Water Drop
This January, as many Texans recover from the holidays and gaze into what some folks call winter here, members of the Texas Legislature will gather in Austin to be sworn in for the 86th legislative session. The Texas Legislature is charged with meeting for only 140 days every two...
IMG 7767
The South Texas Energy and Economic Roundtable (STEER) hosted the sixth annual Eagle Ford Excellence Awards. Energy Waste, Cheniere Energy, Resirkulere, CPS Energy, EcoVapor Recovery Systems, OmniTRAX, CASA of Bee, Live Oak and McMullen Counties, and the George West Education Foundation were the recipients of the 2018 Eagle Ford...
SHALE Map Jan Feb 2019
A new analysis of the nation’s major shale gas plays has revealed that the amount of natural gas that can be technically recovered from future well locations has increased by 20 percent compared with an estimate made about five years ago, even while active drilling has depleted the resource....
Commodity Hedging
For public companies with a Dec. 31, 2018, fiscal year-end, new hedge accounting rules will become effective Jan. 1, 2019. The FASB issued the new hedge accounting guidance Aug. 28, 2017, through Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2017-12. The ASU provided the election to early adopt the new guidance...
shale revolution
Most of the time it is difficult, if not impossible, to recognize that a major sea change is taking place — especially when it is just getting started. The Barnett Shale seemed to burst on the scene around the 2004-2005 timeframe as an instant success. Like most every overnight...
Resolutions
Anyone can make a New Year’s resolution. How many of us can actually keep one though? Food for thought — maybe we should resolve ourselves to make minor changes over time instead of a couple drastic maneuvers on Jan. 1. Maybe if we resolve to make a few small changes...
Crude Oil Port CC
The Port of Corpus Christi Authority reached several milestones in the development of the crude oil export terminal on currently planned for Harbor Island, Texas. Corpus Christi-based Lone Star Ports, LLC (Lone Star Ports) will lead the development of the Terminal, the first U.S. onshore export terminal servicing fully-laden Very...
War on Coal
First, they came for the coal industry, and I did not speak out — Because I was not in the coal industry. The battle over carbon will play a significant role in the long-term development of the tight oil plays in the United States. There is yet another push for...
Movies
Film is a powerful medium. From a policy perspective, few other forms of communication can so rapidly change public sentiment. This is particularly true of feature films. Although documentaries are certainly important — and this year they have seen a resurgence that includes “Won’t You Be My Neighbor” and...
Advancing Technology Oilfield Jan Feb 2019
A series of very remarkable factoids about the U.S. oil and gas industry have come to light in the past few months. Among those are: • U.S. reserves for both oil and natural gas reached all-time record highs in November; • The U.S. actually became a net exporter of petroleum liquids...