Continental

Kinder Morgan Inc. (KMI) pipelines have virtually no exposure to low natural gas prices, but they are subject to shifting continental gas flows, particularly those resulting from developing shale gas supply basins.

Two Interior Department agencies have issued updated guidance to oil and natural gas companies operating in the Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) on how to conduct archaeological resource surveys and prepare archaeological reports, based on additional new information about the likely location of historical resources.

The U.S.Coast Guard should make sure that annual security inspections are conducted of all Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) facilities and upgrade its database where inspection information is stored, the Governmental Accountability Office (GAO) recommended in a new report. Until then, the security of offshore facilities will be spotty at best, the agency said.

A U.S. affiliate of Royal Dutch Shell plc is hopeful that the federal government will allow it to begin drilling for oil and natural gas in the Alaskan Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) next year, and believes that moving forward with exploration and production would boost the Trans-Alaska Pipeline (TAP) and make the case for construction of a pipeline to transport natural gas.

It is becoming impossible to ignore the Bakken Shale in North Dakota as an oil play that may be at the center of a domestic upswing in U.S. production, according to a report released Wednesday by the Washington, DC-based Energy Policy Research Foundation Inc. (EPRINC).

A new report on the merits of developing Alaska’s Arctic Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) states the move would create “significant economic effects,” and would generate thousands of jobs and billions in payroll and tax revenue.

While most points in the Northeast continued to decline following the recent blizzard-induced run-up, the rest of the country’s cash point averages mostly continued to see small upticks.

In keeping with Interior Secretary Ken Salazar’s pledge to separate the functions of the agency overseeing activity in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), the department said Friday it has established the Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget.

Texas is suing the federal government over its deepwater drilling moratorium, alleging that under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) affected states must be consulted by the secretary of the U.S. Department of Interior (DOI) before such a measure is taken.