Andrew Baker

California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday signed into law Senate Bill (SB) 423 to accelerate the deployment of “firm zero-carbon resources” for electricity production. The bill was one of 24 signed Friday alongside a $15 billion spending package focused on climate and clean energy efforts, as well as wildfire and drought resiliency. SB 423 defines…

Private equity (PE) continues to pour into the North American oil and natural gas patch amid higher commodity prices and capital discipline by publicly traded companies. Privately held exploration and production (E&P) firm Sabalo Energy II said Wednesday it has closed a $300 million equity commitment from EnCap Investments LP. The objective “is to build,…

Colder than normal temperatures could trigger extreme upside volatility for natural gas prices this winter, according to industry experts. In a webinar Tuesday hosted by Refinitiv and NGI, a panel of experts said numerous factors have converged to create a far tighter market than what is normally seen at this time of year. “I traded…

Lagoon Water Midstream on Tuesday said it has closed the acquisition of Midland, TX-based Double Drop Resources, a Permian Basin-focused water management company. The acquisition “significantly expands Lagoon’s operations and establishes it as a multi-basin water management company with a presence in the heart of the Permian,” according to Lagoon, which is backed by Macquarie…

Two events in the Gulf of Mexico have dented the latest 2021 supply forecast by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). In the cartel’s latest Monthly Oil Market Report (MOMR), oil supply outside of the OPEC countries for 2021 was revised lower by 0.17 million b/d from the previous forecast because of a…

Natural gas pipeline operators must enhance their cybersecurity protocols to avoid breaches like the one that shut down the Colonial Pipeline refined products conduit in May, a panel of experts agreed Wednesday.  Electronic bulletin boards (EBB) are especially vulnerable to hacks, said the panelists participating virtually in the LDC Gas Forums Midcontinent conference in Chicago.…

President Biden said Friday the United States and the European Union will target a 30% reduction in global methane emissions versus 2005 levels by 2030. The president unveiled the Global Methane Pledge in an address kicking off the virtually held Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate. President Biden urged fellow world leaders to sign…

Mexico’s private oil and natural gas industry has invested $18 billion in the country since 2015 and secured approvals to invest another $42 billion as a result of the country’s 2013-2014 constitutional energy reform. That’s according to the Asociación Mexicana de Empresas de Hidrocarburos (Amexhi), Mexico’s private sector oil and gas trade organization. The group…

The International Energy Agency (IEA) expects continued tightening of the global oil market this month, driven by factors on both the supply and demand sides of the equation. In its latest monthly Oil Market Report, the global energy watchdog said it now expects global oil demand to rise by 5.2 million b/d this year, and…