Port of Corpus Christi added to Argus' AGS crude pricing index
The Port of Corpus Christi has been added to Argus' American GulfCoast Select (AGS) crude index, which provides real-time commodity pricing data from Argus. The new AGS Index further positions Corpus Christi as a major hub for crude oil contracts by increasing transactional pricing certainty for global energy markets while reducing infrastructure investment risk in the region.
Argus announced in June that it had created a new daily crude price assessment - Argus AGS - reflecting the U.S. Gulf Coast as a prominent export hub for world markets. The U.S. Gulf Coast has become a major source for crude oil exports since the repeal of a federal export ban on U.S.- produced crude oil in late 2015. Since this repeal, the Port of Corpus Christi has emerged as the leading export gateway for crude oil, surpassing all other export gateways combined.
For more information, visit www.portofcc.com or call (361) 882-5633.
Interior, Norway strengthen offshore energy knowledge and experience
The U.S. Department of the Interior formalized its partnership with the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy of the Kingdom of Norway to strengthen cooperation in offshore mineral, oil and gas, and wind energy activities.
Activities outlined in the memorandum of understanding (MOU) framework include the exchange of scientific and technical information, and cooperation regarding research and development technologies. Interior and Norway will remain in regular contact and foster discussion of experiences, best practices, policy and regulatory initiatives relevant to the development of offshore resources.
The U.S. and Norway are two of the world's largest offshore oil and gas producers and have decades of experience to draw upon in expanding discussions on oil and gas best practices. Since 2017, Interior has conducted seven offshore oil and gas leases totaling approximately $1 billion.
For more information, visit www.doi.gov or call (202) 208-3100.
API discusses importance of modern energy infrastructure
API President and CEO Mike Sommers joined U.S. Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette and business and policy leaders from across Colorado and the Mountain West for a virtual roundtable discussion on the importance of infrastructure and sound policy to putting Americans back to work and strengthening U.S. energy security.
"As we all battle overlapping public health, economic and social crises, one thing is clear: You can count on natural gas and oil," Sommers said. "But recent fights over infrastructure - delaying or entirely blocking needed projects - threaten these hard-earned energy benefits for America's middle class. On the East Coast and across the industrial Midwest, we have seen a number of major pipeline projects blocked as legal wrangling and ribbons of red tape spiral out of control. If we aren't careful, we soon won't be able to build anything."
For more information, visit www.api.org or call (202) 682-8000.
Interior implements Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program in Alaska
U.S. Secretary of the Interior David L. Bernhardt recently signed a record of decision approving the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in Alaska. The leasing program is required by law in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (Public Law 115-97). The decision determines where and under what terms and conditions leasing will occur in the 1.56-million-acre Coastal Plain within the 19.3-million-acre ANWR.
The energy potential of the ANWR Coastal Plain was finally unlocked after 30 years of gridlock when President Trump signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act into law, finally settling the question of whether the leasing, exploration and development of oil and gas will occur on about 8 percent of the refuge that lies within an oil and gas province of national significance.
For more information, visit www.doi.gov or call (202) 208-3100.
BLM to release Willow Master Development Plan final analysis
At press time, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will publish a federal register notice announcing the availability of the final environmental impact statement for ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc.'s proposed Willow Master Development Plan (MDP).
The Willow MDP Project could produce in excess of 160,000 bpd (with a processing capacity of 200,000 bpd) over its anticipated 30-year life, producing up to approximately 590 million total barrels of oil. More than 1,000 jobs are expected during peak construction with more than 400 jobs during operations. The project would help offset declines in production from the North Slope oil fields and contribute to the local, state and national economies.
For more information, visit www.blm.gov or call (202) 208-3100.
