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September 2, 2010 PORTER POLL SHOWS REPUBLICAN WITH 15-POINT LEAD IN RRC RACE Republican David Porter holds a 15-point lead over Democrat Jeff Weems in the race for an open seat on the Texas Railroad Commission, a poll released today shows. The poll by Wilson Research Strategies, a Washington, D.C.-based Republican public relations firm, was conducted Aug. 29-31 with telephone interviews of 1,001 Texans who identified themselves as likely voters. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By Texas Energy Report |
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September 2, 2010 NELSON GIVES ASSURANCES ON SWITCH-BLOCKING The Public Utility Commission would order a halt to allowing retail electric companies block customers struggling to pay their monthly bill from switching to providers if it appears that the program is harming Texans in need, Commissioner Donna Nelson promised today. Nelson made the pledge to attorney Randy Chapman during an afternoon workshop to put the finishing touches on a proposed rule that would govern the way electric companies could disconnect service to customers who don’t pay their bills. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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September 2, 2010 DÉJÀ VU IN THE GULF? EH, NOT SO MUCH This morning’s reports of another fire and explosion on an offshore rig in the Gulf of Mexico 100 miles south of Louisiana rekindled the still-vivid memories of Deepwater Horizon, but by late afternoon it appeared that the latest event won’t come close to being comparable to the BP disaster. In fact, one industry insider tells us that were it not for the magnitude of Deepwater Horizon, the fire and dramatic rescue of the crew from the production rig operated by Houston-based Mariner Energy would have been a relatively mild story, even on the 24-hour news networks. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By Texas Energy Report |
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September 2, 2010 OIL RIG EXPLODES OFF LOUSIANA COAST From the CNN story. By Texas Energy Report |
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September 1, 2010 PUC UNLIKELY TO DUMP SWITCH-HOLD PROVISION Commissioner Donna Nelson will hold one last workshop tomorrow on the thorny issue of how electric companies can go about disconnecting customers who fail to pay their monthly bills, but it appears highly doubtful that the Public Utility Commission will shelve plans to prevent late-payers from switching providers. The commission had been poised to finally vote today on the proposed rule that’s been two years in the making. But late yesterday, Nelson asked for another delay, saying the rule drafted by the commission staff after countless workshops and memo-filings was “not ready for prime time.” The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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September 1, 2010 HUGE GROWTH SEEN IN ELECTRIC STORAGE MARKET The market for energy storage technology will grow nine times its present size over the next eight years and has the potential to become an $8.3 billion industry during that time, a new study by the Texas Foundation for Innovative Communities shows. “This growth will produce hundreds of new jobs for engineers, electricians, technicians, and renewable energy/smart grid system integrators who install and maintain energy storage resources,” the foundation says in the report released yesterday through The Good Company. “Many thousands more in related occupations will need to upgrade their knowledge and skills to understand and work with various types of energy storage.” The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 31, 2010 EPA DISAPPROVES TCEQ’S NEW SOURCE REVIEW PROGRAM The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today knocked down another Texas air permitting program, ruling that the state’s “New Source Review” program does not meet standards spelled out in the federal Clean Air Act. The federal agency first signaled that it would disapprove the program, which is administered by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, in September when it published notice in the Federal Register seeking comments on how it was working and how it might be improved. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By Texas Energy Report |
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August 31, 2010 TEXAS WIND PROJECTS INCLUDED IN EXELON, JOHN DEERE DEAL About one-fourth of the generating capacity that Exelon Corp. will be taking over with the purchase of John Deere Renewables is in the Texas Panhandle. Exelon said the acquisition of JDR is part of the Chicago-based company’s long-range plan to drastically curtail its carbon footprint in the coming decade. The company, which is heavily invested in nuclear generation, bills itself as being the least carbon-intensive major electric company in the nation. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By Texas Energy Report |
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August 31, 2010 UPDATE: PUC COULD WILL LIKELY DELAY DISCONNECT VOTE EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been uppdated since it was first posted. Public Utility Commissioner Donna Nelson filed a memo late this afternoon asking that the full commission hold off on voting on proposed new rules to govern the disconnection of electricity service to customers who are in arrears on their monthly bills and are on deferred payment plans. The commission had been expected to take up the matter tomorrow. Nelson said she wants to keep working on the divisive issue of switch-blocking. Organizations such as AARP, Texas Legal Services Center and Texas Ratepayers Organization to Save Energy continue to object to a proposal that would allow whether retail customers in the competitive market who are behind in their bills to be prohibited from shopping around for cheaper electric service. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 30, 2010 TWO GROUPS SEEK INTERVENER STATUS IN STATE SUIT AGAINST EPA Two environmental organizations are seeking intervener status in the in the state’s court challenge to the U.S. Environmental Protections Agency’s decision to disapprove Texas’ flexible permitting program. Environmental Defense Fund and the Environmental Integrity Project filed their petition Friday with the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The action puts the organizations at odds with Gov. Rick Perry and Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott who filed suit against the EPA in late July arguing that the agency is overreaching its authority and endangering jobs in Texas’ energy sector. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By Texas Energy Report |
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August 30, 2010 BLOWBACK FROM THE AMERICAN WIND ENERGY ASSOCIATION The American Wind Energy Association is taking issue with Texas author Robert Bryce’s recent op-ed in the Wall Street Journal that argues that more wind generation will not substantially reduce carbon emissions. Denise Bode, the wind group’s CEO, posted a YouTube video countering that CO2 emissions have “dropped in lockstep” with addition of more wind turbines in West Texas and elsewhere over the past decades. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 27, 2010 TAB, C CLUB HOUSTON ARE BACKING PORTER Republican Railroad Commission candidate David Porter has bagged two prized endorsement from conservative-leaning organizations in what is shaping up as a spirited down-ballot statewide race against Democrat Jeff Weems. Porter, a certified public accountant who lives near Giddings, is backed by the Texas Association of Business' political action committee and the conservative C Club of Houston’s PAC, made of 100 influential business leaders in Harris County. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 27, 2010 TCEQ POSTS INTERACTIVE BARNETT SHALE MAP The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality today posted on its website an interactive map of the Barnett Shale that allows viewers to see the latest data from the various air quality monitoring sites near natural gas drilling and pipeline facilities. TCEQ executive director Mark Vickery said the map, which streams around the clock, is available from almost pinpoint locations on the map and praised what he called “easily accessible” access to scientific data available via the web. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 26, 2010 TSU PLANS SOLAR ENERGY RESEARCH CENTER An Arizona solar company today announced plans to install eight thin-film photovoltaic panels on the campus of Texas Southern University as part of a long-range plan to develop a center for solar technology at the historically African-American higher learning facility near Houston. Evolution Solar of Tempe said the demonstration project at TSU will be the company’s first installation of an array of the state-of-the-art AmpleSun panels in United States. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 26, 2010 ENVIROS WARNING ABOUT COAL ASH DANGERS Environmental groups are calling attention to a Sept. 8 hearing in Dallas by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to call attention to the hazards of toxic coal ash waste. “For years nobody, including the Environmental Protection Agency, has had a full picture of how much of this toxic waste is out there, where it is, or if it is safely contained,” said Neil Carman, a clean air advocate for Lonestar Chapter of Sierra Club. “It has been dumped with no federal oversight, and utterly inadequate state policies.” The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By Texas Energy Report |
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August 25, 2010 UNIT 1 AT SOUTH TEXAS NUKE PLANT WENT OFF LINE LAST WEEK The South Texas Nuclear Project Unit 1 went off line for a time on Friday, which forced the Electric Reliability Council of Texas to activate an emergency response procedure to forestall any blackouts on the high-demand late August day. See Jake Dyer’s blog item on ReCharge.com for details. By Texas Energy Report |
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August 25, 2010 FIVE FORMER TIPRO PRESIDENTS BACKING WEEMS Five recent former presidents of the Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association will endorse Democrat Jeff Weems in this year’s race for an open seat on the Texas Railroad Commission. Three of the five have been generous contributors to at least two of the sitting Republican members of the commission and the other two have made campaign donations to at least one sitting Republican member. Several have also contributed to Democrats in the past, but none running for the Railroad Commission, according to the Ethics Commission website. “I think that this shows that I have support that transcends party lines,” Weems told the Texas Energy Report this afternoon. His campaign plans a formal release of the names next week, he said. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 25, 2010 TCEQ PLANS INFORMATIONAL MEETING ON NEW OIL, GAS RULES The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality will hold an informational meeting on proposed new rules for oil and gas production facilities next Tuesday in Austin. It starts at 9:30 a.m. and is scheduled to wrap up by 3 p.m. at TCEQ’s headquarters in north Austin The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By Texas Energy Report |
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August 25, 2010 EAGLE FORD SHALE GAINING ATTENTION The shale gas spotlight in Texas is about to shift south. Developing Unconventional Gas, or DUG, is planning a conference and exhibition in San Antonio in October on the increasing pace of activity in the Eagle Ford Shale, which event organizers say is “rapidly moving into the top tier of U.S. shale plays.” Featured speakers at the conference, which runs Oct. 4-6 at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, are Richard Stoneburner, president of Petrohawk Energy Corp., and Scott Sheffield, chairman and CEO of Pioneer Natural Resources. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 24, 2010 CARONA QUESTIONS WHETHER WIND GETS TOO MUCH EMPHASIS As the new chairman of the Senate Business and Commerce Committee, Dallas Republican John Carona admitted that his question might challenge one of the cornerstones of the state’s energy-reliability policy since lawmakers restructured the retail electric market more than a decade ago. “Why do we place so much emphasis in this state on wind (generation) when it’s such an inefficient source?” Carona asked. The question appeared to catch Trip Doggett, the CEO of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, a bit off guard. “I’m not sure, from a policy perspective, that I know the answer to that question,” Doggett replied during Carona’s inaugural meeting at the helm of Business and Commerce where a variety of electric reliability issues were kicked around. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 24, 2010 “HAYNESVILLE” MOVIE RECEIVES A BOOST The feature-length documentary, Haynesville, which examines the lives of three people affected by the discovery of a huge natural gas formation in shale that straddles the East Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana borders, has been selected for the New Orleans Film Festival in October. It is also nominated for “Film of the Year” at the festival, which runs Oct. 14-21. For more information about the move, click here. For more about the film festival, click here. By Texas Energy Report |
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August 23, 2010 BARNETT SHALE TO GET 8 NEW AIR MONITORS The chairmen of two legislative committees that oversee environmental regulations announced today that the state would double the number of air monitoring devices in the natural gas-rich Barnett Shale region, but less clear was how the new initiative would be paid for. State Sen. Troy Fraser and Rep. Byron Cook, made the announcement at Fort Worth City Hall that eight additional gas chromatograph monitors would soon join the seven devices already in use near gas operations in the shale. The added monitors, they said, would go a long way toward allaying the concerns expressed by some residents that all the natural gas operations could be damaging North Texas air quality. “The Barnett Shale has been a great economic benefit for Texas and especially the Fort Worth region,” said Fraser, a Horseshoe Bay Republican who last month was named chairman of the Senate Natural Resources Committee. “However, with growth there are growing pains. In order to know how to protect the public, we must have enough information to put the correct safeguards in place.” The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 23, 2010 PEAK ELECTRICITY DEMAND KEEPS RISING The Electric Reliability Council of Texas is expecting yet another record for peak demand today as five of the six regions within the grid reported afternoon high temperatures of 100 or more. Curiously, the one sector running below triple digits was nearly always muggy Houston, which appeared to top out at a balmy 99 degrees. However, local TV station KPRC said Houston did manage to top 100 with a reading of 102 late in the afternoon. Stations in the Dallas-Fort Worth region were reporting a high of 106 and Austin reached 104. ERCOT spokeswoman Dottie Roark said the grid was on pace to obliterate the record set last week when peak demand topped 64,800 megawatts. Today, it could go as high as 65,900, she said. By Texas Energy Report |
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August 23, 2010 CORRECTION: IT’S CARLOS RUBINSTEIN, WITH AN “I” By Texas Energy Report |
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August 20, 2010 NATURAL GAS GROUP TAKES PERRY TO TASK FOR COMMENTS ON FRACKING The American Natural Gas Association chastised Republican Gov. Rick Perry for last month’s press release criticizing Democratic opponent Bill White’s business ties to a drilling company that has used diesel fuel in hydraulic shale fracturing operations. The association sent a letter to the governor at his campaign address July 19 saying that the press release’s charge that fracturing exposes underground drinking water supplies to dangerous chemicals is “unfortunate and inaccurate.” The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 20, 2010 MANUFACTURERS COOL TO STUDY ON RENEWABLES The Texas Association of Manufacturers today
said state leaders should not allow the zeal to pursue more renewable energy
lead to policies that drive up the cost of traditional energy sources. Hamilton noted in his study that the boost for solar would add to the cost of electric service. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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August 19, 2010 IN 2010 RRC RACE, IT’S THE DEMOCRAT WITH THE INDUSTRY TIES In some ways, nothing seems out of the ordinary with this year’s race for a seat on the Texas Railroad Commission. One candidate never passes up an opportunity to tout his roots and experience in the energy industry, and mingles easily with the men and women who make their living in the business and remain active in the trade associations that protect their interests in Austin and Washington, D.C. The other major-party candidate is less familiar with both the nitty-gritty details of the oil and gas industry and with the people who drive the industry’s agenda in the halls of government. But in this year’s race, the industry back-slapper is running on the Democratic ticket and the outsider is a Republican. The Rest of the Story, Subscribers Only By John Moritz |
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Copyright September 02, 2010, Harvey Kronberg, www.texasenergyreport.com, All rights are reserved Texas Energy Report is is owned and operated by Texas Energy Analysts
©Texas Energy Analysts., 2009-2010
All rights reserved.