Sempra Energy’s San Diego Gas and Electric Co. (SDG&E) and the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) jointly released a positive outlook for summer energy supplies even with the continued outage of the 2,200 MW San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (Songs). Earlier in the spring there were concerns about strained natural gas supplies and other energy infrastructure due to the absence of Songs’ baseload power in Southern California (see Daily GPI, May 7). Besides bringing back in service two mothballed natural gas-fired generation units along the Southern California coast at Huntington Beach, SDG&E’s high-voltage Sunrise Powerlink transmission line is expected to be in service soon, as well as a 230kV transmission loop in southern Orange County, Barre-Del Amo and Barre-Ellis No. 2 lines. SDG&E and CAISO still characterized this summer as “challenging” from a power supply perspective, noting that if the region experiences a prolonged heat wave, calls for conservation will be inevitable. More than 283 MW of new generation capacity came online the second half of 2011, and CAISO expects another 923 MW to be added this year by July 1, but most of its if renewable-based wind and solar projects that are intermittent and require backup from gas-fired and hydroelectric sources.
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Chesapeake to Renegotiate 4,400-Plus New York Natural Gas Leases
In a landmark agreement announced Thursday, a drilling unit of Chesapeake Energy Corp. will allow more than 4,400 New York landowners locked into natural gas leases the opportunity to renegotiate their contracts, said New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman.
Pennsylvania Families Allege Water Contamination, Conspiracy
Three families in western Pennsylvania have filed a lawsuit against 17 defendants, including an operator for Range Resources Corp. and two independent water testing labs, alleging that a drilling and impoundment site caused health problems. The plaintiffs also accused Range and the labs of conspiring to hide evidence of drinking water contamination.
Marathon Pays $750M Cash for Eagle Ford Operator
Eagle Ford operator Paloma Partners II LLC revealed on Wednesday that it is being taken over by Marathon Oil Corp. for $750 million in cash.
Halliburton Sees Short-Term Impacts As Producers Abandon Dry Gas
Halliburton Co., the biggest oilfield services operator in North America, on Wednesday upended Wall Street’s expectations and reported strong first quarter results, despite challenging conditions in North America as producers moved operations from natural gas basins to oil targets.
CNG Fueling Gains More Interest
Compressed natural gas (CNG) gained more fans along the East Coast last week, while the use of CNG vehicles by a major rental car operator also was launched.
Marathon Selling Alaska Natgas Assets
Marathon Oil Corp., an Alaska operator for more than 55 years, late Monday agreed to sell nearly all of its natural gas properties in the state for an undisclosed sum to a unit of privately held heavyweight Hilcorp Energy Co.
Australia’s Pluto LNG Entering Service
Australia’s third liquefied natural gas (LNG) liquefaction and export facility — Pluto LNG in Western Australia — is ready for start up, operator Woodside said Thursday. First gas has entered the facility’s processing train.
Dow Advances World-Class Shale-Fueled Propylene Facility in Texas
Low natural gas prices and increased supplies are reviving the chemical manufacturing industry within the United States as evidenced by the news Wednesday that Dow Chemical Co. is authorizing final engineering and lead-time equipment spending for a new, world-scale propylene production facility in Texas, which will take advantage of increasing supplies of U.S. shale gas as a feedstock.
DCP Midstream Eyes More Shale Plays, Chemical Build-Out
Being in the middle is not so much a challenge as an opportunity for DCP Midstream LLC, the Denver-based infrastructure and natural gas liquids (NGL) operator that has an eye on moving into the Bakken, Utica and Marcellus shale plays, according to DCP President Bill Waldheim. He told NGIShale Daily that those are about the only shale plays that fall outside DCP’s reach these days.
