Coal production and mining jobs over the past half-century have been influenced by several factors, principally demand from the utility sector, technological breakthroughs in natural gas production, railroad deregulation, and...more
Ford Building Massive Electric Vehicle and Battery Plants with $11.4 Billion Investment "Automaker says production hubs will bring 11,000 jobs to Tennessee and Kentucky." Why this is important: Ford Motor Company and...more
Gas Stations Run Dry as Pipeline Races to Recover From Hacking - "Gas stations along the U.S. East Coast are beginning to run out of fuel as North America’s biggest petroleum pipeline races to recover from a paralyzing...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
Asia's switch from coal to natural gas is driven by stricter emission standards, low natural gas prices, and more efficient new natural gas turbine technology. The overwhelming consensus seems to be that thermal coal is on...more
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
Looking ahead, here are a few themes I think will play a role in 2021, which are a continuation or evolution of where we’ve been in 2020....more
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
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
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
Corona-Induced CO2 Emission Reductions are Not Yet Detectable in the Atmosphere - "Based on current data measured in the energy, industry, and mobility sectors, restrictions of social life during the corona pandemic can be...more
Trump Administration Approves Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for Land Leasing, Oil Drilling - "The Trump administration continues to roll back environmental protections and opening doors for the fossil fuel industry in...more
Industry Expert Insights - We reached out to a well-known expert in Mexico in the energy and legal industries to get his thoughts on the current energy climate. Juan Serra is a partner in the Mexico City office of...more
Massive New Bipartisan Senate Energy Legislative Package Could See Vote as Early as Next Week - "The 555 page legislative package combines almost all the 50 energy bills that were reported to the Senate in 2019, and is...more
Energy-Related CO2 Emissions ‘Flatlined’ Last Year, IEA Says, Raising Hopes About Climate - "Global emissions remained at approximately 33 gigatonnes in 2019 despite the world economy growing by 2.9%, the IEA said." ...more
Energy Blockchain’s Most Obvious Use Case is Not What You Think - "Instead, a select group of blockchain companies is finding success with a focus on certificates of origin, helping demonstrate the provenance of renewable...more
Energy Infrastructure Attacks are ‘Probable’: Oil Traders Fear Supply Disruptions in the Middle East - "A dramatic escalation of geopolitical tensions will most likely result in an unplanned oil supply shortage in the...more
Court Ruling Vindicates ExxonMobil in New York ‘Climate Change’ Fraud Case - “'The Office of the Attorney General failed to prove, by a preponderance of the evidence, that ExxonMobil made any material misstatements or...more
Russian, Colombian Competition Continuing to Slow U.S. Thermal Coal Exports - "'Central Appalachian and Northern Appalachian exports remain out of the money for shipment to Europe and Illinois Basin coal has significant...more
Q&A with Vivek Warrier - Vivek Warrier moderated the panel on Gas and LNG in North America at the Oil & Gas Council's recent North American Assembly in Houston. Panel members were...more
Expenses and Delays Continue for Mountain Valley Pipeline, Where Work has Halted Again - "The pipeline’s developers announced that construction now isn’t expected to concluded until late next year at a cost of $5.3 to $5.5...more
Big Oil’s Climate Change Reckoning Finally Arrives in Court - "New York’s $1.6 billion lawsuit arose from a national effort to hold Big Oil responsible for global warming." Why this is important: The most important...more
In a move that will have a significant impact on Pennsylvania's power producers, Governor Tom Wolf signed an executive order on October 3rd directing the state's Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) to create...more
FERC Proposes to Modernize PURPA Regulations - "The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission proposed to modernize its regulations governing small power producers and cogenerators under the Public Utility Regulatory Policies...more
Toby Rice Wins Control of EQT After Proxy Battle - "'Toby Rice has taken control of EQT Corp., nine months after launching a fast-moving campaign to replace the oil and gas company's leadership and less than two years...more