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MORNING ENERGY NEWS  |  12/03/2019
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And Hillary said Tulsi was the Russian asset...
 

The Post And Courier (11/28/19) column: "For all the sound and fury surrounding climate change, there has been surprisingly little attention given to the benefits of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in reshaping the energy industry and reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. As the race for a Democratic presidential candidate continues, there has been a certain disgust at the mere mention of  fracking. It is a remarkable paradox. At a time when the rest of the world is looking toward America as we lead in combating global warming, some Democratic candidates refuse to accept the only energy technology that is making a real difference now in reducing emissions. Three Democratic candidates — Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Kamala Harris of California — say that, if elected, they will push for a nationwide ban on fracking. That’s foolhardy...A fracking ban would have profound ill effects beyond the economic and environmental damage and loss of jobs. Geopolitically, without access to U.S. liquefied natural gas, Europe would become increasingly dependent on Russian natural gas to heat homes and power industries. Eastern Europe has already suffered for a long time the debilitating cost of this dependence."



"We don’t know how the climate of the 21st century will evolve, and we will undoubtedly be surprised. Given this uncertainty, precise emissions targets and deadlines are scientifically meaningless."

 

–Judith Curry,
Climate Forecast Applications Network

It's not wind or solar that's keeping grandma's heater running.


Energy Information Administration (12/2/19) reports: "A historic November cold snap sent temperatures below freezing in 75% of the Lower 48 states. Because of this cold snap, the price of natural gas increased from an average of less than $2.00 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) in October to a mid-November high of $5.11/MMBtu at the Tetco M3 hub, located in northeast Pennsylvania in the PJM Interconnection (PJM). Prices rose about $1.00/MMBtu and reached nearly $3.00/MMBtu at the Chicago Citygate hub in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO). These price increases resulted in coal-fired power generation replacing natural gas-fired generation starting in late October in both of these regional transmission organization markets. In both PJM and MISO, where strong competition exists between natural gas- and coal-fired generation, relative shifts in fuel prices can influence which type of power plant operates. Throughout all of 2019, natural gas-fired generation has accounted for an increasing share of power generation in PJM and MISO, averaging 35% in PJM and 27% in MISO. This summer, the natural gas market in the Lower 48 states experienced record-high natural gas consumption, relatively low natural gas prices, retirements of coal-fired generation, and increasing natural gas-fired capacity. In October, when regional natural gas prices were particularly low because of moderate autumn temperatures, natural gas-fired generation in MISO reached its highest level for 2019 at 36%. However, as natural gas spot prices in the PJM and MISO regions approached nearly $2.70/MMBtu in late October, the coal-fired generation share increased from its earlier lows."

Hey, SAFE, do you honestly think we need NOPEC legislation?


Reuters (12/2/19) reports: "U.S. oil producers could expand daily output by 1 million barrels next year, or by as little as 100,000 barrels, with the wide gap creating huge uncertainty as OPEC officials gather this week to weigh production curbs. Shale output has routinely defied naysayers over the past three years as U.S. production has surged to nearly 13 million barrels per day (bpd), making the nation the world’s largest crude oil producer and a major exporter with an average of just under 3 million bpd so far this year...An increase in U.S. crude output by 1 million bpd would satisfy nearly all of the 1.2 million bpd increase in world demand next year, the International Energy Agency expects. That would keep a lid on prices, pressure OPEC to extend production cuts and leave shale producers still trying to achieve elusive profits. As a result, most industry executives and consultants said they expect slower U.S. shale growth. OPEC and its allies, which have cut output by 1.2 million bpd, meet in Vienna on Dec. 5-6 to weigh their next steps. The current supply cuts now run through to March."

Making the environmental permitting process great again (assuming it ever was to begin with).


Bloomberg Environment (12/2/19) reports: "The EPA wants to speed up permit disputes that go before its Environmental Appeals Board, according to a proposed rule set to be published Dec. 3. The proposed changes align with the Trump administration’s effort to speed up environmental permitting, which the administration says will boost economic growth. Under the new protocol, political officials from the Environmental Protection Agency could make binding decisions on issues pending before the in-house appeals board. The proposal would allow parties to challenge an EPA permit either through alternative dispute resolution or in a hearing before the Environmental Appeals Board. If the parties don’t unanimously agree on either, the permit would become final and subject to litigation in federal court. In a Federal Register notice, the EPA said the changes will 'leverage the success of the EAB’s current ADR [alternative dispute resolution] program and empower the parties to decide for themselves the best, most efficient process to resolve their disputes.' The EPA’s alternative dispute resolution program has resolved more than 90% of cases without litigation, the agency said." 

Energy Markets

 
WTI Crude Oil: ↓ $55.72
Natural Gas: ↓ $2.42
Gasoline: ↑ $2.59
Diesel: ~ $3.18
Heating Oil: ↓ $187.74
Brent Crude Oil: ↓ $60.64
US Rig Count: ↓ 812

 
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