PLANO, Texas (AP) — A man who has described himself as a political activist pleaded guilty Monday to trying to blow up a natural gas pipeline with a homemade bomb last year in Texas.
Algiers, ALGERIA (AP) — The British ambassador to Algeria says oil and gas giant BP is committed to the country despite delaying two projects after the January terrorist attack on a gas installation that left 37 hostages and 29 militants dead.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — One of America's corporate giants is investing billions of dollars in the new boom of oil and gas drilling, or fracking. General Electric Co. is opening a new laboratory in Oklahoma, buying up related companies, and placing a big bet that cutting-edge science will improve profits for clients and reduce the environmental and health effects of the boom.
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Thursday ended a series of three natural gas forums that raised concerns about drilling safety and chemical disclosure but left unanswered whether new legislation would follow.
Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., left open the door to writing a natural gas bill. Yet Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska showed little interest in new federal rules for the natural gas industry, nor did any of her GOP colleagues.
In proposing a new, more industry-friendly hydraulic fracturing rule, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell urged observers to ignore the naysayers and focus on the benefits to industry and the public.
That won't be so easy. The proposal drew brickbats from all sides on Thursday, putting Jewell's first major initiative in the cross-hairs of industry and environmental groups.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration said Thursday it will require companies that drill for oil and natural gas on federal lands to publicly disclose chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing operations.
The new "fracking" rule replaces a draft proposed last year that was withdrawn amid industry complaints that federal regulation could hinder an ongoing boom in natural gas production.
The new draft rule relies on an online database used by Colorado and 10 other states to track the chemicals used in fracking operations. FracFocus.org is a website formed by industry and intergovernmental groups in 2011 that allows users to gather well-specific data on thousands of drilling sites.
The Interior Department on Thursday issued an updated draft rule to regulate hydraulic fracturing of oil and gas wells on federal lands.
The department said in a statement that the new draft "maintains important safety standards, improves integration with existing state and tribal standards, and increases flexibility for oil and gas developers."
The new proposal includes a variance process that allows for deferrals to state and tribal fracturing regulations "that meet or exceed those proposed by this rule," the department said.
The planned Cape Wind offshore project in Massachusetts won a $200 million commitment from Denmark's public pension fund, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., pledged to push a vote to complete the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste facility in Nevada if Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., moves to limit filibusters, Roll Call reports.
The Army Corps of Engineers said it would not conduct a cumulative environmental review of three coal export terminals or consider overseas climate change impact in its reviews, E&E reports.
Legal experts say U.S. natural gas companies could file lawsuits against the Energy Department to speed decisions on liquefied natural gas exports, Reuters reports.
House Appropriations Committee Democrats criticized Republicans for cutting Energy Department spending on renewable energy by 50 percent, The Hill reports.
A communique released at the close of the G8 summit expresses leaders' concerns over climate change and pledges support for a new international climate change treaty in 2015, Business Green reports.
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee advanced a bill to open parts of Alaska's Tongass National Forest to timber development, KTOO reports.
