Latest Energy Headlines

All the headlines from our Energy Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Oklahoma Agency Calls for Cuts in Wastewater Well Volumes to Stem Quakes

Feb 18 2016 // The Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC), which regulates oil and gas production activity in the state, has come up with a volume reduction plan for oil and gas disposal wells in response to the surge in earthquakes in...

New North Dakota Oil and Gas Rules Would Require Pipeline Bonds

Feb 17 2016 // North Dakota regulators are proposing new rules aimed at the oil industry. A slate of proposed rules were unveiled on Feb. 16, including a requirement that would require bonding for all crude and saltwater...

Sierra Club Lawsuit Claims Fracking Contributing to Oklahoma Earthquakes

Feb 16 2016 // Sierra Club weighed into the controversy over fracking and increased earthquake risk with a lawsuit accusing a Chesapeake Energy Corp. unit, Devon Energy Production Co. and New Dominion LLC of triggering tremors in...

5.1M Quake Among Latest Swarm of Temblors in Oklahoma

Feb 16 2016 // A 5.1 magnitude earthquake shook northwest Oklahoma and was felt in seven other states on Feb. 13, the U.S. Geological Survey said, the third-strongest temblor ever recorded in the state where the power and frequency of...

New York-Based Insurer Says U.S. Has Lifted Sanctions for Iranian Oil Cargoes

Feb 12 2016 // A U.S.-based insurer to the global shipping industry said it got government authorization to cover non-American companies transporting oil from Iran, potentially helping the Persian Gulf country to revive exports of crude...

How Supreme Court Could Upend Obama Clean Power Plan

Feb 11 2016 // The U.S. Supreme Court’s unexpected move to block President Barack Obama’s policy to cut pollution from coal plants highlights what both sides in the legal fight agree is a key weakness in the rules — a...

Energy Insurers Become Latest Casualty of Oil Slump as Projects Are Postponed

Feb 11 2016 // The insurance industry is becoming the latest casualty of the oil price slump, with postponements and cancellations of energy projects forcing down premium rates and income in a market that was already crowded. Insurers...

Insurance Agency Growth, Profits Slipped in 2015 on Oil Bust, Soft Market: Reagan

Feb 9 2016 // Insurance agency and brokerage organic revenue growth slowed to 4.6 percent for 2015, according to the latest Reagan Consulting Organic Growth and Profitability (OGP) survey. That was down from the organic growth of 6.2...

California Commissioner Explains Call for Insurer Divestment from Coal

Feb 4 2016 // One can say California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has a beef with coal. Jones made a bold move on Jan. 25 when he asked all insurance companies doing business in California to voluntarily divest from their...

Arkansas Utility Wants U.S. to Uphold Exxon Mobil Spill-Related Fines

Feb 4 2016 // A water utility company in Arkansas is urging a federal regulatory agency to uphold fines and new safety requirements for Exxon Mobil Corp. regarding an oil spill in Mayflower. In a letter to the Pipeline and Hazardous...

International Insurers Still Reluctant to Provide Cover for Iran Oil Cargoes

Feb 3 2016 // Oil companies looking to steal a jump on rivals in the race to benefit from Iran’s emergence from Western sanctions risk having tankers left in limbo by international insurers’ continued reluctance to provide...

Gasoline Imports Easier to Insure than Crude Exports in Post-Sanctions Iran

Jan 28 2016 // Major oil firms and trade houses are gradually resuming energy trading with Iran but efforts remain very cautious and often face huge legal obstacles, meaning a post-sanctions return to full-scale activity will take weeks...

Survey: Natural Gas Production in West Virginia Surpassing Expectations

Jan 28 2016 // A single Ohio County, West Virginia Marcellus Shale well yielded enough natural gas in 2014 to provide electricity for 24,315 homes, according to new numbers released by the West Virginia Geological & Economic...

Exxon: Oil & Gas to Will Continue Dominate Energy Sector for Decades

Jan 27 2016 // The way Texas-based oil giant Exxon Mobil sees it, the global energy landscape won’t be radically different in 2040 than it is today. Oil and gas will remain king, accounting for an even slightly larger share of the...

Insurance Placement Difficulties Delay Iranian Crude Exports to Europe

Jan 27 2016 // Efforts by Iran to start exporting oil to Europe are being held up as foreign tanker owners are still struggling to secure insurance for cargoes, leading shipping players said on Tuesday. A nuclear deal between world...

California Gas Leak Follows Years of Lax Regulation of Aging Storage Wells

Jan 25 2016 // Long before a natural gas storage well sprung a disastrous leak near Los Angeles, Calif., utilities and national industry groups were raising alarms about the danger of aging underground storage infrastructure. The leaking...

Workplace Deaths Down in North Dakota Oil Patch

Jan 25 2016 // The number of work-related deaths in the North Dakota oil patch in 2015 dropped from the previous year. Occupational Safety and Health Administration data show three such fatalities last year, down from seven in 2014 and...

Earthquakes and Resulting Lawsuits Persist in Oklahoma

Jan 25 2016 // A group of Edmond residents filed a lawsuit on Jan. 11 against 12 energy companies, claiming that their saltwater disposal wells were partly to blame for earthquakes in central Oklahoma. The lawsuit seeks a permanent...

Oklahoma Officials Avoid Tough Measures Despite More, Stronger Quakes

Jan 20 2016 // In Oklahoma, now the country’s earthquake capital, people are talking nervously about the big one as man-made quakes get stronger, more frequent and closer to major population centers. Next door in Kansas,...

Marine Insurers Cautious About Re-Entering Iran, Despite Lifting of Sanctions

Jan 19 2016 // Foreign oil tanker owners are expected to make a slow return to Iran despite the lifting of many sanctions as insurers tread carefully, leaving shipping players unwilling to pick up cargoes as quickly as Tehran has...