Jeff Bezos (owner) has informed Washington Post staff, that the focus of opinion pieces will now be on personal liberties and free markets.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged free markets, Jeff Bezos, new direction, personal liberties, Washington Post | Leave a Comment »
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — A controversial oil project on California’s Central Coast remains unresolved after the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors deadlocked 2-2 on a vote regarding a permit transfer for a pipeline linked to the 2015 Refugio oil spill. The stalemate means Sable Offshore Corp.’s application remains pending without approval or denial, leaving the next steps up to the company.
“They still have a pending application with no action taken on it,” said Kelsey Gerckens Buttitta, public information officer with Santa Barbara County. “It hasn’t been approved or denied. It’s now up to Sable to decide what to do next.”
Posted in California, Offshore Energy - General | Tagged Exxon, pipeline, Sable Offshore, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Unit | Leave a Comment »
Per the Daily Compounder on X:
The Board voted 2-2 to uphold the approval of the transfer of permits from Exxon to Sable. The tie vote meant the appeal of the previous approval failed.
Interestingly, one of the Supervisors reportedly slammed the California Coastal Commission for being politically motivated and abusing the law.
Posted in California, energy policy, Offshore Energy - General | Tagged Exxon, Sable Offshore, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Unit, transfer of ownership | Leave a Comment »
The Santa Barbara Independent has published a long, balanced article on Sable’s Santa Ynez Unit production restart which has reached a critical juncture. Today (2/25/2025), the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors will be asked to approve the transfer of the project from Exxon to Sable.
This will be the Board’s “first and last chance to have any influence over restarting the pipeline, and thus allowing the three offshore platforms to begin drilling again.” (Expect initial production to be from existing wells supplemented over time with new drilling, well workovers, and recompletions.)
The Board has limited authority in this matter: “The county’s legal advisors and energy planners have told the supervisors that there are no grounds to say no. It is not up to them to determine whether Sable’s liability insurance is enough to cover the costs of a reasonable worst-case oil-spill scenario; it’s only up to them to ascertain whether Sable has filed a certificate of insurance with the proper state agency.“
“All the essential questions regarding the pipeline’s safety measures are in the hands of California state agencies, headquartered in cities far away, with names so confusing that even people working there can’t tell you what the acronyms mean.” (see Regulatory fragmentation)
Interesting tidbits: “Danielson (the Sable representative) let me know that he would not be answering these questions. He was cordial, but he was not happy about a recent Independent story featuring attorney Linda Krop of the Environmental Defense Center perhaps Sable’s most implacable and formidable opponent, expounding in an unchallenged format on what a threat the pipeline still posed. Interviewing Krop was Victoria Riskin, herself a committed anti-oil advocate. Actress and Montecito resident Julia Louis-Dreyfus — of Seinfeld and Veep fame — apparently liked the article enough to send it to her social media followers.“
Below are the pros and cons of the SYU restart as cited by the Independent. (Clarification: The 10 billion bbl oil reserves number (“pros” slide) is at least an order of magnitude too high and is perhaps a typographical error. BSEE’s June 2023 data sheet (excerpt pasted at the end of this post) indicates remaining oil reserves of 190 million bbls for the 3 SYU fields. Adding the gas reserves ups the total to 243 million bbls of oil equivalent (boe). Additional reserves could likely be confirmed with new extended reach wells, but anything more than 1 billion bbls would be highly unlikely. Sable’s investor presentation (p.5) indicates 646 million bbl of Remaining Total Net Estimated Contingent Resources.)
Posted in California, Offshore Energy - General, pipelines | Tagged Exxon, Independent, production restart, pros and cons, Sable Offshore, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Unit | Leave a Comment »
Posted on Facebook by the Wayne County, Nebraska Sheriff’s Office:
“On 02-22-25, the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of two work-related fatalities.
South of Winside, NE, a wind turbine maintenance crew experienced an equipment failure, which resulted in two men falling from a turbine. Eddy Noriega Sebinet (age 46) and Raidel Justiz Noriega (age 37) were pronounced deceased at the scene.
The Wayne County Sheriff’s Office was assisted at the scene by the Winside Volunteer Fire Department.
The accident remains under investigation.”
Posted in accidents, Wind Energy | Tagged 2 workers died, fall, Nebraska, Wayne County, wind turbine fatalities | Leave a Comment »
Now that the favored wind industry is struggling, the Washington Post is conveniently endorsing an “all of the above” energy policy and urging Interior Secretary Burgum to “stand up for wind energy.” Where was this support for “all of the above” when offshore oil and gas leasing was halted, important pipeline approvals were being denied, States were banning hydraulic fracturing, nuclear plants were stalled, and coal workers were being told to “learn how to code?”
Additional comments on the Post’s opinion piece:
WP: “Opponents of wind power — many of them tied to the fossil fuel industry — have taken note and are furiously lobbying the government to block projects already under construction, as well.”
Comments:
- The fossil fuel industry is frequently accused of supporting groups that oppose wind energy, yet names and details are never provided.
- Most opponents of offshore wind are members of grass roots groups that have no connection to the oil and gas industry.
- Supporting anti-wind groups would be foolish from legal, political, and public relations standpoints.
- Wind opposition would also be contrary to the business plans of most oil and gas companies, some of which are/were major wind energy investors.
- Lastly, most anti-wind groups are also opposed to offshore drilling. Would “Big Oil” fund groups like this?
WP: “China’s capacity for wind power is already three times that of the United States.”
Comment: Does this make China an environmental leader? Does the WP also support China’s world-leading and still growing coal consumption (see below)?
WP: “Denmark derives about 60 percent of its total energy from wind.”
Comment: Is the WP unconcerned about the intermittency of wind power, the dramatic fluctuations in capacity factors, and the need for alternate power sources, typically coal and natural gas? How do these wind capacity factors look (chart below)? Does the WP support other Danish climate policies like the tax on cow emissions?
Posted in energy policy, Wind Energy | Tagged all of the above energy, Big Oil, China coal consumption, Denmark energy, Secretary Burgum, Washington Post, wind opposition | Leave a Comment »
The nominally conservative CDU has vowed not to form a coalition with the “far-right” (actually conservative libertarian) AfD, and will thus have to join hands with the left-leaning SPD and Greens. This doesn’t bode well for the significant changes many believe are needed.
On the plus side for AfD supporters, the party’s growth in just 8 years has been most impressive:
- 2017: AfD – 0 seats (4%)
- 2021: AfD – 94 seats (12%)
- 2025: AfD – 150+ seats (20%)
AfD was dominant in the East which fears a return of the Marxism they experienced prior to the “Wende.”
AfD’s energy policy (p.77) seems pretty sensible given the supply and cost challenges facing Germany. A few highlights:
- The AfD supports “Protection of the Environment”, but not the “German Climate Protection Policy” and plans for “decarbonization” and the “Transformation of Society”. They want to end the perception of CO² as an exclusively harmful substance and stop Germany’s maverick policy in the reduction of CO² emissions.
- Because the average output is so variable, renewable energy generators are not viable replacements for conventional large power stations.
- Renewable sources necessitate a massive expansion of the electric grid systems and jeopardize grid stability.
- Fracking: Explore Opportunities and Risks, Involve Citizens
- Nuclear Energy: Explore Alternatives, Grant Lifetime Extensions in the Interim
Posted in energy policy, Uncategorized | Tagged AfD, CDU, coalition, eastern Germany, energy policy, fracking, German elections, nuclear energy, renewable energy | Leave a Comment »
Groups and individuals opposing Atlantic wind projects sent the attached letter to Interior Secretary Doug Bergum asking for the withdraw of wind permits.
The groups cite serious problems with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Letters of Authorization (LOA) for Incidental Take of endangered and threatened species. The LOAs authorized cumulative Takes of 548 individuals from a population of around 338.
The groups’ “no list” (project analysis deficiencies):
- No EIS for the NMFS Incidental Take Authorization
- No consideration of the impact of harassment in the Biological Opinion including cumulative impacts
- No harassment authorization for the turbine installation ship
- No consideration of using suction caissons instead of pile driving
- No consideration of sediment plumes from ocean currents flowing through wind facilities
- No assessment of a project’s contribution to the overall effects of multiple wind projects
- No consideration of continuous operating noise
- No consideration of physical presence-based harassment
Posted in energy policy, Offshore Wind | Tagged Atlantic wind, CFACT, incidental takes, letter to Burgum, withdraw wind permits | Leave a Comment »
From the Nantucket Current on X.
We “feel misled” Nantucket Select Board member Dawn Hill Holdgate gives State Rep Thomas Moakley and State Sen. Julian Cyr an earful on Vineyard Wind.
“We as a board, and the community at large even more vehemently, really feel misled by the representations we were given back in 2020…”
“The visual simulations we were given were not accurate.”
“The promises on the lighting, they have been fully lit for quite a long time now. That never should have happened.”
“The safety and the environmental impacts on the sea life are just far greater than the information we were provided when we were offered a financial settlement based on just the visual impact on our historic landmark, which is far more impactful than the simulations we were shown.”
Blade replacement update: “They’ve removed four complete sets to date,” Nantucket Select Board chair Brooke Mohr said tonight. That would mean 12 of the 66 compromised blades Vineyard Wind is required to remove have been taken down.
Posted in energy policy, Offshore Wind | Tagged environmental impacts, Nantucket, Select Board displeasure, turbine lights, Vineyard Wind | Leave a Comment »
Mexico’s state-owned oil company, Pétroleos Mexicanos (Pemex), has confirmed an attack on a platform in the Ku-Maloob-Zaap (KMZ) oil complex located off the coast of Campeche state.
From the Pemex statement:
- On the night of 13 February, eight unauthorised individuals boarded the Zaap-D platform in the KMZ.
- The intruders stole radio equipment, various tools, and breathing apparatus.
- No employees were physically harmed, although two workers were evacuated due to stress-related concerns.
- In response, the company has strengthened security, deploying additional security personnel and coordinating with the navy ministry (Semar). (Question: What security measures were in place prior to the incidents?)
- Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed that the navy was “supporting Pemex in monitoring and responding to any assault on offshore platforms.” (Question: Did they apprehend the perpetrators?)
Not mentioned by Pemex, but reported elsewhere:
- Two platforms, Ku-H and Zaap Delta, were attacked
- The pirates were armed
- There were at least 5 gunmen
- Oil platforms in Campeche and Tabasco, 12 cargo ships, five fishing boats and ten smaller vessels accounted for 56 robberies in 2022.
- The Ku Maloob Zaap complex accounts for nearly 40% of PEMEX’s production
- The field became the Mexico’s primary oil asset in 2009, reaching a production peak of 874.731Mb/d in 2018.
- By October 2023, production dropped 246Mb/d, reaching 616.2Mb/d.
- PEMEX’s overall oil production has fallen by 12.1%, decreasing from 1.81MMb/d in 2018 to 1.59MMb/d in 2023.
Posted in Offshore Energy - General, Mexico | Tagged Pemex, Bay of Campeche, Ku-Maloob-Zaap complex, pirates, platforms attacked, platform security, Mexican offshore production | Leave a Comment »
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 