In the episode of This Week In Energy for May 5, 2024 sponsored in part by The Crude Life:
This Week In Energy’s Newsmaker Interview sponsored by US Energy Media: Lori Hinz, reporter for BEK News, gives a weekly update from the research on her daily feature on Capturing America’s Heartland: CO2 Pipeline on Townsquare Media SuperTalk 1270AM’s Talk of the Town with host Steve Bakken.
This week the two discuss a recent North Dakota Public Service Commission hearing scheduled for Summit Carbon Solutions’ Midwest Express Carbon Pipeline Project where North Dakota is the terminus for the carbon storage.
Hinz was at the meeting, taking notes and reports for her news content partners.
“I watched the entire thing,” Hinz said. “I was there for the entire nine hours of the Public Service Commission meeting.”
Host Steve Bakken asked about the rumors of the word “perjury” being used after the Public Service Commission meeting regarding one of the executives for Summit Carbon Solutions.
“Okay, perjury is a pretty strong term, and I don't know what else to call it,” Bakken said.
Hinz agreed perjury is a strong word, however, it is a reality. Currently, the Morton County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the Public Service Commission meeting for perjury.
Furthermore, the oil and gas industry in North Dakota wants more carbon but Summit says it remains committed to underground storage.
According to the North Dakota Monitor, North Dakota’s oil industry sees strong potential in using carbon dioxide for enhanced oil recovery — pumping gas underground to force oil toward a drilled well.
“We don’t have any customers today approaching us about enhanced oil recovery,” Lee Blank, CEO of Summit Carbon Solutions, told the North Dakota Monitor in an interview.
The Summit plan is to store carbon dioxide emissions from ethanol plants in underground wells northwest of Bismarck. The Department of Mineral Resources has set a hearing for June 11-12 on that part of the project.
For the underground storage to happen, Summit needs permits in North Dakota and other states for pipelines to carry the greenhouse gasses to the storage site.
Click here for full length interview
EMERGING ENERGIES sponsored by The Industrial Forest: VR Training Improving Safety in Mining, Emergency Services and now the FDA
Clint Kling of Shepherd VR joins The Crude Life’s founder Jason Spiess to discuss some news changes happening in the world of Virtual Reality. Kling has developed a number of VR Training programs for the mining industry and has also collaborated with the South Dakota School of Mines.
“You know, four years ago, we were pretty early,” Kling said. “Now we're kind of seeing this stuff as more mainstream almost in a way in different sectors and some of our casework that's been in the past has laid some of the foreground,”
In this interview, the recent news of the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) spending $1.2M on a VR-enabled hub to spur development of at-home care devices sparked the conversation with the virtual reality expert.
ENERGY EVENTS sponsored by Witting Partners: Human Trafficking, Pornography Issues Increase in the Bakken
Stacy Schaffer discusses the 31:8 Project (Thirty-One Eight) and the need for more human trafficking education in energy communities.
Human trafficking remains a pervasive and deeply troubling issue that plagues societies worldwide. Despite concerted efforts to combat it, numerous challenges persist, hindering progress towards its eradication.
Schaffer discusses the realities behind human trafficking, pornography, identifying signals and what are some resources people can use for help.
”Men, women, and children are sold into a $150 billion annual market for sex and labor. This is happening globally, nationally and locally; in hotels, restaurants, and on street corners,” Schaffer said. “Slavery is wrapped up in almost every industry’s supply chain, tainting the food we eat, the clothes we buy, and the electronics we love.”
Schaffer added that human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery and involves the movement of people by means of violence, deception or coercion for the purpose of forced labor, servitude, or slavery-like practices.
“It is a market-based economy that exists on principles of supply and demand,” Schaffer said. “It thrives due to conditions, which allow for high profits to be generated at low risk.”
SHARE YOUR SUSTAINABLE STORY sponsored by The Carbon Conversation: Jodi Johnson, CEO, Red Trail Energy Talks Carbon Capture and Storage
Jodi Johnson, CEO, Red Trail Energy, joins The Carbon Conversation this week to discuss their pioneering project involving carbon capture and storage. Red Trail Energy, LLC (RTE), an ethanol producer near Richardton, North Dakota, is currently operating a CO2 capture facility adjacent to the RTE ethanol facility, to ultimately inject about 180,000 tonnes CO2 annually more than a mile below RTE property for permanent storage.
The first carbon capture and storage project allowed under state primacy in the U.S. has commenced operations. Red Trail Energy LLC announces it officially began carbon capture and storage (CCS) at its ethanol facility located near Richardton, North Dakota, on June 16, 2023.
Already considered a low-carbon fuel, ethanol produced at RTE now has a lower carbon footprint than conventional ethanol sources thanks to carbon capture. This allows RTE to not only be better stewards to the environment but also places more value on the ethanol in the clean fuel market.
"They (investors) did go out and they gathered enough support that they needed to build it in this area. They somewhat chose this area due to the location next to the Burlington Northern Rail Line,” Johnson said. “Originally, we were constructed to be a coal-fired plant, and so they wanted to be close to where we could get lignite coal to fire the plant and keep it running."
The RTE ethanol plant emits an average of 180,000 metric tons of CO2 annually from the fermentation process during ethanol production. With CCS, RTE is capturing 100 percent of their CO2 emissions from the fermentation process and is injecting approximately 500 metric tons of CO2 per day. The CO2 is permanently stored underground more than a mile below the surface in the Broom Creek formation.
ENERGY INFLUENCER sponsored by BCK9 Services: Trisha Curtis, President and CEO, PetroNerds
The Fed interest rate decision and Jerome Powell’s speech tomorrow has the market anxious and volatile. Stocks are down and oil prices are sitting below $82/barrel.
Starbucks was down 10 percent as traffic into stores declined in the U.S. and sales declined further in China. Starbucks is an expensive treat for most people and a discretionary spending item that could be a tell tell for a weaker consumer smacked by inflation at the grocery store, rising electricity prices and utility bills, and rising gasoline prices.
Three hotter than excepted inflation reads this year has put the Fed in the hot seat. Powell needs to roll back his dovish talk and tell the street clearly they are not cutting rates anytime soon.
A chipotle salad, from Chipotle, apparently costs $36 in California after minimum wage hikes went through (heard on Bloomberg Surveillance).
Housing prices are increasing, not decreasing, despite nearly 8 percent mortgages. Recent buyers might have been hoping to refinance with a bet the Fed would lower rates soon….risky bet.
Houthis continue to attack ships with any linkage to Israel or countries that support Israel. Chinese and Russian ships are excluded in these assaults. Shipments continue to be rerouted around Africa instead of through the Red Sea, driving up shipping costs, fuel costs, and overall adding risk and inflationary pressure to the movement of goods.
Click here for entire commentary
Petro Profile sponsored by The Crude Life: Find out what makes Kansas Strong
Warren Martin, Kansas Strong, previews some of their online resources available to the public.
Martin has given over 200 educational presentations in a year! Martin explains how Kansas, the 11th ranked oil and gas producing state can become an early indicator for the overall industry.
“We already have some independents that are both in oil and gas and also in ethanol,” Martin said. “I think that there's definitely the fields to be able to store CO2 and capture that carbon here.”
The Energy Detox with Joe Sinnott, CEO, Witting Partners compares the NFL Draft to workplace culture and social energy.
“Key to getting ready for any new season is de-cluttering and getting rid of crap you don't need, which is easier said than done in life and business… let alone the NFL,” Sinnott said.
Expanding into new territories often means interacting with individuals from different cultural backgrounds. It's essential to adapt your communication style, leadership approach, and business practices to align with the cultural norms of the region you're entering. Embrace diversity and leverage it as a strength in building successful relationships and driving business outcomes.
“The age-old question in sports and business - do I draft/recruit/hire the best TALENT/ATHLETE or do I focus on the specific roles/positions/gaps my team/company has?” Sinnott asks.
Navigating transitions in the energy sector can be daunting, but you don't have to go it alone. Seek out mentorship and guidance from experienced professionals who have successfully navigated similar challenges. Their insights and advice can provide invaluable support as you reinvent yourself and pursue new opportunities.
THROWBACK TALKS sponsored by The Crude Life: Brian Lash, founder, Target Logistics
Brian Lash’s journey in oil and gas lead him to be the founder of Target Logistics after making the decision to leave medical school and start a sports entertainment travel company.
His decision evolved into creating temporary housing company where he did work for the soldiers in Iraq, Winter Olympics athletes and the oil and gas industry.
Lash also describes what the Bakken oil fields were like in the early days and how the oil and gas industry creates incredible opportunities for our youth.
In his 40-year career, Mr. Lash has become a respected leader in disaster relief, workforce housing, and in the travel industry. His expertise has led to national and international speaking opportunities and appearances on NBCUniversal’s “Today Show,” CNN, PBS “NewsHour” and in The New York Times and Wall Street Journal, and as the keynote speaker at multiple conferences and trade shows in the oil, gas and mining industries.
After retiring as Chairman in 2015, Lash continues to support Target Hospitality as a consultant on business development initiatives while pursuing other investment opportunities.
Mr. Lash is an avid skier, tennis player, and philanthropist, who embraces a keen sense of corporate citizenship, which is expressed by his ongoing contributions to social and educational programs.
Other highlighted energy interviews:
The interview with filmmaker and National Energy Talk host Mark Stansberry started off discussing a shared petro-powered experience involving motion pictures and media. The Crude Life’s founder Jason Spiess had the privileged to be invited on to the production studio and set of Sherwood Forest, a docufilm about a historic time in American Oil and Gas’s impact on global independence and empowerment. Click here for interview.
Kunal Patel, Dallas Federal Reserve, breaks down the recent Energy Survey. This quarter’s survey also includes for the first time a set of questions regarding price expectations for oil and natural gas over six-month, one-year, two-year and five-year horizons. Click here for interview.
Barry Smitherman is the Chairman, President, and co-founder of the Texas Geothermal Energy Alliance (TxGEA), an organization dedicated to education, public awareness, and advocacy on behalf of the Texas geothermal industry. He shares how the oil and gas industry is working with geothermal energy. Click here for interview.
Plus much much more on This Week In Energy.
Music heard on This Week In Energy by singer songwriter Alma Cook and independent funk fusion group known as The Moody River Band.
Click here for Alma Cook’s music page
Click here to support Alma Cook’s Energy Career
Cook Compliance Co is a boutique compliance management & consulting firm that believes in doing more than just checking the right boxes. With special emphasis on education & planning, Cook helps contractors get ahead of their competition by making sure their crews are work-ready even before the next MSA is signed.
Click here for the Moody River Band’s website
For over a decade, Moody River Band's unique brand of blues/folk rock has rocked and rolled all over the Upper Midwest and Rocky Mountain region.
You can download their two records absolutely free by clicking here!
For booking and dates click here.
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This Week In Energy for May 5, 2024