Clear

Stating that it is now clear that the cyber threat is “one of the most serious economic and national security challenges we face as a nation,” President Obama on Friday said he plans to appoint a new adviser to head the nation’s strategy for securing its digital borders.

Stating that it is now clear that the cyber threat is “one of the most serious economic and national security challenges we face as a nation,” President Obama on Friday said he plans to appoint a new advisor to head the nation’s strategy for securing its digital borders.

It is clear that the widespread producer cutbacks that began last fall to combat falling prices have not yet translated into reduced natural gas supplies as production in the Lower 48 states was 63.01 Bcf/d in January, down 0.29 Bcf/d, or half of a percent from December, but up 2.7 Bcf/d, or 4.5% compared with January 2008, according to Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates released Thursday. In longer-term projections also released last week EIA forecast rapid shale growth but a lesser role for imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in coming decades.

It is clear that the widespread producer cutbacks that began last fall to combat falling prices have not yet translated into reduced natural gas supplies as production in the Lower 48 states was 63.01 Bcf/d in January, down 0.29 Bcf/d, or half of a percent from December, but up 2.7 Bcf/d, or 4.5% compared with January 2008, according to Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates released Thursday.

The Senate of the new 111th Congress last Thursday sent a loud and clear message to producers of traditional fuels as it unanimously passed a $10-12 billion omnibus lands package that will take off the table millions of acres of public lands for potential oil and gas development.

The Senate of the new 111th Congress Thursday sent a loud and clear message to producers of traditional fuels as it unanimously passed a $10-12 billion omnibus lands package that will take off the table millions of acres of public lands for potential oil and gas development.

Three related reports delivered to Congress last Wednesday revealed the underbelly of the Interior Department’s Minerals Management Service (MMS) that few knew about — one that involves drug usage, sex with oil industry contacts and between employees involved in the agency’s royalty-in-kind (RIK) program, as well as rigging of contracts and other financial misconduct at high levels.

With Hurricane Gustav now in the rear-view mirror and tropical storms Hanna, Ike and Josephine all currently expected to steer clear of the Gulf of Mexico, energy futures across the board let off some steam on Tuesday. October natural gas spiraled 68.2 cents lower to close at $7.261/MMBtu while October crude dropped $5.75 to finish at $109.71/bbl.

While Denali and TransCanada are the most notable Alaska gasline projects, there’s no clear front-runner at this stage of the game, the federal coordinator for Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Projects said last Monday.