News of the Day:
Murkowski Cosponsors Legislation to Provide Needed Certainty for Project Developers
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, this week cosponsored legislation introduced by Senator John Cornyn, R-Texas, to reaffirm the Army Corps of Engineers’ (Army Corps) Nationwide Permitting (NWP) program, including Nationwide Permit 12 (NWP-12). NWPs provide for expedited review of projects with minimal environmental impact but are threatened by a recent court ruling that could have significant economic consequences if left unaddressed.
Learn more about the Nationwide Permitting program here
OIL
US crude cargo to Saudi Arabia – That’s something you don’t see every day.
Oil & Gas 360 , August 5, 2020
The US has sent what appears to be its first ever crude cargo to key Opec producer Saudi Arabia, according to the US Census Bureau. A 550,000 bl cargo left the US Gulf coast in June for Saudi Arabia, according to the latest available government statistics released today. This would mark the first crude shipment to that destination since the US Congress lifted decades-old restrictions on exports in December 2015, although the cargo has yet to discharge.
GAS
FERC plans to decide on Marathon Alaska LNG import project by year end
Reuters, August 5th, 2020
U.S. energy regulators said on Wednesday they plan to make a decision on Marathon Petroleum Corp’s plan to convert the Kenai liquefied natural gas export plant in Alaska into an import terminal by the end of the year. The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) said it planned to issue an environmental assessment by Sept. 3 and make a final decision by Dec. 2. The federal authorization deadline comes 90 days after the environmental assessment.
New owner: Furie going ‘back to basics’ of natural gas
Elwood Brehmer, Alaska Journal of Commerce, August 5, 2020
It’s “back to basics” for a Cook Inlet gas producer pulled out of bankruptcy earlier this summer. Longtime Alaska oil and gas industry player John Hendrix officially took over Furie Operating Alaska LLC July 1, which all but wrapped up a complex Chapter 11 bankruptcy process that lasted nearly 11 months.
Just more than a month in, Hendrix, a petroleum engineer, said he and other company leaders are focused on mining and analyzing data from Furie’s four wells and the rest of the company’s operation to better understand how production can be improved and where savings can be found. “We need to know our people; we need to know our wells and we need to know our costs,” he said in an interview.
MINING
From the Washington Examiner, Daily on Energy:
TRUMP SAYS HE’LL CONSIDER ‘BOTH SIDES’ OF PEBBLE MINE FIGHT: Trump’s comments Wednesday come after his son, Donald Trump Jr., publicly opposed the proposed gold and copper mine in Bristol Bay, which the administration is close to approving. “I don’t know the argument yet, but I would certainly listen to both sides,” Trump said when asked about his son’s opposition during a White House press briefing. “My son has some very strong opinions, and he is very much of an environmentalist.” Trump also said he was receiving a briefing on the Pebble Mine project “sometime over the next 48 hours.”
A quick reminder: The Army Corps last month issued a final environmental analysis for the proposed mine saying it poses no serious risks, putting the administration on track to approve the project by the end of the year. Trump could, however, direct the EPA to block the project, as the Obama EPA was set to do before it left office.
POLITICS
Alaska governor recall campaign not on track to be on ballot
Associated Press, August 6, 2020
A vote to recall Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy will not be on the state’s general election ballot in November. The group Recall Dunleavy needed roughly 30,000 more signatures by Tuesday to ensure a spot on the Nov. 3 ballot. The group has reported gathering 42,680 out of the 71,252 valid signatures needed to hold an election, KTOO-FM reported Tuesday. A recall election can still happen. If Recall Dunleavy submits the requisite signatures by the middle of April 2021, a special election would be held.