Spokesperson

Weekend reports from state and industry sources in Colorado indicated that while the bulk of the oil and natural gas impact from recent devastating floods is concentrated in four counties in the Denver-Julesburg (DJ) Basin, completing assessments and correcting problems will be a long process (seeDaily GPI,Sept. 20;Sept. 19).

Xcel Energy on Sunday reported new heavy rain storms in already flooded areas in Colorado, further hampering efforts to assess the condition of natural gas pipelines and equipment. On Sunday, the combination utility said there were approximately 4,070 customers without gas service, up from the 2,500 total last Friday (see related item).

While rail transport of crude oil is getting a lot of attention these days, railroads are playing a bigger part in the U.S. domestic energy expansion, as BNSF Railway Co.’s $4.3 billion capital budget for 2013 indicates.

Kathryn Klaber, who has helmed the industry-led Marcellus Shale Coalition (MSC) as CEO for almost four years, is stepping down, she said Friday.

Two compressor stations have been shut down on Texas Eastern Transmission due to Hurricane Sandy, one in Suffern, NY and the other in Lambertville, NJ, a spokesperson for parent Spectra Energy said Monday.

Finger pointing has begun among the federal, state and industry stakeholders in the ongoing effort to determine whether natural gas drilling in and around Pavillion, WY, has impacted ground water supplies.

Clean Energy Fuels Corp. and the state of Virginia have signed an agreement to expand the infrastructure and vehicles running on compressed natural gas (CNG) as part of a wider alternative fuel initiation for state/local government fleets. Separately, Blossman Gas would help convert vehicles and supply propane and related transportation services.

EagleClaw Midstream Services LLC, which provides natural gas and crude oil producers in the Permian Basin with gathering, compression, treating, processing and transportation services, has secured a $100 million equity commitment from EnCap Flatrock Midstream of San Antonio (see Shale Daily, Aug. 2). The company, headquartered in Midland, TX, is pursuing greenfield and acquisition opportunities in the region. EagleClaw is led by President Robert Milam, COO Curtis Clark and Executive Vice President of Commercial Development Charles S. Kuss. “While it has been one of the most prolific basins in North America for a long time, there has been a dramatic resurgence over the past year or two, and it’s more active than ever before,” Milam said of the Permian. “There are more than 500 rigs at work in the area, and production is reaching new highs.”

TransCanada Corp. on Monday notified the U.S. State Department that it intends to file in the “near future” a Presidential Permit application for a cross-border permit for part of the original $7 billion, 1,700-mile Keystone XL oil pipeline project running from the U.S.-Canada border in Montana to Steele City, Nebraska. The Calgary-based pipeline company said it eventually would file a supplement to the new application with an alternative route in Nebraska.