Texas Energy Report NewsClips
Monday November 24, 2025
Asterisk (*) denotes news stories that may be inaccessible because portions are behind a paywall
Good morning! Here are today’s Texas Energy Report NewsClips
Oil prices slipped Monday, extending losses from last week, as Russia-Ukraine peace talks edged closer to a solution and the U.S. dollar strengthened.
West Texas Intermediate was down 15 cents, or 0.26%, at $57.91 a barrel.
Brent crude futures fell 14 cents, or 0.22%, to $62.42 per barrel at 0148 GMT.
Both crude benchmarks were down about 3% last week and hit their lowest settlements since October 21, as market participants worried that a Russia-Ukraine peace deal could lift sanctions on Moscow and flood the market with previously sanctioned supply.
“The sell-off was triggered mainly by President Trump’s forceful push for a Russia-Ukraine peace deal, which markets see as a fast track to unlocking substantial Russian supply,” IG analyst Tony Sycamore wrote in a note.
Top Stories
Energy Now November 21, 2025
Exxon Freezes Plans for Major Hydrogen Plant Amid Weak Customer Demand
The suspension of the project, which had already experienced delays, reflects a wider slowdown in efforts by traditional oil and gas firms to transition to cleaner energy sources as many of the initiatives struggle to turn a profit. U.S. President Donald Trump had also yanked funding for green initiatives to focus on fossil fuels.
Oil major Exxon announced plans in 2022 to build the plant at its refining and chemical complex in Baytown, Texas, with a goal of producing 1 billion cubic feet per day of so-called blue hydrogen, a clean fuel that produces water when burned. Potential customers have stayed on the sidelines due to the higher cost of using hydrogen, Woods said, adding that an industrial slowdown and economic uncertainty in Europe have further crimped demand.
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Politico – November 22, 2025
Inside Greenpeace USA’s fight for its life
Greenpeace USA, one of the nation’s most iconic environmental groups, is threatened with extinction. The green group is struggling after nearly a decade of losing court battles against a Texas-based energy company co-founded by a billionaire backer of President Donald Trump. The group is facing possible bankruptcy if a judgment holds up finding that Greenpeace owes hundreds of millions of dollars in damages to the oil pipeline company Energy Transfer. A North Dakota jury found that the environmental group had committed trespassing, conspiracy and defamation while opposing the company’s Dakota Access pipeline in 2016 and 2017.
Internally, the epic legal fight has already taken a toll. The group hasn’t had a permanent leader since its last one was sidelined in 2024. Senior lawyers exited the organization as litigation dragged on. And morale has slumped after the group cut about 20 percent of its staff in anticipation of a budget squeeze. Beyond the crisis facing Greenpeace — one of several big-name environmental groups struggling with leadership crises and policy setbacks in the second Trump era — the outcome of the litigation could have wide-ranging implications that stretch to other nonprofits in the United States and beyond.
“This case could establish dangerous new legal precedents that could hold any participant at protests responsible for the actions of others at those protests, chilling free speech in the U.S. and beyond,” Greenpeace says on its website. “Simply put, our entire movement’s future could be in jeopardy.”
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Houston Chronicle – November 22, 2025
CenterPoint has already hired more than 260 lineworkers this year and is committed to hiring nearly 800 by 2030. It’s the most aggressive hiring spree that Ed Allen, head of the local International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union, has ever seen in his 40-plus years with the company, which has long outsourced many of its lineworker jobs. “They’re bringing this work back in-house,” Allen said.
The workforce initiative comes a year after CenterPoint faced immense anger in the wake of Hurricane Beryl, which knocked out power to a record 2.2 million customers. One of the most common criticisms from Texas lawmakers, regulators and everyday residents was the concern that the utility had become too reliant on outside contractors, slowing down its storm response. In the months that followed, CenterPoint pledged to rebuild its internal workforce. At its Hiram O. Clarke training facility in southwest Houston, the company is making good on that promise.
Now, CenterPoint faces two top priorities. One is to strengthen its infrastructure and be “the most resilient coastal grid in the country.” The other is to expand the Houston-area grid for what could be a huge surge in electricity usage in the near future as the region continues its rapid growth. The company is scaling up its hundreds of men — and handful of women — who’ll install the poles, build the towers and string the lines to accomplish those goals. “We know we’re going to be doing more,” Nathan Brownell, CenterPoint’s vice president of resilience and capital delivery, said in an interview. “So we had much more detailed conversations of, ‘All right, we need to start bringing in some of this work.’”
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CNBC – November 22, 2025
Activist Ananym Capital sees upside if Baker Hughes spins off its oilfield services business
A coalition of environmental groups is suing a New York regulator after the department granted a key permit to a fiercely contested interstate natural gas pipeline project into New York City. The groups on Nov. 18 petitioned the US Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit to review the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) recent decision to grant a water quality certificate to Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) project.
The groups do not anticipate filing a brief until February 2026, but their arguments will reflect their Aug. 15 public comments on Transco’s application, an Earthjustice spokesperson told Platts, part of S&P Global Energy.
The Latest TERse Tips
Gen. Dan Caine is making a trip to the Caribbean today as President Trump is said to have approved plans for covert action in Venezuela — The New York Times*
Turkish Airlines has temporarily suspended flights (until November 28th) to and from Venezuela after the US Federal Aviation Administration warned that it cannot guarantee security in the area because of heightened military activity in the region…other international airliners also cancelled flights…a new CBS News poll indicates only 30% of those asked support military action in the Caribbean, unless President Donald Trump explains what the mission there might be…fully one-third of deployed warships in the US fleet are amassed not far from the coast of Venezuela
The Texas Supreme Court declined to hear Anadarko Petroleum Corp.’s appeal for a $4 billion franchise tax refund related to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill settlement — the court’s decision upholds lower courts’ rulings that the settlement payment was for tort damages, not a deductible cost of goods sold, meaning the company is not owed a refund — Anadarko had argued the payment was a deductible expense, but the state and lower courts disagreed, stating the settlement was for liabilities resulting from negligence — Law 360*
Massive $50M overhaul to reimagine iconic downtown Houston tower, One Shell Plaza — Houston Chronicle*
In the years since Uri, Texas has received a staggering amount of requests from data centers, crypto mining facilities and industrial customers seeking a grid connection, more than 220 gigawatts of projects have requested connection as of this month, a 170% increase over the 83 gigawatts of project requests back in January, according to data published Wednesday by ERCOT — CNBC
Executives are starting to chill out about tariffs after a year of anxiety — months into President Trump’s roller coaster of a global trade war, something has shifted: business leaders sound less gloomy about tariffs than they have for much of the year — The Wall Street Journal*
An overnight drone strike triggered a fire at the Shatura power plant supplying Moscow, as Russia and Ukraine step up attacks on energy infrastructure amid a peace plan pushed by the Trump administration — the 1,500-megawatt Shatura plant, less than 80 miles (129 kilometers) from the Russian capital, accounts for around 6% of electricity production in Moscow and the surrounding region — Bloomberg*
There are 10 hydraulic fracturing crews operating in North Dakota, down from 13 in October, the state regulator said on Friday, as weak oil prices push operators to put the brakes on activity — Energy Now
U.S. liquefied natural gas company Freeport LNG’s export plant in Texas was on track to take in more natural gas on Friday in a sign that one of its three liquefaction trains has returned to service after shutting on Thursday, LSEG data and regulatory filings show — Oil & Gas 360
McKinstry, a construction and energy services provider, has expanded its corporate presence in Texas with two new offices and a fabrication shop, according to a Nov. 12 news release — Construction Dive
The House on Thursday passed two Republican-backed energy bills aimed at accelerating approvals for liquefied natural gas export terminals and assessing the nation’s refinery capacity — each with support from several moderate Democrats — the chamber cleared Rep. August Pfluger’s (R-Texas) “Unlocking our Domestic LNG Potential Act of 2025,” H.R. 1949, in a 217-188 vote. Every Republican present backed the bill, along with 11 Democrats — Politico
Oil & Gas Texas
Oil Price – November 21, 2025
The total number of active drilling rigs for oil and gas in the United States rose this week, according to new data that Baker Hughes published on Friday. The total rig count in the US rose by 5 to 554 this week, according to Baker Hughes, down 29 from this same time last year.
The number of active oil rigs rose by 2 in the reporting period, according to the data, reaching 419. Year over year, this represents a 60-rig decline. The number of gas rigs rose by 2 to 127, which is 28 more than this time last year. The miscellaneous rig count rose by 1 to 8. The latest EIA data showed that weekly U.S. crude oil production dipped just slightly in the week ending November 14 to 13.834 million bpd on average, just 28,000 bpd under the all-time high.
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Rigzone – November 21, 2025
ExxonMobil to Acquire 40 Percent of Bahia NGL Pipeline
Enterprise Products Partners LP will farm out 40 percent of the Bahia natural gas liquids (NGLs) pipeline to Exxon Mobil Corp, in a deal expected to be completed “early 2026” subject to regulatory approvals, Enterprise said Thursday. “The 550-mile Bahia pipeline, which has begun commissioning activities and will begin commercial operations immediately thereafter, will have an initial capacity to transport 600,000 barrels per day (bpd) of NGLs from the Midland and Delaware basins of West Texas to Enterprise’s Mont Belvieu fractionation complex”, the Houston, Texas-based oil and gas midstream company said in a press release.
A.J. Teague, co-chief executive of Enterprise’s general partner Enterprise Products Holdings LLC, earlier said in Enterprise’s quarterly report the pipeline was on track to start operations this month.
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KPLC – November 20, 2025
Port, pipeline project proposed for Cameron Parish
A proposed project aims to make it easier for the U.S. to export crude oil. Energy Transfer wants to build the Blue Marlin Offshore Port around 100 miles south of the Cameron coast, which has some local residents concerned. The Blue Marlin Offshore Port will load crude oil onto tankers, but to get there, the oil must travel through a pipeline from Nederland, Texas, to Johnson bayou, then through an existing pipeline to the offshore port.
The project proposes installation of a 42-inch pipeline, measuring approximately 37 miles in length. The pipeline will began in Nederland, Texas and end in Cameron Parish Louisiana where it will tap into the existing stingray mainline at the stingray 501 station.
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Indiana Lawyer – November 21, 2025
Biglari Holdings’ lawsuit says it was deceived during purchase of Texas oil company
Biglari Holdings says it was deceived into buying a Texas oil company after being falsely told that the assets included a dormant drilling rig worth $8.4 million that Biglari eventually had to sell for $200,000. Biglari, an Indiana corporation with headquarters in San Antonio, Texas, makes the allegations in a lawsuit filed this week against Robert L.G. Watson, former CEO of the Abraxas oil company.
Biglari, owner of the Indianapolis-based Steak n Shake restaurant chain, alleges that Watson fraudulently misrepresented Abraxas’ valued assets when Biglari was negotiating to acquire the company. … According to the complaint, Abraxas ventured outside of its West Texas oil drilling base in 2008 and into North Dakota.
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Dallas Morning News – November 21, 2025
Pennzoil vs. Texaco: Why Texas’ massive petroleum trial verdict 40 years ago still matters*
Forty years ago this past weekend, famed Houston trial lawyer Joe Jamail sat at his desk at home to handwrite his portion of the closing arguments in the multibillion-dollar trial of Pennzoil vs. Texaco. “All of a sudden, I hear a car horn blowing outside my house,” Jamail told The Texas Lawbook in an interview five months before his 2015 death.
A white limousine pulled into Jamail’s driveway. Two of his best friends, singer Willie Nelson and former University of Texas football coach Darrell Royal, jumped out and started begging Jamail to go out drinking with them. “I told them that I was working on the biggest closing argument of my life — hell, the biggest closing argument of anybody’s life — and that I needed to prepare,” he said. “But they weren’t having any part of it. They kept me up all f—ing night drinking. I could barely see the jury the next morning.”
Jamail and his co-counsel at Baker Botts did fine. They kept the basic argument simple for Pennzoil in a highly complex, four-month trial in which Houston-headquartered Pennzoil accused Texaco of tortiously interfering with its existing agreement to purchase Getty Oil in January 1984. “We had a deal, and we shook hands on that deal. And in Texas, a deal is a deal,” Jamail said. “These New York Wall Street bankers and lawyers had been playing fast and loose with merger agreements for decades, and they thought they were smarter than the rest of us and could get away with it.”
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MSN – November 21, 2025
Rethinking the role of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve: Rory Johnston
The United States’ Strategic Petroleum Reserve hit a four-decade low in mid-2023—at 347 million barrels, or less than half the reserve’s capacity—and today stands at 410 million barrels or 57% of the SPR’s 714 million barrel authorized capacity. This pool of presidentially controlled crude oil is a strategic asset, but also an internationally agreed-upon reserve squirreled away in case of emergency. At current prices, it would cost the Trump administration more than $18 billion to refill the SPR completely to the brim.
However, America’s strategic requirements for the SPR have greatly evolved since its establishment in the 1970s. The reserve’s modern-day purpose—and potential—is muddied. Without a clear vision from the White House and the Department of Energy, it’s all but guaranteed that the SPR won’t be used to its fullest potential. The reserve holds the potential to be a unique and strategic tool if used bidirectionally—as both seller and buyer of last resort—rather than viewed as a battery, where the main value is in the ability to simply extract energy when needed.
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Energies Media – November 21, 2025
Whistler Pipeline expansion targeted for early 2027, subject to regulatory sign-off
For any energy company, expansion operations can often be a precursor to positive performance over the next few years. In a world that has become dominated by the Russian energy supplies that have flowed into the market, developing alternatives has become paramount, especially since the latest sanctions on Russia have all but strangled their energy market. Now, amajor US-based energy operatorhas announced plans to expand a substantial gas pipeline in 2027.
The Whistler pipeline is a vast 450-mile, 42-inch-diameter intrastate pipeline that transports essential gas from the Permian Basin to a terminus near Agua Dulce, Texas. The pipeline is a joint venture between Enbridge, which holds a 19% interest, along with WhiteWater/I Squared (50.6%) and MPLX (30.4%). The pipeline system offered Enbridge an opportunity to enter the gas production market in the Permian basin, which the company has been eyeing for a long time, indeed. A year after entering the Permian, Enbridge still sees the basin as a major prize, as noted by the company’s leadership.
Oil & Gas National & International
E&E News By Politico – November 21, 2025
Alaska oil production poised to jump 13% next year, EIA says*
Alaska could see a boom in oil production next year, a sharp reversal for a state that has seen decades of declining production, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. EIA estimates in a forecast released this week that Alaska could see a 13 percent rise in production compared to 2025 — the largest annual increase for the state since the 1980s — thanks to two new projects on the North Slope.
ConocoPhillips’ Nuna project came online in December 2024 and is expected to produce 20,000 barrels a day at its peak. Pikka Phase 1, jointly owned by Santos and Repsol, is slated to start production in early 2026 and could reach peak production of 80,000 barrels a day later that year. The state last year averaged about 421,000 barrels a day in production, according to EIA, and could be roughly flat this year. The agency estimates that oil production could grow to 477,000 barrels a day next year. Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, cheered the forecast in a statement.
KING – November 22, 2025
Olympic Pipeline remains shut down with leak source still unidentified, BP says
The Olympic Pipeline remained shut down Saturday evening, an outage that prompted Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson to declare an emergency over potential disruptions at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. “Olympic Pipeline continues to respond to a release of refined products east of Everett, Washington,” BP America spokesperson Christina Audisho said in a statement. “The pipeline system remains shut down at this time. Crews have safely excavated nearly 200 feet of pipeline but have not yet identified the source of the release. Crews are operating around the clock and will continue overnight operations tonight.”
Ferguson said earlier in the week that “if fuel deliveries via the Olympic Pipeline cannot resume by Saturday evening … airport operations will be significantly affected.” The governor’s emergency proclamation eased restrictions on trucking hours that allowed fuel deliveries to the airport and minimize impacts to travelers. “That is working as expected, and more fuel deliveries are reaching the airport,” Gov. Ferguson’s office said Friday evening.
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S&P Global Platts – November 21, 2025
Environmentalists sue NY, NJ regulators over Transco Northeast gas pipe permits
A coalition of environmental groups is suing a New York regulator after the department granted a key permit to a fiercely contested interstate natural gas pipeline project into New York City. The groups on Nov. 18 petitioned the US Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit to review the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) recent decision to grant a water quality certificate to Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) project.
The groups do not anticipate filing a brief until February 2026, but their arguments will reflect their Aug. 15 public comments on Transco’s application, an Earthjustice spokesperson told Platts, part of S&P Global Energy.
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Reno Gazette Journal – November 21, 2025
Sinclair eyes Reno pipeline expansion to stabilize fuel supply
HF Sinclair Corp. is considering a major pipeline expansion that could link Reno to its Western fuel network, part of a broader effort to address tightening gasoline supplies and refinery shutdowns across California. Reno has a single pipeline for its gasoline and diesel supply — Kinder Morgan’s SFPP line that carries fuel from Bay Area refineries into Northern Nevada.
Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said Reno is “almost completely reliant on California’s refineries for refined products,” including the gasoline that feeds the region’s only major pipeline system. Dallas-based Sinclair is evaluating a multi-phase project that would add up to 150,000 barrels per day of refined fuel to Western markets, including Nevada. The proposal includes a potential new lateral line from Salt Lake City to Reno — which would mark the region’s first direct connection to the company’s supply system.
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Insurance Journal – November 18, 2025
Fatigue Crack Caused a Keystone Pipeline Oil Spill in North Dakota, Operator Says
A fatigue crack in the Keystone Pipeline led to an oil spill in North Dakota earlier this year that released thousands of barrels of oil onto farmland, according to the pipeline operator. In a quarterly report released Thursday, South Bow said initial findings show, “the failure resulted from a fatigue crack that originated along the pipe’s manufactured long-seam weld.” A fatigue crack is a crack that grows larger with changes in pressure over time, Pipeline Safety Trust Executive Director Bill Caram said.
A mechanical and metallurgical analysis found the pipe and welds met industry standards, the company said. Spill-related costs total around $55 million, which the company said it expects to recover through insurance early next year. Through September, South Bow had received about $16 million in reimbursements from its insurance policies.
Utilities, Electricity & Renewables
Daily Overview – November 21, 2025
Texas switches on a $1.8 billion superhub, the biggest US plant
Enel has switched on its $1.8 billion Solar Superhub in Texas on November 18, 2025, marking the company’s largest US power project to date. The 911-megawatt superhub now stands as the nation’s largest power plant, delivering unprecedented solar capacity directly into the Texas grid at a moment of rapidly rising electricity demand.
The Texas Solar Superhub moved from concept to reality through a multiyear development cycle that culminated in its November 18, 2025 activation. Initial planning focused on assembling enough contiguous land, transmission access, and interconnection approvals to support a utility-scale project that could ultimately reach 911 megawatts of capacity, a scale that would surpass any existing US power plant. As construction advanced, the project was consistently described as “under development” or “under construction,” with Enel positioning it as the flagship in a growing portfolio of American renewable assets that would anchor its long-term presence in the country.
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pv magazine – November 21, 2025
Battery energy storage revenues for ancillary services fall nearly 90% in ERCOT
Alberta, Canada-based Enverus Intelligence Research (EIR) has released a new report showing that revenues from battery energy storage system (BESS) projects in Texas have plummeted almost 90% over the last two years. In what analysts describe as an “after the gold rush” situation, battery saturation has transformed power markets.
According to Enverus, average annual revenue for BESS in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) service area have dropped from $149/kWh in 2023 to $17/kWh projected for 2025. This dramatic decrease in profitability has made a significant impact on the ancillary services market, where the share of ancillary services in BESS revenue has fallen from 84% to 48% over the last two years.
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KFDA – November 21, 2025
Xcel Energy, Transource connecting Texas, Oklahoma with expanded transmission project
Xcel Energy and Transource Energy, LLC, are set to expand a transmission project to strengthen the regional grid and support growing electricity demand. The Southwest Power Pool (SPP) Board of Directors awarded the two companies the Beckham-Potter 345 kilovolt transmission project.
A news release states the project is a key part of the SPP’s 2024 Integrated Transmission Planning Assessment. The new transmission line will connect Xcel’s Potter County substation near Amarillo to Oklahoma Gas & Electric Company’s Beckham County substation.
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MSN – November 19, 2025
Santa Clara data centers bought by Texas firm for $90 million-plus
A Texas company has paid well over $90 million to buy a pair of data centers in Santa Clara in a sign that investors still hunger for these sites amid an artificial intelligence boom. Centersquare, a Texas-based data center-oriented real estate firm, acted through affiliates to pay $97 million in cash for adjacent data centers a short distance from Levi’s Stadium, documents filed on Nov. 14 with the Santa Clara County Recorder’s Office show.
Affiliates controlled by Centersquare paid $55 million for the data center at 4650 Old Ironsides Drive and $42 million for the site at 4700 Old Ironsides Drive, county documents show. In October, Centersquare announced it had agreed to buy 10 data centers in the United States and North America as part of a $1 billion expansion. The company didn’t indicate whether the Santa Clara sites were part of that transaction.
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El Paso Matters – November 23, 3035
As rate increases loom, El Paso households could see utility bills jump $45 a month in early 2026
Monthly utility bills for the average El Paso household could go up by about $45 a month – or 18% – in early 2026 as the electric, gas and water utilities that serve the city are seeking rate increases. That’s about $540 a year more over this year amid a broader slowdown in the U.S. economy. Utility bills are outpacing wages in El Paso, which increased about 8% on average over the last year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“The cost of living is eating away at our American dream,” said Felipe Acuña, 68, a retired railroad worker who lives in the Lower Valley. “It feels like these utility companies are trying to squeeze every drop, like from a sponge … until nothing drops. And then, squeeze again.”
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Utility Dive – November 22, 2025
New FERC commissioners say connecting data centers is key priority
Bringing data centers to support artificial intelligence online is a top priority for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s newest members, Chair Laura Swett and Commissioner David LaCerte, they said Thursday at their first open meeting since being confirmed.
“In addition to our core mission of keeping the lights on for all Americans at reasonable costs, my priority as chairman is to ensure that our country can connect and power data centers as quickly and as durably as possible,” Swett said. LaCerte echoed that sentiment.
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November 17, 2025
The case for virtual power plants: Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis
Virtual power plants (VPPs) are every bit as real as conventional generation resources. Essentially collections of distributed battery storage units and other controllable devices, VPPs also can be built quickly and cost effectively—key attributes today given the recent uptick in electricity demand and projections for continued growth in the years ahead. Let’s look at some recent important VPP success stories.
During this summer’s peak demand periods, VPPs demonstrated repeatedly that they can provide reliable power at scale to utilities and system operators when called upon. They kept the lights on and air conditioners humming across the country, from large-scale projects in California and Texas to smaller but still-effective developments in New England, Puerto Rico, and elsewhere.
Regulatory
Associated Press – November 23, 2025
UN climate deal increases money to countries hit by climate change, but no explicit fossil fuel plan
United Nations climate talks in Brazil reached a subdued agreement Saturday that pledged more funding for countries to adapt to the wrath of extreme weather. But the catch-all agreement doesn’t include explicit details to phase out fossil fuels or strengthen countries’ inadequate emissions cutting plans, which dozens of nations demanded. The Brazilian hosts of the conference said they’d eventually come up with a road map to get away from fossil fuels working with hard-line Colombia, but it won’t have the same force as something approved at the conference called COP30.
Colombia responded angrily to the deal after it was approved, citing the absence of wording on fossil fuels. The deal, which was approved after negotiators blew past a Friday deadline, was crafted after hours of late night and early morning meetings.