Texas Energy Report NewsClips archives July 2026

Texas Energy Report NewsClips

Friday July 10, 2026

Asterisk (*) denotes news stories that may be inaccessible because portions are behind a paywall

 

Good morning! Here are today’s Texas Energy Report NewsClips

Top Stories

 

Reuters – July 9, 2026

Fuel markets flash supply crunch despite calmer oil prices*

Gasoline and diesel markets are signalling a fuel supply crunch despite relatively subdued crude oil prices, ‌suggesting the energy shock from the Iran war may be far from over. Energy prices surged after the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran led to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which carried about a fifth of global oil supplies before the conflict. But while crude prices fell sharply after last month’s ceasefire deal — and have ​risen relatively modestly on bursts of renewed fighting since — fuel prices have remained elevated.

That suggests the inflationary pressures weighing on industry ​and consumers, and worrying central banks, is set to continue, even if flows through the Strait of Hormuz have ⁠improved. Pressure on fuel markets intensified this week after Russia banned diesel exports as Ukrainian attacks battered its refining infrastructure and raised the risk of ​domestic shortages. The gap between fuel and crude prices — a proxy for refinery profit margins — has widened sharply even as refiners in Europe and ​the U.S. struggle to absorb a glut of crude oil from emergency stock releases and from the Middle East during the U.S.-Iran ceasefire.

_______________________________

 

Fortune – July 9, 2026

The crypto startup trying to put a barrel of oil on blockchain*

The oil industry has spent more than a century pushing into new frontiers. Its engineers pulled crude from beneath deserts, oceans and frozen tundra. Its traders built markets that turned oil into the world’s most actively traded commodity. Now a small crypto startup is trying to persuade the industry to experiment with a different kind of frontier: putting a barrel of oil on a blockchain. The company, Energy Substantiation, wants oil suppliers to help support a digital token tied to physical crude. For decades, ownership of real-world barrels has largely been the preserve of producers, traders and large institutions. Energy Substantiation is seeking to open up the market to anyone with a crypto wallet and a small outlay.

“It is remarkable to me that people can own dollars and people can own gold, but they’ve never been able to own oil,” JP Thieriot, who is spearheading the idea as Energy Substantiation’s co-founder, said in an interview. His startup is borrowing from a familiar playbook. Stablecoins digitized claims on dollars, growing from a fringe experiment into a system that settles trillions of dollars a year. Energy Substantiation is betting something similar can be done with oil — a far messier asset than the currency behind stablecoins.

_______________________________

 

The Hill – July 9, 2026

EPA proposes to loosen requirements for truck pollution controls

The Trump administration announced on Thursday that it is proposing to loosen requirements for pollution controls that rein in emissions from heavy duty trucks. The administration said the technical changes are expected to allow for more flexibility for truck companies, when compared to a Biden-era rule. The move is also expected to undermine some of the Biden rule’s pollution protections.

In particular, the Trump administration is proposing to shorten the amount of time that engine manufacturers have to guarantee that pollution controls will work. The Biden administration extended this warranty from 100,000 miles to 450,000 miles. The Trump administration is revising it back down to 100,000 miles.

_______________________________

 

Bloomberg – July 9, 2026

Exxon, BP, Chevron Denied Early Win in 2021 Heat Wave Death

The Incident: On June 28, 2021, Julie Leon was driving home in the Seattle area when extreme temperatures forced her to pull over. She was later found unresponsive in her car with the windows down

The Defendants: The lawsuit names ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips, Phillips 66, and Olympic Pipeline Company. ConocoPhillips and Olympic Pipe Line were dismissed from the suit, but the claims against the remaining corporations are proceeding

_______________________________

 

Houston Chronicle – July 9, 2026

Greg Abbott flip-flops on Texas data centers, even though AI is needed for national security: Chris Tomlinson*

 

The Latest TERse Tips

Chevron-chartered tanker struck by drone off Russia — Yasa Tanker says vessel was attacked off CPC terminal in Black Sea — Trade Winds

Audio: Natural Gas Iintelligence’s Hub & Flow is a podcast for busy natural gas professionals interested in North American energy markets — “Inside the Permian’s High-Stakes Waha Turnaround“

Mitsubishi Corporation (Americas) has signed a 91,761-square-foot lease at 1100 Louisiana, relocating its longtime office from Houston Center into one of the city’s tallest skyscrapers, a deal that spans four floors—31 through 34—and ranks among the largest downtown office leases completed in recent years — Houston Chronicle*

Justin Bird, executive vice president of Sempra and chief executive officer of Sempra Infrastructure, will become executive vice president and chief financial officer of Sempra — and Karen Sedgwick, currently executive vice president and chief financial officer of Sempra, will become chief executive officer and president of the Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) — see the press release

National Grid agreed to make a $1.75 billion strategic minority investment in Joulent, an energy company developing power infrastructure for industrial and data center customers, according to a press release statement

 

Oil & Gas Texas

 

San Francisco Chronicle – July 9, 2026

Chevron says gasoline mixture spilled into San Francisco Bay from Richmond refinery*

_______________________________

 

CFO Dive – July 9, 2026

ExxonMobil CFO backs semiannual reporting option: 5 takeaways

ExxonMobil Holdings CFO Neil Hansen is one of thousands of letter writers who have weighed in on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s proposal that would allow public companies to opt out of the current quarterly reporting filing requirements. His signed 11-page letter on the oil giant’s letterhead is notable not only because Hansen is the finance chief of one of the world’s most powerful companies making the case for allowing companies to choose twice annual reporting which would effectively eliminate the quarterly reporting requirement that has been in place for decades.

The correspondence, dated June 24, is also notable because of its full-throated support of the plan. While he’s not alone in backing the plan, his support stands in stark contrast to a groundswell of opposition that flooded into the SEC portal during the public comment period that ended Monday, including from other veteran finance leaders such as former Netflix CFO David Wells, CFO Dive previously reported.

_______________________________

 

Texas Border Business – July 9, 2026

Texas Upstream Energy Sector Secures Third Consecutive Month of Job Growth

The Texas Workforce Commission released employment data through May 2026, showing that upstream oil and natural gas employment increased by 4,100 jobs. “Exploration and production jobs are the foundation of the oil and natural gas industry, and three straight months of gains reflect the strength and skill of the men and women who keep this critical industry running around the clock,” said Texas Oil & Gas Association (TXOGA) President Todd Staples. “More jobs within Texas’ oil and natural gas industry enhances the quality of life across Texas communities and boosts the standard of living. As demand for reliable, dependable energy grows at home and abroad, prioritizing domestic production will continue to support job creation, grow our economy, and strengthen America’s energy security.”

Upstream positions support an additional 232,000 indirect jobs within the supply chain and 421,000 induced jobs due to more income spent across the economy. In total, the upstream oil and natural gas sector sustains over 850,000 direct, indirect, and induced jobs. From a longer-term perspective, the industry continues to show substantial recovery from the pandemic-era trough. Since the pandemic-era low point in September 2020, Texas upstream oil and gas employment has increased by 40,500 jobs, a gain of nearly 26 percent.

 

Courthouse News Service – July 8, 2026

Environmental groups brawl with New Jersey over future of interstate gas pipeline

Two environmental organizations clashed with New Jersey regulators and a natural gas giant Wednesday in the Third Circuit, battling over whether a controversial interstate pipeline project was properly approved. For years, the Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company — more commonly known as Transco — has sought to expand its approximately 10,000-mile network of pipelines through the creation of the Northeast Supply Enhancement.

If completed, the extension would begin in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, running under the Lower New York Bay before reaching New York City and the Hudson Valley. Transco first submitted an application for water quality certification to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection in 2019, but that application was denied over insufficient details regarding environmental protections. A second application was also denied in 2020 over a lack of public need.

_______________________________

 

Industrial Info Resources – July 8, 2026

Texas, Alaska Lead U.S. Pipeline Kickoffs in Third Quarter

The consistently growing need for natural gas across the U.S., fueled by demand for both domestic power generation and exports for liquefied natural gas (LNG), is leading to the buildout of pipelines in some of the biggest markets for fossil-fuel development. Industrial Info Resources is tracking about $15 billion worth of U.S.-based oil and gas pipeline projects that are set to begin construction before the end of September, more than 70% of which is attributed to natural gas transmission projects.

According to Industrial Info Resources data, Texas accounts for more project kickoffs in the third quarter than any other U.S. state, the bulk of which are along the Gulf Coast. WhiteWater Midstream is preparing to begin construction on the 160-mile Traverse Pipeline Project from Agua Dulce to Katy, which is designed to carry up to 2.5 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas. WhiteWater, the majority owner, is supported by joint venture partners MPLX LP, Enbridge Incorporated and Targa Resources. The Traverse Pipeline is expected to alleviate capacity constraints at the Agua Dulce hub and provide South Texas markets with more Permian-sourced gas. Industrial Info Resources offers more information on the development in its Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Oil & Gas Pipeline Project Database, where readers can find details–including construction schedules, investment values and necessary equipment–in a detailed project report.

_______________________________

 

The Guardian – July 9, 2026

Licensed to drill? How a Trump-linked Texas oil company is elbowing its way into Greenland

10 June, a snowy-haired American in his 60s addressed the residents of a remote Greenland hamlet. He was there to tell them about a business venture supported by figures linked to Donald Trump. “So,” Robert Price said via an interpreter, “we have a project to drill for oil here.” The Texas oil company that Price represents, Greenland Energy, hopes to prove that billions of barrels of crude lie underground by bringing in 300 shipping containers of drilling kit.

“We have the permit to put the equipment on the land,” footage of the gathering in Ittoqqortoormiit shows Price saying. “And then we’ve filed our permits – pending approval – to drill.” But Greenland’s resources ministry said that contrary to Price’s claim, there were “no actually active permissions for any exploration activity or permissions for preparations for these activities”. The dispute threatens a showdown between the Trump-linked backers of Greenland Energy and the authorities in the vast, sparsely populated territory. Trump’s lieutenants are using the prospect of an American oil find in Greenland to bolster their case for an American takeover.

 

Oil & Gas National & International

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 9, 2026

The Fight Over Hormuz Boils Down to One Poorly Worded Clause in Trump’s Deal*

President Trump’s memorandum of understanding with Iran was supposed to open the Strait of Hormuz and relieve the pressure on the global economy. Instead, it set off a test of wills that has exploded into violence twice in the past two weeks. The root of the dispute is Paragraph 5, which says Iran will make arrangements to restore shipping through the strategic waterway and then work with Oman to determine how to administer it in the future. But it also includes an Iranian pledge to ensure safe passage and remove military obstacles such as mines. Trump administration officials saw that clause as unlocking the strait, the main accomplishment of the president’s deal. Iranian hard-liners, however, have used it to push a maximalist interpretation that gives the Islamic Republic exclusive control over the waterway as a key source of leverage.

_______________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 9, 2026

The Global Oil Market Isn’t Ready for the Iran Ceasefire to End*

America’s oil supplies are far from prepared for the U.S.-Iran ceasefire to end. Global oil prices retreated to prewar levels and tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz gradually resumed after President Trump announced a temporary pause in the fighting in mid-June—but crude stockpiles will take much longer to restore. Commercial inventories in the U.S. rose 3 million barrels in the week ended Friday, according to the Energy Department, the first uptick after 10 consecutive weeks of drawdowns. Stockpiles are still so low that the central U.S. storage hub in Cushing, Okla., has reached operational limits that would make withdrawing more crude challenging. Meanwhile, inventories in the government-run Strategic Petroleum Reserve, a system of salt caverns on the Gulf Coast, keep falling and sit at the lowest level since 1983. 

Now that Trump has declared the ceasefire over, the situation risks becoming more dire. “The worst fears of the oil market could still be realized later this year as we get to the minimum operating levels,” said Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates in Houston.  “The only way to get prices back in balance is to have prices go up, such that you would have demand destruction. Once the shelf is bare, there’s nowhere to turn,” he said. Energy executives and analysts aren’t yet predicting a repeat of the oil shock that sent prices above $100 a barrel this spring, but they say another closure of the Hormuz—through which 20% of the world’s petroleum typically passes—could threaten America’s energy security.

_______________________________

 

S&P Global Platts – July 9, 2026

Iranian oil flows may limit price impact of renewed conflict with the US: experts

The end of the US-Iran memorandum of understanding and the resumption of strikes by both sides have had a limited impact on oil prices so far because Iran is likely to continue exporting its oil, and the release of trapped vessels under the MOU provided a brief boost to supplies, experts said. Most of the oil that flowed through the Strait of Hormuz during the MOU was from Iran or from countries that made private arrangements with Tehran, David Goldwyn, chair of the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center’s Energy Advisory Group, said.

Those flows are likely to continue even after the end of the MOU, Goldwyn told Platts, part of S&P Global Energy. “For these reasons, the market impacts of this escalation in hostilities are modest.” “For now, the market likely expects that the US and Iran will fight and talk, that Iranian shipments and those it is willing to tolerate will continue and that we will not reach pre-war levels for the foreseeable future,” Goldwyn said.

_______________________________

 

BOE Report – July 3, 2026

Who are the partners behind a proposed new West Coast oil pipeline?

Alberta’s pitch to the major projects office for a new oil pipeline to the West Coast is being billed as a public-private partnership, though its current structure skews almost entirely toward the public end of the spectrum. Ninety per cent of the proposal would be in the hands of provincial and federal Crown corporations — at least in the beginning. Energy infrastructure company Pembina Pipeline Corp. would be a minority partner.

Here is a rundown of what each entity does and what they bring to the table:

Trans Mountain Corp. The new pipeline would have a familiar builder and route. It would largely follow the path of the existing Trans Mountain pipeline that runs from the Edmonton area to the B.C. Lower Mainland. Trans Mountain Corp., a federal Crown corporation, would be its developer, builder and operator.

Alberta Petroleum Marketing Commission  The commission is the “business arm” of Alberta’s energy department, said Richard Masson, a former head of the provincial Crown corporation. A stake in a new pipeline falls within its mandate to “try to do things that are in the interest of Albertans as the owner of the resource,” he said.

Pembina Pipeline  Pembina’s core business is natural gas gathering, processing and transport in Western Canada. It is also constructing the Cedar liquefied natural gas plant and export terminal in northern B.C. alongside the Haisla Nation.

_______________________________

 

Reuters – July 3, 2026

Germany charges Nord Stream suspect with attacking pipeline on behalf of Ukraine

German federal prosecutors have charged a ​former Ukrainian army officer with being the co-perpetrator of a war crime over the 2022 Nord Stream gas pipeline blasts, ‌accusing him of acting on behalf of Ukrainian state entities. Prosecutors said on Thursday they had filed charges against Serhii K. – identified under German privacy rules only by his first name and initial – before a regional court in Hamburg. They accuse him of acting as a co-perpetrator in a war crime involving an attack on civilian objects, causing ​an explosion, destroying infrastructure and disrupting public services.

Authorities in Kyiv said on Thursday that they did not have enough information about the ​case to respond in detail to German prosecutors’ allegations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Wednesday that he had yet ⁠to receive full details of the indictment, which had been served that day. The list of charges was published on Thursday. “The relevant authorities of ​our countries will get in touch, and when we receive more details, we will probably be able to respond. For now, it is too early ​to speak,” he said.

 

Utilities, Electricity & Renewables

 

Utility Dive – July 9, 2026

US wholesale power prices to decline 8% this summer: EIA

U.S. wholesale electricity prices will average $45/MWh this summer, a $4/MWh decline relative to last year, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said Tuesday in its monthly Short-Term Energy Outlook. The composite price is a load-weighted average of prices at several hubs, as power prices vary widely across the country. The roughly 8% decline in wholesale power prices largely reflects lower costs of natural gas delivered to power plants, particularly in the western part of the country, EIA said.

But it is unlikely that consumers will see much relief, experts caution. Household electric bills are expected to jump 10.5% this summer over last, and cooling costs could hit record highs, according to a report last month from the National Energy Assistance Directors Association and the Center for Energy Poverty and Climate.

_______________________________

 

Texas Tribune – Juny 9, 2026

A data center proposed at a quiet corner of East Texas leaves a community bracing for a boom

Related: Data Centers Are Quietly Taking Over Texas. The Pollution Could Be Catastrophic — a regulatory loophole has let in thousands of new fossil-fuel-burning power sources across the state — the AI business is booming—but residents feel blindsided — Wired

Kaesha Avishai picked her corner of East Texas around five years ago. It was, for her, the ideal spot — close enough to town for shopping and doctor’s visits and far enough away to care for her cats and chickens in peace. Then, men on four-wheelers began crossing her land. Pesticides and herbicides were sprayed along the edges of her property, killing every bit of life they touched. Helicopters and drones flew overhead. And one day, the buzzing powerlines on the easement through her property went quiet.

When she read in the paper that the land had been sold to Denver-based AmpZ Champion Data Center Holdings and its partner, Atlanta-based EPG Champion Development LLC, a renewable energy company, she wasn’t surprised in the least. And she was certainly angry. “I can’t promise to keep the Second Commandment to love my neighbor if my neighbor is not human,” she said.

_______________________________

 

Dallas Morning News – July 9, 2026

Who will wire North Texas’ AI boom? Companies race to train workers*

Dalton Andrews is wiring his way into North Texas’ AI future one motor control board at a time. Inside CEC Facilities’ apprenticeship school in Irving, the 31-year-old electrical apprentice walks through a control panel he built for a statewide skills competition, tracing wires and relays as if explaining his own career pivot from odd jobs into one of the region’s fastest-growing trades. CEC Facilities, an electrical contractor that builds infrastructure for data centers and other large industrial projects, created CEC University to train the electricians.

North Texas’ race to build AI infrastructure is colliding with a shortage of skilled workers. Economists and business leaders warn labor shortages in skilled trades could hinder North Texas’ ability to expand data centers and advanced manufacturing capacity fast enough to meet demand. The Texas Workforce Commission projects the Dallas, Tarrant and North Central workforce regions will need nearly 3,000 additional electricians by 2032, a roughly 15% increase from 2026 staffing levels. In the Dallas region alone, the state projects roughly 1,035 electrician openings annually, driven less by explosive growth than by retirements and worker turnover.

_______________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 9, 2026

Federal Regulator Warns Robotaxis Are a ‘Danger’ to the Public*

The federal government is demanding that autonomous-vehicle companies address their driverless cars’ pattern of impeding or ignoring first responders and emergency vehicles. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has documented incidents of autonomous vehicles driving into active emergency scenes and blocking the paths of ambulances and firefighters. Autonomous vehicles have also failed to recognize traffic cones, flashing lights, and other safety threats such as smoke and fire, according to a Wednesday letter from NHTSA Administrator Jonathan Morrison.

_______________________________

 

CNBC – July 9, 2026

These 10 states are best positioned to land AI data center deals despite rising public opposition

Say what you will about whether artificial intelligence is good for humanity. It is undoubtedly worth billions of dollars — and then some — to the states that can attract AI business. AI is a massive consumer of electricity, water, computing power, and land. That puts some states in a much better position than others to host the AI revolution, despite having to contend with rising public opposition.

“Projects are getting bigger, they’re drawing more power due to AI and electrical needs, more natural resources,” said Tom Stringer of Stringer Site Selection and Incentives in New York. “So, finding the places that have land and the infrastructure that are required is really what our job has become in the last couple of years.” CNBC has always rated states’ infrastructure as part of our America’s Top States for Business study. In this, the 20th year for the influential rankings, our methodology for the Infrastructure category includes multiple factors that are critical to support AI. They include abundant and inexpensive electricity, and the ability to deliver it in sufficient quantities for the most sophisticated computing. Also important: plenty of water, as well as state-certified, shovel-ready sites for development.

_______________________________

 

Inside Climate News – July 9, 2026

Even With Tariffs and Tax Changes, Solar Power Is Soaring

It’s good to be in the utility-scale solar business, even in the United States. Despite tariffs and shifting tax credit policies, business is booming. Amid high electricity demand and rising concerns about consumer rates, solar’s low cost and short construction timeline make it an attractive option. I spoke this week with solar developers, analysts and others to get a sense of how they’re feeling at the halfway point of 2026.

“Utility-scale solar is doing very well right now,” said Chris Bullinger, president and CEO of Hecate Energy of Chicago, one of the country’s top developers of solar and battery energy storage. The company, which he co-founded in 2012, is preparing for an initial public offering of its stock and shifting its focus to long-term ownership of some projects, rather than building and then selling them. Bullinger sees an opportunity to build and own “energy parks,” which are projects that combine multiple energy sources to provide reliable power, often directly to an on-site customer, such as a data center. A typical setup would include solar, battery energy storage and natural gas power.

_______________________________

 

Mjengo Hub – July 9, 2026

AI Smart Grid Software Stops Data Center Power Spikes in Texas Trials

Engineers at Sandia National Laboratories have developed a software platform designed to stabilize electrical grids experiencing severe voltage fluctuations from data centers. The platform, which is called a Distributed Energy Resource Management System (DERMS), automates grid stabilization. The operational tests were carried out at live sites in Texas, where the platform successfully balanced electricity fluctuations by managing local grid devices in real time. Rising power demand from digital infrastructure facilities has introduced heavy, unpredictable loads, which strain traditional utility systems.

Traditional grid systems often fail to adapt quickly to these rapid spikes, which can cause severe voltage swings that risk damaging industrial electronics. The newly developed system resolves this issue by utilizing artificial intelligence to coordinate smart inverters.

 

Regulatory

 

S&P Global Platts – July 9, 2026

White House picks science skeptic to head flagship climate research program

A 36-year-old US research program Congress created to help the country respond to climate change will be reinstated and led by a climate contrarian who has questioned mainstream science. The White House confirmed July 9 that the program will be resurrected but did not comment on its new leader. Matthew Wielicki, a geologist and former assistant professor at the University of Alabama, has updated his X social media profile to say he is the director of the US Global Change Research Program (USGCRP.)

Wielicki resigned from the University of Alabama in 2023 over the school’s diversity, equity and inclusion policies and has criticized what he calls “climate alarmism” that does not allow for divergent views. “The Trump administration is committed to using the best scientific information to inform public policy,” a White House spokesperson said in an email. “For too long, the USGCRP has been used as a vehicle for political agendas instead of sound science. We look forward to restoring the USGCRP and ensuring it fulfills its legal mandate.”

.

==============================

 

Texas Energy Report NewsClips

Thursday July 9, 2026

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 turned lower on Thursday having spiked after the U.S. carried out fresh strikes on Iran, renewing concerns about supply disruptions in the Middle East.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures with August delivery traded down 0.2% at $73.40. WTI advanced 4.4% on Wednesday, registering its biggest daily gain since June 1.

International benchmark Brent crude futures with September delivery traded 0.3% lower at $77.73 per barrel during early European hours, erasing earlier gains. The contract settled up 5.4% in the previous session, notching its biggest daily gain since May 4.

The U.S. Central Command said Wednesday that fresh strikes on Iran were launched in response to Tehran’s attacks on commercial shipping in and around the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. President Donald Trump also signaled earlier in the day that he was no longer interested in negotiating a deal with Iran. Prior to that, he also said that the ceasefire between Iran and the U.S. was “over,” following another wave of attacks in the Middle East.

 

Top Stories

 

Reuters – July 8, 2026

AEP’s Texas unit secures up to $3.26 billion US loan to boost power grid*

American Electric Power said on Wednesday it has secured a loan of up to $3.26 billion from the U.S. Department of Energy to help boost electricity transmission on the Texas grid. Power consumption in the U.S., which hit its second ​straight annual record high in 2025, will rise further in 2026 and 2027, driven by data ​centers and artificial intelligence as well as the electrification of vehicles and appliances, according to ⁠the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

AEP Texas said that the federal financing is expected to save customers about $685 million ​over 30 years and support nearly 100 projects across Texas aimed at enhancing grid reliability. AEP Texas said that the federal financing is expected to save customers about $685 million ​over 30 years and support nearly 100 projects across Texas aimed at enhancing grid reliability. The projects will ​double the power-carrying capacity of upgraded transmission infrastructure, reduce power interruptions, and connect new power plants and electricity ​generation to the grid, the department said.

______________________________

 

KHOU – July 8, 2026

HBJ: Baker Hughes closing facility, laying off employees

______________________________

 

Pipeline & Gas Journal – July 8, 2026

PHMSA Proposes First Major Pipeline Repair Rule Update in Two Decades

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has proposed sweeping updates to federal pipeline repair standards, marking the first major overhaul of gas transmission and hazardous liquid pipeline repair criteria in more than 20 years. The agency estimates the proposed rule would save the industry about $390 million annually while improving pipeline safety through modern engineering practices.

The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), published July 8 in the Federal Register, would replace prescriptive repair timelines with a more risk-based framework that relies on modern inspection technologies, engineering analysis and integrity assessments to determine when pipeline anomalies require remediation. The proposal also extends engineering-based repair criteria already adopted for gas transmission pipelines to hazardous liquid pipelines.

______________________________

 

Politico – July 8, 2026

The ‘time-consuming’ permits dozens of data centers are skipping

By the time Krista Meredith learned last winter that an AI data center was coming to her community in the suburbs of Canton, Ohio, the site was already dotted with construction equipment. A nurse practitioner who has lived in the area for two decades, Meredith is concerned about how the project could affect water and air quality around the Rust Belt city that was once defined by steel mills and now houses a mix of affluent and working-class neighborhoods. But unbeknownst to her — one of hundreds who signed a petition against the data center — the only required federal permit was issued last August. And there was no chance for the public to weigh in.

______________________________

 

E&E News By Politico – July 8, 2026

Green groups lack standing to challenge deepwater LNG port, court says

See the DOJ press release

An appeals court on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit that challenged the federal approval of a deepwater natural gas export terminal off the Louisiana coast, in a win for the Trump administration. The Maritime Administration issued a license last year to Delfin LNG for its floating liquefaction facility. A three-judge panel on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the environmental groups behind the lawsuit had failed to demonstrate that the MARAD decision harmed any of their members — a key procedural step to determine if they have legal standing.

“Because Petitioners have not shown an injury in fact fairly traceable to MARAD’s licensing decision, we lack power to reach the merits,” said Judge Don Willett, a Trump appointee writing the opinion for the court. “We therefore DENY the petition for review.”

 

The Latest TERse Tips

Exxon asked a Texas federal court to rule that it’s owed a $273 million tax refund and $51 million in penalties in a dispute with the U.S. government over the tax treatment of a natural gas deal with Qatar — Law 360*

Justice Department Dismisses Alaska Lawsuit, Conceding Biden Era Oil and Gas Leasing Program Violated the Law — The Department of Justice’s Energy and Natural Resources Division filed a stipulation today dismissing lawsuits by the State of Alaska and the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority, concerning those plaintiffs’ challenges to the 2024 Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program — see the press release

The number of ships traversing the Strait of Hormuz on July 8 was 48 compared with 47 on July 7 as more ships turned off their location signals following three tanker attacks, S&P Global Commodities at Sea said in a July 8 report — just one ship used the route closest to Oman while 36% of the total operated dark — without signals — compared with a July average of 21%, CAS data showed. Only 18 VLCCs and LPG tankers crossed Hormuz, or 38% of the total, the lowest energy share since June 28, CAS said — S&P Global Platts

Tensions with Iran add fresh uncertainty to an already shaky global economy — crude oil prices jumped and stock prices fell after President Trump declared an end to the ceasefire with Iran, adding fresh uncertainty to an already shaky outlook for the global economy — KUHF NPR

Natural gas compression services provider Nova Compression, LLC says it has acquired the operating assets of Energy Gas Compression, Inc., a Corpus Christi-based compression company serving customers across South Texas since 2004, a transaction that closed on July 3, 2026 — see the press release

Rodney Lewis, founder of San Antonio-based Lewis Energy Group and a longtime Eagle Ford shale heavyweight, is linked to a $28 million Mercer Island home purchase spanning nearly 56,000 square feet, according to property records and reporting by The Seattle Times

Charts: Oil Markets Brace for a Summer of Hormuz Volatility — Oil Price

The latest Global Gas Flaring Tracker, an independent report of gas flaring worldwide, reveals that global gas flaring rose for the third consecutive year in 2025, reaching 167 billion cubic meters (bcm), the highest recorded level since 2019 — World Bank

US solar and battery storage developer OCI Energy has closed approximately $130 million in tax equity financing for a stand-alone battery energy storage project located around San Antonio in Bexar County, Texas, the firm said — Renewables Now

 

Oil & Gas Texas

 

WMBD – July 8, 2026

Chevron offers rival drillers its chemical technology to boost shale oil output

Chevron will allow rival oil producers to buy a chemical technology it ​developed to boost production from shale wells, the company said on Wednesday, as part of a broader push ‌to increase U.S. oil output. The move comes as the U.S. shale industry, which transformed global energy markets nearly 20 years ago through the fracking boom, grapples with declining well productivity, which experts say is pushing companies either to drill more wells or adopt new technology to sustain output. Chevron said it will license its ​chemical surfactants technology to chemicals manufacturer ZL Chemicals, which will oversee the sales process to other oil companies.

The chemicals that ​are being licensed to ZL have improved production from newly drilled wells by up to 20% during ⁠the first year, and also reduced production decline in existing wells by between 5% and 8%, Chevron said. “With constraints on energy in ​the world today, there’s a call on oil and gas companies to get more energy to market,” Chevron’s Chief Technology and Engineering Officer Ryder ​Booth said in an interview. “This is a way that we can answer the call to help boost production.”

______________________________

 

Upstream – July 8, 2026

Japanese giant reshuffles US assets in natural gas drive

Japan’s Marubeni Corporation has sold its 12.5% interest in the Chevron-operated Big Foot oil development in the US Gulf as steps up its focus on natural gas. Big Foot project produced first oil in 2018 and has current output capacity of 75,000 barrels per day, Marubeni said in a statement.

Marubeni sold its stake in the asset to Israel-listed Modiin Energy, which joins Chevron and Equinor as partners in Big Foot. Chevron holds a 60% operating stake, while Equinor holds 27.5%. The transaction is part of Marubeni’s strategy to focus on natural gas, primarily in North America, and follows last month’s aquisition of US-based shale player EagleRidge Energy.

______________________________

 

Market Screener – July 8, 2026

Chevron-chartered oil tanker caught in Russia-Ukraine war as Kyiv steps up attacks*

Chevron-chartered oil tanker ‌Yasa Polaris, used for Caspian Pipeline Consortium shipments, was hit by a drone off Russia’s Black Sea coast, the vessel’s managing company said on Wednesday, as Kyiv steps up attacks on Russian energy targets. Ukrainian ​drones have attacked a dozen tankers from Russia’s “shadow fleet” that were delivering fuel to ​Russian-annexed Crimea in recent days, according to the Ukrainian military.

There was no official ⁠comment from Ukrainian authorities about the incident involving the Chevron-chartered tanker. Yasa Tanker, the managing ​company, said in emailed comments that the vessel, without a cargo, was hit by a ​drone near the CPC marine terminal on July 7 while it was drifting offshore. “All crew members are safe and accounted for. No visible damage to the hull has been reported. No pollution or environmental impacts ​are reported currently. Our vessel has left the area,” it said.

 

Politico – July 6, 2026

As Trump mulls West Coast oil reserve, Sable says DOE should consider eminent domain*

Oil producer Sable Offshore Corp. has urged the Department of Energy to seize land around its pipeline in California as part of a push to create a new West Coast strategic petroleum reserve, according to a letter obtained by POLITICO. The request from Sable would ratchet up President Donald Trump’s ongoing energy fight against California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who in the past promoted policies to expand renewable energy and electric vehicle adoption in the state. The Trump administration has strongly supported Houston-based Sable’s plans to increase oil production in the state after it acquired three oil platforms off the California coast from Exxon Mobil in 2024.

Trump administration Cabinet officials, including Energy Secretary Chris Wright, made the trek to Santa Barbara last month to celebrate the restart of Sable’s operations. Wright told POLITICO at the event that the Trump administration is in “active dialogue” about a possible strategic oil reserve in California, around the same time that Sable sent its letter to DOE recommending the use of eminent domain.

______________________________

Spectrum News – July 8, 2026

Rising diesel prices add budget pressure for Texas fire departments

Rising fuel costs are affecting more than drivers at the pump. Some Texas fire departments say higher diesel prices are creating new budget challenges as they work to keep emergency vehicles on the road while maintaining the same level of service. In Flower Mound, Fire Chief Paul Henley said the department relies on diesel-powered fire engines and other heavy apparatus to respond to emergencies every day.

“Costs are going up, and if they continue to go up with what’s going on in the world, we have to be aware of that and forecast that,” Henley said. Alex Jacquez, the senior vice president of policy and advocacy at Groundwork Collaborative, said global events have contributed to higher diesel prices in recent weeks.

 

Oil & Gas National & International

 

KUHF NPR – July 8, 2026

Tehran targets Bahrain and Kuwait after U.S. strikes

The U.S. military attacked Iran early Wednesday after it said Tehran struck three ships in the Strait of Hormuz, part of an American effort that also revoked the Islamic Republic’s ability to openly sell crude oil in the world market. Iran retaliated with strikes targeting Bahrain and Kuwait. The regional crossfire raised the risks that an interim agreement to halt fighting in the war could break down, putting the Middle East again at risk of a wider conflict.

The attacks on shipping and the resulting strikes came during the dayslong funeral for Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed Feb. 28 in the war’s first moments at age 86. The funeral, which ends Thursday, had been thought to be a period of lower tensions — though mourners have repeatedly called for the killings of U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Negotiations to reach a final deal had been due to start after Khamenei’s burial and focus on the toughest matters, including fully reopening the strait and rolling back Tehran’s disputed nuclear program. But the new attacks threw that into question.

______________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 8, 2026

U.S. Crude Oil Stockpiles Post Unexpected Build*

U.S. crude oil inventories rose for the first time in 11 weeks as production and imports increased and exports fell, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.Commercial crude oil stocks excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve increased by 3 million barrels to 411.4 million barrels in the week ended July 3, and were about 6% below the five-year average for the time of year, the EIA said. Crude stocks were expected to have fallen by 1.4 million barrels, according to a Wall Street Journal survey of analysts.

______________________________

 

Oil Price – July 8, 2026

Has Iraq Finally Run Out of Road in Its Double-Dealings with the West?

Late June/early July normally brings twin events from Iraq for the global oil industry: an announcement that it intends to increase its crude oil production to either 6 or 7 million barrels per day (bpd) within three years, and a statement that its prime minister will visit Washington to discuss deepening strategic ties or something similar aimed at securing money from the U.S. This year is no different, with the announced three-year target being 7 million bpd, and the visit of new prime minister, Ali al-Zaidi happening in the middle of this month.

Previously, what usually happened was that Iraq promised various things that it thought Washington wanted to hear (mainly that it would stop importing Iranian gas and electricity, but needed one more waiver from the U.S. just to wind the process down), secured billions in funding from the U.S., and then returned to Baghdad to continue doing exactly what it was doing before, except with more money. But things may be different this time.

______________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 6, 2026

Jet-Fuel Prices Have Plunged but Aren’t Resulting in Much Lower Fares*

Airlines are finally getting some relief at the jet-fuel pump. Fliers might not share in the savings, though. Jet-fuel prices doubled in the weeks after the Iran war started, and carriers raised fares to keep up. Now fuel prices are down 40% from their peak in April, but analysts say fares aren’t likely to follow because travelers keep paying up. Resilient travel demand and restrained supply—especially with former discount leader Spirit Airlines out of the picture—are bolstering airline executives’ confidence. “I’m actually very bullish that the industry will retain a much higher percent of the fare increases than would be typical historically,” Southwest Airlines Chief Executive Bob Jordan said at an investor conference in late May.

______________________________

 

BOE Report – July 7, 2026

Global oil output to return to pre-Iran war level by year’s end, US EIA says

Global oil output and trade flows should rebound fully by the end of this year from the disruptions caused by the Iran war, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said on Tuesday. Global benchmark Brent crude oil prices will average around $74 a barrel in the spot market during the third quarter of this year, down from an average of $85 in June, the EIA said. The agency had last month forecast Brent prices would average over $101 a barrel in the third quarter.

The months-long blockade of the Strait of Hormuz in the war has shut in millions of barrels of daily oil production from across the Middle East, forcing refiners from Europe to Asia to reduce fuel output. Vessel movement through the waterway has risen in recent days following a preliminary deal between the U.S. and Iran. Although passage through Hormuz is not yet totally safe, the EIA has raised its annual oil production expectations while lowering its oil and motor fuel price forecasts.

______________________________

 

Bloomberg – July 7, 2026

NATO Closes In On Deal to Extend Cold War-Era Pipelines East*

NATO allies are close to a landmark agreement to extend a Cold War-era fuel pipeline network to eastern Europe and Turkey, aiming to ensure those countries can get supplies in a crisis. The decision is expected to be announced on Wednesday at NATO’s annual summit in Ankara, after a consensus was reached to move forward with the plan after years of deliberation, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke anonymously to discuss the private talks. The pipelines connect military bases, aiding with fuel deliveries in a crisis.

The initiative reflects growing concern that pipelines concentrated in western Europe may be insufficient to support large-scale operations near Russia’s borders. Most countries on the eastern flank rely on road or rail infrastructure, which is more vulnerable to congestion and attacks. The project is poised to become the biggest ever investment made by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, with a price tag that could hit $30 billion over two decades, one of the people said. Technical details, including the funding structure and order of the expansion, still need to be ironed out in the coming weeks, they said. A spokesperson for NATO didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

 

Utilities, Electricity & Renewables

 

KDFW – July 8, 2026

Wrongful death suit alleges Atmos negligence led to Dallas apartment explosion

A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed against Atmos Energy following the massive natural gas explosion and fire on May 28 that claimed three lives, including a mother and her toddler. The lawsuit was filed by personal injury attorney Ted Lyon on behalf of the victims’ family, including the couple’s 10-year-old daughter, who survived after somehow crawling out from the rubble.

“It’s a horrible situation. Atmos is grossly negligent,” Lyon said. The lawsuit accuses the natural gas distributor of failing to properly mark gas lines and respond to gas leaks reported in or around the Clyde Apartments before the deadly explosion. According to the lawsuit, gas built up until May 28, when contractors who had called 811 before digging struck an unmarked gas service line, resulting in what the lawsuit describes as a catastrophic explosion.

______________________________

 

Oil Price – July 8, 2026

How an Accidental Discovery in a Texas Lab Could Reshape Battery Manufacturing

A team of scientists at Texas A&M University accidentally discovered a new method for producing a critical component in lithium-ion batteries. The team, based in College Station, Texas, was trying to study an entirely different phenomenon when they discovered that they could produce graphene oxide directly from natural gas. Not only does this discovery mean that a critical battery component could be produced more efficiently and cheaply, the process also creates green hydrogen as a byproduct.

Initially, the team was trying to experiment with ways to improve clean hydrogen production, but they soon realized that a part of their process created something much more valuable. The plasma-based process that the team developed uses methane and “a nonthermal plasma-water interface” with the original intent of creating hydrogen. Originally, the high-purity graphene oxide produced along the way was considered to be byproduct, before the team realized that the roles should be reversed, with hydrogen considered to be the byproduct of the process instead of the graphene oxide.

______________________________

 

Oil Price – July 8, 2026

West Texas Cowboys Are Cashing In on the AI Land Rush

Forty miles outside Abilene, in the highlands between Taylor and Nolan counties, 421 wind turbines have spun since 2006. Horse Hollow was the largest wind farm on earth when it went up…nearly 47,000 acres of cattle country and mesquite scrub, leased from ranch families who mostly kept running cattle underneath the blades. West Texas doing what West Texas does best…selling the wind nobody else wanted.

Twenty years later, the same stretch of the state is selling something else nobody has enough of…land with power still attached to it. On the edge of Abilene, in what used to be a mesquite thicket somebody once eyed for a crypto mine, OpenAI, Oracle and SoftBank have built the flagship of a $500 billion nationwide AI buildout called Stargate. And Microsoft broke ground on another massive project right next door.

______________________________

 

Renewables Now – July 8, 2026

SMT, Axpo sign 120-MW capacity swap deal for Texas battery

US battery storage developer-operator SMT Energy has signed a capacity swap agreement with the US arm of Swiss utility Axpo for a 120-MW portion of its recently commissioned 160-MW/320-MWh battery in Texas.  The seven-year contract is linked to the SMT Houston IV battery in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) market. Axpo said on Tuesday that the agreement will monetise part of the project, providing its owner with long-term revenue visibility while supporting its ability to advance more battery storage assets in Texas.

The SMT Houston IV battery energy storage system was installed with debt financing from Macquarie Group and KeyBanc Capital Markets. The facility was brought online in June to provide energy and ancillary services to the wholesale market. Its operation will support the ERCOT grid by storing and dispatching enough electricity to power the annual consumption of 8,800 homes in Texas.

______________________________

 

The Guardian – July 7, 2026

Big tech’s lofty climate goals wrecked by energy-hungry AI

Google and Amazon’s net-zero climate goals are slipping out of reach because of their massive investments in artificial intelligence. Both companies released their annual sustainability reports last week, which showed soaring emissions from the AI datacenter boom, driven by the construction of new datacenters, fuel used for deliveries, and expanding electricity usage. Google’s total carbon emissions climbed 25% year-over-year, and Amazon’s shot up 16%.

While Google touted its sustainability progress, it conceded that combating the energy and water-hungry needs of AI created a dilemma. “The environmental footprint of the data centers that power AI is growing, creating a dual challenge: managing that environmental footprint while simultaneously building infrastructure to meet growing demand and realize Al’s full potential,” reads Google’s report.

______________________________

 

The Guardian – July 6, 2026

‘Why take those jobs away?’: the unionized workers decrying Trump’s war on wind

Donald Trump has blamed everything – from “national security” issues, the deaths of birds and whales, and cancer – in his decades-long campaign against windfarms. But as the Trump administration continues to undermine the industry, what worries workers most are their jobs.

Since taking office for a second term, Trump has issued an executive order aiming to halt all wind-energy leases and permits, attempted to issue stop-work orders on wind projects under construction, and paid more than $2.6bn in settlements to buy out wind energy leases. And hundreds of workers have been affected. Thomas Kilday, a furnace electrician with IBEW local 99 in Providence, Rhode Island, was in the midst of a four-week shift onboard a vessel off the Atlantic coast working on the Revolution Wind Project in August last year when the Trump administration issued a stop-work order on the project.

 

Regulatory

 

S&P Global Platts – July 8, 2026

Electric, gas utilities poised to navigate busy regulatory month in July

The electric and gas utility regulatory agenda is heating up, and actions that are likely to occur during July could have significant implications for the industry. As of June 30, roughly 130 electric and gas rate cases were pending across 40 jurisdictions. The rate changes sought in these pending proceedings aggregate to a more than $17 billion net rate increase, excluding some of the later-year steps of multiyear rate requests.

RRA observed that 2025 was busier than usual. The fourth quarter is generally the most active time of the year for rate case decisions, with December the busiest month on average as regulators try to clear their slates before the new year begins. However, filing activity tends to taper off toward the end of the year.

.

=============================

 

Texas Energy Report NewsClips

Wednesday July 8, 2026

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 rose Wednesday after the U.S. launched fresh strikes on Iran in retaliation for Tehran attacking commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.

West Texas Intermediate futures for August delivery rose 3.07% to $72.61 per barrel. Futures for International benchmark Brent crude for September delivery jumped 3.14% to $76.49 per barrel.

The U.S. military conducted a “series of powerful strikes” against Iran after three commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz came under attack on Tuesday, warning Tehran would face “heavy costs” for targeting commercial shipping.

“Strikes are in response to Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels that were transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s demonstrated aggression was unwarranted, dangerous, and a clear violation of the ceasefire,” the U.S. Central Command said in a post on X.

The escalation is to test a fragile ceasefire reached last month that reopened the critical Strait of Hormuz for commercial shipping after months of disruption.

 

Top Stories

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 8, 2026

Trump Says Ceasefire With Iran Is Over*

President Trump tore into Iran’s leadership and said he believed his ceasefire deal with the country is over, following another round of Iranian attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz that snarled efforts to open the strategic waterway. The president’s remarks were the starkest sign yet that diplomacy with Iran has stalled under the preliminary peace agreement he signed in mid-June. Trump stopped short of saying the U.S. would restart the war, however, and said he would let talks continue if the parties were willing.

_______________________________

 

Tech Times – July 4, 2026

AI Data Centers Triggered 1,800 MW Grid Drop: NERC Issues Highest Alert

North America’s electric grid regulator issued its highest-urgency warning this year after documenting a new category of reliability threat: AI training campuses large enough that when their automatic protection systems trip offline, they pull gigawatts off the bulk power system in under a second — faster than any human operator can respond.

The North American Electric Reliability Corporation published its 2026 State of Reliability report on June 24, dedicated for the first time an entire section to computational loads, and made one fact impossible to ignore: in February 2025, a single transmission fault in the Eastern Interconnection caused 1,800 megawatts of data center demand to disconnect simultaneously. That single event equals the output of roughly two large power plants — and the grid lost it not gradually, but in milliseconds.

________________________________

 

Spectrum News – July 7, 2026

The politics of data centers

Related:  Lubbock group seeks signatures to pause data center development — KJTV

Related: Attitudes toward data centers in Texas are shifting, and for good reason — Dallas Morning News editorial

Related: Climate advocacy org urges New Mexico leaders to adopt data center moratorium — News from the States

The November midterms are about four months away, and candidates from both parties are busy on the campaign trail. One of the main issues among constituents involves concerns about data centers. “Let me tell you about something else that I’m fighting for that dovetails right into fighting for East Texas values, and that is pushing back against these AI data centers that are trying to build in our neighborhoods,” Gov. Greg Abbott said during a campaign event in Bullard, about two hours east of Dallas, at the end of June.

This statement appears to be in contrast to where he stood with data centers back in November of last year, when he joined Google for its announcement that the company would be investing $40 billion in the state for AI infrastructure, including data centers. During that event, Abbott said Texas is the “epicenter of AI development.”

“Republicans have had to undertake a course correction on this issue,” said James Henson with the Texas Politics Project. “There’s just no two ways about that.”

________________________________

 

KCBD – July 7, 2026

Texas Ag Commissioner Miller urges Governor Abbott to call special session on data center expansion

Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller on Tuesday urged Governor Greg Abbott to call a special legislative session to address the rapid growth of large-scale data centers, saying the state could miss its chance to curb projects that he argues threaten rural communities, water supplies and the electric grid. Miller said waiting until the Legislature’s regular session begins in January could be too late, citing reports that the Electric Reliability Council of Texas could start approving another round of major data-center projects — known as “Batch Zero” — as early as next spring.

“The clock is ticking,” Miller said in a statement. “Every day we wait, more projects move closer to becoming permanent.” Miller said Abbott has recently acknowledged concerns about the expansion but argued that immediate action is needed to prevent projects from being locked in under current rules. He questioned whether the governor is committed to slowing development or giving companies time to move forward before lawmakers can act.

________________________________

 

Reuters – July 7, 2026

Exxon signals Q2 profit windfall as higher oil prices boost bottom line*

U.S. oil and gas major Exxon Mobil signaled on ​Tuesday that its second-quarter earnings could see a boost of about $5 ‌billion compared to the previous quarter, as oil prices spiked during the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran and the company’s refining margins also improved. Investors scrutinize Exxon’s earnings snapshot for signals on how oil firms will perform ​when they release second-quarter results. The conflict in the Middle East that began ​in February injected a hefty geopolitical risk premium into oil ⁠markets. For months, it virtually shut down the Strait of Hormuz, which carries about ​a fifth of global oil flows.

Benchmark Brent crude had an average closing price ​of $96.68 per barrel during the April-June quarter, up 23% from the first three months of the year. Prices climbed to $109.27 a barrel in April for the first time since 2022. Exxon’s ​upstream segment could see profits lifted by about $1.6 billion, according to the ​midpoint of estimates provided by the company. Earnings from refining could see a lift of about $2.6 ‌billion ⁠due to so-called timing effects, according to Exxon’s regulatory filing on Tuesday.

________________________________

 

KDFW – July 7, 2026

Wind turbine company must start cleanup process at Texas facilities, court says

A Texas wind turbine company must stop accepting wind turbine blades and begin the cleanup process at two of its facilities in Sweetwater, according to a temporary injunction from a Travis County district court judge. The injunction comes just months after the state filed a lawsuit against Global Fiberglass Solutions, Inc. alleging the company and its affiliated entities illegally dumped and abandoned thousands of wind turbine blades.

According to the injunction, Global Fiberglass Solutions can no longer accepting waste at their facilities and create a detailed inventory of all blades and other waste at the facility within 30 days. The company must also begin the process of removing the blades within 180 days, either through obtaining permits from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and breaking down the turbine blades at their facilities or finding another facility that can handle the disposal. All waste must be removed from the two facilities within 550 days.

 

The Latest TERse Tips

U.S. launches new strikes against Iran after three ships were hit in Strait of Hormuz — the U.S. military has launched new strikes against Iran — the strikes began early Wednesday, hours after three merchant ships were struck in the Strait of Hormuz — KUHF NPR

‘Moscow will fall’: Ukrainian drones hit 10 Russian tankers in one day — TVP World

Hoover Dam is the largest hydropower producer on the Colorado River, but as reservoirs continue to drop toward dire levels, rural communities in Nevada that depend on the dam’s low-cost electricity are facing a precipice — News from the States

A federal agency is exploring using retired offshore oil and gas infrastructure to launch rockets into space — the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, part of the Interior Department, on Tuesday requested public input on whether it would be useful to repurpose offshore drilling platforms or build new structures to boost the commercial space industry — E&E News By Politico*

A district judge has dismissed the claims against Lubbock Power and Light and referred the remaining portions of a Lubbock tenant’s utility shutoff lawsuit to the Texas Public Utility Commission — KCBD

Fitch Ratings assigns Energy Transfer LP’s (ET) proposed offering of junior subordinated notes due 2057 a ‘BB+’ rating — Fitch

Fitch Ratings has affirmed Northern Oil and Gas, Inc.’s (NOG) Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at ‘BB-‘ — Fitch

Fitch Ratings has affirmed Whistler Pipeline, LLC’s Long-Term Issuer Default Rating and senior unsecured debt rating at ‘BBB-‘ and the Rating Outlook is Stable — Fitch

Texas oil heir faces ongoing backlash over Colorado ranch fence — William Bruce Harrison, the son of oil magnate Bruce Harrison and head of Cathexis Oil and Gas LLC, is facing backlash from local residents and officials over the construction of fencing along his sprawling Cielo Vista Ranch property in southern Colorado — Houston Chronicle*

 

Oil & Gas Texas

 

Reuters – July 4, 2026

Iraq gives go-ahead for Chevron pipeline deal*

Iraq’s cabinet approved Basra Oil Company signing “a ​heads of agreement”, or preliminary ‌agreement, and a non-disclosure agreement with a consortium including ​U.S. companies Capital TI ​and Chevron and Qatar’s ⁠UCC to study strategic ​oil export pipeline projects, according ​to a cabinet statement. The consortium will prepare technical and financial feasibility ​studies comparing proposed ​routes including Basra-Haditha-Kirkuk-Ceyhan and Basra-Haditha-Baniyas.

The ‌cabinet ⁠said the agreements would not create any final financial or contractual obligations for ​the ​Iraqi oil ⁠ministry. It also authorized Basra Oil Company ​to sign a consultancy ​services ⁠contract with KBR for a Basra-Haditha oil pipeline ⁠project.

________________________________

 

Reuters – July 3, 2026

Australia orders in-depth review of Exxon-opposed Subsea7-Saipem merger*

Australia’s competition regulator said on Friday the proposed merger ​of energy contractors Subsea7 and Saipem would face ‌a second-phase review over concerns it could reduce competition in key offshore oil and gas services. Here are a ​few details:

• The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said ​the deal could lessen competition in the ⁠supply of certain subsea infrastructure used to connect ​underwater wells and production systems to surface facilities.
• The regulator ​described the services as critical to Australia’s offshore oil and gas sector.
• The decision came a little over a week ​after Brazil’s antitrust agency approved the merger without any ​conditions.
• “We will conduct further in-depth inquiries during the Phase 2 assessment ‌and ⁠seek more information about the likely competitive effects of this proposed merger,” ACCC Commissioner Philip Williams said.
• Saipem declined to comment when contacted by Reuters, while ​Subsea7 did ​not immediately ⁠respond.
• The tie-up between the two providers of offshore engineering and installation services has ​already faced opposition from major oil firms ​operating in ⁠Brazil, including Exxon Mobil (XOM.N), opens new tab, Petrobras

________________________________

 

Upstream – July 5, 2026

Shell and Chevron off the hook in the Philippines

Line drawn under former Malampaya partners’ historic tax dispute

Shell, Chevron and state-run Philippine National Oil Company Exploration Corporation (PNOC-EC) can finally draw a line under a protracted tax dispute in the Philippines relating to the Service Contract they held while partners at the giant offshore Malampaya gas field. The former partners of the Malampaya gas field—Shell, Chevron, and state-run Philippine National Oil Company Exploration Corporation (PNOC-EC)—have finally resolved a long-standing tax dispute in the Philippines. The conflict centered on whether the government’s 60% share under Service Contract 38 (SC 38) for the offshore Palawan field included the companies’ corporate income tax.

In 2015, the Philippines Commission on Audit (CoA) initially claimed the three companies owed 53 billion pesos (US$862.7 million) in income taxes from 2002 to 2009. Three years later, the CoA increased the demand to 146.8 billion pesos. This prompted Shell to bring the case to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) in the US.

________________________________

 

Yahoo! News – July 7, 2026

Kyle Bass Files Federal Lawsuit In Texas Water War

Dallas investor Kyle Bass’ East Texas groundwater fight moved into federal court Tuesday, with two landowner entities tied to Bass filing a takings and civil rights lawsuit against an East Texas groundwater district and seven of its directors.

Redtown Ranch Holdings LLC and Pine Bliss LLC filed the 27-page complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Tyler Division. The lawsuit names the Neches and Trinity Valleys Groundwater Conservation District and board members Terry Morrow, Gary Douglas, Randall Chandler, Jimmy Terrell, Cody Rayburn, Danny Crossley, and Jeff Horton in their individual and official capacities. The complaint contains only the plaintiffs’ allegations. A response from the defendants was not included in the case materials reviewed by The Dallas Express.

________________________________

 

Oil Price – July 7, 2026

The Era of Cheap U.S. Natural Gas May Be Coming to an End

U.S. natural gas prices are set to rise through 2035, following a decade of low Henry Hub prices, as the AI data center boom and the expansion of U.S. LNG export infrastructure will underpin strong demand, analysts at Wood Mackenzie say. During the decade to 2025, the benchmark U.S. Henry Hub prices remained in a narrow range of between $2 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) $4 per MMBtu, thanks to the surge in U.S. gas production as operators invested in standalone gas plays and boosted associated gas production from oil plays. Well productivity and technology gains have also helped raise domestic gas output.

As a result, prices have remained low for most of the past decade, but the era of cheap U.S. gas may be coming to an end, WoodMac’s analysts said in a new report out this week. So what has changed? First, U.S. LNG exports have soared over the past decade since Cheniere Energy shipped out the first LNG cargo from Sabine Pass in February 2016. Ten years later, the U.S. is the world’s biggest LNG exporter, having overtaken Qatar and Australia in recent years. U.S. LNG exports surged from 0.5 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2016 to 15.0 Bcf/d in 2025, data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) show.

________________________________

 

Midland Reporter-Telegram – July 4, 2026

Enverus acquires PDS assets, expanding into operational data flow*

Enverus acquired four exchange platforms from PDS Energy Information: the Frac Interference Exchange, Well Data Exchange, Production Data Exchange and AquaTrade. Enverus already operates two of the energy industry’s largest commercial exchange networks. EnergyLink and OpenInvoice collectively support more than 500 operators, 40,000 suppliers and 250,000 receivers, with more than $500 billion in annual transaction activity across revenue, joint interest billing and procurement. With the transaction, Enverus expands from commercial workflows into operational data flows that drive completions, well data, production and water logistics.

The acquired platforms serve as operating infrastructure for the U.S. upstream industry. An estimated 80% of U.S. completions, production and drilling data is exchanged through the PDS network, connecting nearly 800 participants, including 95% of Fortune 500 energy companies. The Frac Interference Exchange alone has more than 400 operators coordinating completions activity in major U.S. basins.

 

Oil & Gas National & International

 

Oil Price – July 7, 2026

The Next Oil Price Spike Could Come Sooner Than Traders Think

Oil prices have dropped back to pre-war levels since the United States and Iran agreed to negotiate a deal under a framework that included the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. With oil flows out of the Middle East starting to return to the market, analysts, investment banks, and traders expect the global oil glut to return as early as in 2027 and sink oil prices further.

Prices are heading south to $60 per barrel, many analysts think. The futures market seems to think this way, too. Speculators are betting on where they think prices will go in the near term, and most have turned bearish over the past month. The return of flows through the Strait of Hormuz is making traders confident that the scarcity and supply disruption are over.

________________________________

 

New York Post – July 7, 2026

Big Oil heads for biggest profits in years as Trump pushes for lower gas prices

America’s biggest oil companies are poised to post their strongest quarterly earnings in years — as President Donald Trump has been ramping up pressure on the industry to lower gas prices ahead of November’s midterm elections. Exxon Mobil and Chevron are expected to report second-quarter profits that are more than three times higher than in the first three months of the year, fueled by a surge in crude prices after the US-Israeli conflict with Iran disrupted global energy markets, Reuters reported.

LSEG estimates project Exxon will earn roughly $15.9 billion in adjusted net income, while Chevron is forecast to post about $9.9 billion. The anticipated windfall could create political headaches for the White House, which has made lowering fuel costs a priority as drivers continue to face elevated prices at the pump.

________________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 7, 2026

Shell’s Traders Get Boost From Conflict But Gas Output Falls on Lost Qatari Volumes*

Shell’s traders continue to benefit from volatility triggered by the conflict in the Middle East, but lost Qatari volumes have squeezed output, highlighting the conflict’s uneven impact on the world’s big energy companies. The British energy major said Tuesday that its gas-trading division is expected to report significantly higher results in the second quarter than the first after benefiting from higher gas prices, which are typically delayed due to price-lag effects in contracts. Shell’s oil traders are also expected to post a robust performance, continuing on from the bumper profits they netted at the start of the year. The war between the U.S. and Iran, which broke out in February, drove oil-and-gas prices higher and has also caused dislocations across energy markets that Shell’s vast trading desks have been able to cash in on.

________________________________

 

CNBC – July 7, 2026

Ukrainian drones hit Russia’s largest oil refinery as Zelenskyy says Siberia now ‘within reach’

Ukrainian drones struck a major oil refinery in the city of Omsk in western Siberia, in what appears to be one of Kyiv’s deepest attacks on Russian territory since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine’s military general staff said Monday that the strike caused a fire at the facility, which is situated nearly 2,500 kilometers (1,553 miles) from Ukrainian territory and close to Russia’s border with Kazakhstan. The attack, which was confirmed by local Russian officials, provides further evidence of Kyiv’s enhanced long-range drone capabilities and comes on the eve of a crunch NATO summit. Heads of state from 32 countries are expected in Turkey’s capital from Tuesday for the two-day conference.

“Today, our long-range sanctions reached the oil refinery in Omsk – nearly 2,500 kilometres from Ukraine,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his daily evening address, according to a translation.

“Upgraded Fire Point drones have put Siberia within reach of Ukrainian precision. This is a significant blow to Russia’s oil economy and an important achievement for the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.

 

Utilities, Electricity & Renewables

 

San Antonio Express-News – July 7, 2026

CPS Energy must stop litigating, pay Winter Storm Uri gas bill*

In a decision last week that should have surprised no one, a state district court judge ordered CPS Energy to pay two natural gas suppliers nearly $400 million owed from the freezing weather of February 2021, known unofficially as Winter Storm Uri. It is a bitter pill to swallow for the city-owned utility and ratepayers, and while that might make State District Judge Laura Salinas’ ruling disagreeable, it does not make it wrong. The facts are what they are, and CPS Energy needs to face them. Freezing temperatures across the state, coupled with a natural gas supply shortage, sent market prices skyrocketing in February 2021. Houston Pipe Line Co. LP and Oasis Pipeline LP charged market prices during the storm, and CPS Energy has an obligation to pay the prices it agreed to.

________________________________

 

The Cool Down – July 4, 2026

Texas homeowner says solar panels left his roof leaking, and months later, he’s still stuck

A Texas homeowner says solar work on his house led to a long-running repair problem instead of a simple energy upgrade. He says leaks began appearing in areas below the newly installed panels, and months later, he is still waiting for a clear answer on how the issue will be handled.

John Haukness told Fox 26 Houston that his Texas City home had not developed roof leaks during the years he has lived there since 1991, but that changed after solar panels were added in 2024. The station said his dispute with Starlight Solar came after months of back-and-forth. Fox 26 reported that Haukness first noticed peeling paint about eight months ago and initially thought it was simply a sign of age. He later found wet sheetrock and water damage in two bedrooms under the panels.

________________________________

 

The Conversation – July 7, 2026

Electric companies don’t need to black out customers to prevent wildfires – here are 3 relatively fast, affordable solutions

A severe winter snow drought has left snowpack levels far below normal across the American West in 2026. Without a slow-melting blanket of snow to keep the soil and forests moist, alpine vegetation is drying into a tinderbox earlier than normal and ramping up the fire risk. The historic dryness means electric utilities are facing a dilemma: how to deliver power through dry, windy regions without accidentally starting a catastrophic fire.

To cope, many utilities are turning to a controversial method pioneered in California: the public safety power shut-off – better known as a preemptive blackout. Imagine your power provider deliberately cutting electricity to your entire neighborhood for hours to days, not because a storm hit or a wire broke, but because the weather forecast is hot, dry and windy. This preventive darkness is fast becoming the new normal for millions of residents in the West.

________________________________

 

Oil Price – July 5, 2026

Big Tech’s $3 Trillion Struggle to Secure Enough Electricity

For most of modern history, oil was the world’s most valuable resource. It powered industrial growth, decided wars, reshaped geopolitics, and created the largest corporations in history. Then oil lost its crown. Data replaced it as the world’s dominant asset. The companies that learned to collect, process, and monetize information – Apple, Google, Amazon, Microsoft – became the most valuable enterprises the world had ever seen.  But that era is now over.

Data has become abundant, and the world’s most powerful companies are now racing to secure one thing, and one thing only: electricity. In the AI age, the true bottleneck is no longer information or algorithms; it is access to reliable, scalable power. And that’s great news for companies like Bitzero, that are sitting on cost effective, abundant, sustainable electricity that’s available right now. So just how scarce is this power? Well, utilities are currently quoting two- to four-year wait times just to complete feasibility studies. And that is before even considering the permissions required.

________________________________

 

Courthouse News Service – July 6, 2026

10th Circuit affirms federal law preempts Kansas ratepayer price gouging claims

The 10th Circuit affirmed on Monday a trial judge’s finding that Kansas ratepayers can’t sue natural gas wholesalers under the state’s consumer protection law over the huge spike in prices during a February 2021 winter storm that brought record cold temperatures to the Southern Plains.

In a unanimous decision, the appellate panel said the consumers’ state law claims in five consolidated class actions were preempted by the Natural Gas Act, the federal statute under which the rates charged by wholesalers are regulated through the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. “However plaintiffs attempt to frame their argument here, their suit aims directly at interstate wholesale transactions and practices,” U.S. Circuit Judge Harris Hartz wrote.

________________________________

 

Utility Dive – July 6, 2026

FERC denies waiver for $2B gas-fired plant in PJM’s fast-track review

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Thursday rejected a request for a waiver from certain PJM Interconnection rules for a roughly $2 billion, gas-fired project that is in the grid operator’s fast-track Reliability Resource Initiative interconnection review process. Granting the waiver for Advanced Power Services’ Chestnut Run project in Carroll County, Ohio, would harm third parties by causing delays in PJM’s review of other generator interconnection requests, including those in its RRI, FERC said. One of FERC’s criteria for approving waivers from commission-approved rules is that the waivers don’t harm third parties.

PJM’s RRI process was designed for shovel-ready projects that could help meet near-term grid reliability needs. It initially included 51 projects totaling about 11.8 GW PJM release says 51 projects totalling 9.3 GW. The process barred changes to a project’s size and its capacity interconnection rights. Advanced Power hit an equipment supply hurdle when it was unable to acquire the turbines it had planned to use for its project. In its waiver request at FERC, the Boston-based independent power producer said it could use alternate turbines, but that would change the plant’s configuration.

 

Regulatory

 

The New York Times – July 7, 2026

Trump’s Top Air Pollution Regulator to Resign*

The top air pollution regulator at the Environmental Protection Agency told employees on Tuesday that he is leaving the Trump administration, according to a recording of his remarks obtained by The New York Times. Aaron Szabo, a former registered lobbyist for the oil and chemical industries, said he would resign as the head of the E.P.A.’s Office of Air and Radiation on July 17. He did not provide a reason for his departure after nearly a year in the Senate-confirmed position. Since taking the helm of the air office in July 2025, Mr. Szabo has played a central role in President Trump’s sweeping efforts to dismantle climate and environmental protections. Under his direction, the E.P.A. repealed a bedrock scientific finding that climate change endangers human health and the environment. That finding had given the E.P.A. the legal authority to regulate the greenhouse gases that are warming the planet to dangerous levels.

In January, the agency also stopped estimating the monetary value of lives saved when it examines the costs and benefits of possible limits on deadly air pollution. Mr. Szabo has also been working on a plan by the E.P.A. to erase limits on planet-warming pollution that power plants release into the air. The agency is expected to announce that plan in the coming months, completing the Trump administration’s reversal of the most consequential climate policies of Presidents Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Barack Obama. Brigit Hirsch, the E.P.A. press secretary, said in a statement that Mr. Szabo and his team were “responsible for saving Americans trillions of dollars by cutting unnecessary red tape, showing it is possible to protect clean air while growing the economy. We wish him all the best in his future endeavors.” Ms. Hirsch did not immediately respond to questions about why Mr. Szabo is leaving or who would replace him. Environmentalists welcomed the news of his departure.

________________________________

 

The New York Times – July 7, 2026

This Former G.O.P. Politician Wants to Take Politics Out of Climate Change*

Bill Frist, the former Republican Senate majority leader, racked up a slew of notable medical successes during his years as one of the country’s top heart and lung surgeons. He founded one of the country’s busiest transplant centers. One of his patients held the Guinness World Record for being the longest surviving single lung transplant recipient. And, in 1991, Mr. Frist performed lifesaving thoracic surgery on Gen. David Petraeus, then a lieutenant-colonel, when, during a training exercise, the military leader was accidentally shot in the chest. But now, Mr. Frist, 74, advocates for the health of the biggest, most famous patient of all: the Earth.

In earnest writings, folksy videos recorded on his front porch in Tennessee, podcasts, speeches and congressional testimony, Mr. Frist has been highlighting the inseparability of planetary and human health. “A healthier planet means healthier people,” Mr. Frist said. “The science shows it. Our experience shows it. Nobody can really argue against that.” This environmental advocacy puts Mr. Frist at odds with much of his own party and even his younger self. At his retirement from the Senate in 2007, the League of Conservation Voters gave Mr. Frist a lifetime rating of 7 percent for his legislative environmental record, which included voting for oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. “Things like the Arctic, I definitely would not have voted that way today,” Mr. Frist said.

It seems Mr. Frist is making up for lost time. In June, he published a minute-long video detailing how ecosystem collapse and wildlife habitat loss imperils children’s brain development and immune response, by reducing their exposure to beneficial microbes. On Substack, where he has around 31,000 followers, he’s written about the ways air pollution speeds up cognitive decline. In 2023, he presented data to the Senate Budget Committee showing how rising temperatures lead to escalating health care costs. He is also writing a book about how climate and nature shapes human health.

.

==============================

 

Texas Energy Report NewsClips

Tuesday July 7, 2026

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 edged higher on Tuesday, though gains were capped as traders ‌looked beyond easing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and turned their attention to supply increases and demand prospects.

West Texas Intermediate crude rose 30 cents, or 0.4%, to $68.85 a barrel as of 0350 GMT, after settling down at ​around pre-Iran war levels on Monday.

Brent crude futures gained 38 cents, or 0.5%, to $72.37 a barrel.

“The steps towards recovery in supply have eased the immediate risk premium, but the market ​remains wary of putting too much faith in the stability of the current truce given the on ⁠again-off again nature of U.S.-Iran relations,” said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade.

“We will be watching for early signs of ​demand response, particularly from China. The market has priced in a lot of the positive supply news, so the next leg in oil ​prices will depend on whether physical reality matches the optimistic headlines.”

President Donald Trump said on Monday the U.S. would either reach a deal with Iran or “finish the job,” renewing his threat of military action as Tehran projects defiance following the funeral of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

.

Top Stories

 

San Antonio Report – July 6, 2026

Judge rules against CPS Energy in $400M 2021 winter storm gas contract dispute

State District Judge Laura Salinas has ordered the municipally-owned utility CPS Energy to pay nearly $400 million to two Energy Transfer subsidiaries after ruling it breached contracts for natural gas purchased during the February 2021 winter storm. In a final judgment signed July 2, Salinas awarded Houston Pipe Line Company and Oasis Pipeline nearly $264 million in unpaid contract amounts, about $119 million in prejudgment interest and more than $9.3 million in attorneys’ fees. The ruling also requires CPS Energy to pay court costs and post-judgment interest.

The ruling follows a 12-day bench trial that ended in April. The case stems from the February 2021 winter storm, when widespread power outages and record demand for electricity and natural gas sent fuel prices soaring across Texas. CPS Energy spent about $850 million on fuel during the storm. Customers are continuing to repay a portion of those storm-related fuel costs through a monthly surcharge that adds about $1.26 to the average residential bill and is expected to remain in place for about 21 more years.

_______________________________

 

KUHF NPR – July 6, 2026

CenterPoint hopes to improve coastal resilience after tropical storm left thousands without power in Galveston

CenterPoint Energy officials said they are working to make improvements after Tropical Storm Arthur left around 11,000 customers in Galveston without power for multiple hours on June 18. The outages happened after CenterPoint equipment was impacted by salt from the tropical storm. “We know that that was not a hugely impactful storm, not lots of rain, but lots of wind and lots of sea spray, so that leads to salt contamination in some areas. We got a little bit of that in a couple of our [substations],” CenterPoint Chief Communications Officer Keith Stephens said.

_______________________________

 

Politico – July 6, 2026

Why Texas lawmakers can’t keep up with data centers

Gov. Greg Abbott’s promise to restrict data centers may be too little, too late. The Republican governor has proposed banning data centers in rural areas, repealing sales tax exemptions, establishing setback rules and requiring water-efficient technology. But the Texas Legislature can’t even start considering such bills until January — and that’s likely too late to catch the first big round of data center construction, Shelby Webb reports.

That’s because the Electric Reliability Council of Texas is scheduled to approve plans next April that would pave the way for a massive wave of data centers, known as Batch Zero, to connect to the state’s electric grid. Any new laws from next year’s Legislature wouldn’t take effect until April or May 2027, at the earliest — and only if a two-thirds majority in both chambers agrees to expedite the bills. “Even in that case, the Batch Zero studies would be finished,” said Chris Kirby, a partner at the Balch & Bingham law firm, who represents data center clients. “I would be surprised if [bills passed in 2027] applied to the Batch Zero projects.”

 

The Latest TERse Tips

Phillips66 reported a weather-related upset at its 140,000 bpd Borger refinery in Texas after temperatures surged higher — Quantum Intelligence

Fitch Ratings assigns Energy Transfer LP’s proposed offering of junior subordinated notes due 2057 a ‘BB+’ rating, and proceeds from this offering are expected to be used to redeem all or a portion of ET’s outstanding 6.500% series H perpetual preferred units, to refinance existing indebtedness, and for general partnership purposes — Fitch

Citi Forecasts Brent Crude Could Fall to $60 by Year-End as Global Oil Glut Looms — Inc

Cuba’s power grid failed again today, leaving the entire island without electricity, following days of protests over the long blackouts amid the island’s hot summer — Miami Herald

Iraq’s Council of Ministers has approved recommendations from the country’s Oil Ministry aimed at expanding crude oil export capacity, including a plan to raise pipeline exports from 220,000 barrels per day to 770,000 barrels per day — Pipeline & Gas Journal

Trump pardons 11 people ahead of July 4, including Clean Air Act violators: What to know — The Hill

Fertilizer major Yara will acquire a 1.3 million tonnes per year grey ammonia plant in Texas City for $1.3bn, after confirming it would not take a stake in Air Products’ Louisiana blue ammonia development — Gasworld

Texas oil tycoon Rodney R. Lewis buys $28M Mercer Island estate for nearly 2X its assessed value — KIRO

Midwest Compressor Systems opens Midland location — Midland Reporter-Telegram*

Big Digital Energy has announced a 50/50 joint venture with energy-infrastructure firm 10NetZero and a signed letter of intent to acquire a power-ready industrial site in Hood County, Texas for AI-focused datacenter development — Stock Titan

 

Oil & Gas Texas

 

KOB – June 29, 2026

New Mexico governor proposes $250 tax rebate from projected $825M oil windfall

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is proposing a $250 rebate from a projected $825 million oil windfall to the state. The governor proposed the rebate in an op-ed published Saturday in the Albuquerque Journal.

“It’s no secret that New Mexico’s finances rise and fall with oil prices — and right now, prices are high. That’s good news for state coffers and it should be good news for New Mexicans, too,” she wrote. The governor pointed to the war in Iran as the culprit for oil rising above $100 per barrel and prices at the pump going up “as much as $1.30 more” for a gallon of gas. She stated that totals to “an estimated $450 in additional fuel costs” she wants to give back to taxpayers.

_______________________________

 

National Review – July 6, 2026

The Dutch Lawsuit That Could Undermine U.S. Energy Security: Michael Toth

For a snapshot of what has gone wrong in Europe, look no further than Amsterdam, where Greenpeace International sued the American pipeline company Energy Transfer last year.  Filed on the eve of a North Dakota jury trial that would culminate in a headline-grabbing nine-figure verdict against Greenpeace, the lawsuit encapsulates Europe’s defining pathologies: regulatory overreach, hostility toward energy development, and a growing willingness to weaponize the legal system against political opponents.

The Amsterdam-based environmental group is, in effect, seeking damages for losing a case in the United States. If Greenpeace International succeeds, it would establish a troubling precedent for relitigating legal defeats abroad, eroding American sovereignty, chilling investment, and undermining transatlantic energy security.

_______________________________

 

Capital & Main – July 6, 2026

Dry New Mexico Actually Has Lots of Water. Unfortunately, It’s Toxic — So Far.

One could make a strong argument that New Mexico is peppered with more than 50,000 active water wells that happen to produce oil and gas. Those wells draw more than three barrels of water for each barrel of oil, but it’s not anything you’d want to drink or water your chiles with. That wastewater — also called produced water — is highly saline, chemical-laden and often radioactive. And as the state’s oil and gas production again rises to some of its highest levels ever, wastewater amounts rise as well. In 2025, New Mexico’s oil and gas producers drew more than 800 million barrels of oil and 2.7 billion barrels of wastewater out of the ground.

That’s a multifaceted problem. The water is poisonous, few people want it, and its disposal creates expensive knock-on effects. Last year, a Dallas Federal Reserve Bank report said that 75% of more than 100 oil executives surveyed expected that by 2031, wastewater disposal problems will throttle oil and gas production in the Permian Basin, the most productive oil and gas field in the country. And all of that water leads to some spectacular accidents.

_______________________________

 

June 29, 2026

Moving at ‘Trump Speed’ to Cut Red Tape, Make U.S. Energy More Accessible: Lyceum Independent Thinking

For years, the Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) pipeline was dead — leaving an energy-starved region of America to suffer solely to satisfy the left’s extreme climate ideology.

Rather than take advantage of America’s abundant supply of natural gas, blue states in the Northeast like New York were willing to forgo clean, affordable natural gas and the new construction jobs that come with it, all to block a pipeline and appease green activists. Ordinary families paid for that choice with some of the highest energy bills in the nation. By January 2026, the average New York household was paying 28.37 cents per kilowatt-hour for electricity — roughly 62 percent above the national average.

When President Donald Trump returned to office, he insisted on breaking through the climate cartel, knowing the NESE pipeline would help lower energy costs in one of the country’s most expensive regions.

 

Oil & Gas National & International

 

Reuters – July 6, 2026

UAE’s ADNOC launches combined LNG marketing and trading platform*

UAE state oil giant ADNOC launched a new liquefied natural gas marketing and trading platform on ​Monday, bringing the marketing activities of ADNOC Gas ‌international investment arm XRG and ADNOC Trading into a single commercial unit. The platform, based in the Abu Dhabi Global Market financial ​centre, is targeting 47 million metric tons per ​annum (mtpa) of combined marketable LNG by 2035, which ⁠would rank it among the world’s largest LNG players.

_______________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 6, 2026

The Iran War Has Oil-Rich Alaska Freaked Out About $9 Gas*

John Stelling had just cranked the digits of his fuel pump to $9.10 at his gas station in this remote Alaskan community when he realized he had a problem. Could he push the meter to $10 if he had to?  “Not sure if it’ll handle those,” he said of double-digit fuel prices.  In rural Alaska, the war with Iran has led to some of the highest fuel prices in the nation. Remote towns and villages aren’t connected to the road system, so they pay hefty premiums to procure gasoline, heating oil and diesel for cranking out electricity.  Fuel typically arrives by barge in the summer, when ice clears from waterways. The last barge to unload sets the price until the next delivery—months away. Many communities had no choice this year but to place their orders in the spring, just as the Iran war sent prices soaring.

_______________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 6, 2026

Jet-Fuel Prices Have Plunged but Aren’t Resulting in Much Lower Fares*

Airlines are finally getting some relief at the jet-fuel pump. Fliers may not share in the savings, though.  Jet-fuel prices doubled in the weeks after the Iran war started, and carriers raised fares to keep up. Now fuel prices are down 40% from their peak in April, but analysts say fares aren’t likely to follow because travelers keep paying up. Resilient travel demand and restrained supply—especially with the onetime discount leader Spirit Airlines out of the picture—are bolstering airline executives’ confidence.

_______________________________

 

Associated Press/KVUE – July 6, 2026

Alberta and Ontario propose a pipeline to carry western Canada’s oil to the east

_______________________________

 

electrek – July 2, 2026

Hydrogen for heavy trucks is dead, says world’s 2nd-largest oil company

Hydrogen heavy trucks are being displaced by electric ones, as advancements in batteries and charging infrastructure eat away at the advantages of hydrogen, according to Sinopec’s internal magazine. For years, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles have been considered as a potential clean, more energy-dense option than battery electric vehicles, and one which particularly would work well in energy-intensive applications like heavy trucks.

But the story starts to break down a bit as you look deeper. While hydrogen is more energy-dense, it has to be held securely under pressure, and the hydrogen molecule is tiny and tends to escape, so infrastructure and tanks need to be overbuilt to try to keep it in check. This eats away at some weight advantages, as the tanks alone on a heavy truck can weigh over a thousand pounds.

_______________________________

 

Reuters – July 2, 2026

China’s Hengli scraps West African, Mideast oil purchases and cuts output, sources say

China’s Hengli Petrochemical, sanctioned by the U.S. for ​allegedly buying Iranian oil, has cancelled recent purchases of non-Iranian crude, five trade sources said, forcing the firm ‌to cut refinery operations further as inventory runs low. The unusual cancellations come just weeks after Reuters reported that the refiner bought cargoes from West Africa and the Middle East, aiming to be removed from Washington’s list.

The refiner cancelled deals for at least 6 million barrels of crude, said three ​of the sources who were briefed on the matter. These included 2 million barrels of West African oil delivered to ​storage tanks in east China last month that are owned by a third party, as well ⁠as another two 2-million-barrel Middle Eastern crude cargoes scheduled to be delivered in July, they said.

_______________________________

 

Alaska Beacon – June 30, 2026

With tens of millions at stake, feud over trans-Alaska pipeline value heads to court

A high-stakes feud between Alaska’s major oil companies and three municipalities that collect taxes from those companies is now headed to court. The fight is over the value of the trans-Alaska pipeline — a calculation that determines how much the companies owe in property taxes each year. Tens of millions of dollars are at stake.

In May, a state tax board set the pipeline’s value at $13 billion. Both the oil companies and the municipalities then filed appeals to the Alaska Superior Court this month. The municipalities say the taxable value is much higher — about $20 billion. The oil companies say the pipeline’s value is significantly lower — some $2 billion. Both parties appealed an initial $10 billion assessment by Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s administration. Then, the tax board raised the value by $3 billion.

 

Utilities, Electricity & Renewables

 

KAVU – July 6, 2026

ERCOT says grid is prepared for hot temperatures

As summer progresses, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas is expecting high demand for energy use with high temperatures expected. ERCOT’s predictive six-day forecast on grid conditions shows that there is plenty of power for the current demand for electricity. The last recorded supply and demand totals on July 6 show that demand for energy is well over 22,000 megawatts below the amount of electricity made available for the state or ‘committed capacity.’

ERCOT says it has over 16,000 megawatts of reserve power for sudden fluctuations of demand. It predicts 5 p.m. to be the peak usage for electricity on July 6. While the energy demand forecast is a tool to predict future system conditions, ERCOT acknowledges that “uncertainties associated” with making future predictions could show adjustments as the actual operation day approaches. The market condition forecast is updated often to show the most current grid conditions, along with the updated market forecast.

_______________________________

 

E&E News By Politico – July 6, 2026

Push to regulate Texas data centers crimped by calendar

Top Texas leaders, including Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, want to slap more restrictions on data centers. But because the Texas Legislature isn’t expected to meet again until early next year, the state likely can’t do much to set limits on a new surge of data centers that’s expected to come online by late 2032. The issue is one of procedure — and timing.

Next April, regulators at the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, are expected to approve plans to allow a new wave of data centers — known collectively as “Batch Zero” — to connect to the Texas grid. Many of the data centers in Batch Zero have been in the works for years; some already are being built. State officials expect them to use a lot of energy. All told, ERCOT estimates projects that meet Batch Zero requirements could request a combined 100 gigawatts of power, equal to the juice needed to power 25 million homes. To put that in perspective, there were 12.6 million homes in Texas as of 2024, according to the census. Not all Batch Zero projects will receive the full amount of power they’re requesting when they first come online. Some experts believe the actual power usage of Batch Zero projects will be closer to 20 to 50 GW.

_______________________________

 

San Antonio Express-News – July 6, 2026

Why CPS Energy sees nuclear power as part of San Antonio’s future*

A new CPS Energy generation plan that amps up the utility’s reliance on natural gas also grows its footprint in another powerful yet controversial form of energy: nuclear energy. The city-owned utility’s stake in the South Texas Project spans more than three decades. But now, CPS Chief Strategy Officer Elaina Ball said the utility is looking to increase its ownership of the plant, with future plans to own its own nuclear microreactors.

_______________________________

 

Austin American-Statesman – July 6, 2026

Renewable energy giant RWE expands with $6.8 million Austin office move*

RWE AG, a global renewable energy company that’s now the second-largest solar owner and operator in the U.S., is building out new offices in Austin’s Met Center business park as it works to become No. 1 in the nation. The German company is renovating more than 37,000 square feet of office and training space at a warehouse in the business park near the airport in Southeast Austin, according to a filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.  The development represents about $6.8 million in investment, according to the filing. Construction is scheduled to begin in September and wrap up by January.

_______________________________

 

July 6, 2026

Texas can’t keep giving a free ride to water-thirsty data centers: Houston Chronicle*

_______________________________

 

The Conversation – July 6, 2026

It may be almost impossible to make data centers pay their ‘fair share’ of electricity costs: Theodore J. Kury, University of Florida

Many major tech companies have pledged to pay their fair share of the costs associated with generating and transmitting more electricity to serve large data centers. But ratepayers across the United States are worried about the potential costs they might have to bear. That’s because it’s not immediately clear how the cost of data centers’ energy will be calculated. The effects of price increases are likely just beginning, and their full effects may not be felt for years.

For example, a recent report by the organization that monitors the PJM market, an area that encompasses all or part of 14 mid-Atlantic and Midwest states, concluded that expected power demand from data centers was a primary reason for US$23 billion in customer price increases that will last until at least the end of 2028. I have studied the programs states have launched to address the needs of these large electricity customers. Prices are set by state utility commissions, who determine which customers’ rates will increase by how much to pay for new investments in electricity infrastructure. It’s not simple.

_______________________________

 

Daily Energy Insider – July 6, 2026

National Grid Ventures makes $1.75B investment in Joulent

National Grid Ventures (NGV), the commercial arm of National Grid, signed a strategic partnership with Joulent LLC to develop contracted power and electrical infrastructure solutions for U.S. large load demand. The partnership involves National Grid investing $1.75 billion for a 35 percent stake in Joulent.

“Our investment in Joulent is a disciplined, partner-led investment in contracted critical infrastructure for the AI-driven large load economy. Through National Grid Ventures, we are gaining exposure to a major source of electricity demand growth with strong partners. It extends National Grid’s core strengths of investing in long-duration infrastructure with predictable cash flows and attractive risk-adjusted returns,” Zoë Yujnovich, chief executive of National Grid, said.

 

Regulatory

 

The Hill – July 2, 2026

Energy Department proposes hurdles for future appliance efficiency standards

The Energy Department on Thursday proposed to put up hurdles for the creation of future energy efficiency standards for appliances. While the hurdles would technically apply equally to any current or future administration, Democrats are more likely to want to tighten energy efficiency standards, and a future Democratic administration’s efforts could be hampered by the regulation if it’s finalized.

The proposal would require that any future effort to force appliances to be more efficient would have to meet strict criteria. This includes requiring future regulations to inspire either a 10 percent reduction in energy use over a 30-year period or save a large quantity of energy — two quadrillion British thermal Units — over that period. It would also require the use of an “early assessment” that would add an extra step before tightening existing regulations.

.

===============================

 

Texas Energy Report NewsClips

Monday July 6, 2026

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 ​inched lower on Monday after OPEC+ agreed to further increase its output targets from August ‌while exports from key producers via the Strait of Hormuz are recovering, potentially adding to global supplies.

West Texas Intermediate crude was at $68.49 ​a barrel, down 20 cents, or 0.29%. There was no settlement for WTI on Friday as ​U.S. markets were closed ahead of the Independence Day holiday on Saturday.

Brent crude futures fell 34 cents, or 0.47%, to $71.78 a barrel by 0408 GMT after settling 0.45% higher on Friday.

Both contracts were ⁠little changed last week, after mostly falling over the past few weeks, as investors kept a close eye ​on talks between the United States and Iran over the fate of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz ​while keeping tabs on the recovery in Gulf oil exports.

“Coming off the U.S. long weekend, traders are sitting tight and waiting to see whether U.S.-Iran relations will be cordial or volatile this week,” said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade.

The Organization of the Petroleum ​Exporting Countries and their allies including Russia agreed on Sunday to further increase output targets by 188,000 barrels per ​day from August, on top of similar increases for June and July.

 

Top Stories

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 5, 2026

OPEC, Allies Hike Output Again as Hormuz Traffic Starts Recovering*

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies agreed to raise oil output again as shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz gradually recovers and Persian Gulf producers restore production. After a virtual meeting on Sunday, seven members of the broader group called OPEC+ said they will raise production by about 188,000 barrels a day in August, marking a fifth straight monthly increase as the cartel continues to unwind production cuts introduced in recent years. The countries participating in the increase include Saudi Arabia–the group’s de-facto leader–along with Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Algeria, Kazakhstan and Oman.

_______________________________

 

Stock Titan – July 3, 2026

Energy Transfer LP, Sunoco LP, SunocoCorp LLC and USA Compression Partners, LP Announce Redomiciliation to Texas

See the press release

Energy Transfer LP; Sunoco LP; SunocoCorp LLC; and USA Compression Partners, LP jointly announced on Thursday that each will change its state of formation from the State of Delaware to the State of Texas. The redomiciliations will be effective in each of the State of Delaware and the State of Texas as of 12:01 a.m. Central Time on July 6, 2026; however, in accordance with NYSE guidelines, the redomiciliations will be considered effective for market purposes on July 13, 2026

The CUSIPs for the registered securities of Energy Transfer LP, Sunoco LP, SunocoCorp LLC and USA Compression Partners, LP, and their associated NYSE ticker symbols, will remain unchanged as a result of the redomiciliation. The economic and governance rights of the unitholders in the organizational documents of each converting entity will be preserved in the redomiciliations.

_______________________________

 

Texas Public Radio – July 3, 2026

Judge rules against CPS Energy in $400 million 2021 winter storm gas contract dispute

State District Judge Laura Salinas has ordered the municipally owned utility CPS Energy to pay nearly $400 million to two Energy Transfer subsidiaries after ruling it breached contracts for natural gas purchased during the February 2021 winter storm. In a final judgment signed July 2, Salinas awarded Houston Pipe Line Company and Oasis Pipeline nearly $264 million in unpaid contract amounts, about $119 million in prejudgment interest and more than $9.3 million in attorneys’ fees. The ruling also requires CPS Energy to pay court costs and post-judgment interest.

The ruling follows a 12-day bench trial that ended in April. The case stems from the February 2021 winter storm, when widespread power outages and record demand for electricity and natural gas sent fuel prices soaring across Texas. CPS Energy spent about $850 million on fuel during the storm. Customers are continuing to repay a portion of those storm-related fuel costs through a monthly surcharge that adds about $1.26 to the average residential bill and is expected to remain in place for about 21 more years.

_______________________________

 

Houston Chronicle – July 3, 2026

Report: $1 trillion needed to meet growing U.S. energy demand*

With the rise of data centers and various municipalities either pushing back or welcoming them with open arms, energy conservation in Texas and beyond has become a concern, especially for politicians during election season. According to a new study from the University of Houston, that growth will lead to serious financial repercussions. The study found that more than $1 trillion in new midstream energy infrastructure investment will be needed by 2052 to meet the country’s energy demand properly. According to researchers, there is a strategy to meet energy requirements, with the majority of the focus on midstream infrastructure.

_______________________________

 

KERA NPR – July 2, 2026

Proposed Texas AI power plants could emit 287 million tons of greenhouse gases annually, report says

Texas is poised to become the nation’s leader in natural gas power plants built specifically to serve artificial intelligence data centers — a move that could lead to the release of hundreds of millions of tons of greenhouse gases, according to a new environmental report. The report, released Wednesday by the Environmental Integrity Project, identified 32 proposed gas-fired power plants in Texas, the largest concentration in any state, as technology companies race to meet growing electricity demand from generative artificial intelligence.

Researchers estimate the projects could collectively emit more than 287 million tons of greenhouse gases each year, along with thousands of tons of particulate matter, nitrogen oxides and other pollutants linked to respiratory illness. “It makes no sense for a technology of the future to be powered by the dirty fossil fuels of the past,” said Jen Duggan, executive director of the Environmental Integrity Project.

 

The Latest TERse Tips

Texas Stock Exchange to launch trading on Monday in test of upstart’s challenge to Wall Street — Texas Tribune

Russia planning attack on Poland to test Nato resolve, US warns — critical infrastructure could be targeted by missiles and drones, with soldiers potentially crossing the border from Kaliningrad or Belarus — The Telegraph (UK)

US considers proposal to cut Colorado River water use, Arizona says — Yahoo! News

Governor Greg Abbott has appointed Don Huffines as Texas Comptroller — Texas Tribune

Vendors sought for voluntary well plugging program — The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality received $134.1 million under the Inflation Reduction Act’s Methane Emissions Reduction Program and developed the Texas Voluntary Marginal Conventional Well Plugging Program — The program has issued a request for proposals from vendors to perform necessary plugging and abandonment of marginal conventional wells — Midland Reporter-Telegram*

Glenfarne Group, LLC says it’s subsidiary Texas LNG Brownsville LLC that’s developing the Texas LNG export terminal at the Port of Brownsville, has provided the project’s Engineering, Procurement, and Construction Contractor, Kiewit Energy Group Inc., with a Limited Notice to Proceed — see the press release

More oil-related revenue flowed into state coffers in the wake of the Iran conflict, with New Mexico estimating a $500 million boost and Texas reporting record-high collections from its oil production tax in June — Bond Buyer*

America just trucked a complete 100-megawatt hydrogen plant to West Texas on skids — Auto Notion

A Texas man faces manslaughter charges after the Tesla he was driving crashed into a Houston-area home in June, killing a woman inside — he told investigators that the car was in auto-drive, but they found that the driver actually pressed the accelerator pedal several times during the incident, overriding the car’s automated driving assistance mechanism — KTRK

BKV Corp., Denver, has begun operations at its Eagle Ford and Cotton Cove carbon capture and sequestration plants in Texas, expanding the company’s commercial CCS footprint as it advances toward a 1.5‑million tonnes/year CO₂ injection target by 2028 — Oil & Gas Journal

 

Oil & Gas Texas

 

Reuters – July 2, 2026

US energy firms add rigs for third week in a row, says Baker Hughes*

 U.S. energy firms this week added rigs for a third week in a row, energy services firm ​Baker Hughes (BKR.O), opens new tab said in its closely followed report on Thursday. The ‌total oil and gas rig count, an early indicator of future output, rose by 7 to 580 in the week to July 2, its highest since May 2025. Baker ​Hughes released the rig count report a day earlier than ​usual due to the U.S. July 4th holiday, which is ⁠being recognized on Friday, July 3.

Baker Hughes said this week’s increase puts ​the total rig count up 41 rigs, or 7.6% above this time ​last year. Baker Hughes said oil rigs rose by five to 445 this week, their highest since late May, 2025, while gas rigs rose one to 126, their highest ​since mid-May 2026, and other miscellaneous rigs rose by one to nine. ​The oil and gas rig count declined by 7% in 2025, 5% in 2024, ‌and ⁠20% in 2023 as lower U.S. oil prices prompted energy firms to focus more on boosting shareholder returns and paying down debt rather than increasing output.

_______________________________

 

Midland Reporter-Telegram – July 4, 2026

Kinder Morgan places Gulf Coast Express expansion in service*

Kinder Morgan has completed expansion of its Gulf Coast Express Pipeline and placed it in service late last month. The expansion increases natural gas transportation capacity by approximately 570 million cubic feet per day from the Permian Basin to South Texas markets, bringing total system capacity to approximately 2.59 billion cubic feet per day. According to East Daley Analytics, the startup of the compressor expansion sparked a rally of nearly $3 per MMBtu at the Waha hub.

_______________________________

 

gasworld – July 3, 2026

XRG increases Rio Grande LNG stake, strengthens US-UAE energy ties

UAE-headquartered investment firm XRG has acquired 7.6% stake in Trains 4 and 5 of Rio Grande LNG in Brownsville, Texas, which have an expected combined liquefied natural gas (LNG) production capacity of around 12 million tonnes per annum (mtpa). XRG, the international branch of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), said its continued investment in US LNG company NextDecade’s Rio Grande project will strengthen its presence in the US LNG market and support energy security on a global scale.

The acquisition gives XRG equity interests across all five trains under construction at Rio Grande LNG, which are expected to have a combined liquefaction capacity of around 30 mtpa. XRG first invested in Rio Grande LNG by acquiring an indirect 11.7% stake in Phase 1, covering interest in Trains 1, 2, and 3.

_______________________________

 

Midland Reporter-Telegram – July 3, 2026

Enverus acquires PDS assets, expanding into operational data flow*

Enverus acquired four exchange platforms from PDS Energy Information: the Frac Interference Exchange, Well Data Exchange, Production Data Exchange and AquaTrade. Enverus already operates two of the energy industry’s largest commercial exchange networks. EnergyLink and OpenInvoice collectively support more than 500 operators, 40,000 suppliers and 250,000 receivers, with more than $500 billion in annual transaction activity across revenue, joint interest billing and procurement. With the transaction, Enverus expands from commercial workflows into operational data flows that drive completions, well data, production and water logistics.

_______________________________

 

Bloomberg – July 3, 2026

America Runs on Natural Gas: Fuel Set to Surpass Oil as US Top Energy Source by 2030*

For 75 years, petroleum has been the energy source that has powered the US more than any other. That’s about to change. By the end of the decade, natural gas will likely surpass oil for the first time after the gap all but disappeared in 2025. This seismic shift will end a chapter that began in 1950, when petroleum ended the longstanding reign of another fossil fuel: coal. “I say we probably cross that threshold within the next couple years, and by 2030, we will have a big lead on petroleum,” Toby Rice, chief executive of a top US gas producer EQT Corp., said in an interview.

The transition from America being a nation powered by oil to one running primarily on gas shows how much the economics of cheap gas has reordered parts of the energy sector and pushed out competing fuel sources. In 2025, natural gas comprised 36% of US energy consumption, just shy of the 37% made up by petroleum, according to a recent Energy Information Administration report. The gap between oil and gas has narrowed in the last decade as the shale revolution supercharged natural gas output. Over the same period, the US economy electrified and the largest source of demand for domestic oil — gasoline — flatlined. The sea change comes as electric vehicle use and data center development boosts electricity demand from gas-fired power plants, putting additional strain on the US grid. According to EIA data, the grid generates more than 40% of its power by burning natural gas. EVs have also, in part, contributed to waning demand for gasoline that is unlikely to return to highs reached prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, even as Americans drive more each year.

 

Oil & Gas National & International

 

CBS News – July 3, 2026

U.S. says it is monitoring oil markets for price-fixing as it urges states to do the same

U.S. antitrust regulators said Friday they are closely monitoring oil markets for potential price-fixing or market monopolization, and they urged state attorneys general to assist in investigating unlawful conduct. “Recent volatility in crude oil prices does not suspend either the antitrust laws or state consumer protection laws, and it does not authorize companies to manipulate retail prices or collude with their competitors,” said officials from the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission in a letter to states reviewed by CBS News.

“Business may not use market volatility as cover for anticompetitive practices, fraud, or any other lawlessness that harms Americans,” they added. In the letter, Justice Department Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, who oversees the Antitrust Division, and FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson also suggested that states could assist with policing price-gouging — an area in which the federal government does not have any enforcement authority.

_______________________________

 

CNBC – July 5, 2026

UK and France agree with Oman to ensure safety of its territorial waters

Oman has agreed to work with the U.K. and France to ensure the Gulf country’s territorial waters are safe for navigation, the U.K. said on Saturday, as oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz pick up since the U.S. and Iran signed an agreement last month to reopen the crucial sea lane.“The U.K. and France also stand ready to deploy the wider Multinational Military Mission to support freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz,” U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a joint statement with French President Emmanuel Macron.

“The Strait of Hormuz is a vital artery for the global economy. Restoring safe transit for ships of all nations through the Strait is a matter of global concern,” the statement read. France said it has deployed mine countermeasures to the Middle East, including two mine-hunting ships.

“Accompanied by two frigates and a maritime patrol aircraft, these assets are ready to contribute, alongside our partners, to the full resumption of navigation and to ensure the safety of traffic in the Strait of Hormuz,” Macron said in a statement on X.

_______________________________

 

CNBC – July 5, 2026

Cargo vessel in Red Sea reports coming under attack, UK maritime body says

A cargo vessel in the Red Sea has reported coming under attack, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre, a British maritime security alert service, said Sunday, amid a fragile ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran. The body said it received a report of the incident 30 nautical miles (56 km) southwest of the port city of Al Hudaydah in Yemen.

“A cargo vessel has triggered a distress alert stating that they are under attack by unknown assailants,” the UKMTO said in a post on X, adding that authorities are investigating the incident. It urged vessels to “transit with caution”. Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen attacked commercial ships in the Red Sea from 2023 through 2025 in retaliation for Israel’s war in Gaza but have largely stayed out of the U.S.-Iran war.

_______________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 5, 2026

A Sudden Glut of Oil Threatens to Weaken Iran’s Hand in Talks*

Oil prices have fallen to prewar levels. Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is recovering fast. Gulf producers are already restarting idled wells. But one thing will take much, much longer—refilling the world’s oil coffers. Speed matters. The amount of oil in storage around the world is playing a central role in the U.S.-Iran power dynamics. The faster countries restock their buffers of crude, the weaker Iran’s ability to threaten the world economy by holding the Strait of Hormuz hostage.

_______________________________

 

S&P Global Platts – June 3, 2026

US LNG exports to Latin America surge to three-year high

US LNG exports to Latin America and the Caribbean in May hit a 37-month high, increasing around 55% from May, S&P Global Energy CERA data showed July 3. The US exported around 48.84 billion cubic feet of LNG to the region in June, up from 31.44 Bcf in May. June export volumes were nearly 10% higher than the 44.44 Bcf exported in June 2025, and nearly 3% higher than the 47.59 Bcf recorded in the same month in 2024. The previous highest monthly export level was 51.49 Bcf in May 2023.

US LNG export volumes in June were shipped to the US territory of Puerto Rico and seven other countries: Brazil, Argentina, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, El Salvador, Chile, and Colombia, the data showed. The number of Latin American destinations was unchanged from May.

_______________________________

 

Reuters – July 1, 2026

US LNG exports to Europe decline as Asia prices surge

For the first time in nearly two years, less than half of U.S. LNG ‌exports last month went to Europe as stronger prices in Asia and record imports by Egypt diverted cargoes, according to preliminary ship-tracking data from LSEG. The shift marks the first time since July 2024 that Europe has not taken the majority of monthly U.S. ​exports of liquefied natural gas. European buyers, who still need to refill storage ahead of the next winter ​season, have been waiting for better prices.

Asian spot prices traded at a premium to ⁠Europe last month, encouraging exporters to redirect shipments eastward. The Asian benchmark JKM averaged $17.33 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) ​in June, compared with the European TTF benchmark at $13.19 per mmBtu, LSEG data showed. Egyptian buyers, meanwhile, paid premiums ​of up to $1 per mmBtu over TTF-linked prices. Supply constraints from the Middle East, linked to regional geopolitical tensions, and softer European demand widened the price gap and created arbitrage opportunities for U.S. exporters.

_______________________________

 

Oil Price – July 2, 2026

Shell Offloads 50% Stake in Na Kika Platform for $1.7 Billion

Shell has struck a deal to sell a 50% stake in the Na Kika oil platform and related assets to Talos Energy and Ridgewood Energy, with the price tag at $1.7 billion, the supermajor said. According to Shell’s partner in Na Kika, BP, the deepwater platform off the Louisiana coast is one of the most prolific production hubs in the Gulf, linked to eight fields, and can produce up to 130,000 barrels of crude daily.

Along with Shell’s 50% interest in Na Kika, Talos and Ridgewood will also buy the company’s interests in associated fields and the Coulomb tieback, which Shell owns fully. “The Gulf of America is one of our highest-value basins, and we are actively shaping our portfolio to ensure our Upstream business continues to be resilient and increasingly competitive,” Peter Costello, president of Shell’s Upstream division, said in the company’s news release. “We remain focused on sustaining our material liquids production into the next decade.”

 

Utilities, Electricity & Renewables

 

Business & Industry Connection – July 1, 2026

The gigawatt clash: How digital infrastructure is siphoning industrial labor

The Gulf Coast has always competed for talent. But the competition used to be between refineries and petrochemical plants, between contractors chasing the same turnaround windows, between LNG terminals and pipeline builders pulling from the same craft workforce. That was a manageable kind of competition. Everyone knew the rules. What is happening now is different. Digital infrastructure is arriving in Texas and Louisiana at a GW scale, drawing from the same pool of journeyman electricians, pipefitters, instrument technicians and welders this region’s industrial sector has relied on for decades.

Microsoft is in exclusivity negotiations with Chevron on a 2.6-GW gas-fired power campus in the Permian Basin. ExxonMobil is aggressively pursuing large-scale power generation paired with carbon capture, targeting AI and data center demand. A single project in Pecos County has received the largest air pollution permit in Texas history for a complex that could eventually generate 7.65 GW. During 2025 alone, the pipeline of gas power projects in development in Texas grew by nearly 58 GW, more than the peak power demand of California.

_______________________________

 

electrek – June 29, 2026

The US’s largest transformer factory is coming for the AI power boom

Hitachi Energy has broken ground on a major expansion of its South Boston, Virginia, campus that will become the largest power transformer factory in the US – one of the most in-demand pieces of equipment for the country’s aging, overloaded electric grid. The $457 million project will create around 825 new jobs in Halifax County and nearly double the site’s workforce. Hitachi Energy already employs about 850 people at the campus, where it has manufactured transformers since 1968.

The new facility will produce large power transformers used for high-voltage transmission, power generation, industrial facilities, and data centers. The expansion is part of Hitachi Energy’s previously announced investment of more than $1 billion to expand US grid equipment manufacturing. Demand for power transformers has surged as utilities race to upgrade the grid to connect new renewable energy projects, electrification, and AI data centers. Transformer shortages have become one of the biggest bottlenecks slowing new power projects across the US.

_______________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 4, 2026

EV Batteries Are Defying Expectations After Hundreds of Thousands of Miles*

Richard Symons recently took his five-year-old Tesla Model 3 on a 260-mile road trip across England without having to stop for a charge. A new electric vehicle could make the trip no-problem. But Symons’s car—which he has affectionately nicknamed “Miles”—has logged 247,000 miles and is still up for frequent long-distance drives. Symons, the owner of a U.K.-based used-car sales company that specializes in EVs, has found that the batteries that power these cars continue to perform well even after several hundred thousand miles. This has come as a welcome surprise to him and other EV enthusiasts.

_______________________________

 

pv magazine – June 27, 2026

The virtual power plant era has arrived

Homeowners are earning cash just for letting their home battery or smart thermostat assist the local electric grid during a heatwave or data center demand surge. This technology is scaling up fast, turning standard household gadgets into serious utility infrastructure through systems known as Virtual Power Plants (VPPs).

Instead of building expensive fossil-fuel peaker plants that sit idle most of the year, grid operators can tap into these decentralized networks. When electricity demand spikes, a virtual signal instantly tells thousands of coordinated home batteries to export spare power while smart thermostats slightly dial down cooling, dropping peak load in real time.

_______________________________

 

World Nuclear News – June 18, 2026

Fusion plant clears regulatory milestone

The receipt of two licences from the Washington Department of Health marks a major milestone for fusion company Helion in its project to build its Orion nuclear power plant. Washington State-based Helion says it is the first company in the world to have the regulatory approvals needed to build and operate a fusion power plant.

The Radioactive Materials licence and Radioactive Air Emissions licence confirm that Helion has the facilities, trained personnel, and safety programmes in place at the Orion facility to meet the rigorous safety standards required for fusion operations. … The Washington Department of Health (DOH) is the licensing body for fusion power in the state, following the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) decision to regulate fusion under the byproduct material framework, alongside particle accelerators and hospitals, unlike fission reactors which are regulated by the NRC itself. This distinction “reflects fusion’s fundamentally different safety profile and enables a right-sized path to deployment”, Helion said.

_______________________________

 

San Antonio Express-News – -July 5, 2026

Rise of renewables: A $10 trillion industry sprang up while we weren’t looking: Mark Gongloff*

An old knock on renewable energy and other planet-friendly endeavors is that they can’t stand on their own without financial props from the government. Ironically, it took the second presidency of Donald Trump, in which those supports have turned to mule kicks, to kill this trope once and for all. Not only can the green economy sustain itself, but it trounces many other sectors. A recent report from the London Stock Exchange Group PLC, or LSEG, found that “green economy” companies — those that derive a significant portion of their revenue from stuff like clean energy, efficiency and water management — now have a total stock market value of $10 trillion. If this were a standalone sector, it would be bigger than healthcare and third in the world only to technology and industrials.

 

Regulatory

 

The Hill – July 2, 2026

Trump EPA departs from Biden-era report detailing cancer risk from ‘forever chemical’ contaminated farms

The Trump administration is apparently departing from a landmark Biden-era report that detailed human health risks including cancer from farms contaminated with “forever chemicals.” The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) this week issued a draft guidance document criticizing a draft Biden administration risk assessment detailing health hazards from applying contaminated sludge to farmland.

The Biden-era assessment detailed the risks posed by forever chemicals that are spread across farmland in a type of fertilizer known as “sewage sludge.” If finalized, it could have laid the groundwork for eventual restrictions on the practice of applying contaminated sludge to farmland. However, the Trump document, from EPA water chief Jessica Kramer, said that the Biden-era assessment “exhibited a number of serious flaws that have caused confusion.”

.

===============================

 

Texas Energy Report NewsClips

Thursday July 2, 2026

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 fell on Thursday as investors weighed signs of progress in indirect negotiations between Washington and Tehran, easing concerns about potential disruptions to crude supplies in the Middle East.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 1.33% to $67.67 a barrel, while global benchmark Brent crude declined 1.12% to $70.77.

Brent has fallen nearly 40% this quarter, marking its worst quarterly performance since 2020, according to LSEG data.

The decline also came after U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters that negotiations with Iran in Qatar were “going well.”

“The denuclearization of Iran is moving along well,” Trump said. “They’ve had very good meetings and we’ll see.”

 

Top Stories

 

Bloomberg – July 1, 2026

Exxon to Change Name for First Time in Decades After Redomicile*

Related: The company will report its financials under EMHC, while the long-term debt and commercial paper program remain issued under EMC. EMHC guarantees the long-term debt at EMC — S&P Global Ratings assigned its ‘AA-‘ long-term issuer credit rating to EMHC — S&P Global

Exxon Mobil Corp. will begin trading as ExxonMobil Holdings Corp. after redomiciling in Texas, the first name change since the Mobil mega merger more than 25 years ago. Each Exxon share will be exchanged for a share in the new holding company and the new stock will begin trading under the existing “XOM” ticker on Thursday, the oil giant said in a regulatory filing Wednesday. Shareholders gave the go-ahead for the move from New Jersey to Texas at the annual meeting in May.

The last time North America’s largest oil company changed names was in late 1999, when Exxon Corp.’s mammoth combination with Mobil Corp. created Exxon Mobil Corp. The Exxon name was originally adopted in 1972 by the company previously known as Jersey Standard.

_______________________________

 

Forbes – June 30, 2026

The Energy Transition Just Hit The Wall AI Compute Cannot Ignore: Guney Yildiz*

Artificial intelligence’s next infrastructure bottleneck is electricity that arrives on schedule. Data centers can be financed and built in years. The grids meant to power them often take a decade or more to expand. That timing mismatch is splitting countries into those that can deliver firm power at a specific site and those that cannot. AI deployment now depends on queue position, generation rights and financing as much as chips. In June, the World Economic Forum’s Energy Transition Index 2026 showed global system performance edging forward.

Yet finance, policy certainty and infrastructure weakened for the first time in more than a decade. Global energy investment exceeded $3.3 trillion in 2025, including $2.3 trillion for clean energy. About 75 percent of that capital was concentrated in a small group of advanced markets. Emerging markets, where most future electricity demand will grow, face financing costs two to three times higher. Investment cannot sustain momentum when grids, regulation and financing conditions deteriorate.

_______________________________

 

Houston Chronicle – July 1, 2026

For our 250th Fourth of July, let’s declare American energy independence, Texas-style: Michael Webber, University of Texas*

_______________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 1, 2026

U.S. Crude Oil Inventories Extend Decline*

U.S. crude oil inventories fell for a 10th consecutive week as exports remained high and refineries raised their capacity use, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Commercial crude oil stocks excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell by 3.8 million barrels to 408.4 million barrels in the week ended June 26, and were about 7% below the five-year average for the time of year, the EIA said. Crude stocks were expected to have fallen by 3.1 million barrels, according to a Wall Street Journal survey of analysts.

 

The Latest TERse Tips

PJM, the largest U.S. electric grid operator, on Wednesday detailed price spikes and warnings of massive transmission line ‌congestion as it braced for record-breaking demand driven by a heat wave ahead of July 4 celebrations, with spot wholesale electricity prices Wednesday afternoon surged to more than $600 per megawatt hour in PJM’s Virginia zone, home to the world’s largest collection of data centers — Reuters*

A group of MidSouth Electric Co-op employees announced this month they are organizing a union with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 66 — Navasota Examiner

Cheniere, Chevron, EOG, Targa make the U.S. News & World Report’s list of best places to work — Houston Chronicle*

Enverus, the leading energy data analytics platform, has released its annual list of the 100 most prolific private oil and gas producers in the U.S. — see the press release

The first federal report on a punctured natural gas line that exploded and destroyed a Dallas apartment building says the gas line had not been identified and marked before the May 28 blast — 3 people were killed and five others were injured in the Oak Cliff explosion. The National Transportation Safety Board released its preliminary report Wednesday afternoon, stressing that the report is only an initial review and that the accident remains under investigation to determine the probable cause — KXAS

Williams says its Board of Directors has appointed Lloyd W. “Billy” Helms, Jr. and Robb E. Turner as independent directors on the Board, effective July 1, 2026 — see the press release

Diamondback subsidiary Viper Energy, Inc.says it has completed its previously announced acquisition of all of the equity interests of Riverbend Oil & Gas IX, L.L.C. — see the press release

Multiple states installing new gas tax this week as others plan to soon follow suit — New York Post

The world’s biggest oil producer is the United States, according to the Energy Institute’s latest statistical review of world energy report, which was published recently — Rigzone

Fuel shortages across Russia have triggered a new political challenge for President Vladimir Putin, as a relentless Ukrainian drone campaign aimed at the country’s oil refineries has brought the war home for most ordinary Russians — The Wall Street Journal*

.

Oil & Gas Texas

 

KUHF NPR – July 1, 2026

TCEQ fines Freeport LNG for alleged air pollution, record keeping violations

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has fined one of the country’s largest liquefied natural gas exporters for alleged air pollution violations dating back to 2019. The TCEQ said Freeport LNG, located south of Houston along the Gulf Coast, failed to keep its air pollution below the state’s regulatory limits and maintain proper records. However, the state agency also agreed to defer part of Freeport LNG’s fines and issued a new permit late last year that increases the amount of air pollution the company is allowed to produce.

Freeport LNG paid $103,240 in fines, even as it denied allegations that it exceeded its air pollution limits and failed to meet the TCEQ’s record-keeping requirements. Environmental advocates expressed frustration that Freeport LNG received what they view as a minor punishment for repeated violations. “The fines are too small to get their attention,” said Melanie Oldham, director of the nonprofit Better Brazoria County Clean Air and Water.

_______________________________

 

Carbon Herald – July 1, 2026

Two New BKV Carbon Capture Facilities Go Operational In Texas

Denver-based BKV Corporation (NYSE: BKV) has announced the successful commissioning of its Eagle Ford carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) facility, capping off a series of operational expansions in Texas. The milestone marks the company’s second major CCS start-up in the region, hot on the heels of its recently operational Cotton Cove facility in the Fort Worth Basin. Together, the two new sites will capture and permanently sequester over 120,000 metric tons of CO2 annually, reinforcing BKV’s transition into a commercial-scale carbon management operator.

The Eagle Ford asset represents the first new operational facility under BKV’s strategic joint venture with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), via its Energy Transition Fund I. Developed in tandem with a major diversified midstream energy partner, the facility intercepts CO2 directly from a natural gas processing plant handling Eagle Ford Shale production.

_______________________________

 

KPRC/Public Health Watch – July 1, 2026

On the upper Texas coast, many petrochemical facilities may not be prepared for fiercer storms

Nearly two decades had passed since the storm. For many, the memory of what had happened on Goat Island had largely vanished into the Gulf of Mexico. Instead, what residents remembered that year were the piles of boats and cars washed up along the highway to Galveston and the twisted mounds of debris where homes once stood. It was late summer 2008, and Hurricane Ike had just struck, decimating parts of the upper Texas Gulf Coast.

But Goat Island — a spit of swampy land just east of Galveston — also flooded, and with it an oil and gas facility that sat on its uninhabited shores. When the hurricane struck, piping to the St. Mary Land and Exploration Company’s storage tanks snapped apart, releasing thousands of gallons of crude oil into the Gulf. By the time St. Mary workers arrived a day later, the tanks were empty.

_______________________________

 

ProiPublica/The Frontier – June 30, 2026

To protect its drinking water, this city has to appeal to the oil regulators that put it at risk

Down a dirt road in northwest Oklahoma, only a few hundred yards from where the city of Enid draws its drinking water, a company injects the toxic byproduct of oil production deep underground. That close proximity violates a state rule meant to protect public groundwater supplies from oil field wastewater, which can be saltier than the sea and laden with toxic metals. Injection operations are banned within a half-mile of public water wells unless regulators hold a hearing to ensure that such activity will not pollute the water.

But in 2018, without a hearing, state regulators approved this injection well, an apparatus that applies pressure to dispose of wastewater down a steel tube. And in the years since, the well, named the Flying Monkey, has repeatedly failed structural integrity tests, signaling a potential leak. The Frontier and ProPublica mapped every injection well in the state to determine how close they are to public water wells. We identified at least 114 injection wells in communities across Oklahoma — including the Flying Monkey and two others in Enid — that are located within a half-mile of a public water supply well. More than 300,000 Oklahomans live in communities that rely on these water wells, according to our analysis.

_______________________________

 

Source NM – July 1, 2026

New Mexico commission approves updated oil and gas cleanup rules

The New Mexico Oil Conservation Commission on Wednesday voted to increase the amount of money that oil and gas operators have to post for cleanup costs. The commission for months has weighed the changes, which supporters say will relieve taxpayers of the cost of cleanup and provide New Mexico some of the strongest protections in the nation. Across New Mexico, plugging and cleaning up after thousands of abandoned wells could cost the state between $700 million and $1.6 billion, according to a 2025 Legislative Finance Committee report.

Unplugged and inactive oil and gas wells proliferate so much of the state that a coalition of environmental groups earlier this year filed a lawsuit against the state Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department, accusing it of endangering residents’ health by failing to address them. Wednesday’s vote will require oil and gas operators to guarantee $150,000 for wells at high risk of abandonment; require operators with more than 20% inactive wells to post single-well bonding of $150,000; prevent operators with unstable finances from buying aging wells; require operators to plug or demonstrate that low-producing wells have a useful purpose; and require operators to demonstrate how inactive wells will resume production.

_______________________________

 

Santa Fe New Mexican – June 30, 2026

Iran war oil prices driving $500 million in N.M. state revenue, LFC says

 

Oil & Gas National & International

 

Oil Price – July 1, 2026

EIA: U.S. Crude Inventories Post Another Major Draw

Crude oil inventories in the United States decreased by 3.8 million barrels during the week ending June 26, according to new data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) released on Wednesday. The decrease brings commercial stockpiles to 408.4 million barrels, according to government data, which is now 7% below the five-year average for this time of year.

The EIA’s data release follows API’s figures that were released a day earlier, which reported that crude oil inventories saw a draw of 6.072 million barrels in the period. Crude futures were down in mid-morning trading. At 10:15 a.m. in New York, Brent futures were trading at $72.06 per barrel—down $0.89 (-1.19%) on the day and down roughly $1.30 per barrel from this same time last week. WTI was also trading down on the day, by $0.53 per barrel (-0.76%) on Wednesday morning at $68.97.

_______________________________

 

S&P Global Platts – July 1, 2026

US decision not to renew USMCA triggers annual trade reviews: USTR

The US will not renew the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, a sprawling trade pact covering North America, by a July 1 deadline, triggering a cycle of annual reviews that could have significant implications for North American supply chains. The office of the US Trade Representative announced the decision not to renew in a statement released July 1, after senior officials confirmed the decision on a call with reporters the same day.

“The United States will continue to engage with Mexico and Canada to address the agreement’s shortcomings and our trade deficits with these countries,” the USTR office said. The US Trade Representative hosted a virtual meeting on July 1 with Mexico and Canada to conduct the review ahead of the July 1 mandatory review deadline. Had the US agreed to renew the trade pact, as Canada and Mexico want, it would have continued for 16 years.

_______________________________

 

Rigzone – June 27, 2026

Panama Canal Sees Revenue Beating Forecast

The Panama Canal expects revenue to exceed its $5.2 billion forecast for fiscal 2026 after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz drove more ships through the waterway connecting the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. Ilya Espino de Marotta, the Panama Canal Authority’s incoming chief, said in an interview Thursday that revenue for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30 will come in “a little bit more” than the initial estimate, boosted by rising traffic and auction payments from vessels willing to skip the line. In April, one ship paid an extra $4 million to jump to the front of the queue as wait times grew for unbooked crossings.

Liquefied natural gas tankers flocked to the canal as buyers in Japan, China and Korea turned to US suppliers to replace Middle East producers such as Qatar, which were affected by the war in Iran. Oil tankers carrying US crude to Asia through the canal also increased. At the peak of the Hormuz closure, the canal was handling 40 to 41 ships a day, above the normal 34 to 35, Espino de Marotta said. Traffic has since eased to about 36 to 38 vessels a day. Bookings for June and July are strong, which should support higher revenue, she said.

_______________________________

 

Reuters – June 28, 2026

Australian energy exploration hits 10-year high in hunt for gas*

Energy exploration has picked up sharply in Australia driven by growing Asian gas demand, technological advances and an improved investment climate, with the Iran war underscoring the urgency to develop supply, after years of sluggish spending. Quarterly oil and gas exploration spending in Australia, the ​world’s No. 2 liquefied natural gas producer, hit a 10-year high of A$471 million ($329 million) in the March quarter, government data released in June shows.

Energy investment sentiment has improved in part ‌following last year’s election of a more supportive second-term Labor government, which faces pressure to fill a looming end-of-decade domestic gas shortfall without harming valuable LNG exports. Spending is expected to increase about 10% in 2026 to more than $1 billion, according to Rystad Energy, although Canberra’s move last month requiring that 20% of gas be set aside for domestic use has sparked industry backlash.

 

Utilities, Electricity & Renewables

 

Houston Chronicle – July 1, 2026

Abbott slammed after sudden U-turn on Texas data center boom*

Across the Lone Star State, many Texans have been demanding ‘No Data Centers’ for months, and now Gov. Greg Abbott appears to be hopping on the bandwagon—but not without swift backlash from critics. On Tuesday, Abbott called for an end to the construction of data centers in rural Texas at a campaign event in Bullard. “We must prohibit them from building AI data centers in rural Texas neighborhoods,” Abbott said.

_______________________________

 

Texas Tribune – July 1, 2026

Texas leads nation in proposed power plants for data centers, which would emit large amounts of greenhouse gases

Texas is poised to lead the nation in power plants built to fuel data centers, according to a new report from an environmental watchdog group that warns the plants plan to emit tons of greenhouse gases and air pollution that will cause significant climate impacts and risks to human health. At least 74 natural gas-fired power plants that each would generate at least 100 megawatts of electricity are planned across the nation to supply electricity directly to data centers, with 32 of those projects located in Texas. That’s more than any other state, according to a new analysis from the Environmental Integrity Project. The power plants are planned for Comal, Anderson, Bexar, Pecos, Caldwell and many other Texas counties.

Those proposed Texas facilities could emit more than 287 million tons of greenhouse gases annually — equivalent to 61 million gasoline-powered cars driving for a year — according to Clean Air Act construction permit applications, draft permits and final permits for the data center power plants that EIP reviewed. In addition to greenhouse gases that can trap heat in Earth’s atmosphere, contributing to climate change, those 32 plants could emit more than 14,000 tons of fine particulate matter, 20,000 tons of nitrogen oxides and 8,000 tons of volatile organic compounds if they all operate at maximum capacity, the report says. These pollutants are linked to respiratory illnesses, heart disease and other serious health problems.

_______________________________

 

KXAN – July 1, 2026

Austin Energy increases solar incentives for homeowners, businesses

Austin Energy (AE) customers can now receive even larger financial incentives to install solar panels, as the utility increased its residential and commercial solar rebates beginning Wednesday. AE said the changes were designed to lower the upfront cost of installing solar systems and encourage more customers to generate their own renewable energy. “These incentive updates are designed to accelerate local solar adoption, support the local solar industry and support Austin’s climate goals,” AE General Manager Stuart Reilly said in a statement. “It’s the definition of a win-win when you can also help customers offset energy costs by generating clean electricity on-site.”

According to the Solar Energy Industries Association, Texas ranks second in the nation with 51.9 gigawatts of installed solar capacity and has the country’s fastest-growing solar economy, including the largest utility-scale solar and energy storage projects. The organization projects the state’s installed capacity will grow another 62% by 2030, allowing Texas to surpass California before 2027.

_______________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 1, 2026

The Public Now Backs Nuclear Energy. What Will It Take to Make It Happen?*

Cost and logistics remain issues. Nuclear plants historically have been expensive and time-consuming to build. Developers are trying to prove they can overcome that legacy by planning a wave of so-called small modular reactors, or SMRs, intended to be cheaper than their predecessors and delivered one after another in factory fashion as a way to drive down costs. The first demonstration and commercial SMRs are starting to come on stream in the U.S. and Canada. “If we can figure out a design that people can be happy with and try and replicate that a series of times, I think that’s going to help on construction,” says Dan Eggers, senior executive vice president at Constellation Energy, which owns more nuclear plants than any other U.S. company. “It’s going to help on operations costs, and that will all lead to hopefully a better cost profile.”

The Trump administration wants to see large reactor projects started this decade, too, and said in the fall that it would facilitate the construction of $80 billion in Westinghouse reactors at sites around the country. Meanwhile, extending the life of existing reactors and upgrading them to squeeze more electricity out of them is “really important,” Eggers says. On an even more ambitious note, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is pushing to develop nuclear energy on the surface of the moon. The White House, in an April policy memo, called on the U.S. to deploy reactors on the lunar surface by potentially 2030. Under that directive, NASA will work on a program to provide at least a 20-kilowatt system over at least five years on the moon. That’s roughly equal to a whole-house backup system.

The goal for the 2030s would be 100 kilowatts—a modest amount of electricity on Earth, but unprecedented for space. A reactor would offer a long-term, consistent supply of electricity that solar power with batteries can’t manage on the moon, given the two-week lunar night. That could enable new scientific and economic activities around research, mining and tourism. Small reactors also could be used to power spacecraft over longer distances, including to Mars. The White House wants to put nuclear propulsion systems into orbit as soon as 2028. Fission is more efficient than chemical reactions, so NASA could carry bigger payloads and have more power for instruments and communications.

_______________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – July 1, 2026

Small-Engine Makers Gain Big Momentum in Data Centers*

A few years ago, the idea of using hundreds of small engines to power gigawatts of data-center capacity would have seemed ridiculous. Not so today. More hyperscalers are seeking to hook their data centers to off-grid power, bypassing lengthy wait times to connect to the grid. Many of them are looking to smaller natural-gas turbines that have shorter wait times than the heavy-duty ones. But even these are selling out, and reciprocating engines are gaining more traction, said Musfika Mishi, an analyst at BloombergNEF. Reciprocating engines are the type that power cars and cruise ships. Among U.S. data-center projects tracked by BloombergNEF that plan to use on-site natural gas and have disclosed timelines, about 55% expect to use gas turbines and 29% plan on using reciprocating engines.

Compared with turbines, reciprocating engines tend to be smaller, less efficient, more emissions heavy and require more frequent maintenance. But they are more readily available. Lead times for engines can range from one to two years, while aeroderivative turbines can take up to three years, according to BloombergNEF. Some heavy-duty, utility-scale turbines have wait times of seven to eight years.

Innio , which made its public market debut in June, makes the most popular reciprocating engines for data centers. Among global data centers that plan to use natural-gas-fueled power on-site, about 8.3 gigawatts worth of projects plan to use Innio’s Jenbacher engines, according to BloombergNEF. Vantage Data Centers, for example, plans to use 620 units of Jenbacher engines—with a total capacity of 2.58 gigawatts—at its Stargate Frontier campus in Texas, according to Cleanview, a data firm. Rolls-Royce and Caterpillar make the next two most popular engines, with 3.7 gigawatts and 3.6 gigawatts respectively of engines linked to announced data-center projects.

_______________________________

.

Governing – July 1, 2026

Western Governors Join Forces to Modernize the Electric Grid

A bipartisan group of 11 Western governors signed a letter endorsing the establishment of a multi-state task force to develop a study and action plan to update the region’s energy grid. The effort was announced Tuesday in Park City during the last days of Utah Republican Gov. Spencer Cox’s tenure as chair of the Western Governors Association in which he pushed an “energy superabundance” agenda.

Joining Cox, governors of Colorado, Wyoming, Nevada, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, North Dakota, Arizona, New Mexico and Washington signed the letter endorsing the Western Transmission Expansion Coalition, or WestTEC. “WestTEC is an industry-led effort that takes a new collaborative approach to one of our region’s most pressing infrastructure challenges, recognizing that this grid system is a team sport, we can’t just fix the grid in Utah. It won’t help everywhere else. We have to do it everywhere,” Cox said on Tuesday surrounded by a group of governors at the posh Deer Valley resort.

_______________________________

 

Ars Technica – July 1, 2026

US home battery installations hit record high on rising electricity costs

US homeowners have embraced home batteries in record-breaking numbers in early 2026, spurred on by state incentives while seeking to offset rising residential electricity costs. The trend could even unlock a more flexible energy supply for power grid operators and even AI data centers.

New home battery installations reached a record 673 megawatts of energy storage in the first quarter of 2026, according to the US Energy Information Administration. That trend was driven by states with high electricity prices that have implemented policies to incentivize home battery installation, Bloomberg News reported. This residential battery trend stands out as a natural next step for states that have already successfully boosted rooftop solar adoption among homeowners, given how batteries enable homeowners to use stored solar energy at night. California and Hawaii accounted for the majority of new residential battery storage, while Texas and Arizona also saw significantly higher numbers of installations.

 

Regulatory

 

KBMT – July 1, 2026

State regulators issue fines in separate Chambers, Jefferson County environmental cases

.

=============================

 

Texas Energy Report NewsClips

Wednesday July 1, 2026

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 ticked higher on Wednesday on concerns a breakdown in talks between Iran and the U.S. for ‌a final agreement to end their war may extend supply disruptions in the key Middle East producing region.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 11 cents, or ​0.16%, to $69.61 a barrel.

Brent futures rose 14 cents, or 0.19%, to $73.09 a barrel at 0644 GMT.

“Hormuz continues to reopen but it’s patchy, unpredictable, and not fully transparent,” said Vandana ​Hari, founder of oil market analysis provider Vanda Insights.

Top Stories

 

San Antonio Express-News – June 30, 2026

Greg Abbott calls for prohibition on data center construction in rural Texas neighborhoods*

Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday called for a prohibition on data center construction in rural neighborhoods amid growing backlash to the energy and water-intensive facilities, especially in heavily Republican communities. The governor, who previously touted Texas as “the epicenter of AI development,” made the statement at a campaign event in a small town East Texas, which has seen a surge in data center development.

In June, the San Marcos City Council voted 4-3 to make data centers ineligible in the city’s zoning laws, citing concerns they could drain water and energy resources from the community. There are no data centers currently in the works for San Marcos after the city council blocked the pathway for one in February.  But the development already faces the threat of a legal challenge, as Republican state Sen. Paul Bettencourt this week promised to appeal the ban.

__________________________________

 

Bloomberg – June 30, 2026

Goldman Flags Up Oil Surplus Even as Nations Rebuild Stockpiles*

The global oil market is set to swing back into oversupply as the impact of the Iran war fades and traffic through the Strait of Hormuz recovers, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. While purchases of crude to replenish strategic reserves are expected to tighten the global market to some extent, they would only partially offset the anticipated glut, Samantha Dart, co-head of global commodities research, said in an interview on Bloomberg Television. “Once we have a normalization of flows through the strait, the expectation is that we go into an oversupply,” Dart said, adding that the surplus is expected to average just over 3 million barrels a day next year.

“We do expect a little over 1 million barrels a day just of SPR rebuilding globally, but still, that would leave us close to 2 million barrels a day of a surplus,” she added, referring to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Benchmark crude prices collapsed by almost 30% last quarter — wiping out all of the gains from the conflict — as the US and Iran struck an interim peace deal and shipping through the waterway began to pick up. During the initial weeks of the crisis, the International Energy Agency coordinated the release of a record 400 million barrels of oil from rich nations’ emergency reserves in a bid to contain prices and ensure supplies. Those holdings now need to be rebuilt. As part of the drive, the Trump administration tapped the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the nation’s emergency cache of crude. Those stockpiles sank from 415 million barrels at the end of February to 331 million as of June 19, according to official figures. That’s the lowest level since 1983.

__________________________________

 

The Guardian – June 29, 3036

Trump officials to slash public input on fossil fuel drilling on federal lands

The Trump administration is attempting to shrink public comment periods for fossil fuel leasing on federal land while shifting the financial risks of cleanup to taxpayers and allowing for more planet-warming emissions. It’s part of a broader effort to dismantle public input processes and save polluting companies money, advocates say.

“By ignoring public comment [requirements] while propping up companies,” said Alexa Dietrich, research director at the science advocacy organization Union of Concerned Scientists, “they’re really attacking democracy in a very clear way.” The interior department said this week it wants to loosen two Biden-era regulations governing oil and gas drilling on national public lands. One would dramatically lower the fees that firms must pay for future cleanup costs before drilling; the second could allow companies to release more methane, a potent planet-warming pollutant.

__________________________________

 

Washington Examiner – June 30, 2026

World Bank scraps climate financing after facing pressure from Trump 

The Trump administration has secured another win in its campaign to end climate-related policies and regulations on the international stage, forcing the World Bank to retire its ambitious climate financing goals.  The World Bank Group announced on Monday that it was retiring its goal of 45% of its funding being dedicated to climate-related projects, with the aim of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the largest emitters while propping up developing countries in need of resources to adapt to climate change.

The Trump administration has for months pushed against this climate funding target, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent claiming that it “breeds inefficiency, distorts economic decision banking, and moves the Bank away from its core mission.” The United States is the largest shareholder of the World Bank, controlling about 16% of voting power. This allows the U.S. to single-handedly block any decision that requires a supermajority, such as extending or replacing the climate financing targets.

__________________________________

 

Reuters – June 30, 2026

US is working on ban targeting Chinese energy inverters, sources say*

The Trump administration is drafting a ban on imports of foreign inverters, which connect solar projects and batteries to the grid, over concerns China ​could use them to disrupt power supplies, according to five people with knowledge of the matter. The restriction being drafted by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission would apply ‌to new foreign models of inverters and could be published as early as this year, according to the sources, who asked not to be named because the matter was not public.

The Trump administration was spurred to revive the effort in part by a decision by the European Commission to ban Chinese-made inverters from publicly funded energy projects, the five sources said, though they cautioned the U.S. proposal could still be modified or shelved altogether. The FCC and the White ​House declined to comment on the draft measure. The Chinese Embassy in Washington said it “firmly opposes the overstretching of the concept of national security and its unjustified suppression of ​Chinese companies,” adding that the U.S. should provide “a fair, just and non-discriminatory environment” for Chinese businesses.

 

The Latest TERse Tips

Ring Energy, Inc has been added as a member of the broad-market Russell 3000^® Index, effective June 29, 2026, as part of the first 2026 Russell indexes reconstitution — see the press release

Corpus Christi declines to seek federal grant for long-debated water desalination plant — city Council members traded insults before the 5-4 vote blocked an effort to apply for up to $120 million in federal grants to help build the treatment plant — Texas Tribune

Consumer confidence ticks up as gas prices fall but Americans remain gloomy about the economy — Americans’ attitudes toward the economy improved slightly this month as gas prices declined, but their outlook is still mostly negative by historical standards — Associated Press/KVUE

KKR, a leading global investment firm, today announced that KKR has agreed to acquire the operations and assets of EDF power solutions in the United States and Canada (EDF power solutions Canada Inc.) from EDF group, one of the world’s largest power producers. This transaction values the equity interest in EDF power solutions Inc. and EDF power solutions Canada Inc. at approximately $4.2 billion, with potential additional payments of up to $0.39 billion — see the press release

Veteran BP executive Carole Howle is set to retire from the supermajor just two months after being appointed as deputy chief executive, the company said on Tuesday — Upstream

U.S. private equity giant KKR will take management control of a new $1.3 billion renewable energy platform in South Korea, deepening its bet on growing demand for clean power from chipmakers and artificial intelligence data centers — KKR and SK Inc. said Wednesday they will launch what they described as South Korea’s largest renewable energy platform, valued at 2 trillion won ($1.3 billion), integrating wind, solar and fuel cell assets previously held across the conglomerate’s businesses — CNBC

Air contamination was at dangerous levels near the site of a massive fire at a recycling plant in the southwestern outskirts of Juárez, the city’s ecological director said — plastic, wood, vehicles and scrap materials are burning in a “megafire” that started Monday morning, June 29, at a recycling plant in the Kilometro 26 area along the highway to Casas Grandes, a Juárez city news release stated — El Paso Times

 

Oil & Gas Texas

 

Oil Price – June 30, 2026

US Crude Output Sets New Monthly Production Record

According to monthly data released Tuesday by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), U.S. crude oil production climbed to a record 13.934 million barrels per day (bpd) in April—the highest monthly production rate ever recorded.

The new record surpassed March’s 13.718 million bpd by 216,000 bpd, as producers responded to the oil price spike triggered by the Iran war and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. While oil prices have since retreated as exports from the Persian Gulf gradually resume, April’s data captures the industry’s response when crude briefly flirted with $120 per barrel.

The Permian Basin once again did the heavy lifting. New Mexico set a new production record at 2.37 million bpd, while Texas boosted output to 5.83 million bpd, its highest level since November. North Dakota also posted its strongest production since November at 1.13 million bpd.

__________________________________

 

Texas Tribune – June 30, 2026

Bo French says Texas shouldn’t recognize babies born to undocumented parents as American citizens

Bo French, the Republican nominee for Texas Railroad Commissioner in the November midterm election, on Tuesday called the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to uphold birthright citizenship “traitorous,” saying Texas should not recognize babies born to undocumented parents as citizens. “The correct response to the traitorous decision today on anchor babies is nullification,” French wrote on X. “Texas can just do things and we should. Texas is sovereign. If I have anything to say about it, Texas will not recognize them as citizens.”

French’s comments follow a landmark ruling on Tuesday by the Supreme Court justices to reject President Donald Trump’s bid to end the 170-year-old constitutional right that affords American citizenship to newborns whose parents are immigrants. The justices voted 6-3. … He has called LGBTQ+ people slurs, said Texas should more openly embrace Islamophobia, and that the U.S. should deport 100 million people, nearly a third of the country’s population. After winning the primary in a runoff, in which he narrowly ousted incumbent Jim Wright, French said maintaining that was the point. He said such issues resonated with voters, not the Railroad Commission itself.

__________________________________

 

Pipeline & Gas Journal – June 30, 2026

Chevron Dismantles Former Carpinteria Oil Processing Facility

Chevron has begun another phase of its multi-year effort to dismantle its former oil and gas processing complex in Carpinteria, California, with work now shifting toward the removal of nearshore pipelines and related infrastructure, according to KEYT. The decommissioning program is expected to take about three years and includes dismantling the closed processing facility, removing pipelines near the Carpinteria Bluffs and restoring the 55-acre property.

Chevron has already demolished one of the site’s most visible structures, the approximately 50-foot-tall Tank 861. The steel from the tank is being recycled as part of the project. Pipeline removal is expected to become one of the most visible stages of the work in the coming months. The project has undergone regulatory review by local agencies and the California Coastal Commission before construction activities began.

__________________________________

 

KUHF NPR – June 30, 2026

Companies involved in Channelview sulfuric acid spill face more than $3.5 million in proposed fines

The U.S. Department of Labor is proposing more than $3.5 million in fines against three companies for alleged worker safety violations related to a sulfuric acid spill late last year in Channelview, with the bulk of that fine total levied against a subcontractor. The department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) found that BWC Terminals employees mixed fresh and contaminated sulfuric acid, which created “tank overpressure” and caused a supply line to rupture, according to an OSHA news release late last week.

The resulting spill released 1 million gallons of sulfuric acid, some of which went into the Houston Ship Channel, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said in the aftermath of the December spill. Two people were taken to the hospital and another 44 individuals were treated for injuries at the scene.

__________________________________

 

World Oil – June 30, 2026

California offshore operator Sable turns to investors to repay Exxon loan

Sable Offshore Corp., briefly buoyed by a Trump administration push to boost oil production off the California coast, lost roughly half its market value after it turned to equity and bond investors to repay debt owed to ExxonMobil. The stock of the Houston-based oil driller plunged as much as 55% on Tuesday, to an all-time low of $3.15 per share, after the company said it would raise $400 million through stock and convertible note offerings, therefore diluting existing investors.

The announcement came after repeated struggles to strike a deal to push out debt that comes due in a matter of weeks, even after it dangled some of the highest yields seen in the credit markets this year. JPMorgan Chase & Co.—which is running the stock and note offering—saw limited investor demand for a Sable loan paying a hefty 15% interest rate, according to people familiar with the matter. The loan, originally sized at $1 billion, was cut for a second time on Tuesday to $675 million, a separate person said, asking not to be identified because they aren’t allowed to speak publicly. Investors have until 2 p.m. Eastern time to place orders.

__________________________________

 

Associated Press/KDH News – June 30, 2026

Cypriot natural gas could start flowing from ExxonMobil’s discoveries by 2033

Other options including building onshore facilities in Cyprus or a floating one in waters over the deposits are considered too costly at this point. “Everything you’ve seen between the government of Cyprus and the government of Egypt gives us a lot of confidence that there’s good government to government coordination, the agreements in place to leverage that eastern Mediterranean energy hub concept,” Ardill said.

 

Oil & Gas National & International

 

Politico – June 30, 2026

Energy experts said gas prices would stay high. Why were they wrong?

Gasoline prices have fallen precipitously since the U.S. and Iran began their fragile truce, defying expert predictions of a long summer slog with sky-high prices. Instead of spiraling upward, the average price at the pump has plummeted 70 cents per gallon in a month from a peak of $4.56. A little over a week since the memorandum of understanding was signed between the countries, a barrel of oil costs just a little more than it did before the U.S. and Israel bombed Iran in late February.

__________________________________

 

Oil Price – June 30, 2026

Asian Refiners Redirect Middle East Crude to the U.S. as Hormuz Flows Recover

Some Asian refiners have recently offered Middle Eastern cargoes to the U.S. West Coast as supply from the Persian Gulf rises with the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, while Asian buyers are well-supplied for the next two months. Refiners in Asia have spent the better part of the past four months scrambling to procure crude for the summer from producers outside the Middle East. Buyers now have enough non-Middle Eastern crude lined up to arrive over the next two months, meaning that spot purchases from the Middle East aren’t really an immediate necessity, amid still uncertain developments about how open the Strait of Hormuz really is.

As a result, some of the Asian buyers are looking to offer now-available crude from the Middle East to U.S. states, including California and Hawaii, traders with knowledge of the offers told Bloomberg on Tuesday. Hawaii hasn’t imported any crude from the Middle East since 2018, while California hasn’t received Middle East crude since the end of 2025, according to estimates by Bloomberg. Ironically, Asian refiners picked up a lot of U.S. crude between March and May to offset the lost supply from the Middle East.

__________________________________

 

Oil Price – June 30, 2026

Ukraine’s Refinery Strikes Push Russia Into a Fuel Crisis

After weeks of trying to downplay the impact of Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian refineries, the Kremlin acknowledged this weekend that Russia faces fuel shortages and a fuel crisis that needs further government intervention to solve. A few weeks ago, regional governors across Russia rushed to downplay the fuel crisis, seeking to assure residents that supply is tight only at limited gas stations and there is no need to panic about shortages.

Apparently, this narrative couldn’t be contained for too long as Ukraine is stepping up attacks on Russian refineries and fuel supply routes, while demand for gasoline and diesel in Russia is rising with peak summer travel and the coming harvest. In just a few weeks, Russia switched from ‘don’t panic, everything’s fine’ to a formal acknowledgment by President Vladimir Putin that the country faces a fuel supply crisis. This weekend, Putin held a meeting with key government officials, including Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, and the top executives from the biggest oil companies Rosneft, Lukoil, Gazprom Neft, Surgutneftegaz, and Transneft.

__________________________________

 

The Wall Street Journal – June 30, 2026

A Dispute Over Opening Hormuz Drives a Wedge Into U.S.-Saudi Relations*

More than 100 U.S. military aircraft were taking off from bases and warships across the Middle East as part of an effort to crack open the Strait of Hormuz this past spring when they hit a glitch: Saudi Arabia, whose bases and airspace were critical to the mission, was saying no. The pushback forced the U.S. to abort Project Freedom, according to U.S. officials familiar with the matter, ending the military operation to guarantee safe passage for ships that President Trump had launched hours earlier. Incensed, the White House threatened to hold back delivery of interceptors that Saudi Arabia needs to shoot down Iranian missiles and drones, if the kingdom didn’t reverse course, U.S. and Arab officials familiar with the discussions said. Saudi Arabia ultimately backed down, but U.S. officials said at the time that the damage wouldn’t easily be undone.

____________________________

 

CNBC – June 30, 2026

Iran says it is selling oil at 20% premium as end of U.S. blockade sees 40 million barrels exported

Iran has exported more than 40 million barrels of crude oil since the U.S. removed its naval blockade of Iranian ports, and is now selling oil at prices roughly 20% higher than before the war, parliament speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Tuesday. The U.S. and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding on June 17 to end nearly four months of war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and set ​up 60 days of negotiations to work out a permanent peace deal. The two sides briefly traded strikes over the weekend after Iran attacked two transiting vessels.

The ceasefire prompted a surge in crude shipments through the vital waterway where traffic had largely ground to a halt during the conflict, sending oil prices sharply lower. “Since the day the naval blockade was lifted, we have exported more than 40 million barrels of oil,” Ghalibaf said in a television interview published on his Telegram channel. Iran had been unable to export a single barrel during the roughly two-month blockade that preceded the accord, he added.

__________________________________

 

Bloomberg – June 30, 2026

Morgan Stanley Warns of Oil Glut and Cuts Forecasts on Hormuz*

Morgan Stanley cut oil forecasts for the second time in about two weeks as flows through the Strait of Hormuz return faster than expected, while strong US supply and weak Chinese demand raise the risk of a glut. Dated Brent — a benchmark for physical transactions — is expected to average $75 a barrel in the third and fourth quarters, down $15 and $5 respectively, analysts including Martijn Rats said in a note. Outlooks for all four quarters next year were also cut, with Dated seen at $70 at the end of 2027.

“The Strait is reopening faster than expected, yet the ‘twin solvers’ of high US exports and low Chinese imports remain in place,” they said in the note, which followed an earlier round of reductions in a mid-June report. “As attention turns to 2027, the market has come full circle – back to surplus.” Brent futures — the global benchmark — have collapsed about 30% this quarter as the US and Iran reached an interim peace that’s allowed some traffic through Hormuz to resume. The rapid shift has prompted analysts to revisit their forecasts, with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. also paring its outlook. While traffic in the chokepoint had slowed over the weekend after two ships were hit, it has since picked up, adding to indications tanker companies are willing to navigate Hormuz. That’s a critical step toward returning the market to normal and unlocking millions of barrels of supplies.

 

Utilities, Electricity & Renewables

 

San Antonio Express-News – June 30, 2026

CPS Energy seeks proposals for battery projects to strengthen grid; one would be used for microgrid*

CPS Energy is calling for projects to boost critical infrastructure on the East and South sides. The city-owned utility is looking for a total of 20 megawatts of energy to be added to the grid, with the help of battery storage and microgrid technology. By the second quarter of 2028, CPS aims to own and operate two additional battery storage sites to improve the system’s resiliency. The utility will use one of the battery sites to create a microgrid. Microgrids are a flexible energy system that can operate on or off the grid. The option of “island mode”operation — where the system operates  independently from the grid — allows for it to provide energy during prolonged power outages, extreme weather and other grid disturbances.

__________________________________

 

June 30, 2026

New Poll: Voters See AI as Critical and Agree on AI’s Clear Benefits to Americans and the Country: American Edge Project

Related: In the Artificial Intelligence Policy Institute (AIPI) poll, 68 percent of respondents said they would be in favor of the government making “a formal review process for the most advanced AI models before they can be widely released” — twenty percent of respondents in the same poll said that they were in favor of the government leaning “mostly on companies to test their own AI models,” intervening  “mainly after problems occur.” Twelve percent were unsure about which choice they favored — AOL

 As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to be central to the national debate, new polling from the American Edge Project (AEP) finds that voters across the country support expanding U.S. energy capacity in order to meet increasing demand. Voters value AI innovation – even considering how much energy it requires – because AI delivers clear benefits to the country and to communities. These benefits include improving health care outcomes, supporting American families, the U.S. economy, and small businesses, assisting the U.S. military, and helping the U.S. compete with China.

“American AI innovation is helping us find cures to diseases, driving economic opportunities in communities, and securing our country’s competitive edge around the globe,” said Doug Kelly, American Edge Project CEO. “This research tells us that a resounding majority wants to ensure that we can support AI’s delivery of these benefits. Instead of undermining innovation and the value it brings to people’s lives, we must accelerate building out our AI infrastructure to ensure the American people are first in line to reap its benefits.”

__________________________________

 

Washington Examiner – June 30, 2026

First Texas city to ban data centers faces power test with challenge from state senator

A small town in Central Texas became the first city in the state to ban data centers, testing the limits of local power. San Marcos is positioned between San Antonio and Austin. It lies primarily in Hays County, which President Donald Trump lost by just under six points in the 2024 election. “We must prohibit them from building AI data centers in rural Texas neighborhoods,” Abbott said during the event in Bullard.

__________________________________

 

KSLA – June 30, 2026

SWEPCO launches first grid improvement project supported by Texas Energy Fund in Marshall

Southwestern Electric Power Company (SWEPCO) has launched its first grid enhancement project supported by Texas Energy Fund in Marshall. It’s the first step in SWEPCO’s efforts to modernize the system and improve reliability in east Texas without raising costs for customers. It’s all part of a $200 million grant administered by the Public Utility Commission of Texas, which Governor Greg Abbott announced earlier in June. As part of the project, around 700 miles of powerlines will be upgraded, and nearly 200 circuits will be improved. SWEPCO officials say this will enhance reliability for almost 193,000 people living in 24 counties in Texas.

The project in Marshall begins the first phase of replacing copper wire with stronger, more durable aluminum-alloy conductors and installing new utility poles designed to better withstand severe weather. “When we analyzed our system, upgrading copper wire to more modern equipment stood out as an area that would have the biggest impact,” said Adam Keeth, SWEPCO director of distribution engineering & reliability. “By replacing it with modern aluminum‑alloy conductors and installing stronger poles, we’re building a system that can better withstand ice, wind, and long‑duration storms and deliver more reliable service to our customers.”

__________________________________

 

Houston Chronicle – June 27, 2026

Texas property owners accuse Tesla of allowing toxins from refinery to pollute their property*

__________________________________

 

Mother Jones – June 22, 2026

Why GM Is Betting on a Future With Sodium-Ion Battery Storage

Peak Energy announced last week that it has entered a new partnership with General Motors to manufacture sodium-ion batteries for energy storage systems. The deal marks a pivotal moment for Peak, a startup founded three years ago, and an opportunity for GM to branch out into a battery technology that is largely limited to China. I spoke last week with Cameron Dales, Peak’s co-founder and chief commercial officer, and I started by asking him how he would explain a sodium-ion battery to a 10-year-old.

A good place to start, he said, is to understand that the market-leading technology—lithium-ion batteries—gained a foothold in the 1990s because of high energy density. So it has a long track record of success. “They pack a lot of power into a small package, which is why they’re so great for mobile applications, because you’re carrying this battery around with you in your phone, you’re carrying it around with you in your car, which is a large mobile device,” he said.

 

Regulatory

 

E&E News By Politico – June 30, 2026

Supreme Court pipeline case is a clash of conservative principles

The gas pipeline case the Supreme Court accepted Monday pits conservative priorities against each other. On one side, there’s states’ rights and property rights. On the other is the need for gas pipelines and other energy development. In the middle is a $383,000 tab for legal work, racked up as attorneys for a group of North Dakota ranchers fought with a gas company about a pipeline across their land.

The landowners didn’t oppose the pipeline, but they said the company was offering far less money than they’d gotten from other pipeline companies. They settled their case but left to the courts the question of who pays the fees.

And the courts haven’t been able to agree. North Dakota state law says the company should pay, and federal law doesn’t. That’s the legal question. But the conflict presents the conservative-dominated Supreme Court with questions about what rights landowners should have when the federal government authorizes energy projects that affect their property. The Trump administration has sided with the gas company in the case, WBI Energy, and against the landowners, saying the constitutional requirement for “just compensation” in eminent domain cases doesn’t include attorney fees.