Manic Monday -- June 15, 2026

Locator: 50977B.

Anticipation:

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Back to the Bakken

WTi: $80.58.

New wells reporting:

• Tuesday, June 16, 2026: 22 for the month, 178 for the quarter, 335 for the year,
• 42416, conf, Kraken, Emerson LE 33-28-21 11H, 
• Monday, June 15, 2026: 21 for the month, 177 for the quarter, 334 for the year,
• None.
• Sunday, June 14, 2026: 21 for the month, 177 for the quarter, 334 for the year,
• 42423, conf, Kraken, Bregman LE 6-7-18 1H, 
• 41410, conf, Enerplus, Foal 148-94-033A-10H, 
• Saturday, June 13, 2026: 19 for the month, 175 for the quarter, 332 for the year,
• 42470, conf, Petro-Hunt, Estby 159-94-26A-35-1HS, 
• 42422, conf, Kraken, Bregman 6-7-18 2H, 
• 42357, conf, Formentera Operations, FTH-23-34-BND S511HF, 
• 36276, conf, Enerplus, Lemur 148-94-03B-10H-LL, 
• 36053, conf, Silver Hill Energy, Orris 159-93-15-3-4MBHX, 
• 36052, conf, Silver Hill Energy, Dolores 159-93-22-34-4MBHX, 

RBN Energy: several northeast gas pipeline projects focus on Pennsylvania, regional enhancements. Link here. Archived.

Demand for natural gas is rising both within the U.S. Northeast and in regions to its south and west. That incremental demand is spurring the development of a host of gas pipeline projects — small, medium and large — that collectively will enable Marcellus/Utica E&Ps to ratchet up their production year by year well into the 2030s. In today’s RBN blog, we continue our analysis of the new pipelines and pipeline expansions being planned to move more gas within — and out of — the U.S.’s largest gas production region.

This is the fourth blog in a series about gas market dynamics in the Northeast. In Part 1, we said that while the dramatic changes happening in Texas and Louisiana have garnered the most attention in the past year or two, the Appalachia market has been quietly evolving in ways that will not only shift flow patterns within the region but also affect flows to the Southeast, Midwest and Gulf Coast. Part 2 focused on gas demand within the Northeast, which is getting a big boost from the power-generation sector as coal retirements continue and data center development proliferates. In Part 3, we started a review of the pipeline projects being planned to enable more gas to flow through and out of the Marcellus/Utica to existing and new demand centers, focusing on projects in New England and New York.

Today, we continue that review. There’s no simple way to categorize most of the remaining projects. The best we can do is separate them into these five buckets: (1) projects within Pennsylvania; (2) regionwide enhancements; (3) projects tied to Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) and Transco; (4) expanded capacity to Ohio and beyond; and (5) projects that are more distant but still related to the Marcellus/Utica.

Projects within Pennsylvania

We’ll start with National Fuel Gas Co. (NFG), which is building two gas pipeline projects in the Keystone State and planning another. NFG is not familiar to everyone, so we should note that it is an integrated energy company that produces natural gas in north-central and northwestern Pennsylvania, owns and operates a gas pipeline network — National Fuel Gas Pipeline (NFGP; lime-green lines in Figure 1 below) — and the Empire Pipeline (magenta lines) and distributes gas to retail customers in northwestern Pennsylvania and western New York.

Figure 1. National Fuel Gas Pipeline Projects. Source: Novi Labs

Intel's "Raptor Lake Next" -- June 14, 2026

Locator: 50976COMPUTERS.

Tag Apple AAPL Dell Raptor Lake 

Comparable products (Dell / Intel Raptor Lake vs Apple Mac): Apple can beat on price with better product (though this will be affected by a) eye of the beholder; and, b) options / incentives provided by manufacturer / seller. 

Intel's Raptor Lake: link here. 

Query:

Top Apple Mac. How many cores; how does this compare with Intel's Raptor Lake topping out at 20 cores? 

Reply: 

 From the linked article:

Yesterday, we broke news of a third Raptor Lake refresh in the works from Intel, dubbed "Raptor Lake Next." 

Following that, new leaks have emerged from reliable tipster Jaykihn confirming the codename and detailing the upcoming family. Raptor Lake Next is slated for early 2027 and will land on the LGA 1700 socket as reported previously, but some outlets say it will also retain the existing Core 200 branding.

Comparable Macs are already being sold. But we will have to wait for "official" reviews.

Social Security COLAS For Next Year (2027) -- Posted June 14, 2026

Locator: 50975COLA.

Updates

From June 12, 2026, from CNBC (same numbers but different story), link here: 3.8% for 4.7% COLA for social security recipients.

Original Post 

From June 10, 2026:

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Social Security

Maybe it might be time to end COLAs for social security.

But until we do ...

Link here.

I talked about his offline with a reader some weeks ago ... this is a bigger deal than folks might realize. This is going to affect military raises and pensions also.

• The largest Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in the last 30 years was 8.7%, which took effect in January 2023. This historic raise was driven by the severe, pandemic-era inflation that peaked in mid-2022.
• The top three largest COLAs over the last three decades reflect recent surges in inflation compared to the historically lower adjustments of the early 2000s and 2010s:
• 2023: 8.7%
• 2022: 5.9%
• 2009: 5.8% (Note: This 2009 increase was calculated just before multiple years of 0% adjustments occurred)

The best the active duty military ever did in the past 30 years was 5.2% in 2024. The second best was 2023, 4.6%. 

But look at this: larger percentage raises occurred in the early 1980s (peaking at 14.3% in 1982) at which time I was a senior officer on active duty. 

In many respects, many social security recipients need the COLAs the least of all socio-economic groups.  

1969 -- Posted June 14, 2026

Locator: 50974BOOKS.

It's impossible for me to "let go" of 1969. It is impossible to "let go" of 1969 just like it's impossible to "let go" of Stanford.

I recently posted a lead-in to 1969, a flashback, 1967 - 1968.

Query:

What were the major events in 1969 to follow the major events from 1965 to 1968, perhaps the most influential period in the US since WWII.  

Reply:

I recently posted a long review of the events from 1965 - 1968; link here.

Now I'm reading The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Holywood, Sam Wasson, c. 2020.

Part 1: Justice.

So far, all about Roman Polanski and Sharon Tate.

But so much name-dropping. 

I hate the writing. But, wow, what a story. I think it's a necessary for someone trying to understand Hollywood in the 1960s and 1970s. 

• Sharon Tate murder: August 8, 1969
• Chinatown released: 1974
• me
• graduated from high school, spring, 1969; Sharon Tate murder? I barely recall;
• graduated from college, spring, 1973;
• first year graduate school, completed, 1974; never saw the movie; I don't recall seeing many movies that year; major movies released.

Movies: the era is renowned for groundbreaking storytelling, legendary performances, and major genre-defining classics.  

Major movies released, January 1, 1973, through May 1, 1974 (some somewhat later):

• The Exorcist, Dec 1973)
• The Sting, Dec 1973
• The Godfather Part II, Dec 1974
• American Graffiti, Aug 1973
• The Conversation, Apr 1974
• Chinatown, Jun 1974
• Serpico, Dec 1973
• Blazing Saddles, Feb 1974
• Young Frankenstein, Dec 1974
• several others

Events, 1969 

Sharon Tate murdered, August 8, 1969. And that was just the beginning. But all we remember: Sharon Tate and Charlie Manson. See Jay Sebring.

Chart Of The Day -- CSCO -- June 14, 2026

Locator: 50973CSCO.

I like the word "dominates."