Oklahoma Congressman Markwayne Mullin contends a Democrat supported measure to mandate a phase out of hydroflurocarbons is being considered without the consumer in mind. He sits on the House Energy and Commerce Environment and Climate Change Subcommittee that held a hearing last week on the legislation. Hydroflurocarbons are refrigerants used in air conditioners and refrigerators. …
Energy news in brief
** Environmental groups file suit claiming Wisconsin regulators discriminate against utility customers who generate their own power and send it back to the grid. ** U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa says EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler should be fired if new federal ethanol blending requirements aren’t upheld. ** Daybreak Power Inc., a developer of gigawatt-scale energy storage projects, announced that the Federal …
Rig counts rebound in Oklahoma and the U.S.
The number of active oil and gas rigs grew in the past week in Oklahoma and across the rest of the U.S. according to the latest rig report from Baker Hughes Co. Oklahoma’s count increased by one to reach 53, far below the 126 active rigs reported last year at this time. In the U.S. …
Panhandle’s interim CEO takes over permanently
Chad Stephens’ temporary job as interim CEO of Oklahoma City-based Panhandle Oil and Gas Inc. became permanent this past week. The company named him Chief Executive Officer effective Jan. 16, 2020. He had previously been the Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at Range Resources until his retirement in 2018. Stephens had joined Range Resources …
Plans are dumped for more than $2 billion coal plant in SW Kansas
Plans by two power companies to build a $2.2 billion coal-fired power plant in southwest Kansas have gone up in smoke. No plant will be built. Sunflower Electric Power Corp. based in Hays announced it will allow its air permit for a proposed plant in Holcomb to expire in March. The project was first blocked …
Chesapeake declares dividends on outstanding stock
Chesapeake Energy Corporation on Friday announced that its Board of Directors has declared dividends on its outstanding convertible preferred stock issues. Click here to view the release and the different dividends. Chesapeake will release its 2019 fourth quarter and full year operational and financial results before market open on Wednesday, February 26, 2020. A conference …
Cleanup plan revealed at abandoned Kerr McGee refinery in Cushing
The Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality plans to reveal a plan at a public hearing this month on cleaning up contaminated ground water at the former Kerr-McGee refinery site in Cushing. A public hearing will be held Jan. 23, 2020 at 6 p.m. in the Cushing City Hall. Greenfield Environmental Multistate Trust LLC is the …
New Mexico sues Air Force over pollution at Cannon AFB
The New Mexico Environment Department has assessed the U.S. Air Force a nearly $1.7 million fine for not complying with rules aimed at protecting groundwater. The agency claims Cannon Air Force Base has released wastewater despite not having a permit since March 2019. State officials are concerned because the base near Clovis is among dozens of military …
New executive VP named at OKC’s LSB Industries
Former Koch Industries executive John Burns has been named Executive Vice President-Manufacturing at Oklahoma City’s LSB Industries, Inc. The appointment will be effective Feb. 3,2020 as Burns takes over for John Diesch who is retiring after holding the role since August 2016 and spending more than 30 years in the industry. “We would like to …
No Grady county letup for Continental Resources
Oklahoma City’s Continental Resources Inc. has completed two sister wells in Grady County with combined production of more than 1,500 barrels of crude a day. The two wells are located in the SCOOP at 31 7N 6W or about 3 miles east of Chickasha. The largest was the Kathryn 2-3-6XHS with production of 1,169 barrels …