Barnett Shale

Group protest targets Range Resources

Rising Tide North Texas, a group that says it wants “to bring an end to natural gas drilling” in the area, will hold an April 20 protest march and rally in downtown Fort Worth that will include a 5 p.m. stop in front of the headquarters of Range Resources, a natural gas and oil producer. See the full Star-Telegram report here.

--Jack Z. Smith

Republicans seek to curb EPA's power

The Obama administration's bid to regulate greenhouse gases after losing last year's congressional debate over global warming is making the Environmental Protection Agency the focus of Republican attacks on federal oversight. See the full Associated Press report here.

--Jack Z. Smith  

Gasoline, oil prices keep heading north

Energy prices just keep zooming upward, especially when it comes to gasoline and oil, the fossil fuel from which gasoline is derived.

The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in the Fort Worth-Arlington area has soared to $3.58, an eight-cent rise in just two days, according to a report today by auto club AAA, Oil Price Information Service and Wright Express.

The price is now 35 cents higher than a month ago and 92 cents higher than a year ago.

The average area price for mid-grade gasoline is $3.73. Premium is averaging $3.86 and diesel is at $3.85.

Meanwhile, the price of a barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose by $2.04 this morning, to $106.31, in futures trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That's the highest price that the WTI crude has reached since September, 2008, the Associated Press reported. Fighting in Libya continues to be cited as a key driver of the price rise.

North Sea Brent crude oil rose by $1.98, to $116.93, in London.

--Jack Z. Smith

Is Obama goal to cut oil imports within reach?

When President Obama called today for slashing the nation's oil imports by one-third by 2025, he echoed similar goals set by every president since Richard Nixon. But this time, it might work, according to this Associated Press report.

--Jack Z. Smith

Natural gas prices rise on Obama speech

Natural gas prices rose today in response to President Barack Obama saying he wants to the U.S. to use more of the fuel instead of foreign oil. See the full Associated Press report here.

--Jack Z. Smith 

Obama: No "quick fixes" for higher energy costs

There are no "quick fixes" for higher energy costs, President Barack Obama said today in calling for new incentives to boost production of oil, natural gas and biofuels and raise fuel economy standards for vehicles. See the full Bloomberg News report here.

--Jack Z. Smith

Regular gasoline jumps to $3.55 local average

The average price for regular gasoline has climbed another nickel, to $3.55 a gallon in the Fort Worth-Arlington area, according to a report today by auto club AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service. The average was $3.50 a day earlier.

The average for mid-grade gasoline stood at $3.70 today. Premium fuel is $3.83 and diesel is $3.84.

The U.S. average for regular is $3.60 and the Texas norm is $3.50.

The highest-priced gas is in Hawaii, where regular averages $4.23.The average is $4.04 in California, the most-populous state.

--Jack Z. Smith

No more than 50 years of oil left?

The world may have no more than half a century of oil left at current rates of consumption and there could be "very significant price rises" for the "black gold," British bank HSBC warns, according to this New York Times article.

--Jack Z. Smith  

Devon: 7,500 undrilled Barnett Shale sites

Devon Energy, the largest producer in North Texas’ Barnett Shale, has lots of drilling ahead of it in the natural gas play, company Executive Chairman Larry Nichols told the Star-Telegram in a telephone interview today.

“We have at least 7,500 undrilled locations,” said Nichols, who stepped down last year as Devon’s CEO after 30 years in the job.

Devon plans to keep about a dozen drilling rigs busy in the Barnett this year and will drill perhaps 325 wells, Nichols said.

The Oklahoma City-based company has an office in downtown Fort Worth and 550 employees involved in Barnett Shale operations.

Devon’s net Barnett production peaked at the equivalent of 1.2 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day in the fourth quarter of last year. As a result of weak gas prices and limited demand, the company will probably maintain production at about that level this year, but it has the capability to increase output to at least 1.5 billion cubic feet, Nichols said.

--Jack Z. Smith

An old law for a modern case

Prosecutors may look to a 173-year-old maritime law to bring manslaughter charges against persons involved in the Gulf of Mexico well blowout that resulted in 11 fatalities and the nation's largest offshore oil spill, according to this Houston Chronicle report.

--Jack Z. Smith