Seeking

The Interior Department is seeking industry comments to gauge interest in a potential oil and natural gas lease sale in the Cook Inlet Planning Areas off the coast of South-Central Alaska.

Wyoming is preparing a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court seeking a hearing of the state’s challenge to the federal “roadless rule,” which potentially has an impact on oil, gas and future mineral development on federal lands (see Daily GPI, Dec. 7, 2011). Gov. Matt Mead said he decided to seek high court review following the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals denial of Wyoming’s petition for an en banc court rehearing in the case, which Mead has maintained “raises legal questions of exceptional importance.” The Tenth Circuit reversed of an earlier Wyoming federal district court injunction against the U.S. Forestry Service’s designation of additional wilderness areas through the roadless rule, and the state continues to argue that the federal forestry agency’s actions circumvented Congress, which is the only legitimate source of wilderness designations. “The roadless rule has seriously impacted Wyoming, our people, our industries and the health of our forests,” Mead said. “Given the consequences, it is important to ask the Supreme Court to hear this case.”

FERC Thursday issued a proposed rule seeking public comment on how to improve the coordination between the natural gas and electricity industries to avoid a repeat of the severe gas service outage that curtailed service to thousands of customers in the Southwest last winter.

Boardwalk Pipeline Partners LP’s Gulf South Pipeline Co. LP is seeking FERC approval to offer a new natural gas exchange service in the Perryville, LA, area.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking nominations of nationally and/or internationally recognized scientists or engineers to conduct a “thorough and unbiased review” of a draft agency report released in December, which found that groundwater in Pavillion, WY, may be polluted by natural gas drilling and well stimulation practices (including hydraulic fracturing).

The Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (RPSEA) is seeking requests for proposals (RFP) for its Small Producer Program and its Unconventional Resources Program.

Recent production test results from the first two horizontal wells completed in the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale (TMS) in Louisiana have been encouraging and there is likely more good news to come, according to the state’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) secretary.

Cheniere Energy Inc., which has been developing domestic gas liquefaction and export capability on the Gulf Coast in Louisiana, said Friday it is seeking to do the same in Corpus Christi, TX, with a facility that would be primarily supplied with gas from the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas.

Spectra Energy Corp. said it plans to spend about $1.3 billion on capital expenditures (capex) in 2012 and hopes to continue growing the value of its stock, according to the company’s financial plan for the upcoming year approved by its board of directors on Wednesday.