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State Regulators to consider emergency wind farm rulemaking to comply with new law
The Oklahoma Corporation Commission is apparently taking emergency moves to enforce a new state law that might have been violated by NexEra Energy in development of two wind farms near Hinton, Oklahoma. The law was designed to protect military installations and their runway space from the encroachment of wind farms. The Corporation Commission has scheduled …
Gasoline costs a penny more on average in OKC
Gasoline prices in Oklahoma City have risen 1 cent per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.63/g on Sunday, according to GasBuddy’s daily survey of 669 stations in Oklahoma City. This compares with the national average that has increased 1.5 cents per gallon versus last week to $2.87/g, according to GasBuddy. Average gasoline prices on …
Environmental groups challenge EPA’s coal ash enforcement transfer to Oklahoma
A handful of environmental groups have filed a federal lawsuit against the EPA in an attempt to block the agency from transferring federal oversight of disposal of toxic coal ash in Oklahoma to the state. The suit was filed by Earthjustice on behalf of the Sierra Club, Waterkeeper Alliance and Local Environmental Action. Filed in …
City of Yukon expands oil and gas well drilling setbacks
The city of Yukon has adopted a new ordinance requiring oil and gas wells to be at least 1,000 feet from the nearest business or residential building. The new setback is an increase from 450 feet required for developed areas and 100 feet for undeveloped areas. In a special meeting this past week, the city …
Rig counts climb in Oklahoma and the U.S.
While the nation’s oil and gas rig count increased by one to reach 1,054 in the past week, the count in Oklahoma grew by four and hit 141 active drilling rigs. Reports from Baker Hughes Co. and the Independent Oil and Gas Service showed a drop of 3 to reach 863 oil rigs while …
Proposed nuclear waste route goes through Oklahoma
A proposal by a Dallas company to store high-level radioactive waste in a West Texas dump means the used nuclear fuel would most likely be carried through Oklahoma. Waste Control Specialists and Orano USA created a joint venture known as Interim Storage Partners and are seeking a permit from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to store …
Oklahoma’s improved economy prompts positive rating from Moody’s
With a lot of help from Oklahoma’s energy industries, the state’s economic improvement in the past year caught the attention of Moody’s Investor Services. The company has upgraded the state’s bond rating outlook from negative to stable. Governor Mary Fallin credited some of the improvement to the legislature’s approval of an historic revenue package. “Moody’s …
Sen. Inhofe and others focus on cleaning up trash from the world’s oceans
Oklahoma U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe and others on the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works focused this past week on cleaning up the oceans during a hearing on capitol hill. Their attention was devoted to the question: How to reduce the impact of man-made trash on the environment, wildlife and human health? Two witnesses …
Quake recorded near Dibble in Cleveland County
Oklahoma’s latest earthquake was registered early Friday morning near the Cleveland County town of Dibble. The 2.9 magnitude quake was recorded at 2:07 a.m. Oklahoma time and the epicenter was approximately 3.8 miles northeast of the town, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Here is the data as provided by the USGS. Event type: Earthquake …
Analyst warns of soaring natural gas prices if we’re hit with a severe winter
At least one global energy strategist is predicting natural gas prices to spike by four times this winter. If, there’s always an ‘if’, there is a severe cold snap. It’s the prediction of Anthony Yuen at Citi who notes gas stockpiles will end the month of October at 3,330 to 3,370 billion cubic feet. That’s …