California Officials Concerned About Gas Storage

The months-long leak of natural gas from a failed well at Southern California Gas Co.’s Aliso Canyon Storage Facility has caused officials at the California Energy Commission to reassess their views on the future reliability of natural gas supplies in Southern California.

The Aliso Canyon underground storage facility, one of the largest in the state, was created in 1972 in a depleted oil field. One of the 115 wells in the facility failed in late October of 2015, resulting in the release of about 100,000 tons of methane and ethane into the atmosphere before the well was killed in mid-February.

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California Resources Announces Q4 Results

crc_logoCalifornia Resources Corporation (NYSE:CRC), announced an adjusted net loss of $77 million or ($0.20) per share for the fourth quarter of 2015, compared with an adjusted net loss of $7 million or ($0.02) per share for the fourth quarter of 2014.

The loss for the full year of 2015 was $311 million or ($0.81) per share, compared with net income of $650 million or $1.67 per share for the same period in 2014.

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California Will Reduce Gasoline Tax by 2.2 Cents

Days after California Gov. Jerry Brown proposed imposing a per-mile tax on cars because of lower income from gasoline taxes, the state’s Board of Equalization has announced a reduction in those taxes by 2.2 cents per gallon.

If adopted, the per-mile tax would help provide money to build roads and fix potholes. Those funds are declining because improved fuel economy has reduced sales of fuel and the state’s income from gasoline taxes.

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Chevron Reports 2015 Profits of $4.6 Billion

Chevron Corp. reported full-year 2015 earnings of $4.6 billion, or $2.45 per share. This compares chevron_logowith $19.2 billion, or $10.14 per share, in 2014. Sales and other revenues for the full year were $129.9 billion, compared to $200.5 billion for 2014.

San Ramon-based Chevron reported a loss of $588 million, or 31 cents per share, for the fourth quarter of 2015, compared to earnings of $3.5 billion or $1.85 per share in the year-earlier quarter. The quarter’s sales and other revenues were $28 billion, compared to $42 billion in the year-earlier period.

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Los Angeles To Fill Petroleum Administrator Post

la_city_hallThe city of Los Angeles will “immediately” hire a full-time petroleum engineer to oversee the hundreds of active oil and gas wells in the city.

A motion by City Council President Herb Wesson to make the hire was approved 14-0. The council specified that the person hired to fill the post must have experience or credentials in petroleum and oil-and-gas operations.

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President Obama Proposes $10-Per-Barrel Tax on Oil

President Obama has proposed a $10-per-barrel tax on oil, phased in over five years, to fund transportation-related projects including new railroad lines, improvements to roads and highways, preparation for self-driving cars and other “clean transportation” initiatives.

The proposed tax was included in the budget the White House sent to Congress Feb. 9.

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