Nominee

There was little controversy and plenty of goodwill for a trio of Trump administration nominees to FERC and the Department of Energy (DOE) Thursday when they appeared at a hearing of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

There was little controversy and plenty of goodwill for a trio of Trump administration nominees to FERC and the Department of Energy (DOE) Thursday when they appeared at a hearing of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

While Senate Democrats boycotted votes for some of President Trump’s other cabinet picks, his nominees to lead the Department of Energy (DOE) and Interior (DOI) sailed through the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on Tuesday with bipartisan support.

Amid controversy over his pro-renewable energy and anti-fossil fuel sentiments, former Colorado regulator Ron Binz has asked President Obama to withdraw his name from further consideration as a nominee for FERC chairman.

Occidental Petroleum Corp. (Oxy) Chairman Ray Irani on Friday withdrew as a nominee to serve another term on the board of directors, and he was a no-show for the company’s annual meeting in Santa Monica, CA, Oxy said.

Occidental Petroleum Corp. (Oxy) Chairman Ray Irani withdrew as a nominee to serve another term on the board of directors, and he was a no-show for the company’s annual meeting in Santa Monica, CA, on Friday (May 3), Oxy said. Edward Djerejian, a former U.S. diplomat who served as an ambassador to Israel and who is a former assistant secretary of State, is assuming the role of independent chairman. He has been an independent director since 1996. Spencer Abraham, the former secretary of Energy for President George W. Bush, was elected independent vice chairman. Irani, 78, had worked at Oxy since 1978, taking over as chairman and CEO in 1990 after founder Armand Hammer died. Irani, who had planned to retire in 2014, had turned over the CEO post two years ago to Steve Chazen, 66, who had served in the executive suite since 1994. Earlier this year Irani had attempted to oust Chazen, which led to criticism by major shareholders. However, days ago the board said Chazen would remain CEO through 2014 “with full board support.”

With the federal government continuing to drag its feet on applications for exporting domestic liquefied natural gas (LNG) — and President Obama’s nominee to head the Department of Energy (DOE) hedging his bets on the issue — some industry officials contend that regulatory agencies may not be the best place to decide how many of those facilities should operate.

With the federal government continuing to drag its feet on applications for exporting domestic liquefied natural gas (LNG) — and President Obama’s nominee to head the Department of Energy (DOE) hedging his bets on the issue — some industry officials contend that regulatory agencies may not be the best place to decide how many of those facilities should operate.

President Obama’s nominee for administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sailed through her confirmation hearing last Thursday, fielding softball questions from Democrats. The issues raised by Republicans were more pointed, but not by much. Gina McCarthy was not pressed on one of the most important issues to oil and gas — regulations pertaining to hydraulic fracturing (fracturing).