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Energy Committee News

18 Apr 2023

Norway Parliament Asks for CCS Alternative to Decarbonize Major LNG Plant

Credit: Equinor

Norway's parliament on Tuesday told the government to consider an alternative way to cut carbon emissions at Western Europe's largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant, but stopped short of outright halting a controversial plan to use power from land. Oil firm Equinor and partners are seeking approval to replace the use of gas at the plant with power from the national grid, and thus reduce its emissions. The site is one of Norway's largest single emitters of carbon dioxide. In a unanimous vote…

20 May 2022

U.S. Preparing New Five-year Plan for Offshore Oil and Gas Auctions

Credit: Stephanie/AdobeStock

The Biden administration will propose a new five-year plan for offshore oil and gas development by June 30, the date when the current plan expires, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said on Thursday.The announcement comes as the administration has faced pressure from Republican lawmakers to expand domestic drilling to address soaring fuel costs. President Joe Biden, however, wants to reform the federal government's oil and gas program to consider its impacts on climate change.Haaland testified before the Senate energy committee to answer questions on the administration's 2023 budget proposal…

03 Aug 2020

Ship Believed to Have Spilled Oil off Venezuela

© Alexey Zakirov / Adobe Stock

An oil slick washed up over the weekend on the coastline of Venezuela's western Falcon state, known for pristine beaches and nature preserves, two opposition lawmakers said on Monday, though there was no official comment on the spill's provenance.Maria Hernandez, who chairs the opposition-held National Assembly's environmental committee, said she was concerned about the effect of pollution on marine life as well as water supplies onshore.A satellite image posted on Twitter by…

20 Sep 2019

IUMI Reports Cut in Offshore Insurance Premiums

International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) Offshore Energy Committee reported a further reduction in global offshore energy premiums.Global premiums in this sector were reported to be USD 3.4 billion which represented a 3% reduction from 2017. This continued the downward trend: premiums in 2017 were down 5% on the previous year and premiums in 2016 were down 21% on 2015.James McDonald, Chair of the IUMI Offshore Energy Committee said: "The drop in premium income has largely followed the oil price which has dipped by around 20% over the past year. Oil demand is being affected by trade tensions which is impacting economies across the world.

23 Dec 2018

Port of Amsterdam CEO Appointed Energy Commissioner

Port of Amsterdam CEO Koen Overtoom and ten other Amsterdam residents have been named Energy Commissioners by Platform 02025, a non-profit that aims to make Amsterdam a leader in clean energy.Amsterdam port said in a press release that the appointment was co-initiated by the National Energy Committee, which is headed by the National Energy Commissioner, Ruud Koornstra.Platform 02025 seeks to motivate and inspire Amsterdam residents to transition to clean, safe and natural energy by 2025. To support their mission they appoint Energy Commissioners: ambassadors who drive sustainable energy projects in their respective geographic areas.Port…

19 Sep 2018

IUMI: Cautious Optimism for Offshore Underwriters in 2018

Although global premiums for the offshore energy insurance sector dipped by 5% in 2017, signs of recovery are on the horizon."We need to apply some caution as the margins between supply and demand are thin but these small margins can create volatility in the market," pointed out International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI)'s Offshore Energy Committee Chairman, James McDonald.Oil prices have steadily risen by 40% since last year’s IUMI conference and this is starting to drive activity in the oil and gas sector. Capital expenditure in the sector is forecast to grow by around 6% each year with the lion’s share of the growth being in North America…

09 Nov 2017

Arctic Oil Expansion Panned by Scientists

Image: © Nightman1965/Adobe Stock

A group of 37 U.S.-based scientists whose research focuses on Arctic wildlife asked two U.S. senators in a letter on Thursday not to open the National Arctic Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas exploration, according to a copy seen by Reuters. The scientists, including several retired former officials from the Alaska Department of Fish & Game, the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, said in a letter to Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Senator Maria Cantwell…

19 Sep 2017

IUMI: Offshore Energy Insurance Market “Sinking”

At annual IUMI (International Union of Marine Insurance) conference in Tokyo, James McDonald, chairman of IUMI’s Offshore Energy Committee warned that the sector was “sinking”. His warning was based on declining total premium income set alongside upstream energy large losses for 2015-16 of USD 4.8 billion. McDonald explained: “In recent years it would appear that claims have exceeded the global premium base and the last two underwriting years have seen significant losses. The impact of Hurricanes Irma and Harvey are unlikely to deliver the same magnitude of loss that resulted from Katrina and Rita in 2005 or Ike in 2008, but whilst Harvey and Irma appear not to have had much impact on the offshore sector the year’s hurricane season still has some distance to run”.

27 Jan 2016

U.S. Senate Starts Debate on Broad Energy Bill

The U.S. Senate on Wednesday began debate on the country's first major energy bill in over eight years, featuring measures aimed at protecting the electric power grid against cyber attacks and speeding the export of liquefied natural gas. Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski, Republican chair of the Senate energy committee and Washington Senator Maria Cantwell, its ranking Democrat, urged lawmakers not to thwart passage of the bipartisan bill, which cleared their panel in an 18-4 vote. A handful of senators were preparing to file amendments to the bill later on Wednesday, to address more contentious energy issues. These were expected to include a measure to repeal a moratorium on coal development on federal land introduced this month by the Interior Department. "Let's show the Senate can work.

22 Oct 2015

Senator Urges Obama Admin to Detail Oil Swaps with Mexico

Senator Lisa Murkowski

One of the U.S. Senate's top advocates for lifting the ban on domestic crude exports urged the Commerce Department on Thursday to disclose whether any oil swaps with Mexico have actually been finalized after the agency approved the transactions in August. Administration officials told Reuters in August that the Commerce Department was "acting favorably on a number of applications" to export U.S. crude in exchange for imported oil from Mexico, in a step seen as loosening the ban on most crude oil exports.

16 Sep 2015

Tough Times Loom for Offshore Energy Insurance -IUMI

Speaking at this year’s IUMI conference in Berlin, Simon Williams, Chairman of IUMI’s offshore energy committee reported continuous growth in the sector with 2015 capacity reaching around $7 billion, though he cautioned that $5.5 billion was more realistic. Williams explained that the first six months of 2015 had already recorded the largest number of losses since 2011 and that this could well impact significantly on 2014 profits. “Our sector has already racked-up more than $2 billion in a series of losses, including incidents in Mexico, the Falklands and Brazil. 2014 underwriting year still has a way to go,” he said. The rapid drop in oil prices was fueling market pessimism…

01 Sep 2015

Oil Exports Could Push US Gasoline Prices Lower

The price of U.S. gasoline could fall if Washington were to allow crude oil exports, an independent government report on Tuesday concluded, adding political firepower for those who want to change the law to expand such trade. Exports would put more crude on global markets and push down prices for international Brent oil "which in turn results in lower petroleum product prices for U.S. consumers," according to the report by the Energy Information Administration, entitled "Effects of Removing Restrictions on U.S. Crude Oil Exports. The United States has severely limited oil exports since the early 1970s in the wake of the Arab oil embargo. The Obama administration has taken steps to increase exports of minimally-processed light oil called condensate and allow crude swaps with Mexico.

30 Jul 2015

US Senate Energy Panel Votes to Lift Oil Export Ban

The U.S. Senate Energy Committee on Thursday passed a bill that would lift a decades-old ban on the export of crude oil. The 22-member panel passed the bill to allow the United States to export oil and boost state revenue-sharing for offshore oil and gas drilling by a vote of 12-10. Senate Energy Committee chair Lisa Murkowski, a Republican senator from Alaska, has been a long-time advocate for lifting the ban, which she said was outdated due to the rise of the United States as an energy power. In addition to unlocking crude oil exports, the bill would also speed up exports of liquefied natural gas and ensure that states that have offshore oil and gas development get their share of federal revenues. The bill will move to the Senate floor for wider debate later this summer.

09 Jul 2015

US Crude Export Would Help Europe -Czech Republic

Lifting the U.S. ban on oil exports would bolster energy security in Europe by allowing countries to find alternative sources, the Czech Republic ambassador to the United States told lawmakers considering a bill to do away with the trade restriction. "The larger the number of stable democracies among the world's exporters, the more robust the energy security of the Czech Republic and the European Union will be," Petr Gandalovic, the ambassador told the panel the House subcommittee on Energy and Power on Thursday. The country has worked to reduce its dependence on oil and gas from Russia, the top energy supplier to many Eastern European countries. A recently built oil pipeline connects the Czech Republic to the Italian port of Trieste via Germany.

28 May 2015

Lifting of US Crude Oil Export Ban Possible within Year

The U.S. Congress could lift the 40-year old ban on domestic crude oil exports within a year as a drop in gasoline prices and the potential return of Iranian oil to global markets makes it an easier measure for politicians to support, Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts said on Thursday. U.S. gasoline prices have dropped since last year along with global crude prices, thanks to strong crude output from the United States, Saudi Arabia and Iraq. On Thursday, the U.S. average for regular gasoline at the pump was nearly $2.74 a gallon, down from $3.65 a year ago, according to the AAA motorist club. If that remains the case, it has the potential to allay politicians' fears that they could be blamed any rise in gasoline prices if the crude oil export ban was lifted.

30 Apr 2015

Push to Axe US Crude Export Ban Strengthens in House

Lawmakers in the House of Representatives who are trying to end the decades-old ban on U.S. crude oil exports said on Thursday they were gaining support after a Democrat joined the Republican-led effort. Representative Henry Cuellar became the first Democrat to sign on to a bill launched in February by Representative Joe Barton, a Republican and fellow Texan. "If we are able to lift the crude oil ban this is going to open up new markets where Texas businesses can create more jobs at home," said Cuellar, whose district includes the oilfields of Eagle Ford, where much of the U.S. boom in light sweet crude has been taking place over the last half decade.

20 Feb 2015

US Proposes First Rules for Arctic Oil, Gas Drilling

Photo: BOEM

The Obama administration on Friday proposed standards on exploratory drilling for oil and gas in U.S. Arctic waters that would add costs for energy companies but aim to protect against catastrophic spills. The rules, proposed by the Department of Interior, require for the first time that energy companies have access to equipment to contain potential well blowouts, such as rigs that can drill so-called relief wells. The companies would also need to ensure quick access to capping stacks and containment domes while drilling in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas off Alaska.

19 Feb 2015

Lawmakers Push for Crude Exports to Mexico

The chairman of the U.S. Senate's Energy Committee and 20 colleagues on Wednesday urged the Commerce Department to allow crude oil exports to Mexico, saying it would benefit the economies of both countries. Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski, the committee's chairman, and Heidi Heitkamp, a Democrat, urged Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzkerto to approve a pending application from Mexico's state oil company Pemex to swap heavy Mexican crude oil for light U.S. crude. Existing U.S. laws "clearly authorize swaps and exchanges" of oil to Mexico that "should be authorized without delay," said a letter signed by Murkowski, Heitkamp and 19 other Senators, most of them Republicans. The United States has allowed some oil exports to Canada since 1985 for use or refining within the country.

27 Jan 2015

US Proposes Allowing Oil, Gas Drilling off Atlantic Coast

The Obama administration on Tuesday proposed allowing for the first time oil and gas exploration in a wide swath of U.S. waters off the Atlantic Coast. The 2017 to 2022 drilling plan begins a process that could take many years before waters off the coasts of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina or Georgia are cleared for drilling. It expands on the last five-year plan initially issued in 2010 that allowed drilling off Virginia. The administration canceled a lease sale there after BP Plc's deadly explosion and oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that year. The plan includes a potential lease sale in the Atlantic around 2021 but it could be withdrawn if scientists discover that the area is too fragile.

05 Jan 2015

Republicans Set to Challenge Obama

Republicans take full control of the U.S. Congress this week with an agenda of trying to force approval of the Keystone XL oil pipeline and push back on President Barack Obama's sweeping policy shifts on Cuba and immigration. After years of battles over the budget and other issues, further clashes loom as Republicans who already control the House of Representatives take over the Senate majority on Tuesday after wins against Obama's Democrats in November's midterm elections. Angry over the president's moves last year to bypass Congress on issues such as immigration, Republicans have promised to fight him on a range of issues. Obama has vowed to use his veto pen if Republicans pass legislation he opposes…

25 Nov 2014

US House to Hold Hearing on Oil Export Ban

Photo: U.S. House of Representatitves

A House of Representatives panel will hold a hearing on Dec. 11 to explore whether a decades-old law that prohibits the export of crude oil makes sense in an era of domestic energy abundance. The House subcommittee on energy and power, chaired by Representative Ed Whitfield, will hone in on the 1975 Energy Policy and Conservation Act, drafted in response to the 1973 oil crisis. The law prohibited the export of most crude oil, created the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and Corporate Average Fuel Economy rules for cars and trucks, also known as CAFE standards.

09 Dec 2014

Congressman Introduces Bill Lifting Oil Export Ban

U.S. Representative Joe Barton (Credit: U.S. House Office)

U.S. Representative Joe Barton will introduce a bill on Tuesday to lift the 40-year ban on exports of crude oil, but the measure has almost no chance of passing due to lawmaker concerns about fuel prices and costs to refiners. Barton, a Republican from Texas, will introduce a bill to lift the export ban Congress passed in the 1970s after the Arab oil embargo led to fears of fuel shortages, an aide said. The lawmaker will introduce the measure ahead of a hearing later this week…

28 Dec 2014

Italy's Help Sought to Extinguish Fire at Oil Port

Libya has called on Italy to send firefighters to prevent a fire spreading out of control at Es Sider, the country's biggest oil port, officials said on Saturday. A rocket hit an oil storage tank last week at the port in the east of the country during clashes between forces allied to Libya's competing governments. Ali al-Hassi, spokesman for a security force allied to the internationally-recognised government, said the fire had spread to a total of five oil tanks. "We are trying to extinguish it but our capacities are limited," he said. The North African country is struggling with fighting on several fronts as brigades of former rebels who battled side by side to oust Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 now compete for political power and a share of oil revenues.