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Vowing to reduce her state’s carbon footprint, a refrain ringing throughout the West these days, Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire last Friday signed a new climate change law (SB 6001). The new statute sets enforceable limits on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from electric generation plants, and it is expected to boost the development of natural gas-fired and renewable energy generation.

Due to high linepack and unavailability of the Unionville storage facility, MRT will implement a System Protection Warning at the start of Tuesday’s gas day. These restrictions will be in effect until further notice: MRT will not schedule any volumes that result in a daily long imbalance position; it will not accept any makeup of short positions; and it will not schedule nor allocate storage injection volumes (including No-Notice).

ConocoPhillips on Wednesday was among the first in line among U.S.-based producers to issue a 4Q2006 earnings report, underwhelming investors on the news that its profit slid 13% from a year ago. However, the Houston-based company probably won’t be the last to report tempered profits during a quarter with warmer-than-normal temperatures, soaring service costs and falling energy prices.

MRT is declaring a System Protection Warning, effective Thursday until further notice, that sets these conditions: MRT will not schedule any Main Line IT or AOR (Authorized Overrun) volumes for delivery north of Glendale, AR; and firm volumes will be limited to their primary direction of flow. To avoid OFOs, shippers who were relying on Main Line IT and/or AOR volumes were encouraged to resource supply to MRT’s East Line, where capacity is available, or reduce applicable delivery volumes.

The U.S. Coast Guard and the National Transportation and Safety Board are conducting an investigation into how a tugboat hauling two barges struck an underwater natural gas line belonging to Gulfport Energy Inc. in West Cote Blanche Bay, LA. The incident on Thursday triggered an explosion that killed at least four people and left two other people missing and feared dead. One barge was carrying chemically treated lumber; the other was hauling a mechanical crane and fuel.

Ocean temperatures have increased “remarkably” in the equatorial Pacific in the last few weeks, and these El Niño conditions are likely to continue into early 2007, according to scientists with the Climate Prediction Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

March may disappoint those who are still waiting for winter to show up, according to Andover, MA-based WSI Corp. The month is expected to bring more warmer than normal weather for a majority of the U.S., WSI said.

While British Columbia continues to try and kickstart coalbed methane (CBM) development with royalty and tax breaks, development of these unconventional resources is accelerating in Alberta without government help.

While British Columbia continues to try and kickstart coalbed methane (CBM) development with royalty and tax breaks, development of these unconventional resources is accelerating in Alberta without government help.