Jurisdiction

The Supreme Court is slated on Monday to hear oral arguments in a case dating back to the early 2000s that could define FERC’s authority to regulate natural gas and other markets.

Texas remains the most attractive place in the world for oil and natural gas investment, with Alberta holding the No. 2 position, the Fraser Institute reported Thursday.

FERC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on Thursday signed two memoranda of understanding (MOU) to address overlapping jurisdiction and information sharing in connection with market surveillance and investigations into potential market manipulation, fraud or abuse.

A number of Congressional lawmakers have expressed concern about the extent of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s jurisdiction in cases involving the manipulation of the futures and physical gas markets, said Commission spokeswoman Mary O’Driscoll.

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell told a Senate panel Thursday that the public comment period on the proposed hydraulic fracturing (fracking) rule would be extended by 60 days, giving producers, state regulators and environmentalists a total of 90 days to pore over the 171-page document.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said it will begin packing up the section of the Columbia Gas Transmission pipeline that was damaged in the Tuesday blast in West Virginia for it to be sent to its headquarters in Washington, DC, for closer scrutiny.

The Natural Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Wednesday began sifting through pieces of the Columbia Gas Transmission system that ruptured near the pipeline’s Lanham Compressor Station sear Sissonville, WV, a rural community of 4,000 about 15 miles north of the state capital, Charleston.

Longmont, CO, voters Tuesday approved a hotly contested ban on the use of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) within its jurisdiction, passing a ballot measure (Question 300) by a comfortable margin, according to reports.

Boulder County, CO, officials may need to keep in place longer than expected a moratorium on the processing of development plans for oil and gas permits. County Planning Commission members said Wednesday they need more time to complete new regulations meant to address potential public health and environmental impacts of oil and gas exploration in unincorporated areas of the county, according to news reports. In February Boulder County commissioners passed a resolution that placed a moratorium on accepting applications until Feb. 4, 2013. The Planning Commission asked the Board of County Commissioners to extend the moratorium by three to six months. Government officials from around Colorado have challenged the state’s authority to regulate energy operations (see Shale Daily, Sept. 24; Aug. 17). The state maintains exclusive jurisdiction in this area under the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.