This Seems Fairly Routine; Not Sure What All The Fuss Was About, If Indeed There Was Any Fuss; Reuters Provided The Update

From a post back in 2011:

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has approved Williams Partners' proposal to expand its Transco natural gas pipeline to provide an additional 142,000 dekatherms of incremental firm natural gas transportation capacity to serve growing markets in the Mid-Atlantic region by November 2012.

The Mid-Atlantic Connector expansion project is designed to provide power generation and local distribution customers in Virginia and Maryland with incremental firm transportation capacity from a Transco interconnection with East Tennessee Natural Gas in Rockingham County, N.C.   

On Friday the FERC gave Williams approval to continue the project. Reuters is reporting:

The owner of the Transcontinental Gas Pipeline Co LLC received approval on Friday from federal energy regulators to startup a segment of a natural gas pipeline expansion project this weekend.

Williams Cos Inc had requested approval to start the new segment so it can reroute supply to customers while performing some work on another segment. 

The company had said in a June 28 filing that if it was unable to place the pipeline section into service by the weekend "existing delivery obligations could be negatively impacted." 

On Thursday, a company spokesman said it would not take its line out of service this weekend unless it received approval from the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to operate the new segment.

In Over His Head

The New York Times is reporting:

“His remarks were more specific than I’ve ever heard a commander in chief get,” said Thomas J. Romig, a former judge advocate general of the Army and the dean of the Washburn University School of Law in Topeka, Kan. “When the commander in chief says they will be dishonorably discharged, that’s a pretty specific message. Every military defense counsel will make a motion about this.” 

The result:

At Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina last month, a judge dismissed charges of sexual assault against an Army officer, noting the command influence issue. At Fort Bragg in North Carolina last month, lawyers cited the president’s words in a motion to dismiss the court-martial against Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair, who is accused of forcing a lower-ranking officer to perform oral sex on him, among other charges.  

Among other several cases adjudicated, and many more to follow.

Apparently The Union Bosses Have Read The O'BamaCare Law And Don't Like What They See

Forbes is reporting: Labor Unions: Obamacare Will 'Shatter' Their Health Benefits, Cause 'Nightmare Scenarios'

Yup. They should have read the bill. Hero worship got them in trouble. Big trouble.  

The Wall Street Journal is also reporting: union leaders seek changes to O'BamaCare. Who wudda thought? As Ms Pelosi said: pass the bill so we can read it to find out what's in it. Apparently union leaders have finally read it and don't like what they see: TrainWreck.

The presidents of the three of the nation's biggest labor unions, who say they have been stonewalled by the White House, are asking Democratic leaders in Congress to change the new health-care law, which they say would otherwise devastate union-sponsored health-insurance plans.

Since last year, union leaders have complained that many of the law's requirements will drive up costs for union-sponsored health-care plans that are managed jointly by unions and mostly small employers, making unionized workers less competitive and potentially causing unionized employers to drop the plans that cover more than 20 million people.

To offset the expected rising costs of these "multiemployer" plans, several union groups want their lower-paid members to be able to remain on the plans while also getting access to federal insurance subsidies to be provided under the law. Their problem is that under the law, the subsidies were designed to be used by low-income workers who don't have employer coverage, as a way to help them buy private insurance. The bottom line: they want lawmakers to apply the subsidies to people in the multiemployer plans.

What a mess! And if "lower-paid" union members get this break, what about all the other "lower-paid" non-union members around the country?

Sounds like this Train Wreck is only going to get worse and worse. Bits and pieces of the bill will be delayed, and there will be so many loopholes, it will be a .... a... a... yes, I guess the Democratic Senator was correct when he said it would be a "train wreck."

It's really too bad the unions didn't read the law before it was passed. It would have been nice had a few US Senators done likewise (read the bill before voting on it).

Cue up Connie Francis. 

Saturday Links, News, And Views

Montana governor won't run for US Senate. 

WSJ Links

Section D (Off Duty) has some interesting articles but due to limited time, no links right now.

I will definitely read "Who Ruined the Humanities," Section C (Review), later.

This, too, will have to wait: Boeing 787 Dreamliner catching fire in London poses new risk for Boeing; cause of fire not known; came back to flying just three months ago.

Longer story on ATT's bid to buy Leap Wireless (Cricket) for $1.2 billion.

For investors only: Daimler doing very, very well in US, China; Renault and VW facing challenges.

This may end up with a post of its own: union leaders seek changes to O'BamaCare. Who wudda thought? As Ms Pelosi said: pass the bill so we can read it to find out what's in it. Apparently union leaders have finally read it and don't like what they see: TrainWreck.

Prices for gasoline surged this past week due to glitches/slowdowns at refineries, raising concerns about supply. 

This wouldn't surprise me at all: the overthrow of Egypt's Morsi was planned well in advance: In a reversal, opposition and Mubarak-era forces are united today. Suggestions that Morsi's overthrow was planned in advance, as opposed to an emergency response, have implications for U.S. aid. Sort of like GM's bankruptcy plan.

Op-Ed: Democrat's anti-business stance in Detroit --

Standing next to his Ford F-150 pickup truck, John Frye surveys the buzz of activity at his industrial site on the Detroit River as a steady stream of trucks unloads petroleum coke—a coal-like, carbon energy source—for export. He and his brother Nolan are the proud owners of Detroit Bulk Storage, which also stores bulk commodities like salt and gravel.

The Fryes' operation has brought commerce to a moribund Detroit waterfront choked with weeds and abandoned warehouses. The activity is a direct result of Marathon Oil's huge refinery expansion here processing the gusher of oil from Canada's Alberta oil reserves—bringing needed tax revenue and hundreds of jobs to an inner city on the verge of Chapter 9 bankruptcy.

Yet the experience of Detroit Bulk Storage also offers a window into the antibusiness environment that has helped drive Detroit to fiscal insolvency. In a microcosm of the Democratic Party's wider war on carbon that is hampering America's economic recovery, the brothers' 20-employee company has become a prime target for harassment from politicians. By going after the city's burgeoning industry in pet coke—a byproduct of oil-sands refining—"green" politicians like Detroit's U.S. Rep. Gary Peters hope to further discourage Canadian oil exports from ever making it to the Keystone Pipeline or other American refineries.

47% of the population will never get it.

Week 28: July 7, 2013 -- July 13, 2013

This past week there were several stories on how extensive crude-by-rail has become; on WTI nearing parity with Brent oil; with surging stock market; with crude-oil train crash and fire in Canada, in area where activist environmentalists don't want pipelines.

Operations
Genscape predicts a 1.5% increase in North Dakota oil production for May, 2013
Whiting with two huge Westberg wells, approaching IPs of 5,000
Statoil reports a Beaux well, Banks oil field, with IP >5,000 
OXY USA and Halcon each with a nice well
A Murex gusher puts the Sandrocks oil field on the map
EOG's Parshall field on track to generate revenues in excess of $100 million -- Filloon

Mergers and deals
The KOG - Liberty Resources deal has closed; a bit pricier than originally reported

Economic development
Acme Tools to open in Williston; Dakota Landing north of Williston nearing completion

Human Interest
Bakken oil patch: still more places where nothing is than where something is

A Very Familiar Story Coming Out Of The Bakken

The Dickinson Press is reporting:

“My dad thought I was crazy when I bought those two trucks,” Taylor said. “But we had some drivers and we were busy. We started hauling water and then got hooked up with a company and started hauling crude oil. In 2008, we bought another truck and it’s just grown and grown since.”

Today, LT has more than 50 trucks in operation and hauls 20,000 barrels of crude oil per day, said Taylor. The company now employs nearly 100 people and, to accommodate the need, the LT shop is staffed around the clock.

“It’s really blossomed,” Taylor said. “We’ve increased our revenue by about 25 times from 2008 to today. You can’t complain about the economy here. There is a lot of opportunity here."

Another Gem: Sven's Bakken Blog

The URL: http://svensbakkenblog.wordpress.com/

The blog: One man's observations and experiences in the Bakken Oil Field, North Dakota, as well as thoughts on travel, culture, politics, religion, and philosophy.

The first post: Hello! My name is Sven. I moved to Williston, North Dakota in Feburary 2013 to work in the booming Bakken Oil Formation. Hopefully this blog can be a resource for other people  who are looking to come out here. I also like to talk about politics, travel and culture, so look for those posts as well. Thanks for reading.

This is another gem of a blog from the Bakken.  I will link Sven's blog at the sidebar at the right.