EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 12/12/25

PIPELINE NEWS

• E&E News: House passes permitting bill to ease Clean Water Act and boost pipelines

• OilPrice.com: House Vote Reignites Fight Over Who Controls America’s Pipeline Buildout

• Iowa Capital Dispatch: US House advances bill around water permits; environmental groups say it guts water protections

• Washington Examiner: Trump administration completes permitting for Alaska LNG pipeline

• Deceleration: Carbon Dioxide Accidents Show Regulatory Failure in Emerging Public Health Threat

• CBC: Alberta Treaty 8 chiefs demand pause on pipeline agreement, threaten legal action

• Canadian Press: Trans Mountain pipeline pays $196K penalty for environmental lapses after 2024 storm

• Pipeline & Gas Journal: Pipeline Leak Spills 200,000 Litres of Oil in German Farmland

WASHINGTON UPDATES

• New York Times: Lawsuit Seeks to Stop Oil Exploration in Remote Areas of the Arctic

• E&E News: Greens sue Interior to block new oil drilling, testing in Alaska

• Reuters: Trump plans envision major U.S. investment in Russia, restoring oil flows to Europe, WSJ says

• E&E News: Trump EPA preaches ‘compliance first.’ Does that mean enforcement last?

• E&E News: Data center boom creates political conundrum for the GOP

• E&E News: Republicans’ new EV narrative: China made US do it

STATE UPDATES

• KRIS: City of Ingleside denies second reading of special use permit for YaREN ammonia project

• KALB: Grant Parish Police Jury passes resolution opposing carbon capture, points to ‘public concern’

• E&E News: Arizona city rejects data center after AI lobbying push

• New York Times: New York Was a Leader on Climate Issues. Under Hochul, Things Changed.

• KHQ: Oil companies pay $279 million to drill in Gulf of Mexico, despite Florida pushback

• E&E News: LA County takes oil companies to court over idle wells

• Yale Environment 360: To Feed Data Centers, Pennsylvania Faces a New Fracking Boom

• Kentucky Lantern: Kentuckians could save billions if utilities moved beyond fossil fuels, study finds

EXTRACTION

• Center for Climate Integrity: Big Oil’s Deceptive Climate Ads

• Reuters: Cenovus forecasts higher 2026 output after completing MEG takeover

• Reuters: Suncor projects higher 2026 oil and gas output, trims budget

• Chemical Engineer: ExxonMobil to slash low-carbon spending by US$10bn

• China Daily: CCUS seen as smoother path to CO2 goals

• Globe and Mail: Albertans at risk of paying oil sands reclamation costs, Auditor-General says

• Inside Climate News: Latest Twist in Chevron’s Amazon Pollution Saga: Ecuador Ordered to Pay the Oil Company $220 Million

TODAY IN GREENWASHING

• Gaston Gazette: Watch Enbridge employees packing meals for to Gaston families in need

• Renfrew Today: Renfrew Fire Department receives 144 alarms to combat carbon monoxide

• North Bay Nipissing: Firefighters in Burk’s Falls get a boost for training thanks to Enbridge Gas grant

• Haldimand Press: Enbridge funding supports training for Haldimand firefighters

OPINION

• RFD TV: North Dakota CO₂ Storage Law Struck Down

PIPELINE NEWS

E&E News: House passes permitting bill to ease Clean Water Act and boost pipelines
Josh Siegel, 12/11/25

“The GOP-led House passed a trio of bills Thursday aimed at speeding up permitting for energy projects and bolstering power grid reliability,” E&E News reports. “The bills, passed largely on partisan lines, are unlikely to be taken up by the Senate. But GOP lawmakers are looking to put their stamp on a bipartisan priority of lowering regulatory hurdles that several industries blame for hampering energy project development as power demand surges and electricity prices rise. Most notably, the House voted 221-205 to approve the PERMIT Act, H.R. 3898, a sweeping package to ease Section 401 Clean Water Act permitting requirements to limit states’ authority to block infrastructure projects. Six Democrats voted for the bill. “We need to get back to building things in America. This is something that Republicans and Democrats agree on,” Rep. Jeff Hurd (R-Colo.), a co-sponsor of the bill, told E&E. “The delay in pipeline permitting and construction is a hidden tax on every single American on the eastern seaboard and beyond.”

OilPrice.com: House Vote Reignites Fight Over Who Controls America’s Pipeline Buildout
Julianne Geiger, 12/11/25

“The House on Thursday narrowly approved the PERMIT Act, a Republican-backed measure that would roll back the authority states have used for years to block major pipeline projects under the Clean Water Act,” OilPrice.com reports. “The 221–205 vote marks the chamber’s most aggressive attempt yet to redraw the permitting map just as the U.S. enters the largest natural gas pipeline expansion cycle since the shale boom. At the center of the bill is Section 401 of the Clean Water Act — the clause Northeastern governors have repeatedly used to halt gas lines out of Pennsylvania and Ohio. Projects from Williams, Kinder Morgan, and Millennium Pipeline have all died on that provision alone. The PERMIT Act aims to limit that veto power, curb environmental lawsuits, and restrict EPA’s ability to override Army Corps water permits. It’s a meaningful shift for the gas sector, not because it guarantees new construction, but because it lands at a moment when demand is surging downstream of the Permian and Gulf Coast. Developers already have more than $50 billion in new gas lines queued up for 2026–2028, driven by LNG export growth, data-center buildouts, and the long-term demand outlook pipeline executives now describe as “structural.” Twelve new or expanded projects are slated to come online next year alone, increasing Gulf Coast transport capacity by roughly 13% — the biggest one-year jump since 2008.”

Iowa Capital Dispatch: US House advances bill around water permits; environmental groups say it guts water protections
Cami Koons, 12/11/25

“The U.S. House of Representatives voted Thursday to pass a bill that Republicans say would reform the Clean Water Act and cut through regulatory burdens,” the Iowa Capital Dispatch reports. “Democrats and environmental groups said the Promoting Efficient Review for Modern Infrastructure Today, or the PERMIT Act, protects water polluters and removes clean water protections… “Rep. Sam Graves, R-Missouri pointed to the length of time it takes for certain permits regulated by the act to be approved and said states can “weaponize” the act to stop infrastructure projects like a pipeline… “Rep. Hillary Scholten, D-Michigan and other Democrats on the floor argued the bill would lead to more water pollution, higher water utility bills and decreased ability for a state to control the pollution within its boundaries… “Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Washington, said the bill’s 60-day review period for fill and dredge permits would be “unworkably short” for a community to understand the effects a project would have, or to mount any sort of “meaningful resistance” to a project. “This is a false solution that attacks essential, clean water safeguards and undermines access to our courts,” Jayapal said. Tarah Heinzen, the legal director with the environmental group Food & Water Watch, said the act is an “explicit assault” on one of the nation’s “most critical bedrock environmental laws.” “The impact of this bill would be bleak: a return to the bad old days of unchecked industrial pollution, rivers on fire, contaminated drinking water, poisoned communities and people getting sick,” Heinzen said in a statement.”

Washington Examiner: Trump administration completes permitting for Alaska LNG pipeline
Callie Patteson, 12/11/25

“A controversial natural gas pipeline is one step closer to being built across the state of Alaska, after the Trump administration wrapped up a more than 10-year permitting process this week, fueling its effort to expand domestic oil and gas development,” the Washington Examiner reports. “The Permitting Council announced on Thursday that it had completed the federal permitting for the Alaska liquefied natural gas project, which is projected to transport roughly 20 million metric tons of natural gas each year. .. “Completing federal permitting for Alaska LNG ahead of schedule shows how the Trump administration is restoring America’s Energy Dominance by cutting unnecessary delays and unleashing our abundant resources,” said Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum.”

Deceleration: Carbon Dioxide Accidents Show Regulatory Failure in Emerging Public Health Threat
Syris Valentine, 12/9/25

“In February 2020, Mississippi soil sodden with two months of excess rain weighed on a pipeline tucked within it. At 7:06 p.m. on the night of the 22nd, it became too much to bear. The soil slumped. A weld snapped. The pipeline pressure plummeted. The carbon dioxide that had been compressed into a fluid within exploded outward as it became a gas again. The eruption created a frosted crater 40 feet deep—the severed pipe exposed within like bone in a gash… “Denbury’s model did not contemplate a release that could affect the Village of Satartia,” PHMSA’s investigation found. As a result, they did no drills with local emergency personnel…”Accidents are “a reasonable concern for communities to have,” said Anna Littlefield, a PhD candidate at the Colorado School of Mines with expertise in both the science and politics of carbon capture projects. “Transporting the CO2 is the riskier part of a project.” “…But despite the industry self-proclaimed improvements, regulations have stayed the same. That’s a problem according to watchdogs like Pipeline Safety Trust. “These pipelines, from a safety perspective, are under-regulated at the federal level and at the state level,” Kenneth Clarkson, communications director at Pipeline Safety Trust, told Deceleration… “To ensure communities are protected against the possibility of a pipeline failure as companies ready to ramp up construction but the federal government shirks its oversight responsibilities, it falls on state governments to step up and tighten regulations… “. Already, a company in the Midwest, Summit Carbon Solutions, has attempted to use eminent domain lawsuits to compel farmers and landowners to give up portions of their property, so it could route portions of a 2,500-mile pipeline through their fields. But ultimately, a cross-cultural movement of Indigenous activists and white farmers in South Dakota and surrounding states have mounted a successful effort to block such seizures. If nothing else, their efforts demonstrate that so long as regulators are slow to establish and enforce laws that offer meaningful protections to communities, people have the power and potential to rally together and block these pipelines.”

CBC: Alberta Treaty 8 chiefs demand pause on pipeline agreement, threaten legal action
Jennifer Keiller, 12/11/25

“Chiefs from Treaty 8 First Nations of Alberta are calling for a pause on the pipeline memorandum of understanding until they are consulted and sign off on the potential project. And they’re threatening legal action if that doesn’t happen,” the CBC reports. “The chiefs spoke in Ottawa Thursday, decrying what they said was a lack of consultation with First Nations before Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith agreed to the MOU in November. “We have formally notified the prime minister that any further attempt by Canada, Alberta, or industry to move ahead without us will result in immediate action,” Grand Chief Trevor Mercredi said. Mercredi said actions on the table could include withdrawing Treaty 8 co-operation from joint initiatives and exercising “treaty, constitutional, political and legal mechanisms” to defend their sovereignty. “Every nation must be consulted,” said Mercredi. “And when we’re receiving information or news media releases about MOUs that are affecting our territory, we have a real problem with it and we will deal with it accordingly.” “…Mercredi said the MOU was carried out with “zero consultation, zero notice and zero involvement of the First Nations of Treaty 8.” The Assembly of First Nations has also called for the pipeline agreement to be withdrawn… “Mikisew Cree First Nation Chief Billy-Joe Tuccaro told CBC he recently met with the prime minister and other chiefs, and told Carney it was unacceptable the MOU had been signed without prior consultation.”

Canadian Press: Trans Mountain pipeline pays $196K penalty for environmental lapses after 2024 storm
Jordan Omstead, 12/11/25

“Trans Mountain has paid a regulatory fine for environmental lapses along its British Columbia pipeline route in the aftermath of a January 2024 storm,” the Canadian Press reports. “The $196,000 fine is the largest cumulative penalty of its kind issued by the Canada Energy Regulator. The regulator says when a January 2024 storm hit, the company failed to ensure enough environmental workers were on hand to handle the floodwater, and directed all of its crews to one location where weld repairs were taking place and where senior leadership was set to visit. It took the company several days, in some cases, to turn its attention to issues along other stretches of the pipeline route around Abbotsford, including a small landslide and sediment-laden floodwater. The regulator says although the lapses ultimately did not result in much harm, the risk was high. In what’s called a notice of violation detailing its reasons for the fine, the regulator says the pipeline company repeatedly failed to prioritize known issues along the pipeline’s B.C. segment as it tried to get the much-delayed project over the finish line… “The company’s own environmental inspector advised company leadership about a lack of attention to those issues given the “larger focus on production,” the regulator said. After the October inspection, a senior director issued a memo affirming the company’s commitment to prioritizing safety and environmental compliance over cost and schedule… “The regulator had initially issued the company four administrative monetary penalties totalling $292,000, but that was brought down to $196,000 upon review.”

Pipeline & Gas Journal: Pipeline Leak Spills 200,000 Litres of Oil in German Farmland
12/11/25

“Emergency crews have completed the cleanup of a pipeline leak that spilt at least 200,000 litres (about 53,000 gallons) of crude oil onto farmland in the state of Brandenburg, north of Berlin,” Pipeline & Gas Journal reports. “The leak in the pipeline, which transports oil from the Baltic Sea port of Rostock to the Schwedt refinery, occurred on Wednesday evening near the village of Gramzow during what officials described as a workplace accident… “The Schwedt fire brigade reported that the oil initially shot several meters into the air from a small leak at a pumping station before settling on the adjacent agricultural land. Refinery operator PCK said preliminary findings indicate the incident was caused by preparatory work for a scheduled safety test on the pipeline, ruling out any deliberate interference.. “Roughly 100 firefighters and 25 PCK employees were involved in the overnight response, with PCK now responsible for handling the subsequent environmental remediation efforts.”

WASHINGTON UPDATES

New York Times: Lawsuit Seeks to Stop Oil Exploration in Remote Areas of the Arctic
Karen Zraick, 12/11/25

“A federal lawsuit filed Thursday challenges an oil company’s new permit to explore for oil in a remote region of the Arctic in Alaska, arguing that such activity threatens the tundra’s ecosystem and the caribou herds that Native communities rely on for sustenance,” the New York Times reports. “Earthjustice, an environmental law group that filed the lawsuit, asked the court to revoke the permit. The lawsuit was brought on behalf of two national nonprofit organizations, The Wilderness Society and the Center for Biological Diversity, and Sovereign Iñupiat for a Living Arctic, an Alaska Native-led group… “The land remains largely undeveloped, though ConocoPhillips, the largest oil producer in Alaska, has some operations near its northeast corner. Those include the company’s $8 billion Willow project, which was approved by the Biden administration and remains under construction. Environmentalists opposed that project. The new activity would reach deeper into the reserve, pushing south and west. The lawsuit argues that those areas are ecologically fragile and that the government is required by law to afford them maximum protection. The work, set to take place during the winter months, would involve four exploratory wells and heavy-duty vehicles that send seismic waves into the ground to detect oil, according to the permit applications.”

E&E News: Greens sue Interior to block new oil drilling, testing in Alaska
Niina H. Farah, 12/12/25

“Conservation and Indigenous groups are suing the Interior Department to block new oil exploration in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve,” E&E News reports. “Interior’s Bureau of Land Management gave the green light late last month for ConocoPhillips to begin seismic testing and exploratory drilling for oil deposits in the 23 million-acre reserve, despite warnings of the environmental risks of further fossil fuel development in the largely undeveloped North Slope region. The authorization came on the heels of Interior finalizing a new rule in November that opened up half of the reserve to oil and gas development, reversing ecological protections for the reserve — known as the NPR-A — instituted under the Biden administration in 2024… “The groups warn the exploration program west of ConocoPhillips’ Willow project is likely to cause long-term harm to the environment, as well as to migratory birds and the Teshekpuk caribou herd.”

Reuters: Trump plans envision major U.S. investment in Russia, restoring oil flows to Europe, WSJ says
Guy Faulconbridge, 12/10/25

“U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan for peace in Ukraine includes proposals to restore Russian energy flows to Europe, major U.S. investment in Russian rare earths and energy, and tapping frozen Russian sovereign assets, the Wall Street Journal said,” Reuters reports. “…They include a plan for U.S. financial firms and other businesses to tap $200 billion of frozen Russian sovereign assets for projects in Ukraine… “U.S. companies would invest in Russian strategic sectors such as rare-earth extraction and oil drilling in the Arctic, while Russian energy flows to Western Europe and the world would be restored, it added. The Journal said one unidentified European official compared the proposed U.S.-Russian energy deals to an economic version of the 1945 Yalta conference.29dk2902l At that meeting, the victors of World War Two, the Soviet Union, the United States and Britain, divided up their spheres of interest in Europe.”

E&E News: Trump EPA preaches ‘compliance first.’ Does that mean enforcement last?
Kevin Bogardus, 12/10/25

“EPA has set out new guidelines for its staff interacting with polluters, championing quick compliance for violators of the law before turning to tough enforcement,” E&E News reports. “Craig Pritzlaff, acting assistant administrator of EPA’s enforcement office, said the memo “reinforces a ‘compliance first’ orientation as the guiding principle” for the program, including for all civil enforcement and compliance initiatives at the agency. The memo, obtained by E&E, also tells employees to seek approval from top leadership, pulls back guidance from the previous administration and bars mitigation efforts, known as supplemental environmental projects, or SEPs… “Former EPA officials said the agency already emphasized securing compliance first before digging further into its enforcement toolkit to crack down on those who breached environmental laws. They warned the guidance could stall staff from using measures to stop repeat offenders and stagnate enforcement action at EPA. “When an entity fails to comply with EPA’s regulations, the agency needs to do more than simply give the violator another chance to comply,” Larry Starfield, who served more than 30 years at EPA, including as the principal deputy assistant administrator in its enforcement office, told E&E.”

E&E News: Data center boom creates political conundrum for the GOP
Nico Portuondo, 12/11/25

“Republicans on Capitol Hill who have championed Big Tech’s race to dominate artificial intelligence are now confronting a growing political obstacle: voters angry over the soaring energy demands and utility costs tied to the data centers,” E&E News reports. “The politics of data centers are still very much in flux, but GOP politicians may be particularly vulnerable to a voter backlash because of their pro-development views and President Donald Trump’s all-in support for AI — including blocking states from setting their own rules. Some are starting to seek distance from the White House. Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis floated new limits on data centers as part of an “AI bill of rights.” Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley have also questioned Trump’s state preemption drive. Increasingly, congressional lawmakers from states at the center of the data center boom — Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia — are feeling the heat and looking to adjust. “I think people have very legitimate concerns, and that is: Who is going to pay the bill for the additional energy that’s demanded from this?” Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Va.) told E&E. “They go, ‘My power bill’s gone up because somebody down the road is building a data center.’” “…And around the country, grassroots “not-in-my-backyard” groups are emerging, including in the district of Rep. Jim Baird (R-Ind.), where a local Facebook group is mobilizing against two proposed facilities. In Wittman’s district, multiple proposals for data centers have been shelved after local pushback. Still, most Republicans remain supporters of Big Tech and the rapid infrastructure build-out. They see accelerating AI development as both an economic imperative and a geopolitical necessity in the race against China.”

E&E News: Republicans’ new EV narrative: China made US do it
David Ferris, 12/10/25

“Sen. Bernie Moreno is floating a new Republican take on why the Biden administration supported electric vehicles: It was duped by China,” E&E News reports. “We were ahead of them by a mile, by 10 miles on the internal combustion engine,” the Ohio Republican said at a Washington auto-industry conference last week. But then the Chinese “went into EVs, and then they convinced the Western world to go into EVs and play their game.” Encouraging the transition away from gasoline-fueled cars “was just an irrational, dumb policy,” Moreno added. Moreno’s outlook is the latest twist on the common — though not universal — GOP worldview that buying an EV only helps America’s biggest geopolitical adversary… “Moreno, who made his fortune as a car dealer, was elected last year, joining a small cadre of mostly conservative former auto salesmen in Congress. He was among the lawmakers who signed off on President Donald Trump’s agenda to remove nearly every trace of Biden-era support for electric vehicles. Moreno’s interpretation of why America first turned toward electric vehicles was disputed by Albert Gore, the executive director of the Zero Emission Transportation Association, which lobbies for EV-affiliated companies. The threat of competition from all-electric automaker Tesla, starting with the introduction of the Roadster in 2008, got domestic carmakers to start taking EVs seriously, Gore told E&E. A decade earlier, environmentalists’ desire for a car that didn’t burn fossil fuels gave rise to General Motors’ pioneering EV1 in the mid-1990s. And before that, in the 1980s, American scientists developed the lithium-ion battery that made modern EVs possible. “We’re talking about things that have been invented here and have been manufactured here in large numbers,” Gore told E&E.”.

STATE UPDATES

KRIS: City of Ingleside denies second reading of special use permit for YaREN ammonia project
Adam Beam, 12/10/25

“On Tuesday, the Ingleside City Council voted on the future of two industrial projects including an oil tank farm and the YaREN blue ammonia project,” KRIS reports. “Following a full house for its November meeting where the first reading for the YaREN project’s special use permit was approved, Tuesday’s meeting was moved to the Ingleside High School Cafeteria. Residents in support and in opposition filled the room accordingly. Several officers from the Ingleside Police Department were also in attendance for security… “For those opposed, many were from the Ingleside School District. “The dangers are beyond immeasurable,” an Ingleside ISD teacher told the council. “Let’s think about our people. You’ll be putting our lives at risk.” Kaitlin Bell, a student and cheerleader at Ingleside High School also shared her voice as well. “Y’all are choosing money over the well-being of our community.” “…Public comment continued for three hours as each resident made their case for and against the blue ammonia plant… “Mayor Pro-Tem Tracy Long read 5 pages of notes explaining the benefits of the project. However, when Long made a motion to approve the second reading no second was given, meaning the special use permit failed to pass.”

KALB: Grant Parish Police Jury passes resolution opposing carbon capture, points to ‘public concern’
Rob LaPerle, 12/11/25

“The Grant Parish Police Jury voted to pass a resolution declaring opposition to carbon capture sequestration during its annual jury meeting on December 11,” KALB reports. “Following a public comment period, during which two individuals spoke in support of the resolution and one against it, the jury voted unanimously to pass the motion; two jury members were absent from the meeting. Language in the resolution cites the jury’s “duty to protect the health, safety, property and welfare,” as well as raises public concerns for its decision to oppose CCS… “According to the resolution, the jury will continue to oppose the CCS projects “unless and until such technologies are independently verified by credible, peer-reviewed scientific evidence to be safe, effective and fully supported by the informed consent of the residents of Grant Parish.” “…Additionally, the jury will urge Governor Jeff Landry’s office, Louisiana’s Department of Natural Resources and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality to consider the concerns of local governments and their citizens when processing carbon capture sequestration proposals.”

E&E News: Arizona city rejects data center after AI lobbying push
Jason Plautz, 12/12/25

“Officials in this Phoenix suburb on Thursday rejected a proposed artificial intelligence data center despite pressure from a former U.S. senator and a tech industry lobbying group — capping a fight over local control that has captured national attention,” E&E News reports. “The Chandler City Council voted unanimously against a request by a New York developer to rezone a plot of land to build a data center and business complex. The vote caps a local battle that escalated after the intervention of former U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) and raised new questions about tech industry efforts to influence local decisions around data center projects… “The local fight gained outsize attention after Sinema offered public comment at two local meetings in Chandler on behalf of the AI Infrastructure Coalition. The former senator said she was working “hand in glove with the Trump administration.”

New York Times: New York Was a Leader on Climate Issues. Under Hochul, Things Changed.
12/11/25

“As recently as last year, New York was considered a trailblazer in tackling climate change. With aggressive laws on the books, the state had planned to nearly eliminate greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. But New York’s environmental agenda, as embodied in its landmark 2019 climate law, has stalled under the watch of Gov. Kathy Hochul, who has said that political and economic conditions have shifted and the state has had to adapt,” the New York Times reports. “…She is among the many governors around the country grappling with an affordability crisis, with fast-rising utility bills a main complaint. And she faces soaring energy demands, with electricity experts warning of a possible shortfall in New York City as soon as next summer. The governor has said that “we need to govern in reality.” Her priority now is “to keep the lights and heat on and rates down for New Yorkers,” Ken Lovett, Ms. Hochul’s senior communications adviser on energy and environment, told the Times. Some critics of the governor, however, told the Times that such reasoning is shortsighted in the face of the existential threat of climate change. Environmental activists and some officials in her own party have accused Ms. Hochul of abandoning the state’s climate law for politically expedient reasons; the governor faces a re-election bid next year. “We’re in a moment where it’s incredibly important for New York State to lead on energy affordability and climate,” Liz Moran, a New York policy advocate for Earthjustice, an environmental nonprofit, told the Times. “Unfortunately over the past year, we’ve seen the governor run toward the opposite direction.”

KHQ: Oil companies pay $279 million to drill in Gulf of Mexico, despite Florida pushback
Caleb McGever, 12/10/25

“Thirty oil companies, including Chevron, Shell and BP, paid the United States Department of the Interior around $279 million in bids to lease land across the Gulf of Mexico/Gulf of America, despite pushback against the sale from Florida’s entire congressional delegation,” KHQ reports. “In the letter, Florida senators and representatives said leasing the land to oil companies would violate President Trump’s 2020 executive order barring oil and gas leasing off Florida’s coast through 2032… “The risks posed by new offshore drilling far outweigh any short-term gains,’ wrote the Florida delegation. A press release by the Department of the Interior did not address concerns about Florida’s economy, but instead cited the president’s executive order 14154, ‘Unleashing American Energy,’ saying the sale aligned with the direction to federal agencies to accelerate offshore oil and gas development.”

E&E News: LA County takes oil companies to court over idle wells
Noah Baustin, 12/11/25

“Southern California officials are taking a group of oil companies to court in an effort to force the firms to pay for the cost of retiring unproductive wells,” E&E News reports. “Why it matters: The suit aims to hold oil companies that haven’t owned the wells for decades accountable for their cleanup, marking a major escalation in state officials’ efforts to dodge the bill for the Golden State’s numerous exhausted sites.. “The suit alleges that unproductive wells in the oil field are releasing harmful toxins and other pollutants into the ground, water and air. What’s next: County attorneys are asking the judge to order the defendants to clean up the uncapped wells and pay the county damages and restitution money.”

Yale Environment 360: To Feed Data Centers, Pennsylvania Faces a New Fracking Boom
Jon Hurdle, 12/11/25

“Twenty years after fracking began to boost natural gas production in western Pennsylvania, residents are bracing for another surge in output as gas-fired power plants prepare to meet a big jump in electricity demand. At least five new energy-hungry data centers are planned in the region, most of which will power themselves by producing electricity by burning natural gas on site. The burst in activity is prompting predictions, by power companies as well as their critics, of drilling hundreds or even thousands of new gas wells to fuel the centers’ power demands,” Yale Environment 360 reports. “While the gas industry welcomes new users for western Pennsylvania’s abundant natural gas, critics fear that higher production will add to the industry’s pollution of air and drinking water and heighten risks to public health. And in places where these data centers draw power from the grid, ratepayers are concerned about sharing the higher costs stemming from increased demand and upgrading transmission lines to carry additional power. “The reflexive response is always ‘drill more,’ so I think the likelihood is that you are going to see increases in drilling” as these projects move closer to reality, John Quigley, a senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Kleinman Center for Energy Policy and a former secretary of Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), told 360… “The state government “has fallen in line across the aisle to support [the] rapid buildout of AI infrastructure, even though the new power plants being proposed to run data centers in Pennsylvania are almost universally plants that would burn methane from local fracking wells,” the Clean Air Council, an advocacy group, said in a statement.”

Kentucky Lantern: Kentuckians could save billions if utilities moved beyond fossil fuels, study finds
Liam Niemeyer, 12/11/25

“A new study says Kentucky ratepayers could save billions of dollars through 2050 if electric utilities invested more in renewable energy and energy storage, retired “uneconomic” and aging coal-fired power plants, and avoided overbuilding natural gas-fired power,” the Kentucky Lantern reports. “The 65-page study, published Thursday and written by the consulting firm Current Energy Group, also says two Kentucky laws passed by the General Assembly in recent years restrict the retirements of aging coal-fired power plants and could “reduce or eliminate potential savings and lock Kentucky into a higher-risk, fossil-fuel-dependent future.” The report was commissioned by the environmental legal groups Kentucky Resources Council and Earthjustice along with the Berea-based Mountain Association and the Louisville-based Metropolitan Housing Coalition… “Here in Kentucky, coal was the least-cost way to produce electricity, but as our coal plants age and as the cost of renewable energy continues to fall, that’s simply no longer the case,” said Ashley Wilmes, the executive director of Kentucky Resources Council. “Continuing to rely on aging, uneconomic power plants simply leads us to less stable, less dependable and higher-cost electricity when compared to the other pathways that are modeled in our report.” “…It found the least-cost pathway creates up to $2.6 billion in savings for ratepayers through 2050 by replacing coal-fired power with “clean energy resources,” primarily solar power paired with batteries to store the power. “

EXTRACTION

Center for Climate Integrity: Big Oil’s Deceptive Climate Ads
12/11/25

“BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Shell — have spent the last 25 years running extensive advertising campaigns that push “a deceptive narrative that oil and gas companies are leaders in the fight against climate change, when in fact they are actively fueling climate catastrophe around the globe,” according to a new report from the Center for Climate Integrity (CCI) that examined more than 300 unique climate-related ads from the companies. “Big Oil’s Deceptive Climate Ads: How Four Oil Majors Sold False Promises from 2000-2025” is the first-ever analysis of the climate-related advertisements and advertising campaigns produced by BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Shell across the first quarter of the 21st century. Using information from the best available public sources, CCI’s report identifies and documents seven distinct categories of climate deception in the oil majors’ advertisements: Overstating actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; Exaggerating commitments to renewable energy; Shifting responsibility to individual consumers; Selling the false solution of natural gas; Pushing the false solution of carbon capture and storage; Seeding false narratives about hydrogen; Promoting the false solution of algae biofuels. “These deceptive advertisements not only misrepresent the climate impacts of the companies’ products, initiatives, and actions, but also feed a larger false narrative that oil and gas companies are part of the solution to climate change,” the report concludes.”

Reuters: Cenovus forecasts higher 2026 output after completing MEG takeover
Yagnoseni Das, 12/11/25

“Cenovus Energy on Thursday set its 2026 capital budget at up to C$5.3 billion ($3.8 billion) and forecast higher 2026 production as the Canadian oil producer integrates its recent purchase of MEG Energy and ramps up growth projects across its oil sands business,” Reuters reports. “…The company expects upstream production of 945,000 to 985,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in 2026, about 4% higher than 2025 when adjusted for the MEG acquisition. Most of the growth will come from its oil sands business, where Cenovus plans to ramp up output from Foster Creek, West White Rose and its newly acquired Christina Lake North assets. Cenovus said it plans to spend around C$850 million on Christina Lake North, and expects first oil from West White Rose in the second quarter of 2026. “Following the completion of a three-year growth investment cycle, we are well positioned to ramp up volumes from our projects,” said Cenovus CEO Jon McKenzie.”

Reuters: Suncor projects higher 2026 oil and gas output, trims budget
Sumit Saha, Dharna Bafna and Varun Sahay, 12/11/25

“Suncor Energy on Thursday forecast lower spending in 2026 despite higher oil and gas production, as it ramps up output from its oil sands operations, tightens costs and boosts shareholder returns with an expanded buyback program,” Reuters reports. “Suncor’s outlook mirrors those of peers Canadian Natural Resources and Cenovus Energy, as Canada’s oil sands producers are now among North America’s lowest-cost operators after years of investment, and have outperformed many global rivals amid a broader oil downturn. Calgary, Alberta-based Suncor expects upstream production between 840,000 and 870,000 barrels per day next year (bpd), up from its 2025 estimate of 810,000 to 840,000 bpd. Suncor also forecast a slight rise in refinery throughput volumes to between 460,000 and 475,000 bpd in 2026. It expects refining utilization to be between 99% and 102%.”

Chemical Engineer: ExxonMobil to slash low-carbon spending by US$10bn
Aniqah Majid, 12/11/25

“ExxonMobil will cut its low-carbon spending by US$10bn as it shifts investment back towards upstream oil and gas, joining a growing trend of energy majors pulling back from renewables,” Chemical Engineer reports. “…Exxon joins the likes of Equinor and bp in scaling down renewables and low-carbon investment and raising capital expenditure in fossil-fuel production… “The company has also begun its first large-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) project on the US Gulf Coast, which it claims could eventually capture up to 100m t/y of CO2. Several additional CCS projects – developed with partners including Linde, Nucor, and New Generation Gas Gathering (NG3) – are expected to start up next year… “ExxonMobil recently paused work on its multi-billion-dollar hydrogen plant in Texas due to weak customer demand.”

China Daily: CCUS seen as smoother path to CO2 goals
Zheng Xin, 12/11/25

“In its bid to balance sustained economic growth with its pledge to achieve carbon neutrality before 2060, China is betting on a technology that traps and buries carbon dioxide emanating from fossil fuels via carbon capture, utilization and storage,” China Daily reports. “Faced with an energy system still dependent on coal and heavy industry — sectors difficult to decarbonize — Beijing and State-owned energy giants are channeling resources into CCUS, moving the nation rapidly from small pilot projects to the planning and construction of multi-million-metric-ton industrial clusters. The push is formal and comprehensive. Beijing has integrated CCUS into its national 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) and recently updated its technology roadmap, defining CCUS technology as “crucial not just for the large-scale, low-carbon use of fossil fuels, but also a vital part of the overall technology mix needed to realize the goal of carbon neutrality”… “As of the end of 2024, China had 126 CCUS projects planned or operational, with an annual capture capacity of 6 million tons and an annual CO2 injection volume reaching 4 million tons, led by the energy conglomerates. China Petroleum and Chemical Corp (Sinopec), the country’s largest refiner, operates the country’s first CCUS initiative at the million-ton scale, capturing 1 million tons of carbon dioxide a year at its Qilu petrochemical plant in Shandong province and injecting it into the Shengli oilfield for EOR, a process that boosts oil production while permanently storing the carbon… “China National Petroleum Corporation is forging ahead with ambitious CCUS hubs in the Daqing, Changqing and Dagang oilfields in Heilongjiang province, Gansu province and Tianjin, respectively, aiming to aggregate emissions from nearby power and industrial facilities.”

Globe and Mail: Albertans at risk of paying oil sands reclamation costs, Auditor-General says
Emma Graney, 12/11/25

“Albertans risk being on the hook for billions of dollars’ worth of cleanup of the oil sands under current rules that govern security payments for the massive mining operations, according to a new report from the province’s Auditor-General,” the Globe and Mail reports. “The funds held through the Mine Financial Security Program amounted to just $1.8-billion as of September. Meanwhile there is an estimated reclamation liability of $51.9-billion, the Office of the Auditor-General found in a report released Thursday. That amount represents the potential cost to clean up mines at the ends of their lives… “But in his latest report, Mr. Wylie said that the way that the program calculates the value of assets risks overstating their economic worth, and therefore the companies’ ability to cover cleanup costs. “If MFSP assets are overstated, operators might not pay the necessary security, leaving Albertans at risk of bearing the financial costs of oil sands mine reclamation or the mines being unreclaimed,” he wrote… “Where mines in other jurisdictions often require full security to cover a project’s eventual cleanup costs, that’s not the case for the oil sands under the MFSP, Eric Leonty, assistant auditor-general, told the Globe and Mail… “The MFSP was at the heart of a lawsuit launched by the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation in April. The community argued that the province had failed to address a host of fundamental flaws in the program, thus undermining the eventual cleanup of oil sands sites and putting the environment at risk.”

Inside Climate News: Latest Twist in Chevron’s Amazon Pollution Saga: Ecuador Ordered to Pay the Oil Company $220 Million
Katie Surma, 12/10/25

“Over a quarter century in the Ecuadorian Amazon, oil giant Texaco (now Chevron) perpetrated an ecological disaster: It dumped 3.2 million gallons of toxic waste, spilled 17 million gallons of crude oil and flared nearly 50 million cubic feet of methane gas. The company also collaborated with U.S. evangelical missionaries to forcibly displace Indigenous peoples from their oil-rich lands. The victims have received no compensation. Now, three arbitrators have ordered that compensation be paid—by the Ecuadorian government to Chevron. The total: $220 million, according to legal documents made public this week,” Inside Climate News reports. “The ruling marks the latest twist in a decades-long legal saga that has stretched across continents and consumed millions of dollars in legal fees, all while the local population bears the burden of displacement and high cancer rates from the contamination. “Our territories, our forests will never be the same,” Penti Baihua, a traditional leader of the Baihuaeri Waorani of Bameno, told ICN… “That a major polluter will walk away with hundreds of millions in compensation is possible thanks in part to an international arbitration system known as investor-state dispute settlement. ISDS is embedded into thousands of trade agreements and contracts, endowing foreign investors with expansive rights and allowing them to bypass national courts and sue governments before panels of private arbitrators, many of whom are corporate lawyers. Companies have used the system to win hundreds of millions and even billions of dollars in awards after governments have raised taxes, strengthened regulations or rejected oil licenses. The vast majority of claims have been brought by companies from wealthy nations against governments in the Global South. As in the Chevron case, other multinational corporations have won ISDS awards even when leaving the ecosystems where they operated awash in toxic pollution or after being linked to human rights abuses carried out against locals. “I want this to be understood: Chevron is not the victim, Chevron is the perpetrator,” Donald Moncayo, president of the Union of Peoples Affected by Chevron-Texaco, an Ecuadorian organization representing individuals affected by the company’s 1964 to 1990 operations, told ICN.”

TODAY IN GREENWASHING

Gaston Gazette: Watch Enbridge employees packing meals for to Gaston families in need
Chloe Collins, 12/12/25

“Enbridge Incorporated partnered with the Gaston County United Way to provide 125 meals to local families, carrying on 24 year tradition,” the Gaston Gazette reports.

Renfrew Today: Renfrew Fire Department receives 144 alarms to combat carbon monoxide
Mik Horvath, 12/11/25

“The Renfrew Fire Department (RFD) has partnered with Enbridge Gas Ontario and the Fire Marshal’s Public Fire Safety Council to reduce fire and carbon monoxide (CO) deaths to zero, through Project Zero,” Renfrew Today reports. “The program has invested $450,000 in smoke and CO alarms to be distributed amongst fire departments across the province.”

North Bay Nipissing: Firefighters in Burk’s Falls get a boost for training thanks to Enbridge Gas grant
Sarah Cooke, 12/11/25

“Burk’s Falls, Ryerson and Armour council members gathered to celebrate the $5,000 grant awarded to the Burk’s Falls and District Fire Department by Enbridge Gas,” North Bay Nipissing reports. “The Burk’s Falls and District Fire Department has been awarded a $5,000 grant from the Safe Community Project Assist program, which is supported by Enbridge Gas and the Fire Marshal’s Public Fire Safety Council (FMPFSC). In a Dec. 9 press release, Burk’s Falls’ fire chief Joe Readman expressed his gratitude for the timing of the grant… “Enbridge Gas is distributing a total investment of $125,000 this year across 25 Ontario fire departments, including the Burk’s Falls department, as part of its ongoing commitment to public safety.”

Haldimand Press: Enbridge funding supports training for Haldimand firefighters
Nick Fearns, 12/11/25

“Celebrating a donation from Enbridge Gas to the Haldimand Fire Department is: (l-r) Jamie Kovacs, Executive Director, Fire Marshal’s Public Fire Safety Council; Scott Luey, General Manager of Community Safety and Wellness for Haldimand County; Ward 1 Councillor Debera McKeen; Julie Alexander, Senior Advisor, Municipal & Stakeholder Engagement, Enbridge Gas; Haldimand Mayor Shelley Ann Bentley; Fire Chief Jason Gallagher…,” the Haldimand Press reports.

OPINION

RFD TV: North Dakota CO₂ Storage Law Struck Down
Roger A. McEowen, 12/11/25

“A significant development in the realm of property rights and carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects unfolded on December 2, 2025,” Roger A. McEowen writes for RFD TV. “…The decision sides with landowners, asserting that the law, which permits the forced use of underground pore space for carbon storage without providing for “just compensation” as determined by a jury, is unconstitutional and violates the Takings Clauses of both the state and federal constitutions. The ruling introduces substantial legal uncertainty for the rapidly developing carbon capture industry in the state. The core of the dispute revolved around the legal status and use of pore space. That’s the subterranean cavities in rock formations where captured carbon dioxide is intended to be permanently stored. North Dakota established a mechanism known as amalgamation… “The specific provision in the CO₂ storage law allowed the North Dakota Industrial Commission (NDIC) to authorize carbon storage projects to proceed even if they lacked unanimous consent from all affected landowners… “If the District Court’s ruling is affirmed, the legal and economic fallout would be significant for carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects in North Dakota and potentially nationwide. If upheld on appeal, the decision could immediately void all NDIC orders that required mandatory landowner participation in existing or proposed carbon storage facilities. The multi-state CO2 pipeline and storage project of Summit Carbon Solutions, which is arguably the largest of its kind, would face an immediate roadblock… “Another impact of the decision, if upheld on appeal, would be that project developers would need to secure 100 percent voluntary participation from all affected pore space owners through private negotiation. This creates a significant “holdout” problem, where a small number of landowners could demand exorbitant compensation, effectively making a project financially unfeasible or significantly delaying it… “If the Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) project truly generates enough value to be economically viable and benefit society, the developer should be able to offer a price (even a very high one) that is sufficient to induce the holdout landowners to sell… “While an appeal is certain, the decision signals to the energy industry that the development of carbon capture projects in North Dakota, and likely elsewhere, will need to proceed with greater attention to landowner consent and equitable, market-based compensation, rather than relying on state-authorized compulsory participation.”