-Equistar declared a force majeure event for polyethylene produced at its Matagorda and Victoria, Texas, plants, Platts reports. The company cited feedstock supply disruptions in a letter sent to its customers today.
-Buckeye Partners said its Laurel refined products pipeline near Philadelphia was shut down after severe thunderstorms ripped through states in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast Tuesday night. Via Reuters, over 244,000 homes and businesses are without power as of this afternoon.
-Investment firms KKR and Riverstone Holdings are planning to combine their oil and gas assets to create one of the largest operators in the Barnett Shale. Via the Houston Business Journal, the Fort Worth, Texas-based Trinity River Energy will have wells in the Barnett with total production capacity of 258 million cubic feet per day of natural gas.
-The Permian Basin is the nation’s most prolific oil producing region, and it’s mostly due to six low-permeability formations, according to data released by the Energy Information Administration. The Permian’s oil output has increased 60% since 2007. Almost 75% of that increase was generated in the Spraberry, Wolfcamp and Bone Spring formations.
-API released a new set of guidelines designed to help oil and gas companies engage with residents living near hydraulic fracturing areas. The guidelines, which are available for free on API’s website, include tips on how to conduct safety meetings with the public, work with local educators to discuss job training, develop relationships with mineral owners and more.
