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Operators may see fallout from low prices; Murray Energy idles W.Va. met mines

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Operators may see fallout from low prices; Murray Energy idles W.Va. met mines

S&P Global Market Intelligence is excited to announce the upcoming launch of an afternoon edition of our Daily Dose feature for energy. On Sept. 30, subscribers will see this new offering, which will highlight the best of our energy news, data and research, in their inbox and available on the Market Intelligence platform.

Top News

Facing support cuts, developers rush to hit deadline for Spanish wind projects

Renewables developers across Spain are rushing to complete wind and solar projects before a year-end deadline, but many are at risk of losing their government support by missing the cutoff.

Appalachian midstream operators may start to see fallout from low gas prices

Several Appalachian gas pipeline operators have substantial exposure to a group of drillers with declining credit quality and low-growth plans for the future, an S&P Global Market Intelligence analysis found. And analysts are warning that the pipelines' earnings forecasts do not yet account for a coming wave of negotiations for lower transportation rates.

Oil majors voice support for carbon pricing, eye big carbon capture investments

The Oil and Gas Climate Initiative, a group backed by 13 of the biggest oil and gas companies in the world, is hoping to jump-start investments in carbon capture, use and storage as part of its efforts to support the Paris Agreement on climate change.

Murray Energy temporarily idles W.Va. met mines amid weak market, price drop

Murray Energy Corp. temporarily idled a subsidiary's operations in West Virginia, effective Sept. 19.

Quoted

"Unfortunately, Paradise is symptomatic of areas all across the western United States, where you have fire-prone buildings being built in fire-prone areas. And then we all look around and are just absolutely shocked the communities are burned down. It's just simple physics," Chris Dicus, professor of Wildland Fire and Fuels Management at California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo, said on the beginning of California's wildfire season, which could lead to devastation similar to the 2018 Camp Fire, which destroyed the town of Paradise, Calif.

Power

* The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has approved a new 40-year license for an inactive hydroelectric facility in North Carolina. But in a partial dissent, Commissioner Richard Glick objected to the order's suggestion that the refiling of license applications with major changes is "irrelevant" when deciding whether states have waived their authority to weigh in under the Clean Water Act.

* The Wall Street Journal takes a look at U.S. farmers who are installing solar panels on their land, either small panels to reduce their own electricity bills, or large panels for which project developers pay them an annual fee.

* The Solar Energy Industries Association and Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables forecast that the extension of the solar investment tax credit would spark $87 billion in private sector investment and add 113,000 American jobs over baseline estimates by 2030.

* After a decade of flagging growth, Ontario may see an increase in electricity demand in 2020 as a healthy U.S. economy and a relatively low Canadian dollar provide a boost to manufacturers.

* Speaking before the United Nations, Maine Gov. Janet Mills announced that the state will be carbon neutral by 2045.

* Fortis Inc. utilities are taking action to decrease greenhouse gas emissions and increase renewable energy use. FortisBC Inc. is looking at tripling investment in energy efficiency projects and increasing renewable gas supply to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 30% by 2030. Tucson Electric Power Co., on the other hand, has partnered with the University of Arizona to develop a new carbon reduction target for its 2020 integrated resource plan.

* A lawsuit alleges that Tesla Inc. knew SolarCity Corp. was in deep financial trouble when it bought the rooftop solar company in November 2016, the Los Angeles Times reported.

* The state of New York is pursuing partnerships with Ireland and Denmark to improve electric infrastructure and for the advancement of renewable energy sources, including offshore wind.

* Russia approved a resolution accepting the Paris Agreement on climate change, according to Reuters.

Natural gas

* Tellurian Inc. first tried the traditional long-term off-take model to fund construction of its Driftwood LNG export terminal, and then it offered fixed-price LNG to Asia. When those efforts did not work, the company turned to an equity buy-in approach, requiring a substantial upfront payment in exchange for the right to lift LNG for the life of the Louisiana facility.

* California regulators told Southern California Gas Co. to increase injections at all available storage facilities to maintain reliable delivery to customers during the winter.

* Efforts to lower greenhouse gas emissions and improve pipeline safety make the U.S. midstream energy sector an area of opportunity for environmental, social and governance-focused investors, but companies must disclose their progress to attract more shareholders, analysts at BMO Capital Markets said.

* Korea Gas Corp. has agreed to buy 1.58 million tonnes of U.S. liquefied natural gas from BP PLC for a 15-year period starting 2025, according to Reuters.

* Genesis Energy LP plans to invest approximately $300 million to expand its existing Granger production facility to increase soda ash production.

* Matador Resources Co. received six drilling permits from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management for its western Antelope Ridge asset area. The company has initiated drilling operations on those wells.

Oil

* Even though Saudi Arabian crude oil exports to the U.S. have fallen to record low levels, the outage caused by the attack on the Saudi Arabian Oil Co., or Saudi Aramco, facility at Abqaiq is still having an effect on U.S. consumers.

* The board of French oil major Total SA decided to accelerate dividend growth in the coming years with a guidance of increasing the dividend by 5% to 6% per year.

* Saudi Aramco subsidiary Motiva Enterprises LLC is considering a $3.09 billion petrochemical unit in Texas, the Houston Business Journal reported.

* One of the biggest and most well-known private equity firms in the U.S. oil and gas business sees big potential for rapid growth in the renewable energy space and formed a team to invest in lower-carbon energy systems.

* Royal Dutch Shell PLC has started the overhaul of a joint-venture refinery in Deer Park, Texas, Reuters reported, citing sources familiar with plant operations.

Coal

* Cloud Peak Energy Inc. posted a net loss of $609.7 million in its second quarter of 2019 after taking a $620.9 million impairment charge related to its bankruptcy, according to a regulatory filing released Sept. 20.

* U.S. officials found high levels of pollution in a river that flows into Idaho and Montana from a coal mining region of Canada, The Associated Press reported.

* Cambrian Coal Corp. announced a successful bidder for its Premier Elkhorn coal mining assets and told a bankruptcy court that it was reopening the auction process for its Perry County coal assets in Kentucky.

ChartWatch

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Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and its parent PG&E Corp. filed a proposed reorganization plan Sept. 9 that would honor existing power purchase agreements, giving contract counterparties some cause for optimism as the companies' joint bankruptcy court proceedings extend into 2020.

New from RRA

* Quite possibly no single issue has consumed the attention of regulators with the California Public Utilities Commission in the past year as much as wildfires sparked by the state's electric utilities. Following a series of devastating blazes in 2017 and 2018 linked to utility equipment, the PUC has opened various proceedings into wildfire mitigation, wildfire cost recovery by utilities, power line de-energization practices and the creation of a wildfire insurance fund, among other things.

The day ahead

* Early morning futures indicators pointed to a higher opening for the U.S. equity markets. To view more SNL equity market indexes, click here. To view more SNL Energy commodities prices, click here.

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Click here to read about today's financial markets, setting out the factors driving stocks, bonds and currencies around the world ahead of the New York open.

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