Regulatory

CME Group Inc. has suspended one of its futures traders for at least 60 days after an investigation found he attempted to manipulate the gold and natural gas futures markets through “spoofing” and is suspected of money laundering in Cyprus.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has told Texas regulators that “there is a significant possibility that North Texas earthquake activity is associated with [energy industry] disposal wells.” The assertion is part of a report on the state’s underground injection control (UIC) program sent to the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) last week.

Four former high-ranking officials at the Interior Department and nearly 40 law professors are urging an appellate court to overturn a ruling by a federal judge in Wyoming that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) does not have the authority to enforce a rule governing hydraulic fracturing (fracking) on public and tribal lands.

Two measures that may be on the Colorado ballot this November likely would harm not only the state’s oil and gas industry but have unintended consequences for citizens, industry experts said Tuesday in Denver.

The Public Service Commission (PSC) of West Virginia said this month that it again expects lower gas bills for two-thirds of the state’s residents during the upcoming winter heating season.

Lake Charles LNG Export Co. LLC and Lake Charles Exports LLC have applied to the U.S. Department of Energy for authorization to export from the planned Lake Charles LNG terminal in Louisiana up to 121 Bcf/year to countries with and without free trade agreements with the United States. The companies are currently authorized to export 730 Bcf/year from the terminal. The additional authorization sought is intended to align the total authorized export volume with the planned production capacity of the terminal as approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (see Daily GPI, Dec. 17, 2015).

Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) staff on Wednesday deflated natural gas and electric utility general rate increases proposed by Spokane, WA-based Avista Utilities.

Planning for the state of Alaska to take over the multi-billion-dollar project to commercialize North Slope natural gas reserves has begun. Such a transition would put the project in the hands of the state’s Alaska Gasline Development Corp. (AGDC) and remove Alaska’s major producers from direct participation.

Iroquois Gas Transmission System LP filed a settlement offer with FERC on Thursday, agreeing to lower its rates for shippers in three phases over the next two years and promising not to raise them through August 2020.