Reminder: 6:30 P.M. CT Tonight A Football Game -- January 8, 2024

Locator: 46493FOOTBALL.

Be sure to check local times, etc.

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17

Paul Harvey

Insurance Inflation -- And How Insurers Cope -- January 8, 2024

Locator: 46492GEICO.

Speaking of Warren Buffet, of which we were, a few minutes ago, now this, from The WSJ:

From the linked article:

After Allstate suffered billions of dollars in losses and failed to get the rate increases it wanted, it resorted to the nuclear option.

The insurance giant threatened last fall to stop renewing auto insurance for customers in three states that hadn’t given in to its demands, which would have left those policyholders scrambling for coverage. The states blinked.

In December, New Jersey approved auto rate increases for Allstate averaging 17%, and New York, a 15% hike. Regulators in California are allowing Allstate to boost auto rates by 30%, but still haven’t decided on its request for a 40% increase in home-insurance rates after the insurer refused to write new policies.

For many Americans, getting insurance for both their cars and homes has gone from a routine, generally manageable expense to a do-or-die ordeal that can strain household budgets.

Insurers are coming off some of their worst years in history. Catastrophic damage from storms and wildfires is one big reason. The past decade of global natural catastrophes has been the costliest ever. Warmer temperatures have made storms worse and contributed to droughts that have elevated wildfire risk. Too many new homes were built in areas at risk of fire.

As losses mounted, inflation only made matters worse, boosting the cost of repairing or replacing cars or homes.

And more:

Homeowners and drivers are facing sharply rising premiums, less coverage and fewer, if any, choices of insurer. In some places, the only options are bare bones coverage or none at all. That can make homes worth less and harder to sell, and cars less affordable.

Farmers Insurance Group increased home-insurance rates by more than 23% last year for tens of thousands of policyholders in both Illinois and Texas, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence. Nationwide Mutual said it won’t renew 10,525 home-insurance policies in hurricane-prone areas of North Carolina.

State Farm racked up $13 billion in property-casualty underwriting losses in 2022, its worst ever. Last year, it stopped writing new home-insurance policies in California. The state’s regulators last month approved a 20% home-insurance rate increase.

Groningen Back In The News -- January 8, 2024

Locator: 46491LNG.

How cold is it in Europe? Reports were that the continent was fully supplied with LNG / NG -- but now ....

Link here.

Groningen is tracked at the sidebar at the right.

The irony of the last update. LOL. 

 July 30, 2021: natural gas prices surging in Europe; severe shortage, and it could get worse. 

Active Rigs Jump To 38; Liberty Resources With Four New Permits In The Tioga Area -- January 8, 2024

Locator: 46490B.

Active rigs: 38.

WTI: $70.77.

Four new permits, #40439 - #40442, inclusive:

• Operator: Liberty Resources
• Fields: East Tioga (Mountrail); White Earth (Mountrail)
• Comments:
• Liberty Resources has permits for two Rice wells and two Tucson wells, NWNW 25-158-94,
• to be sited 358 / 359 FNL and between 605 FWL and 710 FWL;

Three permits canceled:

• Neptune Operating: three Gustafson permits, McKenzie County

One Of Several New Year's Resolutions For 2024 -- More Sake

Locator: 46489SAKE.

I'll keep readers updated.

Taking Buffett's Advice -- January 8, 2024

Locator: 46488INV.

TAG: Snarky.

Breaking

Later, 4:18 p.m. CT:

Original Post

Link here.

Also, when I bought JNJ years ago I never knew about JNJ's talcum powder issue. But other than that, the 10-Ks have been very helpful. LOL.

Oh, that's right ... there was also the Texaco fiasco -- involving Paul Getty or something along that line .. .I've long forgotten ... but other than that the 10-Ks have been very helpful. Oh, yes, the whole thing with Lucent decades ago...

Oh, another one ... 3M ... multiple lawsuits, including the biggie -- the hearing protection issue -- I never even knew 3M was involved with hearing protection ... yeah, reading those 10-Ks have been a real hoot.

Now, back to Shakespeare and The Merchant of Venice --- which, by the way, also involves a lawsuit. LOL.

The Grayson Mill Pyramid Wells, Northwest Side Of Williston, Todd Oil Field

Locator: 46487GM.

During the boom, Brigham drilled four Pyramid wells on the northwest side of Williston. The pad remained unchanged for quite some time while the city of Williston grew and surrounded this pad, including the new Williston High School and I pretty much forgot about the Pyramid wells. Today, I noted that these wells have been acquired by Grayson Mill and Grayson Mill now has six more locations "on" the same pad:

• 35866, loc, Grayson Mill/Equinor, Hawkeye 16-21 8H (original, 8TFH), Todd,
• 35867, loc, Grayson Mill/Equinor, Pyramid 15-22 XWW 1H, Todd,
• 35868, loc, Grayson Mill/Equinor, Pyramid 15-22 6H (original, 6TFH), Todd,
• 35869, loc, Grayson Mill/Equinor, Pyramid 15-22 5H, Todd,
• 35870, loc, Grayson Mill/Equinor, Pyramid 15-22 7TFH, Todd,
• 35871, loc, Grayson Mill/Equinor, Pyramid 15-22 8TFH, Todd,

All six horizontals will run parallel, north to south, and all will end in section 22 to the south, except #35866, which will end in section 21 to the south, and to the west of section 22.

The production data for the wells have been updated.

From March 3, 2023:

The Pyramid Wells On The Northwest Side Of Williston
Near the New Williston High School

• 22872, 3,091, Grayson Mill/Statoil/BEXP, Pyramid 15-22 4H (changed from 4TFH), Todd, t3/13; cum 279K 7/17; cum 414K 11/23; nice jump in production, 6/23;
  
• 22873, 2.835, Grayson Mill/Statoil/BEXP, Pyramid 15-22 3H, Todd, 9,132 bbls in first 6 days; s7/5/12; kop7/14/12; td9/10/12; no flare; t3/13; cum 261K 7/17; cm 3700K 11/23;
  
• 22874, 1,884, Grayson Mill/Statoil, Pyramid 15-22 2TFH, Todd, 32 stages; 3.8 million lbs sand/ceramic; almost no background gas during lateral drilling, t3/13; cum 143K 7/17; cum 201K 11/23;
  
• 22875, 2,341, Grayson Mill/Statoil, Pyramid 15-22 1H, Todd, t4/13; cum 208K 7/17; cum 290K 11/23; nice jump in production, 11/23;
  

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Screenshots

Three Wells Coming Off Confidential List Over Weekend -- Hess With Two Nice Wells -- January 8, 2024

Locator: 46486B.

WTI: $71.80.

Tuesday, January 9, 2024: 9 for the month; 9 for the quarter, 9 for the year
39996, conf, Ragnar Exploration, Reardon 1-20H,
39928, conf, Neptune Operating, Fritz 20-29-32 2H,
39927, conf, Neptune Operating, Fritz 20-29-32 3H,

Monday, January 8, 2024: 6 for the month; 6 for the quarter, 6 for the year
39929, conf, Neptune Operating, Jacobson 17-8-5 3H,

Sunday, January 7, 2024: 5 for the month; 5 for the quarter, 5 for the year
39930, conf, Neptune Operating, Jacobson 17-8-5 2H,

Saturday, January 6, 2024: 4 for the month; 4 for the quarter, 4 for the year
39025, conf, Hess, GO-Golden Valley-157-96-2833H-2,
39024, conf, Hess, GO-Golden Valley-157-96-2833H-3,

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The Wells Of Interest

The wells:

• 39025, conf, Hess, GO-Golden Valley-157-96-283H-2, Ray,

Pool	Date	Days	BBLS Oil	Runs	BBLS Water	MCF Prod	MCF Sold	Vent/Flare
BAKKEN	11-2023	30	10841	10836	22713	31176	30976	200
BAKKEN	10-2023	30	11768	11813	23177	26245	25954	291
BAKKEN	9-2023	30	12509	12496	25749	24241	23944	297
BAKKEN	8-2023	28	16463	16322	47405	37632	37173	459
BAKKEN	7-2023	25	26110	26002	32845	27597	27101	496

• 39024, conf, Hess, GO-Golden Valley-157-96-2833H-3, Ray,

Pool	Date	Days	BBLS Oil	Runs	BBLS Water	MCF Prod	MCF Sold	Vent/Flare
BAKKEN	11-2023	30	9966	9945	25694	26513	26329	184
BAKKEN	10-2023	29	9948	9995	25107	22468	22222	246
BAKKEN	9-2023	30	10986	10898	29685	22509	22248	261
BAKKEN	8-2023	22	9340	9264	30224	15938	15680	258
BAKKEN	7-2023	24	16019	15953	56550	38022	37696	326

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RBN Energy

RBN Energy: high court ruling in "Chevron Deference" challenge could upend energy regulations.

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments January 17 in a pair of cases that are poised to capsize the so-called Chevron Deference, a 40-year-old legal doctrine that provides a key foundation for modern administrative law. It’s a big deal – big enough that we’re willing to wade into a little bit of legalese to help make sense of it. So strap in because in today’s RBN blog, we’ll explain what the Chevron Deference is, why it’s worth knowing about, how it applies to two cases that could alter its application, and how a ruling that limits or eliminates the doctrine’s usage and application could transform energy industry regulation.

Let’s start with some background. Under our Constitutional system of checks and balances, Congress legislates by passing laws (Article I), the Executive Branch issues regulations to execute and enforce those laws (Article II), and the courts interpret them (Article III). The federal agencies that make up the Executive Branch are often referred to as “creatures of statute.” This means that their authorities to regulate are limited to the powers delegated to them by Congress — no more, no less. But the extent of that delegated authority is not always black and white. Laws are often lengthy and complex, and void of important details. This is largely out of necessity — it would be impossible to craft legislation that addressed every possible situation or future development — but also by design, as Congress has typically operated under the presumption that statutory law should set frameworks and standards, with individual agencies being best equipped to handle the details, given their subject-matter expertise and ability to respond quickly to changing conditions.

The gray area between what Congress intends and what the agency actually does is where the Chevron Deference comes into play.

Way back in 1984, in a case known as Chevron USA v. Natural Resources Defense Council (aka “Chevron”), the Supreme Court considered Clean Air Act regulations implemented by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defining the statutory term “stationary source.” The NRDC had challenged the EPA’s interpretation, which treated all pollution-control devices in a single industrial or power plant as one “stationary source,” which made it easier to install new control equipment without having to recertify the whole thing under much tougher “new source” requirements if the changes weren’t increasing emissions for the plant. The high court approved the EPA’s approach, writing that when a court reviews an agency’s interpretation of the statute it administers, the court must first determine whether Congress “has spoken to the precise question at issue.” If Congress did speak directly to the question, the statutory language must be followed because the courts and agencies must “give effect to the unambiguously expressed intent of Congress.” Thus, if the agency’s interpretation is consistent with that expressed intent, the interpretation is valid. If not, the agency’s interpretation is not valid. This analysis is now called Chevron Step 1.