Week 1: January 1, 2017 -- January 7, 2017

Winter storm Helena continues. Weather Channel is reporting that the storm is "way worse" on the mid-Atlantic coast than predicted. It looks like Norfolk, VA, is being particularly hard hit and is the top weather story of the hour. Every state in the Lower 48 is reporting temperatures lower than 32 degrees including five reporting stations in northern Florida (the panhandle). According to Dr Roy Spencer:

The spatial average temperature over the Lower 48 at 6 a.m. is 11 deg. F, which is fully 9 deg. (!) colder than at any time last winter, which occurred twice in January of 2016.

There is pressure on the president to issue an executive order to a) rename Donner Pass: Kennedy Crossing; and, b) ban fracking on the pass. The latter is more likely than the former.

These cold temperatures would affect the global warming models, but the warmists throw out "out-liers" when it comes to temperatures, and under the warming models, winter storms are considered out-liers.

In the DAPL area: 47 inches of snow so far in Dickinson and winter is only getting started; and Bismarck area breaks snowfall record by 6 inches, and, again, winter is only getting started. All predicted by the warmists. And the Kennedys.

The next-named winter storm will be Iras: Iras is a Shakespearean baby name. In Antony and Cleopatra, Iras: lady attending on Cleopatra. [Update, later, 8:49 a.m. Central Time: Weather Channel has just mentioned winter storm Iras.]

The big story in the Bakken this spring: flooding. And, no, fracking sand will not be used to fill sand bags.

With regard to energy, the big story is in Mexico on a number of fronts, including the 20% increase in the price of gasoline; Mexico's gasoline imports;

The biggest non-weather and non-energy story in North Dakota had to do with drones: FAA has granted permission to the Northern Plains UAS Test Site to conduct beyond-visual-line-of-sight operations at Grand Sky technology park on Grand Forks Air Force Base. This is a huge story.

Operations
Barely 800 oil and gas permits issued in 2016 by the NDIC; compare to 3,000 during the height of the boom
Oasis reports huge well (but not particularly remarkable for Bakken 2.0)
EOG returning to the eastern fringe of the Bakken; and, here, with graphics;
Update on an "old" Fidelity (MDU) well restored to production by Kaiser-Francis

Production Increase After Coming Back On-Line
CLR well shows four-fold production increase after coming back on-line after neighboring well(s) fracked

Takeaway
Are operators now deducting transportation charges at the wellhead?

Other formations
Update on a recently drilled Tyler well  

Miscellaneous
EIA has released its annual energy outlook, 2017: US will be net exporter of energy through 2050 
net crude oil US imports increasing
The Williston Herald releases its top ten stories for 2016
Winter storm shuts down North Dakota; truly a fly-over state; and, here; and, here

Commentary
How oil companies survived two death-star events  
Comments on 2016; comments and predictions on 2017