The Florida Department of Environmental Protection has granted Port Dolphin Energy LLC an environmental permit for its offshore liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal. When the project is completed, vessels operated by Port Dolphin parent Hoegh LNG of Norway will return LNG to a gaseous state onboard and move natural gas through the terminal’s pipeline. State lawmakers voted in November to authorize issuance of a long-term easement on state-owned submerged lands to accommodate the undersea pipeline. Port Dolphin received its federal deepwater port license in October 2009 and a certificate of public necessity and convenience from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in December 2009.

Laser Northeast Gathering Co. LLC has started construction on its gathering and transportation pipeline in Susquehanna County, PA. The firm’s $50 million gathering project is proposed to run 21 miles from Susquehanna County, PA, to the New York border, then another nine miles within Broome County, NY, to a connection with the Millennium interstate pipeline in New Windsor. The 16-inch diameter gathering line will have 10 initial field receipt points in Susquehanna County and 12 miles of gathering laterals. The system, which will gather gas from the Marcellus Shale, will have gathering pressure of 350-650 psig, maximum allowable operating pressure of 1,440 psig and design capacity of 400 MMcf/d. Construction is expected to be completed this summer. Laser expects to employ approximately 350 construction professionals during construction of the pipeline and will employ several local contractors. Pittson, PA-based construction company Linde Corp., which has been contracted to build the pipeline, is looking to hire 80 skilled laborers for the project, according to The Times Leader of Wilkes-Barre, PA.

More natural gas use for power generation and transportation in the Lone Star State is a plank in the platform of the newly formed Texas Clean Energy Coalition (TCEC), which is being led by former state Sen. Kip Averitt, TCEC chairman, with funding from the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation. “We at the TCEC believe it is important for Texans from all walks of life to work together to enhance Texas’ economy by positioning our state as the world leader in the new clean energy industry — not as a replacement, but as a complement to our traditional leadership in the oil and gas energy industry,” says TCEC’s website, www.texascleanenergy.org. Instead of burning Wyoming coal in its power plants, Texas should burn more natural gas, Averitt told NGI, noting that TCEC will support replacing existing coal-fired baseload power generation with gas-fueled plants. TCEC also is behind the idea of creating a natural gas fueling infrastructure triangle to support fleet vehicles traveling among Dallas, Houston and San Antonio, Averitt said.

Abraxas Petroleum Corp. has completed its first Eagle Ford Shale well in South Texas. Blue Eagle Energy LLC, a joint venture Abraxas formed with Rock Oil Co. (formerly Blue Stone Oil & Gas. LLC) last year (see NGI, Aug. 30, 2010), drilled the T Bird 1H well in DeWitt County, TX, to a total measured depth of 19,450 feet, including a 5,700 foot lateral. The well was completed with a 15-stage fracture stimulation and recently placed on-line at a restricted rate approximately 75 days after spud, according to San Antonio-based Abraxas. The well is being opened up slowly to prevent formation damage and an unrestricted rate will be announced in the near future.

Alberta leaders plan to push for a single oil and gas regulatory body. The decision would coordinate policy development and integrate oil and gas policies. It follows an indepth report by the Regulatory Enhancement Task Force, which was established in early 2010 to review Alberta’s upstream regulatory system. Based on the findings by the task force, provincial leaders plan to put forward legislation that would establish a Policy Management Office to ensure natural resource policies are integrated; create a single oil and gas regulatory body; provide transparent public processes; use a “common” approach to risk assessment and management; adopt performance measures to enable continuous system improvement; and create a mechanism to help resolve disputes between landowners and companies, and to enforce agreements where required.

The Colorado Oil & Gas Association (COGA) has dropped a two-year-old lawsuit against state regulators that had challenged more stringent drilling rules (see NGI, Nov. 16, 2009). The industry lobbyist and the Colorado Department of Natural Resources (DNR) said in a joint statement the lawsuit was being dismissed following talks between COGA board members and the DNR Director Mike King. During his successful campaign last fall, Gov. John Hickenlooper, a Democrat and former geologist, urged cooperation between the energy industry and the administration. Former Gov. Bill Ritter had spearheaded the effort to enact the tougher drilling rules, and once law, the increased oversight didn’t deter drilling. Colorado’s gas output actually rose in 2009 from 2008; the rules were enacted in May 2009 (see NGI, Feb. 8, 2010). “The new administration clearly recognizes the valuable contribution Colorado’s oil and gas industry makes to the economy and the importance of Colorado natural gas in reducing air pollution,” said COGA CEO Tisha Conoly. “We are confident that going forward we will have a place at the table and our concerns will be fairly considered.” King, who had been appointed by Ritter and retained by Hickenlooper, began meeting with COGA officials in January at the new governor’s urging, according to a statement by COGA and DNR.

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