Inflation Reduction Act
Gas Pipeline Safety Rule Clearing Final Hurdle: Operators Should Prepare
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) is close to finalizing a rule applicable to the safety of natural gas transmission pipelines that has been nearly eight years in the making. Both Congress and the industry have urged PHMSA...
DOJ Criminal Division Publishes Corporate Compliance Program Guidance Document
In case you missed it, on April 30, 2019, the Department of Justice (DOJ) Criminal Division released a guidance document titled Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs (Guide). This release serves as an update to a prior version released in 2017...
Pipeline Safety Settlements: Time to Take a Page from Hazmat?
With an increased interest in the resolving disputes efficiently and avoiding litigation where possible, the time may be right for the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to clarify the process for settlement of pipeline safety compliance issues, whether...
Natural Gas Marketer Settles Royalty Fraud with Department of Justice
A recent settlement serves as a reminder that companies in the energy sector that do not directly do business with government agencies can still be subject to federal procurement enforcement laws with severe consequences. On May 1, 2019, the Department...
Under Pressure: Pricing in the Middle East Construction Market
I’ve now been in Dubai for 9 weeks since relocating from Bracewell’s London office. In the construction industry here, there’s one thing to the forefront of everyone’s minds: price. That’s always been the way of course, in the UAE or...
The Evolving Market for Acreage Dedications
One of the more interesting developments in the oil and gas A&D market over the past couple of years has been the expanding variety of transactions between upstream and midstream companies involving acreage dedications. Acreage dedications are commitments from upstream...
Executive Order Impact on 401 Water Quality Certification Appears Limited
President Trump recently issued two much anticipated Executive Orders aimed to streamline the permitting of U.S. energy infrastructure. One Executive Order (EO) focuses primarily on Clean Water Act (CWA) state issued water quality certifications and associated EPA guidance and regulations...
New Executive Order Attempts to Streamline Presidential Permits
The White House issued a new Executive Order (EO) on April 10, 2019 intended to ‘revise the process for the development and issuance of Presidential Permits’ for certain cross border energy infrastructure. The EO limits the opportunity and timeframe for...
Texas Supreme Court Expands Upon the Rights of Oil and Gas Producers to Deduct Post-Production Costs in Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Company, L.P. v. Texas Crude Energy, LLC
To the relief of oil and gas producers, the Texas Supreme Court ruled on March 1, 2019, in Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Company, L.P. v. Texas Crude Energy, LLC (No. 17-0266), that post-production costs were rightfully deducted when calculating...
Recent Executive Order Extends Beyond Section 401 Water Quality Certifications
The Executive Order (EO) “ Promoting Energy Infrastructure and Economic Growth ,” issued by the White House on April 10, 2019 has primarily been heralded as an effort to prevent states from blocking pipelines under their Clean Water Act Section...
Distribution Pipelines and Increased Penalties Feature in Senate Pipeline Safety Bill
In advance of a Senate Commerce Committee Hearing on reauthorization of the Pipeline Safety Act , Senators Markey, Warren, and Blumenthal announced legislation to address distribution pipelines and risks associated with the September 2018 Merrimack Valley incident. The Leonel Rondon...
Congress Turns its Attention to Pipeline Safety Act Reauthorization
The first Congressional Hearing on Pipeline Safety Act Reauthorization for 2019 was held this week before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The Hearing did not have as much drama as last summer’s Hearing before the same Committee, where PHMSA...
Oil & Gas Deal-Doing in Mexico: Current Trends & Future Prospects
Manuel Vera, Jeffery B. Vaden, Darren Spalding and Adam Blythe of Bracewell, and Manuel Cervantes of MCM Abogados discuss deal trends in Mexico and the future of the oil and gas market...
The Importance of Creating A Record for Judicial Review of Agency Action
For at least the past 35 years, federal courts have generally allowed an administrative agency’s interpretation of a regulation or statute that it administers to prevail when challenged by a member of the regulated community or any other interested party...
Our Take on Auer – Agency Deference under Scrutiny
Two weeks remain before the Supreme Court hears oral arguments in Kisor v. Wilkie , a likely landmark case for energy and infrastructure companies. When the Supreme Court granted certiorari in December 2018, it took the case specifically to decide...