-Via the Houston Business Journal, chemical company Calabrian Corp. is expanding sulfur dioxide production at its Port Neches, Texas, plant by 50% — a multibillion-dollar project. The Kingwood, Texas-based firm uses environmentally friendly technology to produce sulfur dioxide, which is used for fracking, water treatment and other purposes.
-The EPA approved a plan to retire a 750-megawatt coal-fired unit at the Navajo Generating Station in Arizona in 2019. Via Platts, the plant’s owners are phasing out the unit as part of an overall plan to retire the Navajo plant by 2044. The EPA recently set emissions limits for the plant requiring it to adopt selective catalytic reduction technology at a cost of $1.1 billion.
-Chesapeake Energy will spend $450 million to increase its holdings in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming. Via FuelFix, the payment is part of a land swap with RKI Exploration & Production that will add 4,500 barrels of oil equivalent per day and 66,000 net acres to Chesapeake’s portfolio. Chesapeake has recently undertaken a shift from gas drilling to oil production.
-The U.S. Commerce Department put on hold condensate export permission requests for at least two companies, Reuters reports. It puts the brakes on a push by the industry to sell minimally refined ultralight oil on the global market. A source said the companies’ requests were being “held without action,” which could mean federal officials are seeking more information on a decision or are planning to publicly clarify what kinds of oil can or cannot be exported.
-The American Petroleum Institute published new guidelines for the design, manufacture and use of subsea capping stacks.
