Energy & Fuel

"Residents in 16 California counties have been warned that Wednesday may bring more intentional power shutoffs to over 200,000 customers."

"Northern Californians can expect widespread power cuts aimed at preventing wildfires for a decade while Pacific Gas & Electric upgrades wires systems, cuts back trees and takes other safety measures, the utility’s chief executive said on Friday."

"Energy Secretary Rick Perry is refusing to comply with a congressional subpoena seeking a host of records related to his actions in Ukraine at the heart of Congress’ ongoing impeachment inquiry."

"When leaders from Exxon Mobil and BP gathered last month with other fossil-fuel executives to declare they were serious about climate change, they cited progress in curbing an energy-wasting practice called flaring — the intentional burning of natural gas as companies drill faster than pipelines can move the energy away. But in recent years, some of these same companies have significantly increased their flaring ... ."

"Members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee are blaming each other for an impasse in a pipeline safety reauthorization bill that many thought would breeze through Congress."

"A towering explosion at a century-old Philadelphia oil refinery earlier this year released 5,239 pounds of a hydrofluoric acid, federal investigators said today, the first time they have seen releases of the potentially deadly chemical during a refinery blast."

"A federal court won’t allow the Trump administration to enforce its plans for managing sage grouse in Western states while litigation is still pending."

"The Bureau of Land Management's top official recused himself last month from decisionmaking tied to nearly five dozen organizations and individuals — including a two-year ban on clients represented by his former law firm — but newly disclosed documents show his financial ties to some of those interests will last a lifetime."

"The Trump administration, in an effort to mend fences with the powerful corn lobby, proposed a new formula on Tuesday to boost biofuels demand, but the proposal instead only provoked more consternation from the industry."