Methane is considered a small player compared to carbon dioxide in the total volume of greenhouse gases emitted each year in the United States. In late 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rule intended to reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas industry. The rule contains some of the most restrictive…
Not everything is as big as it needs to be in Texas. Few Texans will soon forget the winter of 2021, with temperatures plunging as low as six degrees. The state’s electric power grid could not handle the increased demand for power. Rolling blackouts were initiated to prevent a complete failure of the system. Much…
A recent ruling by the El Paso Court of Appeals decided the issue of produced water as a mineral vs. a water right between two lessees on 37,000 acres of land in Reeves County. The decision is of particular significance given the transition of produced water from liability to asset. COG Industries (COG) had been…
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has recently completed its decade-long rulemaking exercise that increases regulation of onshore natural gas pipelines. As a result, pipeline operators will now face new legal issues that could pose challenges to their businesses. PHMSA’s new Final Rule on Valve Installation and Minimum Rupture Detection Standards may also…
Many states have fallen behind when it comes to plugging abandoned oil wells. Not only can they not keep up with wells as they are abandoned, they do not even know of all of the orphaned wells within their borders. Producers themselves currently lack the economic incentives to plug the wells, even though they may…