Commission

Another Sunset review of the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) has recommended again a name change of the agency, which has nothing to do with railroads and everything to do with oil and natural gas. Stricter monitoring and enforcement of industry and changes to hearings procedures also are recommended.

Another Sunset review of the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) has recommended again a name change of the agency, which has nothing to do with railroads and everything to do with oil and natural gas. Stricter monitoring and enforcement of industry and changes to hearings procedures also are recommended.

The Texas oil and natural gas boom might have turned to a bust for now, but that hasn’t slackened work at the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC). Staff has shifted attention from permitting new wells to the need to plug nearly 10,000 abandoned wells. Meanwhile, revenues have dropped because of permitting fee and production tax declines.

Chevron U.S.A. Inc. (CUSA) received notice Friday that is being audited by a division of FERC regarding natural gas wholesale market activities from Jan. 1, 2014 to the present.

FERC Commissioner Tony Clark said Thursday he will not seek reappointment when his current term ends June 30.

The West Virginia Oil and Natural Gas Safety Commission, formed by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin in July in response to oilfield accidents, said it plans to extend its work through this year to track possible implementation of 17 recommendations issued last month.

Opponents of Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. LLC’s Northeast Energy Direct (NED) — and everyone else — have about another week to comment on the project at FERC. The commission extended the comment period to Jan. 15 to make up for technical difficulties with its eFiling system that prevented some document submissions over the holidays.

United States Steel Corp. is postponing construction of an electric arc furnace (EAF) at its Fairfield Works in Birmingham, AL, “due to continued challenging market conditions in both the oil and gas and steel industries,” the company said. “On Dec. 14, 2015 oil prices hit an eight-year low in the same week that rig counts dropped by another 28 to a 16-year low of 709. The company continues to feel the effect of these energy market conditions, along with low steel prices and continued high levels of imports. In order to combat these continued challenging global market conditions, U.S. Steel has made the decision to postpone the construction of the 1.6 million net ton EAF facility at Fairfield Works…”

The Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) is preparing to take legal action, within its own court system, to compel SandRidge Energy Inc. to shut down four wastewater disposal wells and curtail operations at 40 others, in response to a series of earthquakes in recent weeks.