In 2015, the Oklahoma oil magnate Harold Hamm got a glimpse of the future and didn’t like what he saw. Renewable energy, he realized, was a threat to the long-term dominance of oil and natural gas.
At the time, Oklahoma was facing a budget crisis, and lawmakers wanted to increase taxes on oil and gas. To protect a lucrative tax break for his company, Continental Resources, Mr. Hamm waged a brutal campaign against the wind industry to convince lawmakers and the public that the tax breaks it received were the real problem.
Congressman August Pfluger pushes energy reforms in Texas legislative session
Projects are taking way too long. Companies have to wait extended amounts of time unnecessarily for drilling permits or even the ability to follow through on cross-border investments,” he explained. “So permitting reform is definitely something that we will focus on, and I’m optimistic about it.
Bill loosening rules for Missouri electric rates speeding toward passage
Two of Missouri’s three major electric suppliers are before the commission seeking rate increases. Ameren, which serves eastern Missouri, is seeking a rate increase of nearly 16% and the Empire District Electric Company, which serves many smaller communities doing business as Liberty, wants regulators to increase its revenue by nearly 30%.
CenterPoint Energy completes $1.2B sale of Louisiana, Mississippi gas systems
The purchaser, private equity-backed Delta Utilities, says it also is “in the final stages” of acquiring Entergy’s two regulated gas distribution companies in Louisiana.
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