Texas Energy Report NewsClips
Wednesday January 7, 2026
Asterisk (*) denotes news stories that may be inaccessible because portions are behind a paywall
Subscribers please note: Texas Energy Report is partnering with Beehiiv, the US publishing application company. The intent is to allow us a return to comprehensive daily emails for subscribers only and will later allow us to lower our subscription prices. Details on changes resulting from this partnership will be sent to you soon.
Good morning! Here are today’s Texas Energy Report NewsClips
Oil prices declined on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump said Venezuela will be “turning over” 30 million to 50 million barrels of sanctioned oil to the United States.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) fell 78 cents, or 1.37%, to $56.35 a barrel by 0200 GMT.
Brent crude futures fell 61 cents, or 1%, to $60.09 a barrel.
Both benchmark prices fell more than $1 in the previous trading session as the market weighed expectations of ample global supply this year against uncertainty around Venezuelan crude output after the U.S. capture of the country’s leader, Nicolas Maduro.
Top Stories
Pipeline & Gas Journal – January 6, 2026
Energy Transfer Expects Capex of $5.5 Billion in 2026
Pipeline company Energy Transfer said on Jan. 6 it expects to invest $5 billion to $5.5 billion in capital in 2026, primarily on its natural gas network projects. This follows the company’s announcement last month to prioritize natural gas pipeline projects for their superior risk and return profiles and move away from liquefied natural gas due to concerns of global oversupply.
The company had said it is suspending the development of its Lake Charles LNG export facility in Louisiana, while increasing the transportation capacity of its Transwestern pipeline’s planned expansion project in the Desert Southwest region to meet increased customer demand. Energy Transfer on Jan. 6 said it expects several natural gas pipeline projects to ramp up or come online in 2026, including the Nederland Flexport NGL, Mustang Draw I and Mustang Draw II processing plants in the Permian Basin as well as natural gas pipeline projects serving data center facilities in Texas.
______________________________
World Oil – January 6, 2026
Continental Resources expands Vaca Muerta position through Pan American Energy agreement
Continental Resources has signed an asset sale and purchase agreement with Pan American Energy to acquire non-operated interests in four blocks within Argentina’s Vaca Muerta shale play, further strengthening its footprint in one of the world’s most prolific unconventional basins. The assets are located in the Neuquén basin and will remain operated by Pan American Energy. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
The agreement builds on Continental’s recent expansion efforts in Argentina. In November, the company signed a separate sale and purchase agreement—subject to closing conditions—to acquire operated interests in the Los Toldos II Oeste block, signaling a broader strategy to establish a long-term position in Vaca Muerta through both operated and non-operated investments.
“Vaca Muerta is one of the most compelling shale plays in the world, and we’re thrilled to continue to invest in Argentina and build Continental’s position through this agreement with Pan American Energy,” said Doug Lawler, president and CEO of Continental Resources. He added that Pan American Energy’s deep basin experience creates opportunities for technical collaboration as development activity advances.
______________________________
Reuters – January 7, 2026
Trump announces plan to sell Venezuelan oil as US signals it is in talks with Caracas*
President Donald Trump on Tuesday unveiled a plan to refine and sell up to 50 million barrels of Venezuelan oil that had been stuck in Venezuela under U.S. blockade, in a further sign that Washington is coordinating with the Venezuelan government since capturing President Nicolas Maduro. Maduro is in a New York jail awaiting drug charges after the Saturday morning raid that the U.S. estimates killed about 75 people, according to a Washington Post report citing officials familiar with the matter.
The Latest TERse Tips
Targa Resources Corp.said Tuesday it’s closed the previously announced acquisition of Stakeholder Midstream, LLC for $1.25 billion in cash, effective date of January 1, 2026 — see the press release
Mexico overtook Venezuela to become Cuba’s top oil supplier in 2025, according to industry data, helping support the communist island as Trump renewed his vow to strike Mexican cartels after capturing Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro — Financial Times*
Iran Protests Swell in Tehran’s Bazaar — Iran arrests hundreds, disrupts internet as currency falls to new low and protests enter a second week — The Wall Street Journal*
Longtime climate advocate Sen. Ed Markey is demanding answers from President Donald Trump over the role that oil companies might have played in his decision to attack Venezuela and arrest its president — Politico*
Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego wants Congress to forestall a U.S. takeover of Greenland, requiring President Donald Trump to get lawmakers’ approval for any such action after this weekend’s military incursion into Venezuela — Politico*
President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Bureau of Land Management earned as much as $1 million last year from a business often associated with oil and gas development and owned interests in oil leases in two states — Politico*
George David Banks, who served as a senior White House adviser on energy and climate during the first Trump administration, has a new job leading a business advocacy group — he took over on Jan. 1 as president and CEO of the Washington-based American Council for Capital Formation, a center-right business advocacy group with an affiliated think tank — Politico*
A large number of customers of Rusk County Electric Cooperative (RCEO) were without power due to an issue with the company’s transmission line Tuesday — KYTX
Oil & Gas Texas
Houston Chronicle – January 6, 2026
A Houston company faces a record $9.6 million in federal fines for its role in a major oil spill that mystified experts and environmentalists for months following the November 2023 incident. The release of 1.1 million gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico was believed to be among the 10 largest to affect American waters in 40 years of tracking, according to the environmental group Healthy Gulf. But years passed without information about what caused the spill.
The U.S. Department of Transportation, which regulates pipelines, offered clarity Monday. It said in a statement that Houston-based Panther Operating Co. faces the “largest civil penalty ever” for alleged failures leading up to and during the incident involving its pipeline offshore Louisiana, Main Pass Oil Gathering. The National Transportation Safety Board concluded in a June report that the Houston pipeline operator failed to act promptly during the incident and also failed to assess the impact of a series of major hurricanes on the pipeline. Hurricanes move sand and mud along the sea floor, rattling attached pipelines in ways that can cause damage, it said.
______________________________
Pipeline & Gas Journal – January 6, 2026
Phillips 66 Says Gulf Coast Refineries Can Process 100,000 bpd of Venezuelan Crude
Related: ExxonMobil’s Baton Rouge refinery in Louisiana and its Beaumont refinery in Texas are together capable of processing 1.15 million barrels heavy crude oil per day — Center Square
Refiner Phillips 66 can run Venezuelan crude at two U.S. Gulf Coast refineries as supplies become available, Chief Financial Officer Kevin Mitchell said on a conference call on Jan. 6. Speaking at the Goldman Sachs Energy, CleanTech & Utilities Conference, Mitchell said its Lake Charles and Sweeny refineries in Texas have the capacity to process 100,000 barrels per day of Venezuelan crudes.
President Donald Trump said the U.S. would “take control” of Venezuela after U.S. forces arrested Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, a step that could open the door for U.S. energy companies to seek access to the country’s vast oil reserves.
______________________________
Inside Climate News – January 6, 2026
Venezuelan Oil Brought to the U.S. Would Be Refined in Black Gulf Communities
On Saturday morning, John Beard woke up to news that he’d been dreading, but preparing for: A global oil crisis could hit closer to home in Texas. The southeastern part of the state is home to more than a dozen oil refineries, and he’d spent decades working at one of them. But after attending more funerals than he could count for loved ones who died from cancer, he began to feel differently about the job.
Beard has spent the past year doing “extensive work” in Europe, warning allies about the dangers of expanding fossil fuels and urging them to prepare to “stand up and push back” against U.S. and industry plans under the Trump administration. He has also been coordinating with local advocates to scrutinize new industrial proposals in Port Arthur, his hometown in southeast Texas, which is home to several oil refineries.
______________________________
Spectrum News – January 6, 2026
Venezuela military operation will not impact TX oil market, economist says
During a press conference, Trump said large U.S. oil companies will go into Venezuela and “spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure, and start making money for the country.” However, Hirs says that’s not feasible. “Producers, especially those in Texas, are really getting squeezed right now, and I don’t think they’re gonna take very kindly to, you know, ‘Here, go down to Venezuela and spend billions of dollars,’” he said, adding it could take up to five years for those producers to see a return on investment.
He says U.S. consumers have bigger issues to worry about. “Stable economic policies are required. That is something the Trump administration needs to place at the top of the list,” he said. However, in the meantime, some Texans remain optimistic.
______________________________
East Daley – January 6, 2026
Chevron to Build Data-Center Power Campus in Permian, Supporting New Basin Demand
Chevron (CVX) is emerging as a player in AI power generation. The major plans to build its first natural gas-fired power complex for a data center in West Texas, part of a trend East Daley Analytics anticipates to take advantage of abundant Permian Basin gas.
Chevron aims to make a final investment decision on the project by early 2026 and begin generating power in 2027, the company announced in November, starting with 2.5 GW of capacity and possibly expanding to 5 GW for a single data-center client. The facility is designed to operate behind the meter, delivering electricity directly to the colocated data center. The project supports CVX’s transition from a conventional fuel supplier, to directly selling electrons to hyperscale consumers.
______________________________
Midland Reporter-Telegram – December 30, 2025
Haynes Boone: ‘Banks still view hydrocarbons as investable’*
Banks have lowered their near-term oil and gas price forecasts but are a bit more bullish in the long term, according to a recent survey of lenders. Law firm Haynes Boone surveys banks that lend to the oil and gas industry twice per year, and its responses from 29 lenders for fall 2025 show a slight souring on 2026 oil prices.
“A favorable production environment fueled by OPEC and Trump administration policies has increased production to record highs in recent months,” Haynes Boone explained. “But the downward pricing pressure generated by this supply has possibly been kept from sinking oil prices lower by the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Venezuela on the supply side, as well as Trump’s rollback of fuel economy standards and continued Federal Reserve rate cuts on the demand side.” Banks also are predicting lower natural gas prices in 2026.
Oil & Gas National & International
The Hill – January 6, 2026
Trump: Venezuela to turn over 30-50M barrels of oil to US
President Trump said late Tuesday that Venezuela is going to turn over 30 million to 50 million barrels of oil to the U.S., an announcement that follows the recent operation in which U.S. military forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
“I am pleased to announce that the Interim Authorities in Venezuela will be turning over between 30 and 50 MILLION Barrels of High Quality, Sanctioned Oil, to the United States of America,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
______________________________
S&P Global Platts – January 6, 2026
Venezuelan crude could displace Mexican fuel oil amid USGC supply glut: market sources
A potential increase in Venezuelan crude flows to the US Gulf Coast could place downward pressure on fuel oil prices in the region, amid strong competition that might displace product currently arriving from Mexico, according to US-based fuel oil sources. Mexico and Venezuela both produce heavy crudes with plenty of residual fuel oil, the base for high sulfur fuel oil.
“If refiners are able to purchase sufficient quantities of Venezuelan crude oil to process in their refineries and fill up their cokers, that really means that Mexico would probably have to look at markets outside of this hemisphere to place their oil,” a US-based fuel oil trader said.
______________________________
Energies Media – December 30, 2025
Saudi Aramco inks $11 billion lease-back agreement for Jafurah gas field infrastructure
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has long been the epicenter of the global energy market. With vast amounts of natural gas and oil, the Kingdom has a welcome reputation as a leader in the advancement of the sector globally. With the new year only a few short weeks away and the inevitable end of Russia’s dominance in the energy sector, the world is fostering new partnerships that aim to strengthen the sector for years to come. The new lease-back agreement is an exemplar of the Kingdom’s ability to develop new projects across many energy sectors.
Aramco, a Saudi-owned energy company with vast resources, has announced a new $11 billion lease and leaseback deal involving its Jafurah gas processing facilities. The new deal allows the leasing of the site to a consortium of investors led by the Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a division of BlackRock. The Jafurah site is the Kingdom’s largest non-associated gas development.
Utilities, Electricity & Renewables
San Antonio Express-News – January 6, 2026
Major Texas city weighs pros, cons behind $1.5B data center
It didn’t pass. It didn’t fail. And now it’s back. A massive data center proposal that once stalled at San Marcos City Hall is now reentering the city’s approval process, months after a divided City Council vote and sustained neighborhood opposition left its future uncertain. The $1.5 billion project, planned for nearly 200 acres off Francis Harris Lane, could reshape the area if developers ultimately secure the necessary approvals.
City staff did not provide a comment ahead of publication but directed MySA to the December 16 City Council recap. On December 16, 2025, San Marcos City Council received a discussion-only briefing on a request from Fort Worth-based Highlander SM One LLC and landowners Donald and Germaine Tuff. They are seeking to amend the city’s Preferred Scenario Map, a component of San Marcos’ Comprehensive Plan, to reclassify roughly 199.5 acres from conservation/cluster to commercial/employment low, according to city records. This designation change would clear the way for construction of a multi-building data center campus.
______________________________
Utility Dive – January 6, 2026
ERCOT’s large load queue jumped almost 300% last year
Data centers are driving a rapid increase in the number and capacity of large load interconnection requests in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas region, according to a December report from the grid operator. The state is exploring a slate of resources — including transmission, solar, storage and gas generation — to meet the growing demand. Grid planners in Texas are assessing more than 233 GW of large load interconnection requests, with more than 70% coming from data centers, an official said at a Dec. 9, 2025, ERCOT board of directors meeting.
The total capacity exploring grid interconnection near the end of 2025 increased almost 300% over the 2024 year-end total, ERCOT Vice President of System Planning and Weatherization Kristi Hobbs said. She presented totals to the board that were slightly updated from those in the report. “We continue to see, week after week, more interest in connecting to the ERCOT grid,” Hobbs said at the meeting. “We have outgrown the process that was established for reviewing these large loads.”
______________________________
pv magazine – January 3, 2026
Nofar USA wins bid to acquire solar assets of bankrupt Pine Gate Renewables
Nofar USA has emerged as the successful bidder for 979 MW of utility-scale solar assets posted for auction as part of developer Pine Gate Renewables bankruptcy-driven restructuring. The $285 million cash transaction marks a consolidation of assets as Pine Gate proceeds through a court-supervised restructuring in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas.
The portfolio consists of nine solar projects across North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, and Alabama. According to court filings, the deal carries an implied enterprise value of approximately $575 million, which includes the assumption of $260 million in project-level debt and an additional $30 million in committed investments.
______________________________
Austin American-Statesman – December 31, 2025
At this year’s Texas Energy Summit in Austin, one topic dominated every hallway conversation: the strain that large power users — especially data centers — are putting on the grid. We focused on a different question that’s starting to capture the attention of policymakers across the country: What if households were part of the solution? What if the electric utility of the future didn’t just serve homes, but was built around them?
Texas stands at a crossroads. The promise of the data center boom is undeniable: new jobs, local investment and tax revenue. With nearly 400 data centers already operating across the state and more on the way, Texas is becoming a global hub for artificial intelligence and cloud computing. But this growth is accompanied by surging electricity demand that threatens to overwhelm the grid and drive up prices for Texans. For decades, utilities have treated homes as passive consumers. But in the energy system of the future, homes will be active participants. When equipped with a heat pump, rooftop solar and battery storage, the home of the future won’t just consume energy; it will generate, store and dispatch its own clean energy, reducing peak demand, increasing flexibility and stabilizing the grid. That’s the vision behind Rewiring America’s Homegrown Energy framework.
______________________________
The Wall Street Journal – January 6, 2026
The Fight Over Making Data Centers Power Down to Avoid Blackouts*
Power-hungry data centers risk pushing parts of the U.S. power grid toward failure. Some technology companies are fighting a potential solution: disconnecting the data centers from the grid when electricity is in short supply. Across the U.S., tensions are mounting as companies including Google, Amazon.com and Microsoft debate with utility executives whether their electricity needs can be met without causing blackouts during times of extreme demand.
Power officials have been raising concerns that the grid isn’t equipped to handle the sheer number of data centers tech companies are seeking to build. They say it will take many years to build new transmission lines and power plants needed to support the surge in demand while keeping the lights on for other customers. Meanwhile, they are working to find ways to connect data centers to the grid sooner without jeopardizing the reliability of the system. Some have proposed either requiring or encouraging data centers to stop using it when there is a risk of blackouts, either by powering down or switching to backup electricity supplies.
“It’s a high-stakes fight, because hundreds of billions of dollars or trillions of dollars of capital are on the line,” said Michael Webber, an engineering professor at the University of Texas at Austin and former chief technology officer at investment firm Energy Impact Partners. “Power is the critical bottleneck.” The problem is most acute within PJM Interconnection, the organization responsible for overseeing a power market spanning 13 states in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic region. A surge in data-center development there already has pushed electricity prices higher and made the threat of blackouts more likely.
______________________________
OK Energy Today – January 5, 2026
SPP moves to add 298-MW Texas solar project near Oklahoma line
The Southwest Power Pool (SPP) has taken formal steps to add a large utility-scale solar project near the Oklahoma–Texas border to its regional transmission grid. SPP recently filed a Generator Interconnection Agreement (GIA) with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to allow Rabbit’s Foot Solar, LLC to connect to the SPP system, with Southwestern Electric Power Company (SWEPCO) designated as the transmission owner.
The proposed Rabbit’s Foot Solar project would be built in Bowie County, Texas, immediately adjacent to southeast Oklahoma, placing it near the edge of SPP’s 14-state footprint.
______________________________
Santa Fe New Mexican – January 4, 2026
Utility regulators side with private equity firm in disclosure debate
As state utility regulators are poised to consider whether to allow Bernhard Capital Partners to purchase New Mexico’s largest natural gas utility, they declined to give weight to some issues raised by advocates regarding violations and other concerns related to the firm’s other investments.
The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission recently sided with the Louisiana-based private equity firm in a recent decision rejecting an appeal by advocacy group New Energy Economy requesting to force the firm to disclose records of violations by affiliate companies. While such evidence has factored heavily into some past regulatory proceedings, attorneys for Bernhard Capital have resisted providing such records, citing the firm’s structure.
Regulatory
Politico – January 5, 2026
EPA nears finish line on key power sector regs*
The Trump administration is closing in on completion of two top Clean Air Act priorities: repeal of stronger air toxics regulations for existing coal- and oil-fired power plants as well as emissions standards for hundreds of natural-gas-fueled electricity-generating facilities expected to be built in the future. EPA shipped prepublication drafts of the two rules to the White House regulations shop for a routine review just before Christmas, according to a government tracking website. Both are set to be made final this month, court papers indicate.
One would scrap the tightened limits on mercury, a neurotoxin particularly dangerous to children, and other hazardous air pollutants issued two years ago during President Joe Biden’s term. That update reversed EPA’s decision during President Donald Trump’s first term that no significant changes were needed to what are formally known as the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards. Under Biden, the strengthened regulations closed a loophole on mercury pollution for about 10 plants that burn a low-grade form of coal known as lignite. They also slashed a soot emissions rate for all coal-fired plants that serves as a regulatory stand-in for releases of arsenic, nickel and other hazardous metals.
______________________________
.
Politico – January 5, 2026
Congress looks to increase funding for key trade agencies*
Key trade agencies are set to receive a funding boost thanks to the minibus spending package congressional Republicans aim to pass this month. Top appropriators in the House and Senate on Monday released details of the bipartisan bill to fund the Departments of Energy, Commerce, Interior and Justice, as well as water programs, the EPA and federal science initiatives through the end of the current fiscal year. Congress aims to pass the package ahead of the Jan. 30 government shutdown deadline.
It includes an 18 percent increase in funding for the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office, which has taken center stage in President Donald Trump’s effort to negotiate new trade deals. as well as a 23 percent boost for the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security, which is responsible for designing and enforcing export controls used to target China and other countries. Bipartisan supporters of export controls have long complained that BIS enforcement operations are underfunded. House Republican appropriators had proposed appropriating $303 million for the bureau, but the new spending package sets funding at $235 million.
______________________________
.
Politico – January 6, 2026
Appropriators spare EPA energy and conservation programs*
Congressional appropriators are rising to the defense of the embattled Energy Star program and a similar initiative aimed at conserving water in a newly released EPA funding bill. The measure, which represents a deal between members of the House and Senate appropriations committees that still needs full congressional approval, would set aside about $33 million this fiscal year for Energy Star, the energy efficiency rating program for appliances that EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has voiced interest in privatizing.
That sum is slightly less than the $36 million allotted last year. The threat to Energy Star spurred opposition from a broad swath of advocacy groups in both the business and environmental communities. Despite surviving an EPA reorganization late last year, its long-term future remains shaky. “No final decision has been made at this time,” said EPA press secretary Brigit Hirsch in an emailed response to questions Tuesday about the program’s status. “As the Administrator has consistently stated, he will follow the law as enacted by Congress, and EPA will follow all statutory requirements.”