Washington

Neil Parsan, the Ambassador of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, will host the inaugural meeting of the Global Gas Council in Washington, DC, Oct. 24-25. The purpose of the council is to create a dialog among the leading economies and companies that produce and consume natural gas, Parsan said. The agenda includes a reception at the Embassy of Trinidad and Tobago on the evening of Oct. 24 and a meeting at the Organization of American States 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Oct. 25, followed by a joint reception with the Americas-Africa Business Forum that evening. More than 30 of the largest gas producing and consuming nations have been invited to participate. While attendance is by invitation only, “there are opportunities for industry to participate,” according to Parsan. For more information contact Adanna Taylor at the Embassy by e-mail at ATaylor@ttembwash.com.

The Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) is seeking comments on a request it plans to make to the Office of Management and Budget to gather information on excess flow values (EFVs). The agency said it wants to collect data on operators’ experiences, practices, benefits and costs associated with the use of ETVs. An EFV is a device designed to limit the impact of a potential leak or explosion by restricting the flow of natural gas if a line is broken or damaged. The information to be collected is necessary to conduct a cost-bnefit analysis of requiring an expansion of the use of EFVs, the PHMSA said. Comments should be submitted by July 16 to http://www.regulations.gov or by mail to the Docket Management Facility; DOT, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE., West Building, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.

The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) on Monday approved retail natural gas and electricity rate increases for Bellevue, WA-based Puget Sound Energy (PSE), effective May 14 — 1.3%, or $13.4 million annually, for gas customers and 3.2%, or $63.3 million, for power users. PSE originally asked for $32 million and $161 million, for gas and electricity, respectively, when it filed with the UTC last June. The gas increase will cause retail residential bills to increase a little more than a dollar/month, increasing to an average monthly bill of $86; the electric increase will push monthly residential bills up $3.30 to $102.56/month. Among the major reasons for the wide difference between what PSE asked for and what the UTC granted for power rates was the steep decline in natural gas prices during the past 11 months, a UTC spokesperson said. As part of the general rate case decision, the UTC lowered PSE’s returns on equity (10.1% to 9.8%) and overall rate of return (8.1% to 7.8%).

At a summit in Washington, DC, Monday, President Obama, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and President Felipe Calderon of Mexico pledged to promote greater energy cooperation among the countries.

A quartet of nominees for positions at FERC, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) and the Interior Department appeared before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Tuesday to answer questions about hydraulic fracturing (fracking) and other issues as part of their confirmation process.

Speaking to international bankers last Tuesday in Washington, DC, Jill Sommers of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) expressed her “persistent grief” at the process being used to finalize reforms under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act.

Speaking to a group of international bankers Tuesday in Washington, DC, Jill Sommers of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) expressed her “persistent grief” at the process the agency is using to finalize reforms under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act.

The shale revolution — first in natural gas and then in oil — has placed the United States at the beginning of an energy system turnaround in the 21st century; however, if the country is to benefit from its new-found energy wealth, government will have to get out of the way, John Hofmeister, founder and CEO of Citizens for Affordable Energy, told a Houston audience Wednesday.

Inspectors with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) returned to the site of a condensate leak in Washington County on Tuesday to take soil and water samples near a natural gas well owned by a Chevron Corp. subsidiary.