News
Opinion: Obama promises fuel but produces hot air
Two weeks ago in his State of the Union address, President Obama called for more domestic oil and natural gas development. More development of our own oil and natural gas supplies could create vast numbers of new American jobs, enhance our energy security, and deliver hundreds of billions more in revenue to the federal government.
The good news is America’s oil and natural gas industry now supports more than 9.2 million jobs and delivers more than $86 million a day in revenue to the federal government. We pay more than our fair share in taxes with an effective rate nearly double the average for all industries. In 2010, we contributed more than $470 billion to the U.S. economy in spending, wages and dividends, a sum more than half the size of the president’s own 2009 federal stimulus package.
U.S. and Mexico reach deal on Gulf of Mexico oil exploration
The United States and Mexico signed an agreement Monday that will open up portions of the Gulf of Mexico along the two countries' borders to oil and gas exploration. There's been no prohibition against developing the area, containing 1.5 million acres of the Outer Continental Shelf, but it's been "essentially under a moratorium" because of uncertainty about which country owned the resources and controls the regulatory process, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said Monday.
Opinion: Opening U.S. resources would boost job market
During the State of the Union - just moments after promising to "double down" on his commitment to clean energy - the president threw a bone to the oil and natural gas industry.
"We've opened millions of new acres for oil and gas exploration," said Obama. "And tonight, I'm directing my administration to open more than 75 percent of our potential offshore oil and gas resources."
Devon planning 8 more wells
Devon Energy, which has completed two wells in the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale that spans the midsection of Louisiana, plans to have eight more by the end of the year, according to the company’s head of exploration and production.
During a Wednesday conference call with investors, David A. Hager said despite a series of mechanical problems and a short lateral section, the company’s first well had an initial production rate of 186 barrels a day.
Fracturing ‘has no direct’ link to water pollution, UT study finds
Hydraulic fracturing in shale formations “has no direct connection” to groundwater contamination, a study released Thursday concluded.
The study, conducted by the Energy Institute at the University of Texas at Austin, found that many problems attributed to hydraulic fracturing “are related to processes common to all oil and gas drilling operations,” such as drilling pipe inadequately cased in concrete.