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Companies Mentioned
Pacific Energy Wins Approval For Alaska Sale
Thursday, Jul 02, 2009
Setting aside creditor concerns, the judge overseeing Pacific Energy Resources Ltd.'s Chapter 11 case has approved the sale procedures for some of the energy company's assets.
Baker Botts Launches 2nd UAE Office In Abu Dhabi
Thursday, Jul 02, 2009
In response to client demand, Baker Botts LLP has expanded its foothold in the Middle East, opening a new office in the United Arab Emirates capital, Abu Dhabi.
Pollution Clause Lets Venoco Insurer Off Hook: Court
Thursday, Jul 02, 2009
A California appeals court has ruled that a Gulf Underwriters Insurance Co. is not obligated to provide liability coverage to oil producer Venoco Inc. for pollution-related health claims brought by former students and staff members of Beverly Hills High School, which is near a Venoco well site.
Exxon Left Toxic Waste On Cattle Grazers' Land: Suit
Thursday, Jul 02, 2009
The Sweet Lake Land and Oil Co. has accused Exxon Mobil Corp. and three other oil companies that leased its Lake Charles, La., property of violating their leases by improperly disposing toxic substances that tainted the soil and groundwater.
Class Certified In 401(k) Fee Case Against Edison
Thursday, Jul 02, 2009
A federal judge has certified a class of employees at Edison International who allege that the electric power company offered 401(k) plans that charged excessive fees and engaged in illegal self-dealing.
Massey Must Rehire Union Miners, 4th Circ. Affirms
Thursday, Jul 02, 2009
A federal appeals court has affirmed a judge's order that Massey Energy Co. must rehire union miners who lost their jobs when it acquired a bankrupt rival in 2004, but that it does not have to negotiate with a union pending an appeal of a National Labor Relations Board decision.
9th Circ. Finds Shell Alaska Drilling Plan Suit Moot
Wednesday, Jul 01, 2009
A federal appeals court has tossed a suit over Shell Offshore Inc.'s drilling plan in Alaska's Beaufort Sea in light of Shell's announcement that it had scrapped the original plan and would replace it with a reduced exploration plan.
Republicans Raise Ruckus Over Critical GHG Report
Wednesday, Jul 01, 2009
Republican lawmakers rallying opposition to landmark climate-change legislation making its way through Congress are demanding answers about an internal U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report disputing the danger of greenhouse gas emissions, a finding they claim the agency buried.
EPA To Amend Emissions Standards For Gas Facilities
Wednesday, Jul 01, 2009
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has agreed to amend a set of national emissions standards for hazardous air pollutants from gasoline distribution facilities in response to a lawsuit filed by a group of automobile manufacturers.
Transmeridian, United Energy Reach Ch. 11 Plan Deal
Wednesday, Jul 01, 2009
A bankruptcy judge approved Transmeridian Exploration Inc.'s disclosure statement for a liquidation plan after the energy company agreed to make changes to the plan as part of an effort to appease objecting creditor United Energy Group Ltd.
Coal Co. Objects To CDX Gas Disclosure Statement
Wednesday, Jul 01, 2009
A major producer of coal in northern and central Appalachia has objected to CDX Gas LLC's latest disclosure statement, claiming the bankrupt Houston-based natural gas exploration company has not made it clear how certain contracts will be treated.
Del. Slaps Valero With $86K Fine Over Emissions
Wednesday, Jul 01, 2009
Delaware officials have fined a Valero Energy Corp. subsidiary more than $86,000 over emissions from an oil refinery that violated the state's air pollution code.
Trial Ordered Over JPMorgan Role In Enron Dispute
Wednesday, Jul 01, 2009
A bankruptcy judge has called for a trial to determine the exact role J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. played in a complex web of big-dollar commercial paper transactions between Enron Corp. and other entities in the months leading up to the energy giant's dramatic 2001 collapse.
EPA Releases List Of Potentially Killer Coal Ash Sites
Tuesday, Jun 30, 2009
As part of a probe into the safety of coal ash storage sites in the wake of the massive Kingston, Tenn., dam burst in December, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has released a list of 44 “high hazard potential” impoundments used to store fly ash.
EPA Greenlights Stricter Auto Emissions Limits In Calif.
Tuesday, Jun 30, 2009
In a reversal of Bush administration policy, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has granted California's waiver request to set its own, more stringent limits on greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles.
CORRECTED: Supreme Court Turns Down Ch. 11 Claim Priority Suit
Tuesday, Jun 30, 2009
Zurich American Insurance Co. has lost its bid to have the U.S. Supreme Court determine whether claims for worker injuries that occurred during the course of Horizon Natural Resources LLC's bankruptcy proceedings should be entitled to administrative expense priority.
White House Unveils Energy Efficiency Measures
Tuesday, Jun 30, 2009
Capitalizing on Capitol Hill's current focus on climate change, President Barack Obama and Secretary of Energy Steven Chu have revealed new consumer-centric energy conservation measures aimed at making major cuts in carbon output from residential and commercial buildings.
Mass. Agency Backs $8M Outage Fine For National Grid
Tuesday, Jun 30, 2009
The Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities has upheld an $8 million fine against National Grid for failing to meet service quality standards in 2006, a year when storms left hundreds of thousands of people without power.
NRC Winnows Objections To Yucca Mountain
Tuesday, Jun 30, 2009
While the proposed nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain has provoked hundreds of objections from a dozen adversaries, including the states of California and Nevada, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Tuesday largely backed the decisions of the boards charged with hearing the objections.
Concerns Raised Over Sale Of Pacific Energy Assets
Monday, Jun 29, 2009
Unsecured creditors are firing back at Pacific Energy Resources Ltd. over the proposed sale of some of the bankrupt energy company's assets, expressing concern that the move would not be in everyone's best interests.
Incentivizing Renewable Energy With ARRA
One significant change under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 allows taxpayers to elect the Code Section 48 investment tax credit in lieu of the Code Section 45 production tax credit with respect to qualifying renewable energy facilities, say Travis L. Blais and Christopher T. Bird of Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo PC.
Shaping The Renewable Fuels Industry Beyond 2010
A proposed rulemaking by the EPA will have a direct impact on the viability of hundreds of renewable fuel projects in development and efforts to develop cellulosic ethanol, as well as existing renewable fuels facilities, including the corn-based ethanol industry. In short, all biofuels are not created equal, say Kevin G. Desharnais and Robert H. Edwards Jr. of Mayer Brown LLP.
Making The Most Of Rule Of Evidence 502
It is foreseeable that, if used strategically, the new Federal Rule of Evidence 502 should alleviate the burdens of costly electronic discovery and post-production privilege review and should ultimately reduce the billions of dollars spent each year in litigation to protect against the inadvertent disclosure of privileged materials, says Otilia Gabor of Miles & Stockbridge PC.
Recovery Act Essentials: Solar Energy Funding
The U.S. Department of Energy has announced $467 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding for the development, commercialization and deployment of solar and geothermal energy technologies. Taking full advantage of these funds will require rapid development of an application strategy, say Mary Beth Gentleman, Eric W. Macaux and Mark A. Barnett of Foley Hoag LLP.
Another View Of Sotomayor’s Enviro Record
Rather than raising questions about Judge Sonia Sotomayor's deference to agency decision-making, as a previous Law360 guest column has indicated, Riverkeeper v. EPA underscores her respect for stare decisis and her appreciation of the important role that separation of powers plays in our constitutional system, says Rebecca M. Bratspies of CUNY School of Law.
Waxman-Markey V. EU Emissions Trading Scheme
A number of key differences between the cap-and-trade scheme proposed by the Waxman-Markey Bill and various phases of the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme — particularly the different targets set by Waxman-Markey — may affect the EU ETS emissions reduction target, say Terence Healey and Kirsten Lewis of McDermott Will & Emery LLP.
First Impressions Of Sotomayor's Enviro Record
Judge Sonia Sotomayor has heard few environmental cases in her tenure on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, leaving open the question of how much deference she believes is owed to an agency as it interprets statutory language or engages in rulemaking. But here is what we do know, say Jason B. Hutt and Scott H. Segal of Bracewell & Giuliani LLP.
EU Southern Corridor — The ‘New Silk Road’
The Russia-Ukraine gas disputes during the past two winters have made it imperative for the European Union to seek alternative supplies from the Middle East and the Caspian Sea. The Southern Corridor is one of the EU’s highest energy security priorities to develop energy supplies not contingent on Russia, say Prajakt Samant and Adam Topping of McDermott Will & Emery LLP.