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The United States is already significantly “energy independent” in most sectors, with transportation fuels being the notable exception, according to a Deloitte study. Here, alternative fuels, including natural gas, can bolster U.S. energy security, which is a more attainable goal than independence, the firm said.

Majors and national oil companies (NOC) are about to go shopping again, and their most likely targets are companies such as Anadarko Petroleum Corp., EOG Resources Inc., Whiting Petroleum Corp., Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp. and Forest Oil Corp., Wells Fargo Securities analysts said in a note last week.

Production in North Dakota’s Bakken/Three Forks shale playscontinued to climb month over month in August, the most recent month for accumulating statistics, the North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) reported. With more wells producing in August compared to the previous month (7,701 vs. 7,481), both crude oil and natural gas production exceeded July totals. Crude oil production reached 21.7 million bbl in August, compared with 20.9 million bbl in July. A number of wells remained idle as there were 8,495 wells capable of production in August, DMR said. As in recent months, the vast bulk of the production came from four counties: Dunn, McKenzie, Mountrail and Williams.

Majors and national oil companies (NOC) are about to go shopping again, and their most likely targets are companies such as Anadarko Petroleum Corp., EOG Resources Inc., Whiting Petroleum Corp., Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp. and Forest Oil Corp., Wells Fargo Securities analysts said in a note Monday.

Marcellus Shale ethane is a long way from the Mont Belvieu, TX, market center, making it the most likely supply to be rejected in times of surplus. But Marcellus producer Range Resources Corp. has an alternative — and a contract — to deliver some of its ethane to Philadelphia for sale to a European petrochemical producer.

California Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday signed four measures into law aimed at advancing clean fuel transportation in the nation’s most populous state for cars and people.

Marcellus Shale ethane is a long way from the Mont Belvieu, TX, market center, making it the most likely supply to be rejected in times of surplus. But Marcellus producer Range Resources Corp. has an alternative — and a contract — to deliver some of its ethane to Philadelphia for sale to a European petrochemical producer.

Workers have returned to most oil and gas production facilities in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), but more than a quarter of natural gas production that was shut-in ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Isaac last week remained shuttered Wednesday, according to the Bureau of Safety Environmental Enforcement (BSEE).

The ability to convert shale and tight sands formations into affordable natural gas and oil is “the game changer” for the United States “because it changes the most important game in the world, the game of war,” according to global intelligence expert George Friedman.