cathy Cowan Becker is an organizer with Buckeye Environmental Network, 6/27/25

“During the lame duck session of 2022, the Ohio legislature passed HB 507, a bill ostensibly about the sale of baby chicks, but loaded up with last-minute oil and gas amendments — including one that required fracking of Ohio state parks and public lands,” Cathy Cowan Becker writes for the Ohio Capital Journal. “Since then, the Oil and Gas Land Management Commission has sold out our ne public land after another for fracking — including thousands of acres of Ohio’s iconic Salt Fork State Park. Frack well pads are now beginning to surround the park… “Making our parks dependent on fracking isn’t the only favor to the oil and gas industry in the hastily approved state budget… “Allowing fracked gas projects, now defined by our legislature as ‘green energy,’ to receive air quality revenue bonds, despite their methane pollution. Cutting the Oil and Gas Well Fund responsible for plugging orphan wells by eliminating filing fees… “One thing is clear: The people of Ohio own and use our state parks, wildlife areas, and public lands – and we do not want them to be fracked just to provide tax cuts for the rich.”