Notes From All Over -- Saturday Morning Edition, Part 1 -- Juneteenth, 2021

Coal is dead! Long live coal! Wow, how many times have I posted those six words? From social media: US year-to-date coal production totaled 261.5 million shorts tons, 8.7% higher than the comparable year-to-date coal production in 2020. Or go directly to EIA's "weekly coal production" site.

Bakken natural gas -- year-long high: Canadian gas exports on Northern Border reach five-month high despite Bakken growth. Link at S&P Global Platts. Wow, it looks like Platts didn't know which story line to headline. Data points:

• Bakken production reaches year-long high (with 16 active rigs, just saying);
• Bakken gas flaring remains under 7% (how's the Permian doing?)
• Canadian natural gas exports on the North Border Pipeline increased by an average of more than 200 million cfpd over the past seven days (article published June 14, 2021)
• Bakken supply on the pipeline: 1.68 billion cfpd
• lowest amount of Bakken supply on that line since the severe winter storm in mid-February
• freeze-offs dropped it to 1.64 billion cfpd
• okay: 1.68 billion vs 1.64 billion, and that's a headline
• Bakken rigs have climbed nearly 40% since January 1, 2021 (previously posted)

Bloomberg on shale: I had seen this link some time ago, debated whether to post it. Then a reader sent it to me. So it's linked/posted, FWIW. "After blowing $300 billion, US shale finally makes money." Way too many story lines to even begin. All I know is this: a lot of mom-and-pop mineral owners in North Dakota don't mind one bit, smiling all the way to the bank. Which reminds me, the data for the June, 2021, North Dakota Legacy Fund will be posted this next week. Link is here. Currently about $40 million is added each month to the coffers. 

Natural gas reclassification: I understand this not at all but will post the link for the archives. Maybe some day it will make sense.

China: considers lifting all childbirth restrictions by 2025. Link at The WSJ. 

There are so many story lines, I cannot even begin. However, from an energy point of view, and that's all I really care about any more with regard to a blog focused on the Bakken: this tells me all I need to know about China's energy situation. Any decision to drop childbirth restrictions has to be done lock-step with regard to energy requirements. This suggests to me that China feels very comfortable meeting its energy needs going forward. 

That's huge. 

China: I've followed this story for years, mostly from an environmental point of view, but now it's history -- that massive Chinese hydropower plant on the Yaangtze River has begun full operation. Huge. Link here to Charles Kennedy.

• seventh-largest hydropower facility in the world
• 12-generators
• $19 billion
• installed capacity of 10.2 GW
• first started generating electricity one year ago, but now all generators on line
• Wudongde plant aka the "who-done-it" plant
• displaces 12.2 million tons of standard coal and eliminates 30.5 million tons of CO2 annually (FWIF)
• global hydropower capacity:
• China, #1: 1.302 terawatt-hours as of 2019
• Canada, a distant #2: 398 TWh
• China with four of the world's largest hydropower plants, including the massive Three Gorges dam with a capacity of 22.5 GW and Xiluodo aka Xanadu, 13.86 GW

Gasoline demand: the EIA data does not seem to corroborate this story, but Reuters is reporting that US motor vehicle travel jumped by 55% in April, 2021, over 2020 levels. 

Trending on social media: HBO Max releases "Integration test Email #1." 

Exxon feeling pretty good these days? The company rejects union proposal to end Texas refinery lock out. Link here. Seven weeks so far.

And why not? If they were cheap a week ago, they're really cheap now. Three cheap energy stocks to buy right now, from The Motley Fool. By the way, what three things to these three companies have in common?

• Enbridge
• EPD
• OKE

Disclaimer: this is not an investment site.  Do not make any investment, financial, job, career, travel, or relationship decisions based on what you read here or think you may have read here.

Answer to quiz:

• they're all pipeline companies;
• they're all making a gazillion dollars in the Bakken;
• they all pay a great dividend