Measure

The House appointed 34 Republican and 18 Democratic conferees to the omnibus energy bill (HR 6), just hours before the first conference committee on the measure got under way on Thursday.

The 27-year-old U.S. system to measure and report oil and natural gas reserves has failed to keep pace with a changing, increasingly global energy industry and, as a result, it has fallen short of accurately valuing companies’ performance and strategies, according to a study by Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA).

The 27-year-old U.S. system to measure and report oil and natural gas reserves has failed to keep pace with a changing, increasingly global energy industry and, as a result, it has fallen short of accurately valuing companies’ performance and strategies, according to a study by Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA).

Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee, last Wednesday said a stand-alone natural gas measure aimed at bolstering supply and roping in prices is still a possibility in the new Congress.

Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee, on Wednesday said a stand-alone natural gas measure aimed at bolstering supply and roping in prices is still a possibility in the new Congress.

The Senate on Tuesday approved a measure that creates a new Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Administration (PHMA) under the authority of the Department of Transportation, elevating the issue of pipeline safety to a higher level within the Bush administration and giving the administrator of the office a position requiring Senate approval. The PHMA will oversee the Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS), which has oversight over natural gas and hazardous liquids pipelines. An earlier proposal, which was opposed by the American Gas Association and others in the industry, sought to transfer the OPS to the Federal Railroad Administration.

The Senate on Tuesday approved a measure that creates a new Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Administration (PHMA) under the authority of the Department of Transportation, elevating the issue of pipeline safety to a higher level within the Bush administration and giving the administrator of the office a position requiring Senate approval. The PHMA will oversee the Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS), which has oversight over natural gas and hazardous liquids pipelines. An earlier proposal, which was opposed by the American Gas Association and others in the industry, sought to transfer the OPS to the Federal Railroad Administration.

The recent study commissioned by FERC of various ways to measure LNG tanker hazards evaluates some methodologies with less than credible assumptions and fails to distinguish between probable risk and worst-case risk, according to a Texas research firm.

Ever since Enron crashed and a wave of related negative events came down on the gas industry, there have been concerns about the health and even the fate of the gas spot market. But trying to take the spot market’s pulse isn’t easy. In fact to do it with any accuracy is darn near impossible, according to several market experts.