EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 2/3/23

PIPELINE NEWS

• Minneapolis Star Tribune: ‘Carbon Express’ pipeline runs into skepticism in Minnesota farm country

• Bismarck Tribune: North Dakota regulators schedule 4 public hearings on Summit’s CO2 pipeline

• Red Lake Nation News: Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairperson Janet Alkire Decries DAPL Criminal Convictions and Government Secrecy

• Spokesman-Review: Study will gauge risks to Spokane’s water supply from catastrophic leak of Yellowstone pipeline

• KCUR: What’s next for Kansas after the Keystone Pipeline spill?

• Reuters: Enbridge restores British Columbia natural gas pipeline to full service

• U.S. Dept. of Justice: Attempted Pipeline Bomber Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison

WASHINGTON UPDATES

• Bloomberg: White House Told To Get Tough On Agencies’ Environmental Reviews 

• InsideEPA: Oil & Gas Group Urges CEQ To Halt, Scale Back NEPA Climate Guidance

• The Hill: House Republicans Blast Environmental Rules In First Energy Meeting 

• E&E News: Climate Hawks Want The Senate To Take On Big Oil

• E&E News: Republicans erase ‘environmental justice’ from documents

• Washington Post: The gas industry is under fire. It’s hiring Democratic politicians to help.

• E&E News: Watchdog group urges ethics probe of BLM official

• Grist: How the Supreme Court could finally force Big Oil to face trial

STATE UPDATES

• Ohio Capital Journal: Commission advances rules, leasing forms for drilling on Ohio’s state lands

• Grist: Report: Burning gas in oil fields cost tribes $22 million

EXTRACTION

• Offshore Technology: Fossil fuel companies contribute to 43% of global methane emissions, analysis shows 

• Canadian Press: Teck completes sale of Fort Hills stake to project partners; exits oilsands

• Environmental Defense Fund: New study shows huge variation in how different oil companies manage climate pollution – underscores need for more oversight

CLIMATE FINANCE

• Reuters: Big Oil mega-deals would put investors on the spot

TODAY IN GREENWASHING

• Cenovus Energy: Influence Mentoring receives $100,000 donation from Cenovus Energy to support Indigenous youth

OPINION

• Newsweek: John Kerry Says Oil Chief Leading COP28 Is ‘Terrific.’ It’s Terrifying

• National Observer: The sickening reality of tailings ponds

• The Hill: Climate change consumer deception lawsuits threaten free speech. Will the Supreme Court take note?

PIPELINE NEWS

Minneapolis Star Tribune: ‘Carbon Express’ pipeline runs into skepticism in Minnesota farm country
Jennifer Bjorhus, 2/2/23

“One of the world’s largest planned carbon storage projects is hitting resistance in rural Minnesota as an Iowa company tries to entice landowners to allow a carbon dioxide pipeline to run under their fields,” the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. “…A company executive told the Tribune Summit has secured about half the easements it needs in Minnesota. Even so, pushback was evident in this small southwest Minnesota farm town during a Monday evening in January where about 120 people, mostly landowners, packed the American Legion hall for a two-hour community meeting on carbon pipelines… “Supporters say every possible approach must be taken to cut greenhouse gas emissions; opponents call carbon pipelines a false climate solution that continues fossil fuel reliance.The January meeting was organized by Carbon Pipelines Minnesota, an opposition group run by Clean Up the River Environment (CURE), a Montevideo-based environmental nonprofit focused on rural communities. The group has been rallying landowners facing whether to sign an easement with Summit, whose pipeline would run about 240 miles in Minnesota… “This is a community issue, not just a private landowner issue, because it will affect all of us,” CURE director Peg Furshong told the crowd. Landowners are questioning the global warming benefits and safety of piping and sequestering carbon dioxide, as well as the terms of the easement agreements. There’s also distaste with how the land agents for Summit have dealt with landowners. The state has ordered a full environmental review of the pipeline, which is not yet approved. “Frosting on a cow pie” is how one farmer from Wabasso, Minn., described the easement agreement Summit gave him… “Two Minnesota landowners told the crowd how their crop land never fully recovered from easements for past pipeline or powerline projects. Removing topsoil destroys the soil structure, and heavy equipment can compact it, they said. Bob Ruebel, a landowner near Olivia, Minn., told the room that two decades later the yields on those easement lands are still down 30% to 35%, and the company stopped paying for those losses. “You folks should not be subsidizing their pipeline,” Ruebel told the attendees. “You’ve got to get up and do something, folks, or they are going to run you over.”

Bismarck Tribune: North Dakota regulators schedule 4 public hearings on Summit’s CO2 pipeline
JACKIE JAHFETSON, 2/2/23

“Four public hearings have been set for a pipeline that would transport carbon dioxide emissions from Midwestern ethanol plants to North Dakota for permanent underground storage,” the Bismarck Tribune reports. “The North Dakota Public Service Commission scheduled four hearings for Summit Carbon Solutions’ permit application for a CO2 pipeline that would run about 320 miles through Burleigh, Cass, Dickey, Emmons, Logan, McIntosh, Morton, Oliver, Richland and Sargent counties. Each public hearing will provide an overview of Summit’s project and focus on the specific geographic location related to each hearing location. The hearings are: 8:30 a.m. March 14 at the North Dakota Heritage Center auditorium in Bismarck, focusing on the project in Oliver, Morton and Burleigh counties; 9 a.m. March 28 at North Sargent School Activity Center in Gwinner, focusing on Dickey and Sargent counties; 9 a.m. April 11 at the Harry Stern and Ella Stern Cultural Center in Wahpeton, focusing on Cass and Richland counties; 9 a.m. May 9 at the Emmons County Courthouse in Linton, focusing on Emmons, Logan and McIntosh counties.”

Red Lake Nation News: Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairperson Janet Alkire Decries DAPL Criminal Convictions and Government Secrecy
2/3/23

“Janet Alkire, the Chairwoman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, is calling upon the Army to consider the Dakota Access pipeline (DAPL) operators’ recent criminal convictions and shut down the pipeline,” Red Lake Nation News reports. “Energy Transfer’s companies admitted to 23 crimes,” Alkire explains, referring to a no contest plea agreement entered in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. “They committed dozens of crimes in the construction and operation of the Mariner East and Revolution pipelines. Are DAPL’s construction and operational flaws to be uncovered next? Based upon recent history, unfortunately, the risks all point to ‘yes.’ These criminals should not be allowed to operate a high capacity hazardous liquid pipeline on our Treaty land.” Alkire says that Standing Rock is a signatory of the 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty, which contains a “bad man” clause requiring the United States to remove non-Indian criminals from the Treaty territory. “Under the bad man clause, the Corps of Engineers must shut down DAPL and remove Energy Transfer from our Treaty land,” Alkire says. Alkire also expresses concern that the Corps of Engineers is hiding important documents relating to pipeline safety. “Our Tribe has requested that the Corps of Engineers share basic documents, such as the Emergency Response Plan and DAPL Spill Model, which shows the effects of an oil spill on our Reservation. Col. Mark Himes of the Corps’ Omaha District office has refused to share any information. What are they hiding? Why are they defending prosecuted criminals, Energy Transfer, against our Tribe?” The Corps is currently drafting an Environmental Impact Statement on DAPL, which has been operating in a federal flood control project without a permit since March 2020, when federal judge James Boasberg vacated a prior easement due to a flawed Environmental Assessment by the Corps of Engineers.”

Spokesman-Review: Study will gauge risks to Spokane’s water supply from catastrophic leak of Yellowstone pipeline
Emry Dinman, 1/31/23

“The Yellowstone petroleum pipeline, which runs from Montana to Washington, travels directly over the largest drinking water source in Spokane,” the Spokesman-Review reports. “What happens if the pipeline fails, what are the worst case scenarios and how much would it cost to clean up? Those are the questions the city hopes to answer with a $273,000 study to assess the risks posed by the unlikely but potentially devastating possibility of a catastrophic leak… “The pipeline runs within 50 feet of the Parkwater well site, which supplies a large percentage of the city’s drinking water, and a leak could contaminate large swaths of aquifer south of the river. Federal laws restrict the ability of the city to regulate the pipeline or demand that it be moved, said Council President Breean Beggs. At the tail end of 2021, the city secured the strongest conditions on the pipeline since it was first constructed, including a $100 million liability insurance policy… “The study will examine how the city should respond to different scenarios, depending on the severity of a pipe burst or other leak… “The study will also evaluate risks from specific petroleum products transported through the pipeline, looking at the full chemical profile. Consultants will also be expected to draft a conceptual design for a monitoring program that could give additional warning if something goes wrong with the pipeline. If recovery from a spill looks like it could be extraordinarily expensive, the study could provide leverage for local leaders to petition Congress for reforms, noted Councilman Michael Cathcart.”

KCUR: What’s next for Kansas after the Keystone Pipeline spill?
Nomin Ujiyediin, Trevor Grandin, Byron J. Love, 2/3/23

“It’s been almost two months since the Keystone pipeline erupted and crude oil rained down upon several acres of native prairie and cropland, and polluted more than three miles of Mill Creek,” KCUR reports. “Hundreds of workers have been hustling around the clock to recover the oil, but landowners want more information about the cleanup and about why the pipeline broke. In December, 600,000 gallons of crude oil spilled from the Keystone Pipeline, onto Kansas farmland, and into nearby waterways. The pipeline’s operator says it’s cleaned almost 90% of the spill, but life for locals will be impacted for years. The Kansas New Service’s Celia Llopis-Jepsen spoke with residents of Washington County to find out what life has been like since the spill.”

Reuters: Enbridge restores British Columbia natural gas pipeline to full service
2/2/23

“Canada’s Enbridge Inc (ENB.TO) has returned its T-South natural gas pipeline system in British Columbia to full service following an unplanned outage, the company said on Thursday,” Reuters reports. “A segment of a 36-inch (91-cm) pipeline near Chilliwack, British Columbia, was isolated for assessments on Tuesday as a precaution while another 30-inch line continued to operate, the company said in a statement posted on its website… “In November 2022, Enbridge announced a C$3.6 billion ($2.65 billion) expansion of T-South, the southern segment of its B.C. gas pipeline system.”

U.S. Dept. of Justice: Attempted Pipeline Bomber Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison
2/2/23

“A Fort Worth man was sentenced in federal court in Austin today to 60 months in prison for attempting to damage or destroy a portion of the Permian Highway Pipeline in Hays County. According to court documents, Ryan Blake McKinney, 22, attempted to detonate a device near a section of the Permian Highway Pipeline on Jan. 26, 2022. He had conducted extensive planning for the attack and deliberately chose the Permian Highway Pipeline as part of his ideological fight against capitalism and climate change. McKinney intended to weaken Texas energy independence and ensure significant economic consequences. He turned himself in after his device failed to damage the pipeline due to a design flaw.”

WASHINGTON UPDATES

Bloomberg: White House Told To Get Tough On Agencies’ Environmental Reviews 
Stephen Lee, 2/1/23

“The Center for Biological Diversity on Wednesday called on the Biden administration to put more backbone into its environmental review rules,” Bloomberg reports. “Under the center’s proposal, all federal agencies would have to consider environmental justice and address the climate crisis at every stage of their decision making. The proposed regulatory text also would discourage agencies from causing more harm to the environment. The petition is meant to give the White House a roadmap to keep President Joe Biden’s campaign promises about locking in bold progress on environmental protection, Brett Hartl, CBD’s government affairs director, told Bloomberg.”

InsideEPA: Oil & Gas Group Urges CEQ To Halt, Scale Back NEPA Climate Guidance
2/1/23

“A major oil and gas industry group is urging the White House to pause implementation of its guidance for considering greenhouse gas emissions and climate change in National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reviews, arguing officials must scale back aspects of the guide that are ‘legally inappropriate,’” InsideEPA reports. “The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) guidance ‘is counter-productive climate policy that will likely harm the development of energy projects necessary to provide Americans and our allies with affordable, reliable, and cleaner energy,’ the American Petroleum Institute (API) charges in a Jan. 23 letter to CEQ Chairwoman Brenda Mallory. CEQ’s Jan. 6 ‘interim’ guidance says agency officials should review projects’ direct and indirect GHG emissions, among other issues. In the case of a natural gas pipeline, that includes downstream emissions from when the gas is used for fuel and upstream emissions tied to greater induced production. But API argues this broad accounting is ‘legally inappropriate according to the terms of NEPA itself, as well as subsequent court rulings.’ The group also takes issue with the guidance’s implicit connecting of individual projects to indirect upstream and downstream GHGs.”

The Hill: House Republicans Blast Environmental Rules In First Energy Meeting 
Nick Robertson, 2/1/23

“House Republicans took aim at the country’s bedrock environmental policy in their first meeting in charge of the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday, painting a bleak picture of the energy sector under President Biden and pushing for sweeping action to boost gas production,” The Hill reports. ”‘We need to be doing more to secure and unleash American energy,’ Chairwoman Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) said during the six-hour hearing. Republicans pushed for federal agencies to simplify the permitting and assessment process that they blame for curbing growth of the energy industry and infrastructure, with many members backing a rewrite of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which was enacted in 1970… ‘Our path to true energy security is not to double down on oil and gas,’ Rep. Scott Peters (D-Calif.) said. ‘Despite the pain of these price fluctuations, Republicans continue to propose the same false solution: more oil and gas.”’

E&E News: Climate Hawks Want The Senate To Take On Big Oil
Emma Dumain, 2/2/23

“With the House now under a Republican majority, climate-minded Democrats are looking to the Senate to take up their party’s fight against the fossil fuel industry,” E&E News reports. “On Wednesday, three of the Senate’s most vocal climate hawks — Democrats Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Jeff Merkley of Oregon — called on their colleagues to pass the ‘Big Oil Windfall Tax Credit.’ Their plea came as oil giants reported record-breaking profits that are estimated to top $190 billion for 2022, nearly 50 percent more than the industry’s previous record in 2011.”

E&E News: Republicans erase ‘environmental justice’ from documents
Nico Portuondo, 2/3/23

“The phrase “environmental justice” — which Democrats use to describe the remedy to the outsize exposure of poor and marginalized communities to harm from hazardous waste, resource extraction and extreme weather — is missing from new House Energy and Commerce Committee documents,” E&E News reports. “During an organizational hearing this week, Rep. Nanette Díaz Barragán (D-Calif.) noticed the term wasn’t referenced in materials outlining subcommittee jurisdictional boundaries. “My understanding is that the jurisdiction of environmental justice has been stricken from jurisdiction of the subcommittees,” Barragán told E&E. “It’s something our committee should absolutely oversee, how communities of color and low-income communities are disproportionately impacted.” Full committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) told E&E that despite changes to subcommittee titles and outlines, the jurisdiction of the different panels hasn’t shifted compared to the last Congress. Rodgers, during an interview, told E&E the committee intends to focus on the impact of energy development on minority and low-income communities. “We’re absolutely committed to high environmental standards, environmental justice and energy justice,” Rodgers told E&E. Still, Democrats argue language matters. They believe stripping the phrase from subcommittee jurisdiction descriptions is a sign that the new majority Republican might overlook issues of equity.”

Washington Post: The gas industry is under fire. It’s hiring Democratic politicians to help.
Maxine Joselow, 2/2/23

“At a time when many other Democrats fault natural gas for fueling climate change, former senator Mary Landrieu (D-La.) frames it as a solution,” the Washington Post reports. “Yes, this country needs to move forward on wind and solar,” Landrieu said in a recent Bloomberg News interview, speaking on behalf of a nonprofit group that advocates for natural gas. “But we need to back it up with a fuel that we can count on, a power source, and that’s natural gas. It’s abundant, it’s cheap, and it can be cleaner.” What she didn’t mention, however, is that the nonprofit group was created by a half-dozen gas companies, with the explicit goal of convincing Democratic voters that gas is a “clean” energy source. The group, dubbed Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future, comes as Democratic leaders across the country restrict gas use to fight climate change. The bans threaten customer losses for gas utilities, which dominate the liberal strongholds in cities and on coasts. To resist these efforts, the nonprofit group has enlisted prominent Democratic politicians and pollsters to help enhance gas’s reputation among liberal voters… “Natural Allies is backed by TC Energy, the Canadian pipeline giant behind the controversial Keystone XL project, and Southern Company, one of the biggest U.S. utilities. Launched shortly before the 2020 election, the group is led by Susan Waller, a former executive at the pipeline firm Enbridge.”

E&E News: Watchdog group urges ethics probe of BLM official
Scott Streater, 1/30/23

“A watchdog group led by a former Trump administration official wants a federal probe into whether a senior Bureau of Land Management official improperly maintained financial ties to ConocoPhillips while the bureau was evaluating a project the company has proposed in Alaska,” E&E News reports. “Protect the Public’s Trust on Monday filed a formal ethics complaint with the Interior Department’s inspector general requesting an investigation of BLM Deputy Director of Policy and Programs Nada Culver’s financial ties to ConocoPhillips. The complaint alleges that Culver held onto Conoco bonds she and her husband owned months after she was alerted to sell them by Interior’s ethics office, and about four months after starting work at BLM… “This may be the most egregious example yet of the considerable disregard for ethics compliance at the Department of the Interior” during the Biden administration, Michael Chamberlain, director of Protect the Public’s Trust, said in a statement. Protect the Public’s Trust bills itself as nonpartisan, but Chamberlain is a former Trump administration official.”

Grist: How the Supreme Court could finally force Big Oil to face trial
Kate Yoder, 2/3/23

“It’s been eight years since the world learned that “Exxon Knew.” The oil giant had grasped the dangers of burning fossil fuels since 1977, investigations showed, despite its long-standing public stance that the science was “uncertain” and persistent efforts to block legislation that would control carbon pollution,” Grist reports. “The revelations launched a wave of lawsuits that aimed to put fossil fuel companies on trial for deceiving the public about climate change. In 2017, cities and counties in California started the trend by suing dozens of oil, gas, and coal companies using state “tort” laws meant to protect people from deceptive advertising. Attorneys general in other states filed similar suits of their own, beginning with Rhode Island in 2018. It spurred speculation that Big Oil might face a reckoning for misleading the public about the dangers of climate change, much as Big Tobacco did in the 1990s after decades spent denying that smoking could cause cancer.  In the ensuing years, not a single one of these consumer-protection cases — now numbering nearly two dozen — made it to trial. They have bounced around between federal and state courts, with oil companies maneuvering to delay any action… “The procedural battles might soon end when the Supreme Court reviews Suncor v. Boulder County later this year, a case that promises to be a turning point for climate litigation. The court will either hear the case (the oil industry’s choice) or send it back to state courts where state and local governments say it belongs. The decision could remove the dam that’s been standing in the way of the lawsuits that states, cities, and counties have brought against fossil fuel giants. Cases that have been languishing for half a decade could finally be heard, with the chance that oil companies would be called to face trials for violating state laws that guard the public against false advertising.”

STATE UPDATES

Ohio Capital Journal: Commission advances rules, leasing forms for drilling on Ohio’s state lands
NICK EVANS, 2/2/23

“Environmentalists demanded public input and oversight before oil and gas companies gain clearance to drill on public lands,” the Ohio Capital Journal reports. “The five-member oil and gas land management commission heard public comment Wednesday before approving a new standard lease form and rules. The process to lease public lands for oil and gas exploration has been exceptionally slow. Lawmakers established the commission in 2011, charged with drafting rules and a standard leasing form. Then-Gov. John Kasich never selected commissioners. Gov. Mike DeWine filled the seats, but the panel has yet to finalize its work. Frustrated with the commission’s pace, state lawmakers passed House Bill 507 late last year ordering agencies to go forward with leases — bypassing the commission altogether until it adopts rules. That legislation takes effect April 7. The provisions approved Wednesday now head to Ohio’s Common Sense Initiative and the Joint Commission on Agency Rule Review for consideration… “Under HB 507, prospective drillers only need to approach a state agency to request access. The legislation includes a clause stating agencies “shall lease” to them in good faith. The only requirements a company faces are proving they have a license and insurance.”

Grist: Report: Burning gas in oil fields cost tribes $22 million
Maria Parazo Rose, 2/2/23

“In 2019, oil and gas companies operating on tribal and federal lands lost $63 million in revenue from venting, flaring, and leaking infrastructure,” Grist reports. “That loss, according to a report from the Environmental Defense Fund and Taxpayers for Common Sense, shows that Indigenous nations lost the most potential royalty revenue: approximately $21.8 million… “Synapse Energy Economics, the consulting firm that conducted the analysis, found that 54 percent of the gas lost in 2019 was due to flaring, 46 percent to leaks, and less than 1 percent to venting. Researchers found that on federal lands, a majority of natural gas is lost to leaks while on tribal land, most loss is attributed to flaring. Overall, roughly $275 million worth of gas is lost through flaring. Wasted methane shortchanges the royalties that tribal, state and federal governments collect for oil and gas production that often fund priorities like education, infrastructure and public services. According to the report, while tribal governments lost the most potential revenue, states lost $20.5 million and the federal government lost $21.3 million.”

EXTRACTION

Offshore Technology: Fossil fuel companies contribute to 43% of global methane emissions, analysis shows 
Smruthi Nadig, 2/2/23

“According to a recent estimate from the Global Energy Monitor (GEM), a nonprofit research organisation, just 30 fossil fuel companies amount to almost half (43%) of the industry’s global methane emissions,” Offshore Technology reports. “The IEA estimates that by 2022, methane emissions from human activity will amount to 126 million metric tonnes, with 35% of those emissions coming from the fossil fuel industry, such as coal, oil and gas productions in the past year. According to their study, 19 oil and gas corporations and 11 coal businesses were responsible for 54Mt of those methane emissions… “Agriculture is the primary source of anthropogenic methane emissions, accounting for around a quarter of overall emissions, followed by the energy sector, including coal, oil, natural gas, and biofuels… “It is estimated that the top ten national oil and gas corporations emit 25Mt of methane annually. The IEA expected worldwide oil and gas methane emissions in 2021 to be 79Mt, making these ten producers accountable for one-third of global oil and gas methane emissions.” 

Canadian Press: Teck completes sale of Fort Hills stake to project partners; exits oilsands
2/2/23

“Teck Resources Ltd. says it has completed the sale of its 21.3 per cent stake in the Fort Hills oilsands mine to Suncor Energy Inc. and TotalEnergies EP Canada Ltd.,” the Canadian Press reports. “The Vancouver-based mining company announced last year that it would sell its stake in Fort Hills to Suncor, one of two other partners in the project, for about $1 billion… “With the closing of the sale, TotalEnergies will own 31.23 per cent of Fort Hills, and Suncor will own the rest. Suncor, which is the operator of the project, paid $688 million to acquire its additional 14.65 per cent interest from Teck, which now no longer owns a stake in the oilsands.”

Environmental Defense Fund: New study shows huge variation in how different oil companies manage climate pollution – underscores need for more oversight
Jon Goldstein and Ben Hmiel, 2/1/23

“For the last several years, researchers have been studying methane emissions in the Permian Basin (the nation’s largest oil field) to try and understand just how much climate pollution specific oil companies may be responsible for. A new study published this week from EDF and Carbon Mapper offers insights into how we answer that question. The study looks at emission data gathered by aircraft during a series of flights conducted between 2019 and 2021 and cross references that information with what is known about the individual companies operating in the area and how much oil and gas they produce. Attributing emissions to specific operators and sites can be complicated. Wind can impact our ability to know where exactly emissions may have originated from… “The aircraft, which flew over the area about 40 different times between 2019 and 2021, detected at least 15 large plumes from each of these operators — giving us a good baseline from which to compare performance over the years. We saw significant variation among the companies. One had a leak rate (a calculation of how much methane is released compared to how much gas is produced) of just .1%. Others, however, were emitting over 4% of their gas directly into the atmosphere. This is 20 times higher than what many companies have committed to. And since the aircraft used in this research can only quantify the largest plumes, these intensities likely underestimate the true emissions from the region.”

CLIMATE FINANCE

Reuters: Big Oil mega-deals would put investors on the spot
George Hay, 2/2/23

“Exxon Mobil and Chevron are rolling in cash. So are Shell, BP and TotalEnergies, but investors value U.S. oil majors way higher than European ones. That raises the question of whether Exxon or Chevron might undertake a transatlantic swoop,” Reuters reports. “The American duo’s valuation lead is tangible even though Shell’s 2022 results, released on Thursday, showed that earnings doubled year-on-year, matching those of its U.S. peers. $473 billion Exxon and $331 billion Chevron trade at 6 times expected EBITDA for 2023, twice the average of $210 billion Shell, $154 billion Total and $109 billion BP. One reason why is that as oil prices have soared, American drillers look more attractive than European ones that are also pressing into potentially lower-return renewable energy. Imagine Chevron or Exxon acquired BP for $170 billion, factoring in a 30% premium to its market capitalisation, plus debt. The UK group’s forecast $19 billion of net operating profit after tax in 2023, as per Refinitiv data, would imply an 11% return on invested capital. That’s comfortably above BP’s cost of capital, which is probably around 9%. Citi analysts reckon such a merger could create cost synergies worth 10% of BP’s $37 billion of operating expenses. These would push the return to 13%. That sounds worth doing. Other combinations involving Shell yield lesser but still adequate returns.”

TODAY IN GREENWASHING

Cenovus Energy: Influence Mentoring receives $100,000 donation from Cenovus Energy to support Indigenous youth
2/2/23

“Influence Mentoring Society is honoured to announce a recent donation of $100,000 from Cenovus Energy. Cenovus has supported Indigenous-led programming for more than a decade and this investment shows the company’s significant commitment to advancing reconciliation. The funds from Cenovus will directly support the free mentorship program at Influence, allowing more students from across the country to join. Influence Mentoring is an Indigenous-led organization working to improve cross-cultural understanding by matching inspired, Indigenous post-secondary students with innovators, leaders, and creators across industries. In addition to the financial contribution to Influence, Cenovus has also committed to supporting the program by providing staff opportunities to be mentors.”

OPINION

Newsweek: John Kerry Says Oil Chief Leading COP28 Is ‘Terrific.’ It’s Terrifying | Opinion
Rachel Rose Jackson is director of climate research and policy at Corporate Accountability and coordinator of the campaign to Kick Big Polluters Out, a network of around 500 climate organizations from around the world; Jean Su is energy justice director at the Center for Biological Diversity and board co-chair of Climate Action Network International, the largest network of climate organizations in the world, 2/2/23

“Decried by hundreds of climate groups, the naming of oil CEO Sultan Al Jaber to head this year’s United Nations climate talks at COP28 was roundly blasted as the fox guarding the henhouse. It got even more bizarre when U.S. climate envoy John Kerry started praising Al Jaber, calling his appointment “terrific,” Rachel Rose and Jean Su write for Newsweek. “Kerry’s jaw-dropping remark came against a backdrop of alarming reports that 2022 was one of the warmest years on record and that oceans are the hottest they’ve been in recent history—dire climate impacts that overwhelmingly come from oil, gas, and coal. Al Jaber’s appointment presents a radically honest view of the grave state of global climate inaction—and the incredible influence of the fossil fuel industry over world governments… “We’ll never see the bold moves we need from the United States and other world leaders if fossil fuel interests continue to co-opt climate policy from the inside out… “Petrostate oil champions like Sultan Al Jaber and the United Arab Emirates should be held to account for sabotaging any renewable-energy progress with their fossil fuel expansion. And so should the United States… “There’s still time for Biden and world governments to come together on climate commitments and protect the only home we have. But it must mean putting people and the planet above polluters’ greed and insidious influence. And it must start now.”

National Observer: The sickening reality of tailings ponds
Aliénor Rougeot is a Toronto-based climate justice organizer and a climate and energy program manager at Environmental Defence, 2/3/23

“In the midst of UN climate and biodiversity conferences in late 2022, it was easy to miss the fact that a group of scientists sent federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault a letter urging him to use great caution as he considers regulations that could authorize oilsands producers to release their toxic wastewater into the Athabasca River and its tributaries,” Aliénor Rougeot writes for the National Observer. “This was the first time that members of the scientific community came out with a position on the potential release of tailings water. The conversation that ensued was another clear case of politicians mistaking process for progress when it comes to Canada’s handling of the toxic tailings. Tailings “ponds” are immense lakes of toxic waste created by oil companies in the Alberta tar sands. They now contain over 1.4 trillion litres of toxic fluid and sprawl over 300 square kilometres — an area 2.6 times the size of Vancouver. The situation has grown out of control, and oil companies are now asking the government to allow them to release the tailings into the Athabasca River, which flows north into one of the largest freshwater deltas in the world… “Shortly before the COP15 UN biodiversity summit, a group of concerned scientists and doctors sent Guilbeault a letter stating that any water released from the tailings must meet the highest water-quality standards: a guarantee of “no further exposure”. This is a high standard, which says it is not acceptable to permit the release of treated tailings even if they have concentrations of dangerous chemicals and substances below the Canada-wide health limits. Instead, any wastewater that is released into the river must be virtually free of these substances… “The federal government is putting effort and thoughtfulness into answering the question it posed about whether to authorize the release of tailings. Yet, the scientists behind the letter teach us this is the wrong question. Given the existing risks and damage caused by the tailings, the only question governments should be focused on answering is: “How do we guarantee no further exposure to dangerous chemicals for the downstream Indigenous communities?”

The Hill: Climate change consumer deception lawsuits threaten free speech. Will the Supreme Court take note?
Donald J. Kochan is a professor of law and the executive director of the Law & Economics Center at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School, 2/2/23 

“Courts are increasingly taking a close look at the validity of climate change lawsuits against oil producers. And for good reason: These cases severely test the boundaries of court jurisdiction, the breadth of tort law, the protections of due process and even the sanctity of free speech,” Donald J. Kochan writes for The Hill. “As one example of this scrutiny, last Oct. 3, the U.S. Supreme Court signaled a serious interest in the proper forum and scope for climate change litigation. In Suncor Energy (U.S.A.) Inc. v. Board of County Commissioners of Boulder County, the Supreme Court invited the solicitor general of the United States to weigh in, even though the United States is not a party to the litigation… “These consumer deception lawsuits are direct attacks on rights to speak and the corollary rights to not be compelled to speak. But there should be no climate change exception to free speech… “Furthermore, if we were to say that companies are prohibited from advertising that they’ve improved simply because they have not eliminated all harmful aspects of their products, we would disincentivize the very improvements that those fighting to combat climate change wish to see… “Thus, if these deception claims are successful in court, shutting down speech because the quality is not perfect in the eyes of some advocates becomes the enemy of the good… “Against those truths, we should be concerned when the very court system entrusted to protect speech is at risk of instead becoming weaponized to punish or chill it.”