Welcome to Volume 5, Issue 8 of Currents. Recently, my colleagues Joseph Schaeffer and Risa Katz-Albert recorded a webinar - Data Privacy and Security 101: Six Questions to Ask Yourself. They discuss basic introductory data...more
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf Floats Natural Gas Tax to Pay for $3 Billion Pandemic Recovery Plan -
"Long a proponent of an extraction tax, Wolf said it could pay for improvements to workforce training and support, remove...more
The Possible Xinjiang Coal Link in Tesla’s Bitcoin Binge -
"The main draw is the cheap power needed to run the computers that perform the complicated equations for so-called 'Proof of Work' that confirm transactions...more
Exxon, Chevron CEOs Discussed Merger Last Year -
"Chevron’s Mike Wirth and Exxon’s Darren Woods spoke as the Covid-19 outbreak hurt oil and gas demand, adding financial strain to both companies, Dow Jones said."
Why...more
Why the U.S. isn't in Desperate Need of the Keystone XL Pipeline -
"U.S. President Joe Biden fulfilled a campaign promise by scuttling the 1,897-kilometre pipeline."
Why this is important: While the rescission of the...more
In a Rare Rebuke, FERC Fails to Approve Mountain Valley Pipeline's Proposal -
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission deadlocked 2-2 on Mountain Valley’s request to bore under streams and wetlands along the pipeline’s...more
1/21/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Climate Change ,
Coal Mines ,
Cybersecurity ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Energy Storage ,
FERC ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines
Welcome to our first issue of 2021! We have been publishing a weekly edition of Currents since 2017 and hope that you find it informative and helpful. Our goal for 2021 is the same -- provide access to interesting and...more
1/11/2021
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Coal ,
Coal Industry ,
Electricity ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Exports ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Renewable Energy ,
Trump Administration
Congress Reaches Compromise on Clean Energy Deal to be Attached to Government Funding Bill -
"A bipartisan energy package hitched to the spending bill includes provisions to boost technologies such as advanced nuclear...more
12/23/2020
/ Biden Administration ,
Blockchain ,
Climate Change ,
Coal Industry ,
Electricity ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Energy Storage ,
Exports ,
Oil & Gas ,
Renewable Energy ,
Solar Energy ,
Transmission Grid ,
Wind Power
Welcome to our 46th issue of Currents for 2020. Our Energy Practice Group looked at current energy articles, and we also explain the significance of every article. These issues peaked our interest this week, and we have...more
New Law Pushes Appalachian Power Toward More Renewable Energy -
"Appalachian — which for years has relied heavily on coal and more recently natural gas to serve about 500,000 western Virginia customers — will acquire 210...more
11/20/2020
/ Biden Administration ,
Coal Industry ,
Coal-Fired Generation ,
Electricity ,
Energy Sector ,
EU ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Hydrogen Power ,
NASA ,
Natural Gas ,
Nuclear Power ,
Oil & Gas ,
Renewable Energy
U.S. Court Suspends Key Permits for Equitrans Mountain Valley Pipeline -
"A U.S. federal appeals court issued a stay of key water crossing permits needed to complete construction of Equitrans Midstream Corp’s 300-mile...more
11/13/2020
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Coal ,
Coal-Fired Plants ,
Electricity ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Hydrogen Power ,
Imports ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Petroleum ,
Pipelines ,
Renewable Energy ,
Steel Industry
U.S. Department of Energy: Oil and Gas Production to Account for 68 Percent of Energy Consumption Over Next Two Decades -
"Natural gas is increasingly powering plants to produce electricity, but oil and natural gas are...more
11/3/2020
/ Carbon Capture and Sequestration ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Coal Industry ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Electricity ,
Energy Sector ,
Natural Gas ,
Nuclear Power ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Renewable Energy
West Virginia Supreme Court Hears Arguments in Horizontal Drilling Taxation Case Involving Antero -
"At issue is a consumer sales tax assessment of around $1 million the West Virginia State Tax Department has levied on...more
10/26/2020
/ Biodiesel ,
Biomass ,
Blockchain ,
China ,
Climate Change ,
Coal ,
Coal Industry ,
Coal Mines ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Elon Musk ,
Energy Sector ,
EU ,
Gig Economy ,
Honda ,
Horizontal Wells ,
Natural Gas ,
Petroleum ,
Plant Closures ,
Popular ,
Renewable Energy ,
State Taxes ,
Well Drilling ,
WV Supreme Court
Mountain Valley Says Natural Gas Pipeline Timing Depends on Litigation, U.S. Approvals -
“'As the litigation process progresses and as we receive additional information from FERC regarding potentially releasing the...more
10/17/2020
/ Batteries ,
Biodiesel ,
Biomass ,
Carbon Emissions ,
China ,
Climate Change ,
Coal Industry ,
Coal-Fired Plants ,
Conversion ,
Energy Sector ,
Energy Storage ,
Environmental Litigation ,
EU ,
FERC ,
Hydropower ,
Japan ,
Natural Gas ,
Nuclear Power ,
Oil & Gas ,
Petroleum ,
Pipelines ,
Plant Closures ,
Renewable Energy ,
Solar Energy ,
Trump Administration ,
United Nations
Noble Energy Shareholders OK $4.1B Sale to Chevron -
"The addition of Noble will boost Chevron's U.S. shale oil holdings, making it the No. 2 producer behind EOG Resources, according to data from Rystad Energy."
Why this is...more
10/13/2020
/ Biodiesel ,
Biomass ,
China ,
Climate Change ,
Coal ,
Cybersecurity ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Energy Sector ,
Exxon Mobil ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Grid Energy Storage ,
Hydrogen Power ,
India ,
Natural Gas ,
Net Zero ,
Petroleum ,
Popular ,
Renewable Energy ,
Solar Energy ,
UK ,
Utilities Sector ,
Wind Power
More Federal Permits Handed Down as MVP Presses FERC for Construction Restart -
"The Mountain Valley Pipeline LLC told FERC that it has received a series of key federal waterbody crossing permits, bolstering its case to...more
10/6/2020
/ Airlines ,
Cap-and-Trade ,
Carbon Taxes ,
China ,
Climate Change ,
Coal ,
Coal Industry ,
Coal-Fired Plants ,
Construction Project ,
Divestiture ,
Electricity ,
Energy Costs ,
Energy Information Association (EIA) ,
EU ,
Federal Bans ,
FERC ,
Fossil Fuel ,
France ,
Green Energy ,
Natural Gas ,
Offshore Drilling ,
Offshore Wind ,
Oil & Gas ,
Permits ,
Plant Closures ,
Renewable Energy ,
Russia ,
Trump Administration
U.S. Shale Producers Race for Federal Permits Ahead of Presidential Election -
"Federal permitting in the largest U.S. oilfield in the Permian Basin, located in Texas and New Mexico, is up 80 percent in about the last three...more
9/23/2020
/ Air Pollution ,
Biodiesel ,
Biomass ,
Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Coal ,
Coal Industry ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
EU ,
Exports ,
Exxon Mobil ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Imports ,
India ,
Joe Biden ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
Permits ,
Petroleum ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Power Infrastructure ,
Presidential Elections ,
Renewable Energy ,
Rollbacks ,
Shale Gas ,
Trump Administration
Spain Shuts Down Half of Its Coal Power Stations -
"The move away from coal is driven predominantly by fundamental economics, although these are amplified by emissions trading schemes and other measures."
Why this is...more
9/17/2020
/ Bill Gates ,
Biodiesel ,
Biomass ,
Charging Stations ,
Coal Industry ,
Coal-Fired Plants ,
CPUC ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Electricity ,
EU ,
Financial Institutions ,
Grid Energy Storage ,
Natural Gas ,
Nuclear Power ,
Oil & Gas ,
OPEC ,
Paris Agreement ,
Petroleum ,
Plant Closures ,
Public Utilities Commission ,
Renewable Energy ,
Shale Gas ,
Spain
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced its temporary policy regarding environmental enforcement activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The policy is retroactive to March 13, 2020, and will apply for the...more
3/31/2020
/ Air Pollution ,
Consent Order ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Drinking Water ,
Enforcement Guidance ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Noncompliance ,
Relief Measures ,
State Agencies ,
Wastewater
House Bill 2811, amending the Aboveground Storage Tank ("AST") Act, previously passed the West Virginia House and Senate and then was signed by Governor Justice on April 4, 2017. Thus, the amendments to the AST Act included...more
On August 1, 2016, the legislative rule promulgated to implement the Aboveground Storage Tank Act became effective. The Rule is 63 pages long and contains detailed requirements for registering, designing, installing,...more
The United States Supreme Court ("Supreme Court"), in a rather surprising and unprecedented move, issued a ruling staying the Environmental Protection Agency's ("EPA") implementation of the Clean Power Plan. As you know, the...more
In This Issue:
- Northeast Natural Energy, LLC Making History for the Future of Energy:
Entrepreneurs are a special breed. The good ones have that special blend of vision, timing and risk tolerance most others lack....more
7/10/2015
/ Clean Water Act ,
Coal ,
Coal Industry ,
Department of Environmental Protection ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Fracking ,
Marcellus Shale ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Shell Oil
On May 27, 2015, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“USEPA”) and the United States Army Corps of Engineers (“USACE”) released their long-awaited final rule defining the scope of “waters of the United States”...more
Even before the June 6, 2014 effective date of the Aboveground Storage Tank Act (the “AST Act” or “Act”), W. Va. Code §§ 22-30-1 et seq., representatives of the industries most impacted by the expansive and detailed AST Act...more