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The court said it was mindful of the disruption the shutdown will cause but said the seriousness of deficiencies from the US Army Corps of Engineers outweighs the negative effects of shutting down the pipeline. The White House review of proposed rules for an expanded credit for capturing and storing carbon dioxide resulted in changes that give the IRS more time to take back the credits in case of carbon leaks. US Department of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue ordered the US Forest Service to expedite environmental reviews on its land, paving the way for more grazing, logging, and oil development on public lands. The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission approved new rules governing well construction, testing, and related matters, which the agency says will result in the strongest rules nationwide to protect groundwater from contamination from oil and gas activity. The Texas Railroad Commission’s chairman has said the commission will look into policies to “drastically reduce” natural gas flaring from the state’s shale patch as investors become increasingly sensitive to climate-change concerns. New Mexico state regulators vowed to keep the oil and gas industry in check during the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent market collapse, as some groups worried that shut-in wells and other cost-saving measures could lead to operators flouting environmental regulations. The Alberta Energy Regulator has suspended a wide array of environmental monitoring requirements for oilsands companies over public health concerns raised by the COVID-19 pandemic. After years of negotiations, the province announced that it had reached a preliminary agreement with the federal government that it calls a “major step toward providing Alberta’s oil and gas industry a single set of strong rules to reduce methane emissions and protect the environment.”

The 25 May death of George Floyd, a black man, at the hands of Derek Chauvin, a white Minneapolis police officer, sparked national and international protests—and the oil and natural gas industry was not immune to the calls for social change. Royal Dutch Shell will announce a major restructuring by the end of the year as the energy company prepares to accelerate its shift toward low carbon, Chief Executive Officer Ben van Beurden told employees, a company source said. Operations during the COVID-19 pandemic and actions to decarbonize operations are among the highlights. The oil and gas industry was created by fierce entrepreneurs, wildcatters, and visionaries. But, in the last 50 years, it has lost its way. The industry desperately needs a paradigm shift. Here are four pillars upon which we think the reinvention of the oil and gas industry should be based. The company is creating two new business groups: Natural Resources, focused on developing the upstream oil and gas portfolio sustainably, and Energy Evolution, dedicated to supporting the evolution of the company’s power generation, product transformation, and marketing. Launched in collaboration with industry leaders and academia, the Microsoft Energy Core aims to accelerate digital transformation, build coalitions for responsible innovation, deliver skilling initiatives, and address sustainability and societal challenges.

Oil drilling produces up to 10 gallons of water for every barrel of oil. While the Environmental Protection Agency has balked at allowing oil companies to treat drilling waste water and discharge it into streams, oil-rich states, including Texas, are moving forward with plans to permit it. Last fall, European Space Agency satellites detected huge plumes of methane leaking from the Yamal pipeline that carries natural gas from Siberia to Europe. Energy consultancy Kayrros estimated one leak was spewing out 93 tonnes of methane every hour. The UK’s offshore oil and gas industry has committed to halving operational emissions in the next decade, confirming its pathway to becoming a net-zero emissions basin by 2050. The cement industry is exploring carbon capture technology to reduce its carbon footprint. A new idea from Equinor calls for autonomous submarines to transport CO2 from the surface to the seabed. The Norwegian operator says the shuttles could also carry oil and water for injection.

Pirates attacked an oil production vessel off Nigeria in the early hours of 2 July and kidnapped nine Nigerian nationals, the ship’s owner BW Offshore said. US pipeline company Energy Transfer has taken the rare step of invoking force majeure—normally used in times of war or natural disaster—to prevent oil firms from walking away from a proposed expansion of the controversial Dakota Access pipeline, according to two sources familiar with the matter. What Are the Security Challenges of the Oil and Gas Market? Protecting the oil and gas market is key to a thriving economy. The list of security challenges for oil and gas requires the best technology solutions the industry has to offer. A panel of experts addresses the question "What are the security challenges of the oil and gas market?"

Recent items of interest on safety issues related to the oil and gas industry.

JPT Technology Minute Poll: Which Technology Would You Choose for Offshore Compression? If you could only choose one of these technologies with which to optimize your next offshore compression, which would it be? JPT Technology Minute Poll: Which Technology Would You Choose? If your management could only let you choose one of these technologies with which to optimize your next well, which would it be?

JPT Technology Minute Poll: Which Technology Would You Choose for Offshore Compression? If you could only choose one of these technologies with which to optimize your next offshore compression, which would it be? JPT Technology Minute Poll: Which Technology Would You Choose? If your management could only let you choose one of these technologies with which to optimize your next well, which would it be?

The two companies have teamed up to provide COVID-19 testing for oil and gas companies that want to test their employees at headquarters and remote rig locations across the country. State regulators have failed to prevent Pennsylvania’s natural gas drilling industry from sickening people and poisoning air and water, a grand jury concluded in a report issued after a 2-year investigation. Indonesia is home to numerous oil and gas fields, and upstream oil and gas activities are integral to the country's economic growth. Here are the key regulatory changes in response to the COVID-19 pandemic affecting Indonesia's oil and gas sector. Living near active oil and gas wells may put pregnant people at higher risk of having low-birth-weight babies, especially in rural areas, finds a new study of birth outcomes in California. The oil and gas company is using a new online platform to track its out-of-state workers’ health. A recently completed health impact assessment in New Mexico found periodic spikes of formaldehyde and other pollutants associated with oil and gas development recorded at unsafe levels for short periods of time near homes.