EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 9/28/21
PIPELINE NEWS
Reuters: PennEast to end development of Pennsylvania-New Jersey natgas pipe
Bloomberg: PennEast Gas Project Halted in Latest U.S. Pipeline Casualty
WNEP: Carbon County pipeline project called off
E&E News: What the PennEast cancellation signals for FERC, pipelines
Law360: Ojibwe Tribe Wants Study Of Enbridge Environmental Damage
Park Rapids Enterprise: Hubbard County Board discusses Line 3's potential tax impact
Bloomberg: Protesters Stop Workers at Site of TC Energy’s B.C. Gas Pipeline
BIV.com: CGL work ramps up, along with activist blockades
Law360: Sunoco Can't Hide Pipeline Rupture Assessment, Feds Say
Associated Press: Carbon dioxide pipelines may be opposed in Nebraska, Iowa
Reuters: Tallgrass to track, measure emissions on U.S. interstate natgas pipeline
Pipeline Fighters Hub: Recent Pipeline Fight Victories & “Unfinished Business”: Briefing Sept. 29, 6pm CT
Press release: Enbridge Hosts Inaugural ESG Forum Highlighting Industry Leading Performance
Native News Online: Native American Journalist Myron Dewey, a 'Dedicated Water Protector and Digital Warrior', Dies in Car Accident
WASHINGTON UPDATES
E&E News: Exxon splits with lobbyist who divulged climate strategy
STATE UPDATES
E&E News: Pa. Dems running for Senate shun talk of fracking ban
Denver Post: Denver’s airport makes plans to plug all oil and gas wells as it focuses on sustainability
EXTRACTION
Reuters: Goldman expects oil prices to hit $90 by year-end as supply tightens
Reuters: Global oil demand seen reaching pre-pandemic levels by early 2022
Reuters: Baker Hughes sees global required LNG capacity at 800 mln tonnes by 2030
OPINION
Los Angeles Times: Column: ‘Renewable natural gas’ is the latest sham from the oil & gas industry
Duluth News Tribune: Reader's View: Fine ‘just a business expense’ to Enbridge
PIPELINE NEWS
Reuters: PennEast to end development of Pennsylvania-New Jersey natgas pipe
9/27/21
“PennEast Pipeline said on Monday it would cease development of the natural gas pipeline it proposed to build from Pennsylvania to New Jersey because the project had not yet received all the required permits,” Reuters reports. “Although PennEast received federal approval to build the pipe in 2018, the company said it has still not received some permits, including the water quality certification from New Jersey. "The PennEast partners, following extensive evaluation and discussion, recently determined further development of the project no longer is supported," PennEast said in an email, noting it "has ceased all further development of the project." PennEast is one of several gas pipeline projects in the U.S. Northeast held up by state regulators over the past several years. Others include Williams Cos Inc's (WMB.N) Northeast Supply Enhancement from Pennsylvania to New Jersey and New York, and Constitution from Pennsylvania to New York. Energy analysts have warned that gas could soon become trapped in the Appalachian shale region unless energy companies build more big pipes… “The PennEast partners decided to stop development even though the project won a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court in June that overturned a lower court decision blocking PennEast from using federal eminent domain rules to seize New Jersey state-owned or controlled land.”
Bloomberg: PennEast Gas Project Halted in Latest U.S. Pipeline Casualty
Simon Casey and Gerson Freitas Jr, 9/27/21
“A $1 billion project to haul natural gas from Pennsylvania to New Jersey has become the latest casualty of opposition to pipelines across the U.S.,” Bloomberg reports. “...The decision adds to a series of gas-pipeline projects scrapped amid fierce opposition from environmental groups pushing for a faster transition away from fossil fuels and an increasingly burdensome approval process. It also comes amid growing concerns about energy reliability, with prices for natural gas surging because of tighter supplies. In 2020 alone, Dominion Energy Inc. and Duke Energy Corp. scrapped an $8 billion Atlantic Coast gas project, and Williams Cos. abandoned its Constitution gas pipeline and its Northeast Supply Enhancement plan. Completion of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, a 303-mile conduit spanning from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia, has been pushed into 2022 due to permitting delays. Limited pipeline capacity makes it harder to bring gas from shale fields in Appalachia, where producers including EQT Corp. are forced to sell supplies at a discount. Meanwhile, costumers in places such as New England pay stiff premiums for gas because only limited supplies can reach the region. The inability to build new pipelines will slow down the energy transition and leave costumers with higher energy bills, the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America said in a statement. Consumer Energy Alliance said the pipeline cancellation will force New Jersey consumers to “find another source of affordable energy or otherwise face reliability problems and price-hiking shortages.”
WNEP: Carbon County pipeline project called off
Carmella Mataloni, 9/27/21
“PennEast Pipeline has pulled the plug on a massive natural gas pipeline plan,” WNEP reports. “The project would have run through parts of our area in Luzerne and Carbon Counties on its way to New Jersey. Along that proposed path, is Christman Farm in Towamensing Township near Lehighton. Linda Christman says she can sleep soundly knowing for certain her land is safe. "I was jumping up and down so happy. I called everyone I know and gave them the news. We are definitely going to have a party somehow," Linda Christman told WNEP… “People who have been against this project since the beginning say this is a big win, for the little guy. "This process of building pipelines in this way has been going on since the 1930s. In all of that time, there's maybe a handful of pipelines that have been stopped," Christman told WNEP. If the proposed pipeline had gone through, it would have cut diagonally across Christman Farm's property. It's why Linda has been so vocal at trying to stop the project. "Over and over again companies come here and take our water, they want to plop some industrial use right in the middle of a forest and why do they do it? Money. They are the only ones that make any money and they are the only ones who benefit and I'm tired of it.”
E&E News: What the PennEast cancellation signals for FERC, pipelines
Niina H. Farah, Carlos Anchondo, 9/28/21
“The cancellation of the PennEast pipeline yesterday is stirring speculation about the fate of other similar projects and resurfacing criticism of the federal approval process for natural gas infrastructure,” E&E News reports. “...But opponents said PennEast had also suffered from a shortcoming that is common to at least two other recently failed projects and should be corrected before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approves future energy projects. It involves “precedent agreements," in which shippers commit to purchasing a certain amount of pipeline capacity, provided certain conditions on the project move forward. With PennEast, FERC had established there was a demand for the pipeline based primarily on contracts between the developers and shippers in affiliated companies, which critics have described as "self-dealing." Precedent agreements with affiliated companies also have come under closer scrutiny at FERC after a federal appeals court recently ruled that the agency had to take a closer look at its reliance on them to determine if pipeline projects are necessary. That court ruling suggests that other projects with similar contracts could face legal or regulatory obstacles, critics say. Gillian Giannetti, an attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council’s Sustainable FERC Project, noted to E&E that the end of the PennEast pipeline follows the earlier cancellation of the Constitution and Atlantic Coast pipelines in 2020, marking the third time that a major proposed pipeline that has relied on precedent agreements with affiliated companies has been canceled… “Yesterday’s cancellation should be a wake-up call for FERC, Suzanne Mattei, an energy policy analyst at the Institute for Energy Economics & Financial Analysis, which advocates for a diverse and sustainable energy economy, told E&E. “They need to do a better job from the outset in analyzing these pipelines and determining whether or not they’re really necessary, so that we don’t all have to go through these painful processes of challenges and court decisions and various forms of debate over” projects that shouldn’t go forward, Mattei said of FERC. "It’s a waste of everybody’s resources — not only the company’s resources, but government resources and community resources … landowners resources.”
Law360: Ojibwe Tribe Wants Study Of Enbridge Environmental Damage
Victoria McKenzie, 9/27/21
“The White Earth Band of Ojibwe urged a tribal appeals court to prevent the Minnesota Dept. of Natural Resources from issuing additional Enbridge Pipeline water permits before independent investigators can assess the ongoing damage created after pipeline crews ruptured an aquifer and repeatedly allowed drilling chemicals to leach into surrounding waters,” Law360 reports.
Park Rapids Enterprise: Hubbard County Board discusses Line 3's potential tax impact
Shannon M. Geisen, 9/27/21
“...Enbridge’s Line 3 pipeline will add to the 2022 new construction tax capacity, which the county “can capture for capital projects, economic development and other unfunded initiatives at the board’s desire,” said County Administrator Jeff Cadwell,” according to the Park Rapids Enterprise. “The county saw approximately $41 million in new construction in 2021. Cadwell pointed out this is a conservative figure. “Multiple that by 10 for Line 3,” he said of next year. “We would have 10 percent new construction tax capacity” compared to the average 1 percent… “Valuation of Line 3 will be available early next year. “We just have estimates, at this point,” he said. “This is that once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, much the same way the ARP (American Rescue Plan) is.” Cadwell said the county could potentially gain $3 million in taxes. “When you look through the counties that are impacted by Line 3, you all know this. We’re the biggest winners of all the counties in the change of our current tax capacity.”
Bloomberg: Protesters Stop Workers at Site of TC Energy’s B.C. Gas Pipeline
Robert Tuttle, 9/27/21
“Work on TC Energy Corp.’s Coastal GasLink pipeline has been hampered by protesters who blocked access to a construction site in western British Columbia, threatening further delays to the natural gas conduit,” Bloomberg reports. “Coastal GasLink crews are being prevented from accessing a work area near the Morice River, an area that includes “several pieces” of heavy equipment staged for clearing and site preparation activities, Calgary-based TC Energy said in a release. The access road to a drill site on the river was destroyed and blockades have been erected “to stop the drilling under the sacred headwaters that nourish the Wet’suwet’en Yintah and all those within its catchment area,” the Indigenous Environmental Network said in a news release, adding that there had been one arrest… “The pipeline has faced opposition in the past from local indigenous groups, including members of the Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chiefs. A standoff between pipeline workers and indigenous groups in early 2020 escalated into Canada-wide protest movement that blocked trains from moving goods and passengers across the country.”
BIV.com: CGL work ramps up, along with activist blockades
Nelson Bennett, 9/27/21
“Work on the Coastal GasLink pipeline is ramping up, as the project enters a busy fall work season, but members within the Gidimt’en clan of the Wet’suwet’en First Nation are also ramping up efforts to halt the project,” BIV.com reports. “TC Energy (TSX:TRP), responsible for building the $6.6 billion natural gas pipeline that will feed the LNG Canada plant in Kitimat, has already warned that the project’s costs are likely to go up “significantly,” thanks to time lost from the pandemic and reductions in its workforce… ‘But an activist group within the Wet’suwet’en First Nation – which is divided on the project, with severeal hereditary chiefs opposed to it and elected chiefs in favour – have recently ramped up efforts to halt the project. According to a press release issued by representatives of the Gidimt’en clan, a blockade has been set up to try to stop work in an area they say is destroying an archaeological site. As of Sunday, there had been one arrest, the group says in its release. “Days ago, CGL destroyed our ancient village site, Ts’elkay Kwe,” the press release states. “Tensions have continued to rise on the Yintah as CGL pushes a reckless and destructive construction schedule with the support of private security and the RCMP.” ‘...As Coastal GasLink continues to trespass, we will do everything in our power to protect our waters and to uphold our laws,” the Yintah Access Group says in a press release.
Associated Press: Carbon dioxide pipelines may be opposed in Nebraska, Iowa
9/27/21
“The companies working to build pipelines to capture carbon dioxide produced by ethanol plants and transport it as a liquid under high pressure to permanent storage deep underground may face opposition from farmers and environmental groups in Nebraska and Iowa,” the Associated Press reports. “One of the companies, Summit Carbon Solutions, has already started contacting landowners in the states it plans to cross with the $4.5 billion project, including landowners in Northeast Nebraska. The Ames, Iowa, based company is also holding public meetings about the project in Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota, South Dakota and North Dakota… “Supporters of the projects, which include the Nebraska Ethanol Board, said the pipelines would lower the carbon impact of producing the corn-based fuel and help it meet goals California and Oregon have adopted for reducing greenhouse gas emissions to combat global warming. “This is a critical step to ensure the long-term viability of ethanol,” Jesse Harris, a spokesperson for Summit Carbon Solutions, told AP. But officials with the Nebraska chapter of the Sierra Club and Bold Nebraska, which fought against the Keystone XL oil pipeline, told the Omaha World-Herald they would oppose the carbon dioxide pipelines because of concerns about the safety risks of a leak and the lack of state regulations of them. “CO2 pipelines are a questionable attempt to prop up fossil fuels by taking advantage of government subsidies while providing a pretense that they are environmentally friendly,” Ken Winston of the Nebraska Sierra Club told AP.
Law360: Sunoco Can't Hide Pipeline Rupture Assessment, Feds Say
Clark Mindock, 9/27/21
“Sunoco Pipeline LP’s concerns that releasing risk modeling data for its Mariner East 2 pipeline that bisects Pennsylvania would provide a road map for criminals and terrorists are unfounded because the information is too general to cause alarm, the government told a D.C. federal court Friday,” Law360 reports. “The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration said the contested data only provides generalized information about those potential risks described by Sunoco.”
Reuters: Tallgrass to track, measure emissions on U.S. interstate natgas pipeline
Liz Hampton, 9/28/21
“Tallgrass Energy Partners will begin monitoring emissions, including methane and other greenhouse gases, on its Rockies Express Pipeline, making it the first U.S. company to measure and certify the environmental impact of operations on an interstate natural gas pipeline,” Reuters reports. “Natural gas producers, transporters and utilities are embracing carbon-reduction measures and third-party ratings to show investors and customers they are serious about reducing greenhouse gas emissions amid concerns over their environmental impact. Tallgrass and carbon-measurement firm Project Canary this year plan to begin installing monitoring devices at compressor stations along the 1,700-mile pipeline to rate the environmental impact of its operations. The devices will help provide real time measurements of fugitive methane emissions, among other things… “Natural gas certification has been picking up steam in the past year among producers and utilities. Project Canary counts EQT Corp (EQT.N) and LNG-project developer NextDecade among its customers. MiQ, another firm that applies measurements to help manage carbon emissions, has signed Exxon Mobil (XOM.N) and Chesapeake Energy Corp (CHK.O) to use its methodologies.
Pipeline Fighters Hub: Recent Pipeline Fight Victories & “Unfinished Business”: Briefing Sept. 29, 6pm CT
9/23/21
“Register to join our virtual panel discussion with grassroots Pipeline Fighters who organized to defeat Big Oil and Gas projects in their communities, including Keystone XL, Atlantic Coast Pipeline, Byhalia Connection, and Jordan Cove LNG. Hear about how they won their fights, and the work they’re still doing on the unfinished business that remains after a pipeline is cancelled -- including the charges facing Water Protectors and Land Defenders who put their bodies on the line during acts of nonviolent civil disobedience; relinquishing easements and restoring landowners’ property; enacting stronger protections for water and property rights at the local, county, and state levels; and, what happens to all that pipe? PANELISTS: Joye Braun, Wanbli Wiyan Ka’win, National Pipelines Campaign Organizer, Indigenous Environmental Network; Art Tanderup, Farmer & Landowner on Keystone XL pipeline route in Nebraska; Justin J. Pearson, Community organizer in Memphis, TN against Byhalia Connection pipeline; Allie Rosenbluth, Campaigns Director, Roge Climate, against the Jordan Cove LNG project in Oregon; Richard Averitt, Landowner and organizer on Atlantic Coast Pipeline route in Virginia; Annie Plotkin-Madrigal, Program Manager at the Equation Campaign; Jane Kleeb, President of Bold Alliance and founder of Bold Nebraska.”
Press release: Enbridge Hosts Inaugural ESG Forum Highlighting Industry Leading Performance
9/28/21
“Enbridge Inc. will host its ESG Forum webcast today highlighting the Company's industry leading approach to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices. "Over the last two decades our leading environmental, social and governance practices have set the bar for energy delivery in North America," commented Al Monaco, President and Chief Executive Officer at Enbridge. "We're continuing to raise that bar by combining our conventional and renewable capabilities to create differentiated energy infrastructure solutions that align with our goal of net-zero emissions by 2050." “...In 2020, the Company announced new goals to lower emissions, further diversify its workforce and maintain the safety and reliability of its systems. Enbridge's goals include: Net-zero GHG emissions by 2050, and an interim target to reduce GHG emissions intensity 35% by 2030… “The Company announced today its Renewable Power division is expanding to include a dedicated and centralized New Energies team that will advance low-carbon energy infrastructure opportunities across Enbridge's energy delivery businesses. The team will leverage and build upon Enbridge's early investments in the areas of RNG, hydrogen, and carbon capture, utilization and sequestration (CCUS), as well as other low-carbon technologies.”
Native News Online: Native American Journalist Myron Dewey, a 'Dedicated Water Protector and Digital Warrior', Dies in Car Accident
DARREN THOMPSON, 9/26/21
“Myron Dewey, a filmmaker, professor and journalist, passed away in a fatal car accident early Sunday morning in Yomba, Nev.,” sources confirmed to Native News Online. “He was 49. Dewey founded Digital Smoke Signals, a media production company that shared live frontline footage during the 2016 protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) near the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota. His drone footage of the DAPL protests garnered recognition for the cause and elevated his status as a journalist covering environmental and Indigenous issues. Dewey was one of several Native American journalists arrested while covering the Standing Rock resistance and faced a class A misdemeanor charge related to his use of the drone. He faced up to a year imprisonment and $2,000 fine. The charge was eventually dropped… “Dewey received numerous awards for his journalism and media production, including the Michelle Moor Award for Community Journalism and the Man of the Year Award from Medicine Winds News. In 2018, he was given an Award of Merit by the University of Kansas Department of Film & Media Studies. In 2017, he was a winner of the New York City Drone Film Festival in the category of News/Documentary for a short film monitoring North Dakota police at the NoDAPL protest site. Dewey also co-directed the award-winning 2017 film Awake: A Dream from Standing Rock, which tells the story of the native-led peaceful resistance and fight for clean water, the environment, and the future of the planet on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. Dewey is Shoshone and Pauite from the Pyramid Lake Paiute Reservation, 35 miles northeast of Reno. He leaves behind three children and six grandchildren.”
WASHINGTON UPDATES
E&E News: Exxon splits with lobbyist who divulged climate strategy
Corbin Hiar, 9/28/21
“Exxon Mobil Corp. has parted ways with Keith McCoy, its lobbyist who divulged aspects of the company’s climate strategy in a secretly recorded video,” E&E News reports. “ "Mr. McCoy no longer works for the company," Exxon spokesperson Casey Norton said in an email to E&E News yesterday afternoon. It’s unclear when McCoy left the company or if the oil major is still providing him legal representation related to congressional investigations spawned from his recorded comments… “McCoy, whose LinkedIn profile last night still said he was a senior director for federal relations at Exxon, could not be reached for comment. Experts predicted the move would increase congressional scrutiny of Exxon and its former lobbyist. The company disputed McCoy’s comments, which undermined Exxon’s public support for a carbon tax, and his description of lawmakers as fish who he could "reel" in. "This is definitely going to raise the level of interest on the Hill," Tim Stretton, the congressional oversight director at the Project on Government Oversight, a watchdog group, told E&E. "An underlying issue here is — with the contradiction between the official and unofficial statements — what’s the implications for shareholders? Did they have all the necessary and accurate information they needed to make investment decisions?" Stretton, a former aide to Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), told E&E. If McCoy or Exxon were "making false statements, could that potentially open them up to some kind of legal culpability?" he asked.”
STATE UPDATES
E&E News: Pa. Dems running for Senate shun talk of fracking ban
Timothy Cama, 9/28/21
“Proposals to ban fracking have grown more popular in recent years among Democrats, but the party’s leading Senate candidates in Pennsylvania are pushing back,” according to E&E News. “Both candidates, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman and Rep. Conor Lamb, tell E&E they would defend hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, for oil and natural gas. Fetterman argues that a ban would turn off voters. Lamb agrees, and says he backed then-candidate Joe Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination due, in part, to his refusal to endorse a total fracking ban… “The two are now seeking to flip outgoing Republican Sen. Pat Toomey’s seat. Meanwhile, the leading candidate seeking to keep the seat in the GOP column, Sean Parnell, an Army veteran and former President Trump’s choice to be the nominee, also opposes fracking bans. “There really is no strong pro-environment major candidate in the race,” Jeff Brauer, a political science professor at Keystone College, told E&E, “which, of course, in turn, most likely means that the next Pennsylvania U.S. senator will be pro-fracking to some degree.” And yet, despite this agreement, Republicans say they still intend to paint the two Democrats as anti-fracking due to their advocacy for a clean energy transition.”
Denver Post: Denver’s airport makes plans to plug all oil and gas wells as it focuses on sustainability
JON MURRAY, 9/27/21
“City leaders aim to make Denver International Airport “one of the greenest airports in the world,” but dozens of oil and gas wells that dot its sprawling landscape stand as clear contradictions of that goal,” the Denver Post reports. “Now DIA says it will permanently plug those 64 remaining wells, which have been idle since 2018, within three years as part of its new environmental sustainability plan. An airport spokeswoman says a bid request will go out soon to hire a contractor that can plug all of the wells by late 2023 or early 2024. Most of those wells were operating long before DIA was built in the 1990s on 54 square miles annexed from neighboring Adams County. But over the years, the airport allowed the use of fracking to develop new wells. The side hustle brought in $7 million in 2010, helping in a small way to subsidize DIA’s main operations. But declining oil and natural gas prices reduced that take significantly in more recent years, with the wells generating just $2.3 million in 2017. The next year, the city auditor questioned the economics of extraction since the wells are expensive to maintain and operate. Since DIA hit pause on the wells in May 2018, in part due to environmental concerns, airport leaders and Denver Mayor Michael Hancock’s administration have been cool to the idea of restarting them — though they have hesitated at times to foreclose the option. Hancock has since announced larger initiatives to address climate change, and he’s faced pressure from City Council members and environmentalists. Now it’s official: DIA is getting out of oil and gas for good.”
EXTRACTION
Reuters: Goldman expects oil prices to hit $90 by year-end as supply tightens
9/27/21
“Goldman Sachs raised its forecast for year-end Brent crude oil prices to $90 per barrel from $80, as a faster fuel demand recovery from Delta variant and Hurricane Ida's hit to production led to tight global supplies,” Reuters reports. “...Oil prices were trading at $79.19 a barrel, as of 0619 GMT on Monday, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude were at $75.08 a barrel. "While we have long held a bullish oil view, the current global supply-demand deficit is larger than we expected, with the recovery in global demand from the Delta impact even faster than our above-consensus forecast and with global supply remaining short of our below consensus forecasts," Goldman said in a note dated Sept. 26.”
Reuters: Global oil demand seen reaching pre-pandemic levels by early 2022
Koustav Samanta and Roslan Khasawneh, Florence Tan, 9/27/21
“Global oil demand is expected to reach pre-pandemic levels by early next year as the economy recovers, although spare refining capacity could weigh on the outlook, producers and traders said at an industry conference on Monday,” according to Reuters. “The outlook is in line with a bullish forecast from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), but ahead of estimates from the International Energy Agency (IEA). Global demand is seen rising to 100 million barrels per day (bpd) by end-2021 or in the first quarter of 2022, Hess Corp (HES.N) President Greg Hill said. The world consumed 99.7 million bpd of oil in 2019, according to the IEA, before the COVID-19 pandemic hammered economic activities and fuel demand… “Recovering demand is expected to boost profits for refiners and create room for returning or new production, but experts warn that spare refining capacity would be a drag. "There's still a lot of unutilised capacity and a lot of capacity has been taken off stream," Eugene Leong, president of BP Singapore and CEO of BP's trading & shipping arm of Asia Pacific and the Middle East, told Reuters. "This year alone we've seen some mega refining (and) petrochemical complexes start up, so I think that's going to be challenging for refining."
Reuters: Baker Hughes sees global required LNG capacity at 800 mln tonnes by 2030
Sonali Paul, 9/27/21
“Oil and gas services giant Baker Hughes Co (BKR.N) sees the need for global liquefied natural gas (LNG) capacity to rise to 800 million tonnes by 2030, more than double current capacity, its chairman said on Monday,” Reuters reports. “Baker Hughes sees strong prospects for gas in the transition to cleaner energy, with LNG combined with carbon capture and storage helping to reduce the industry's carbon footprint. "We've taken up our estimate of the required installed base of LNG by 2030 up to 800 million tonnes," Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Lorenzo Simonelli said at the Platts APPEC 2021 conference. As of 2020, there was about 345 million tonnes of LNG capacity. Baker Hughes' forecast compared with consultants Wood Mackenzie's forecast that the world will need 250 million tonnes in new LNG supply by 2040… “Another potential boost for the oil and gas industry he said could come from demand for non-metallic pipes, which would increase demand for petrochemicals to make those pipes. "We're big fans of non-metallic pipes," Simonelli told Reuters. The main benefits of non-metallic pipes over steel pipes are they are lighter by weight, more durable and do not rust, which Simonelli said would be useful not just for new pipelines but also for installing inner shields to repurpose existing pipelines, as well as for platforms and other construction products.”
OPINION
Los Angeles Times: Column: ‘Renewable natural gas’ is the latest sham from the oil & gas industry
MICHAEL HILTZIK, BUSINESS COLUMNIST, 9/24/21
‘Followers of Chevron’s management undoubtedly have noticed that they’ve lately been boasting about their leadership in the the fight against global warming,” Michael Hiltzik writes for the Los Angeles Times. “They’ve been talking about investing in hydrogen, “carbon capture” and “renewable fuels,” most notably at a Sept. 14 investor presentation and a series of appearances by CEO Mike Wirth on CNBC. Wirth put in a strong plug for renewable natural gas, which he named as a part of the “primary focus” of the company’s low-carbon strategy in coming years. Parts of the gas industry are using wildly exaggerated claims about the feasibility, cost and impacts of these fossil gas alternatives. This pitch is critically important for Chevron, because shareholders have put management under the gun. At its annual meeting in May, a stunning 60.7% of shareholders voted for the company to “substantially” reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. So here’s something you need to know about “renewable natural gas.” It’s a sham. Not only is it not really “renewable” in the same sense as wind, solar or hydroelectric power, which produce energy without consuming their sources, but it will have at best a minuscule impact on global warming. That’s the conclusion of environmental scientists, who tend to think of “renewable natural gas” as PR branding by fossil fuel companies anxious to give their business models a green veneer while staving off regulations that would significantly cut back on gas consumption. To promote the concept, these companies gloss over the fact that renewable natural gas, or RNG, is as much as five times as expensive as traditional fossil-produced gas, that its availability is limited compared to overall gas demand, and that its role in addressing global warming will be negligible at best.”
Duluth News Tribune: Reader's View: Fine ‘just a business expense’ to Enbridge
Tom Meierotto, Superior, 9/27/21
“Regarding the Sept. 16 story, “DNR fines Enbridge $3.3 million for breaching aquifer during Line 3 construction,” I am neither pro nor con on the controversial pipeline argument. I understand pipelines move products that must be moved and that there are risks involved in this process. Pipelines, like roadways, affect every one of us in one way or another. Both are necessary, and we live with them,” Tom Meierotto writes for the Duluth News Tribune. “It seems to me, though, that 25 or 30 years ago, both the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and Minnesota Department of Transportation had inspectors on projects whose job was ensuring contractors built according to the plans submitted and that were agreed upon. Inspectors were present during construction, I recall, to monitor and enforce regulations specified in the plans… “Unfortunately, it seems the inspection part of the process has become politically unfavorable and was reduced or replaced with a sort-of honor system. What we seem to have now is the old “fox-guarding-the-chicken-coop” scenario. Which is uncomfortable for the chickens, but the foxes rather like it. The $3.3 million fine would be severe for the chickens but the foxes not so much. Just a business expense. Perhaps it’s time to replace the self-inspected system with the old verify one.”