-The Department of Energy today approved natural gas exports from the Alaska LNG plant on the Kenai Peninsula. Via Reuters, the project would cost between $45 billion and $65 billion and would include an 800-mile pipeline from northern Alaska to Nikiski for shipment overseas. A consortium that includes affiliates of ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips and BP is developing the project.
-Meanwhile, Energy Transfer Partners is facing resistance from landowners in its quest to build a 1,100-mile oil pipeline from North Dakota to Illinois. Via the Associated Press, the company has already obtained shipping commitments on the $3.8 billion Dakota Access pipeline. Energy Transfer Partners plans to have the pipeline in service late next year, pending federal and state permits.
-The EPA and the Coast Guard issued a joint order to ensure Plains All American Pipeline completes cleanup of last week’s oil spill in Santa Barbara County, Calif. Via the Associated Press, the agencies said the order is common in spills and is not a response to any inaction by Plains. The company said Wednesday it was getting closer to removing the section of the pipe that burst. Plains earlier this week pegged the spill estimate at 101,000 gallons.
-Severe flooding in Oklahoma has resulted in extensive damage to oil and gas exploration and production assets across the state, Platts reports. An Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) spokesman on Wednesday said it is too early to gauge the extent of the damage, as many sites were still under water. OCC responded to at least four incidents of tank batteries inundated by water and a leak from an out-of-service Kinder Morgan pipeline. The commission said there have been no reports of pollution to public or navigable waterways.
-A sudden spike in demand for supertankers is a sign the recent oil price rebound will be short-lived, Bloomberg reports. OPEC is set to ship nearly half a billion barrels of oil at the start of June and another 20 million barrels is being stored on ships. Furthermore, rig count reductions and spending cuts in the U.S. have yet to slow down domestic oil production. A Goldman Sachs analyst said the world is producing almost 2 million more barrels of oil per day than it needs. Brent crude prices have increased 37% since hitting a low for the year on Jan. 13.
