Energy Journal: Texas Powers Into Renewable Energy

Energy Journal

Texas Powers Into Renewable Energy

By Neanda Salvaterra

Here’s your morning jolt of news, insight and analysis on the global energy business. Send us tips, suggestions and complaints: EnergyJournal@wsj.com

TEXAS ADDS WIND POWER TO ITS OIL RESUME

The U.S. state of Texas, typically known for its oil and gas exploration, has embraced renewable energy, report Bill Spindle and Rebecca Smith.

Texas has added more wind-based generating capacity than any other state, with wind turbines accounting for 16% of electrical generating capacity as of April. Now Texas is anticipating a huge surge in solar power.

Elsewhere, most of the renewable growth is coming from blue states. California is the leader in solar power with more systems cranking out electricity, right now, than Texas hopes to add in the next five to 10 years. New York finalized a plan Aug. 1 to get to half its power from zero-emission sources by 2030, with big goals for offshore wind turbines.

FRACKING MEASURES WON’T GO BEFORE COLORADO VOTERS IN NOVEMBER

Two measures to allow Colorado communities to ban hydraulic fracturing failed to garner enough voter support to make the fall ballot, the most high-profile defeat to date for groups aiming to curtail the drilling practice, report Amy Harder and Erin Ailworth.

Supporters of the measures, which could have severely limited oil-and-gas production in the energy-rich state, fell short of gathering the nearly 98,500 signatures each initiative needed to get on the ballot, the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office said Monday.

The years-long campaign against fracking has notched some big symbolic victories, including a statewide ban in New York, and souring public opinion nationally has catapulted the issue into a presidential campaign for the first time.

Government entities across the U.S. have expressed opposition to fracking by passing nearly 600 measures since 2011, with just under half of those being legally binding measures, according to a tally by antifracking group Food and Water Watch. Of the 281 measures that do have legal impact, however, virtually none include areas where widespread oil and natural gas development actually take place.

U.S. REGULATORS WARN OIL DRILLERS TO FIND SOLUTIONS TO BOLT FAILURES

Federal regulators Monday warned subsea oil drillers and equipment makers that bolt failures in the Gulf of Mexico could result in an oil spill on the scale of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster, reports Ted Mann.

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement at the Department of the Interior issued the warning at a public forum on Monday.

The agency’s working group and a parallel task force set up by an oil industry trade group are trying to determine why critical metal fasteners have corroded and failed in recent years.

In 2013, GE recalled more than 10,000 bolts after a failure on one of its components, a blowout preventer connector, which led to a spill of more than 400 barrels of drilling fluid in the Gulf of Mexico.

“Fortunately, as of today we’ve had no major catastrophes from bolt failures,” said Brian Salerno, director of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement at the Department of the Interior, which oversees the offshore oil industry. “We believe it may only be a matter of time before our luck runs out.”

MEXICO COVERS 2017 OIL REVENUE AT $42 A BARREL

The Mexican government has covered its expected oil revenue for 2017 through a combination of oil-price hedges and budget-stabilization funds, guaranteeing a price of $42 a barrel next year, the Finance Ministry said Monday.

The average price per barrel to be used in drawing up next year’s budget is below the $50 a barrel for 2016 but above the $41.45-a-barrel price of Mexican crude at the end of last week.

The ministry said the government spent $1.03 billion on put options that cover 250 million barrels of oil at the equivalent of $38 a barrel for Mexican crude, through 46 transactions in the global derivatives market with seven counterparts.

MARKETS

Oil prices edged higher Tuesday amid lower trading volumes as the August price rally lost momentum, with crude hovering around $47-$50 a barrel.

The October contract for global benchmark Brent was up 0.35% at $49.43 a barrel in early morning trading, while U.S. counterpart West Texas Intermediate was up 0.4% at $47.17 a barrel.

Monday’s bank holiday in the U.K. cut into trading volumes for both benchmarks. A similar holiday taking place this weekend in the U.S. means that some observers expect the markets to remain stagnant until next week.

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