Energy

Natural gas prices higher than expected, should fall in 2019

The spot price for natural gas on Nov. 23 at the Henry Hub in Louisiana was $4.70 per million British thermal units and was the highest price since a temporary…

U.S. coal use in 2018 swoons to lowest level in nearly 40 years, EIA says

Despite ongoing efforts by the Trump administration to prop up one of the ailing segments of the fossil fuel industry, U.S. coal consumption in the power sector is expected to…

Oklahoma City driller closes on $1.9 billion deal to purchase Fayetteville Shale assets

Oklahoma City-based Flywheel Energy LLC closed on an earlier announced deal to acquire the top leasehold position in the Fayetteville Shale play from Southwestern Energy Co. at a purchase price…

MISO files energy storage plan with FERC

The Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) on Monday (Dec. 3) filed its official proposal with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that some experts say will determine the future of the…

Murphy Oil closes on $795 million deal in Gulf of Mexico with Brazil-owned oil conglomerate

Murphy Oil Corp. on Monday (Dec. 3) closed on its recently announced $795 million deal with Brazil’s multinational oil conglomerate to develop a deepwater Gulf of Mexico project that is…

CenterPoint Energy to close $6 billion deal to acquire Vectren Corp. in early 2019

CenterPoint Energy Inc., which announced a $6 billion deal in April to acquire Indiana-based Vectren Corp., on Monday (Dec. 3) revealed its plans for the executive team that will lead…

WCS oil price falls as Midwest refineries complete maintenance

The price of Western Canadian Select (WCS) crude oil has fallen as large refineries in the Midwest complete planned maintenance, leading to a reduction in the amount of crude oil…

Arkansas pump prices falling fast before Christmas, some local markets below $2

Arkansas motorists won’t be getting a lump of coal this Christmas as gasoline prices are headed for their lowest level of this year. The impetus, of course, is rapidly declining…

Entergy Arkansas gives $2.5 million in energy efficiency incentives

Entergy Arkansas, a utility of New Orleans-based Entergy Corp., provided $2.5 million in energy efficiency incentives to 29 school districts and eight colleges and universities in Arkansas this year, according…

Abandoned bales reflect failed plans for miscanthus to be part of a biofuels boom

As the new decade dawned in Northeast Arkansas, two new crops emerged as potential income drivers for farmers in the agriculture sector that dominates the region. Peanuts, once a staple…

High gasoline inventories lead to lower prices, refining margins

As growth flattens for U.S. gasoline demand and refinery output remains high, motor gasoline refining margins have been low or turned negative for refiners along the East and Gulf coasts,…

Projects might slow decline of natural gas production in Gulf

Natural gas production in the U.S. Federal Gulf of Mexico has been falling for almost 20 years, but the decline could be slowed or reversed as a result of new…

Fayetteville moves toward 100% renewable energy, saves $6 million in future energy costs

The Fayetteville City Council unanimously voted Tuesday (Nov. 20) to approve a trilateral agreement among the city, Ozarks Electric Cooperative and Today’s Power Inc. (TPI) for the development, construction and operation of Arkansas’s…

Electricity usage peaks are unique on Thanksgiving, Black Friday

Electricity usage patterns are different on Thanksgiving and Black Friday compared to other weekdays, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The usage has two peaks on most weekdays in…

Entergy Arkansas inks deal with Sierra Club, others to shutter aging coal, natural gas plants

Entergy Arkansas on Friday (Nov. 16) inked an historic agreement with the Sierra Club and other environmental groups to shutter the utility’s decades-old coal-fired plants and an aging natural gas-generated…

Sunoco closes $125 million deal for key U.S. crude oil terminals, including NLR facility

Texas oil refiner and gas station operation Sunoco LP on Thursday (Nov. 15) announced a multimillion dollar deal to purchase key U.S. refined products terminals, including a 550 million barrel…

Energy test facility at UA celebrates 10 years

The National Center for Reliable Electric Power Transmission (NCREPT) is celebrating 10 years as an energy research center of the University of Arkansas. The 12,000-square-foot center at the Arkansas Research…

Number of wells falls but crude oil production rises

The number of wells producing crude oil and natural gas in the United States declined 4.6% to 991,000 in 2017, from a peak of 1.039 million in 2014, according to…

Murphy Oil returns to profitability, posts third quarter earnings of $94 million

Murphy Oil Corp. posted profits of nearly $94 million as the El Dorado oil explorer saw international crude prices jump to nearly $70 a barrel in the third quarter, the…

U.S. heating oil, propane bills to rise this winter

U.S. residential heating oil and propane prices have risen 23% and 4%, respectively, at the start of the 2018-19 winter heating season, from the same time last winter, according to…