General
News
Shell Urges Trump White House To Tighten Methane Leak Rules.
According to Reuters, “Royal Dutch Shell urged U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration on Tuesday to tighten restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions from oil and gas production,
instead of weakening them as planned. Breaking from a decades-old tradition of avoiding criticism of U.S. government policies, Shell’s U.S. Country Chair Gretchen Watkins called on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to tighten rules to plug methane
leaks, a potent greenhouse gas. ‘It is a big part of the climate problem and frankly we can do more,’ Watkins said in an interview with Reuters at IHS Markit’s CERAWeek conference in Houston. ‘We don’t usually tell governments how to do their job but we’re
ready to break with that and say, ‘Actually, we want to tell you how to do your job.’’ She urged the EPA ‘to put in a regulatory framework that will both regulate existing methane emissions by also future methane emissions.’ The Trump administration in September
proposed weakening requirements for repairing leaks of the greenhouse gas in drilling operations in a step to roll back an Obama-era policy intended to combat climate change.” [Reuters,
3/12/19
(+)]
Shell, Equinor Call For Tighter U.S. Methane Rules.
According to Politico, “Shell Oil called today on the Trump administration to reverse its plan to ease regulation of methane emissions, saying the U.S. should be tightening restrictions
on the oil and gas industry’s leaks of the potent greenhouse gas. ‘We’re actually breaking a habit, which is generally we don’t tell governments how to do their job,’ Gretchen Watkins, president of the U.S. arm of Shell Oil, told an audience at the CERAWeek
conference. ‘We’ve come out in support of direct regulation of methane, both on existing sources of methane [and] future sources,’ she said. Oil and gas companies have been split on how to address their carbon emissions in an effort to combat climate change,
but most of the major industry players support measures to reduce leaks of methane, the main component in natural gas. EPA has sought to roll back Obama-era rules tightening methane emissions, causing a public backlash from environmental groups. Bjørn Otto
Sverdrup, senior vice president for sustainability for Norwegian oil and gas producer Equinor, said the company believed methane pollution from pipelines and other infrastructure could be virtually eliminated.” [Politico,
3/12/19 (+)]
Shell, BP, Exxon Press EPA To Regulate Methane.
According to E&E News, “Three of the world’s biggest oil companies are pushing for federal regulation of methane emissions from energy production, punctuated by a warning yesterday
from BP CEO Bob Dudley. ‘You may not know, a few days from now there will be a major global event that exemplifies what I’m talking about,’ Dudley said to an audience of energy leaders at the CERAWeek by IHS Markit conference. ‘Around the globe, tens of thousands
of young people, maybe even hundreds of thousands, will take part in what is being called a youth-led climate strike.’ ‘These are young people on the cusp of being able to vote,’ he continued. ‘They’re tomorrow’s legislators, regulators, jurists, and consumers,
of course.’ E&E News is in Houston to cover one of the world’s most prominent energy conferences. CERAWeek by IHS Markit runs March 11-15 and features Cabinet members, industry CEOs, global dignitaries, lawmakers and regulators. Dudley said the oil and gas
industry needs to engage with its critics, including policymakers ‘talking about the Green New Deal’ in the United States and shareholders challenging companies on how their business strategies measure up against climate goals of the Paris Agreement. ‘There’s
a rising tide of concern on many fronts about the lack of progress on climate issues, and I would say not just concern, but anger,’ he said.” [E&E News,
3/13/19 (=)]
Pa. Opens Investigation Into Gas Liquids Line.
According to E&E News, “Pennsylvania’s attorney general is opening an investigation into a $2.5 billion natural gas liquids pipeline across southern Pennsylvania that’s been plagued
by spills of drilling fluid and improper construction methods. Attorney General Josh Shapiro (D) said on Twitter yesterday that his office is taking the investigation into the Mariner East 2 pipeline on a referral from Delaware County’s district attorney.
The pipeline has been operating for just over two months and is owned by Texas-based Energy Transfer LP. The company’s pipelines in Pennsylvania include the Mariner East 1, 2 and 2X and have drawn millions in fines and several temporary shutdown orders from
state agencies. Meanwhile, Chester County’s district attorney is demanding documents from the company as part of a criminal investigation. Energy Transfer has said it is confident that it hasn’t violated criminal laws.” [E&E News,
3/13/19 (=)]
CERA Week
Pompeo To Oil Industry: 'Go Out ... And Crush It'.
According to E&E News, “Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called on the oil industry to help the Trump administration expand American influence through oil and gas exports. The United
States can use its newfound energy abundance to counter Russia, China, Iran and other actors, Pompeo said at the CERAWeek by IHS Markit conference. The State Department, he added, can help the industry by fostering free enterprise and promoting American companies
around the world. E&E News is in Houston to cover one of the world’s most prominent energy conferences. CERAWeek by IHS Markit runs March 11-15 and features Cabinet members, industry CEOs, global dignitaries, lawmakers and regulators. ‘My expectation for you
is that you will go out and try and crush it every day,’ Pompeo said. ‘My task is to make sure you have every opportunity to compete.’ Pompeo ran a small energy company in Kansas before entering politics. He reminded the assembled energy executives at the
conference that he voted as a member of Congress to lift the 1970s-era ban on exporting American oil. The United States surpassed Saudi Arabia as the world’s leading oil producer last year, according to the International Energy Agency. Last year, American
companies sold oil to countries as diverse as India and Ireland, Pompeo said.” [E&E News,
3/13/19 (=)]
BP Lobbying Contrasts With Campaign To Cut Emissions.
According to E&E News, “BP PLC has sought to portray itself as a leader of a global campaign to reduce methane emissions, but documents show that the energy group lobbied to weaken
U.S. rules on emissions of the greenhouse gas. The documents were collated by an arm of Greenpeace called Unearthed, and the Financial Times verified them. ‘There has been a disconnect between BP’s global methane positioning and its posture on U.S. methane
regulations,’ said Ben Ratner of the Environmental Defense Fund. BP head of exploration and production Bernard Looney is scheduled to speak tomorrow at a panel called ‘Methane Emissions: Getting to Zero.’ The panel is part of an industry conference called
CERAWeek by IHS Markit being held in Houston. Robert Stout, BP America’s head of regulatory affairs, wrote to EPA in December 2015, saying a proposed rule on methane would ‘be very costly and labour-intensive.’ ‘The proposed rule would now mandate the testing
of literally tens of thousands of well components,’ he said. BP also worked to hold back a Bureau of Land Management proposal on methane flaring and venting on federal lands.” [E&E News,
3/13/19 (=)]
Chad Ellwood
Research Associate
202.448.2877 ext. 119