MDN’s Energy Stories of Interest: Tue, Oct 21, 2025 [FREE ACCESS]

OTHER U.S. REGIONS: The Gulf Coast’s natural gas storage buildout party continues; NATIONAL: U.S. natural gas exports to Mexico reach new records; Carbon credits failure; Sens. Ossoff, Dr. Cassidy intro bipartisan bill to strengthen American energy security; What Trump’s victory taught Democrats about climate change; Trump EPA to slash workforce by 25% as administration targets bureaucratic waste; INTERNATIONAL: Oil dips as surplus signs grow; EU strikes deal to ban Russian gas by end-2027; Analysts talk oil and gas bust cycle; The climate scaremongers – eco-nuts should get off the snow; Big fight coming over UN global shipping tax; Why does the world insanely ignore nuclear power?

OTHER U.S. REGIONS

The Gulf Coast’s natural gas storage buildout party continues
RBN Energy/Housley Carr
A “tsunami” of natural gas storage projects is expanding along the U.S. Gulf Coast, driven by robust customer demand for flexible capacity near new LNG export terminals and gas-fired power plants. This demand is further amplified by rising gas production and the intermittent nature of renewables. Contrary to earlier caution, strong customer backing has resulted in a significant buildout, primarily through “brownfield” expansions of existing facilities. Key midstream players are leading this surge: Williams is expanding Pine Prairie; Enbridge is considering expansions at Tres Palacios and other sites; Kinder Morgan is increasing capacity at North Lansing; and ONEOK is developing an 8-Bcf expansion at the newly acquired Jefferson Island facility. The strategic storage buildout is clearly gaining momentum. [MDN: This helps everyone, including M-U shippers that send molecules to the Gulf Coast.]

NATIONAL

U.S. natural gas exports to Mexico reach new records
U.S. Energy Information Administration – Today in Energy
U.S. natural gas pipeline exports to Mexico reached a record high of 7.5 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in May 2025, driven by increasing demand, largely from Mexico’s electric power sector. Annual exports averaged 6.4 Bcf/d in 2024, a 25% increase from 2019, with the majority flowing from the South and West Texas corridors. Mexico’s total natural gas consumption also grew during this time. While current infrastructure has capacity, exports are sometimes limited by pipeline constraints and storage limitations in Mexico. To meet future demand, Mexico is actively expanding its pipeline network, including major projects like the offshore Southeast Gateway Gas pipeline, which also supports new LNG export terminals drawing from U.S. supply. [MDN: Mexico’s Commie presidents refuse to allow fracking and drilling in their own country, yet they import like crazy from us. Hey, whatever. We’re happy to send our gas their way so their “leaders” can appear to be environuts for their constituents.]

Carbon credits failure
Master Resource/Robert Bradley Jr.
The article argues that carbon credits have fundamentally failed due to being politicized by government intervention, leading to suboptimal and corrupt outcomes. Experts, including Lisa Sachs, Joe Romm, and Johan Rockström, criticize offsets for systematically undermining genuine decarbonization efforts. Sachs contends that offsets are used by companies for false accounting rather than altruistic reductions, suggesting a levy system as a more credible alternative. Romm’s research concludes that 25 years of offsetting have been ineffective due to “intractable” issues like nonadditionality and leakage, advocating for a phase-out of most credits in favor of permanent carbon dioxide removal. Rockström highlights that a significant percentage of offset projects fail to deliver promised emission reductions, eroding trust in carbon markets and emphasizing the need for rigorous, science-based assessments. The piece concludes that the failure of these schemes represents government failure in trying to address alleged market failure, causing a divide within the “Progressive Left.” [MDN: As we have often pointed out, carbon credits are the equivalent of the Catholic Church selling indulgences for sins in the Middle Ages. It’s corrupt and it’s wrong.]

Sens. Ossoff, Dr. Cassidy intro bipartisan bill to strengthen American energy security
U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff (D-Georgia)
Senators Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) introduced the bipartisan American Energy Security Act to strengthen energy security, lower costs for families, and help cities modernize infrastructure. The bill formally authorizes the Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure and Safety Modernization (NGDISM) grant program through 2029, which was originally created through the bipartisan infrastructure law but is set to expire. This program provides Federal grant funding to communities for replacing and upgrading critical natural gas infrastructure, thereby improving the safe and reliable transportation of fuel to residents and businesses. Senator Ossoff highlighted that this legislation would aid Georgia in modernizing infrastructure, while Dr. Cassidy emphasized the importance of strengthening the nation’s pipeline system. [MDN: A Democrat and (sadly) Republican who want to pass out our taxpayer money to companies that should fund their own upgrades. The so-called infrastructure bill during the evil Biden years was a boondoggle that needs to die, not be reauthorized.]

What Trump’s victory taught Democrats about climate change
POLITICO Magazine/Debra Kahn
The article states that the Democratic Party has strategically pivoted away from emphasizing climate policy in its public messaging following its 2024 electoral defeat, choosing instead to focus on energy affordability. This rhetorical and policy shift is a reaction to widespread voter frustration with high prices, which helped Donald Trump win the presidency. Prominent Democrats, including Senator Chris Coons, believe voters did not give the party credit for its significant energy investments, suggesting that climate focus either hurt or failed to help their electoral prospects. The new strategy involves both blaming Republicans for dismantling climate legislation that allegedly raises utility bills and, at the state level, downplaying climate initiatives. [MDN: This is rich. The Democrats caused high electricity rates with their policies and insane taxpayer investment in unreliable renewables. And now that rates are high because of them, they blame Republicans for the high rates. And mainstream media regurgitates their lies. Go figure.]

Trump EPA to slash workforce by 25% as administration targets bureaucratic waste
Daily Caller News Foundation/Melissa O’Rourke
The Trump Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is set to reduce its workforce by nearly 25%, shrinking staff from approximately 16,400 to 12,500 full-time employees by the end of 2025. This action is part of the administration’s effort to target “bureaucratic waste” and refocus the agency on its core mission of protecting human health and the environment, citing a previous expansion under former President Joe Biden. The reductions are projected to yield significant taxpayer savings. The EPA also claims over $29 billion saved by canceling or scaling back grants and contracts from the prior administration, including billions for “environmental justice” initiatives. An EPA official indicated that backlogs in permitting and reviews increased despite the prior staffing levels, arguing that effective leadership and proper placement of staff are more crucial than total headcount. [MDN: Go DJT and go Lee Zeldin! A breath of fresh air is blowing at the EPA.]

INTERNATIONAL

Oil dips as surplus signs grow
Bloomberg/Mia Gindis, Veena Ali-Khan
Oil prices saw a slight dip, settling near $57 a barrel for West Texas Intermediate (WTI), as optimism over potential US-China trade talks was countered by concrete signs of an emerging supply surplus. The market is increasingly concerned about oversupply, evidenced by record-high oil stored on tankers and production increases from OPEC+ nations. This pressure, along with geopolitical risks like the limited de-escalation in the Ukraine conflict and a slowing Chinese economy, has driven WTI futures more than 20% down from summer highs. Key market indicators, including the flip into a bearish contango pricing pattern, also suggest a continued downward trend, though some technical analysis hints the recent price plunge may have been too rapid. [MDN: WTI for November delivery, which expires on Tuesday, fell 2 cents to settle at $57.52 a barrel in New York. Brent for December settlement slipped 28 cents to settle at $61.01 a barrel. Stable but low. This week should tell the story of where it will go longer term.]

EU strikes deal to ban Russian gas by end-2027
Bloomberg/John Ainger
European Union energy ministers agreed on a joint position to ban all Russian gas supplies by the end of 2027, definitively ending the bloc’s reliance on Moscow’s energy. A qualified majority supported the ban, a procedural step on the RePowerEU regulation. The plan prohibits Russian supplies under existing short-term contracts by mid-June, followed by a ban on long-term deals 18 months later, though landlocked countries like Hungary and Slovakia are exempt. This two-pronged strategy, including separate proposals on LNG imports, is driven by the 2022 invasion of Ukraine and aims to reach a final deal by year-end. EU officials emphasized the goal is to never again depend on a single external country for energy. [MDN: As we so often say with respect to Euro weenies…we’ll believe it when we see it. Already this so-called ban on Russian oil exempts two EU countries. We predict that as soon as the Russia/Ukraine war is over, this will all be forgotten and they will resume buying cheap (and dirty) Russian oil. Some people never learn.]

Analysts talk oil and gas bust cycle
Rigzone/Andreas Exarheas
In an exclusive interview, James Davis of FGE London asserted the oil market is in a “bust cycle” due to falling crude prices, a supply surplus, and companies cutting investment. He noted that $60 per barrel now yields “very little free cash flow” for tight oil producers compared to 2019, already causing high-cost U.S. producers’ output to slump. Davis forecasts a weak period lasting 5-10 years. Conversely, Neil Crosby of Sparta Commodities believes the market is “not in a bust yet” but sees “early signs,” citing a much weaker physical market despite record U.S. shale output. Crosby expects OPEC+ to intervene if prices fall low enough to threaten major gluts, noting a future bust affecting supply would take over a year to cause a price rebound. [MDN: We give little credence to these “experts” and their predictions. There are far too many unknowns and variables we just can’t see over the next 5-10 years to say oil is now in a down cycle pricewise. Same for natural gas.]

The climate scaremongers – eco-nuts should get off the snow
TCW – Defending Freedom/Paul Homewood
The article critiques Sverker Sörlin’s book “Snö: A History,” which links vanishing snow and retreating glaciers to human-caused climate change. The author, Paul Homewood, argues that Sörlin and other “eco-nuts” ignore historical context, specifically the Little Ice Age, which ended in the mid-19th century. Homewood asserts that the current glacier retreat began long before significant greenhouse gas increases and is simply a return to earlier, pre-Little Ice Age conditions, citing evidence like ancient trees found as glaciers melt. He details the catastrophic impact of advancing glaciers and excessive snow during the Little Ice Age on Alpine villages to challenge the romanticized view of ice. The article also touches on British Conservative Party politics, suggesting that a proposed “U-turn” on Net Zero policies is merely “window dressing,” as key figures and conservative environmental groups still advocate for continued, costly climate action. [MDN: An excellent article that completely debunks the “man is causing the glaciers to disappear” nonsense narrative of the eco-left.]

Big fight coming over UN global shipping tax
Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT)/David Wojick
A major conflict is underway over the UN’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) proposed Net Zero Framework (NZF), widely seen as a global carbon tax on shipping emissions. The framework sets progressively lower caps, aiming for net-zero by 2050, requiring non-compliant ships to purchase expensive “remedial units.” The Trump administration has unequivocally rejected the NZF, warning it could be “disastrous” and potentially increase global shipping costs by 10% or more, leading to higher costs for consumers and businesses. Following the U.S. opposition, the IMO postponed the vote on the compliance program, indicating the start of a significant international fight over the initiative and its enormous potential economic and regulatory disruption. [MDN: Bring it on! We’re ready for the fight. There is no way a Trump (or successive Vance) administration will cave to this nonsense carbon tax on shipping. NO WAY.]

Why does the world insanely ignore nuclear power?
America Out Loud News/Ronald Stein P.E., Oliver Hemmers, Steve Curtis
The article criticizes the global inaction on nuclear power, arguing that massive government subsidies for wind and solar have failed, leading to mismanagement, corporate theft, and higher costs for citizens once the funding stops. It proposes that the solution for safe, continuous, and emissions-free electricity lies in nuclear energy, which is 50 million times more potent than coal. Specifically, recycling slightly used nuclear fuel (SUNF) in fast reactors can unlock over 90% of the uranium’s potential, transforming a multi-billion dollar waste liability into trillions in revenue and providing power for around a penny per kWh. The author urges the government to stop subsidizing monopolies and exit the electricity business to allow free enterprise innovation to realize this potential. [MDN: It’s hard to argue with cold, hard, rational logic like this. Nukes are good, not bad. So is natural gas. We need both. We don’t need unreliable renewables.]