Saudis lose No. 1 spot for 1st time since March: official data
U.S. ranked No. 3 with output of 8.8 million barrels a day

Russia overtook Saudi Arabia as the world’s largest crude producer in December, when both countries started restricting supplies ahead of agreed cuts with other global producers to curb the worst glut in decades.

Russia pumped 10.49 million barrels a day in December, down 29,000 barrels a day from November, while Saudi Arabia’s output declined to 10.46 million barrels a day from 10.72 million barrels a day in November, according to data published Monday on the website of the Joint Organisations Data Initiative in Riyadh. That was the first time Russia beat Saudi Arabia since March.

Saudi Arabia and fellow producers from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries decided at the end of November to restrict supplies by 1.2 million barrels a day for six months starting Jan. 1, with Saudi Arabia instrumental in the plan. Non-member producers, including Russia, pledged additional curbs. Brent crude prices have climbed about 20 percent since the end of November.

The U.S. was the third-largest producer, at 8.8 million barrels a day in December compared with 8.9 million barrels a day in November, according to JODI. Iraq came in fourth at 4.5 million barrels a day, followed by China at 3.98 million barrels a day, the data show.

Saudi Arabia’s crude exports declined to 8 million barrels a day in December, from 8.26 million barrels a day, the biggest outflow for any month since May 2003, according to JODI data.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-02-20/russia-overtakes-saudi-arabia-as-world-s-largest-crude-producer

According to the latest Reuters report, Asian spot LNG prices fell for a sixth consecutive week as a series of sell tenders launched this week are seen offering supplies into a market with thin demand following a warmer-than-expected winter in North Asia.

Spot prices for LNG for April delivery were pegged at around US$6.40 per million British thermal units, approximately 50 cents below last week's levels.

Falling prices at Britain's gas trading hub, National Balancing Point (NBP), have dashed expectations of an influx of shipments heading to Europe, leaving more for other regions.

Import tenders from India's Gail, Thailand's PTT and Argentina's Enarsa have done little to counter the supplies offered by Russia, Angola and Abu Dhabi this week.

Russia's Sakhalin II LNG project issued two tenders to sell a combined nine shipments loading in 2017/2018 this week. The first tender offers three cargoes for loading on 23, 26 and 29 April, while the second tender is offering cargoes for loading between May and March next year.

https://www.lngindustry.com/liquid-natural-gas/20022017/asian-lng-prices-continue-to-fall/

Iran has found shale oil reserves of 2 billion barrels of light crude in its western Lorestan province, a senior official at the state-run National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) was quoted as saying on Saturday.

"Based on studies, it is estimated that the shale oil reserves in Ghali Koh in Lorestan amount to 2 billion barrels of oil in place,” Bahman Soleimani, NIOC’s deputy director for exploration, told the semi-official news agency Tasnim. "The oil is light."

Soleimani said exploration was also being carried out for shale gas reserves in the area, and the studies were expected to be completed by October, 2017.

Iran's proven oil reserves of about 160 billion barrels, almost 10 percent of the world's total, rank it fourth among petroleum-rich countries.

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-iran-oil-shale-idUSKBN15X0FO

---

Attached Files

Japan, the world's largest LNG importer and accounting for about 35% of global demand, is set to play a significant role in LNG bunkering as the marine industry turns to cleaner fuel options to comply with stricter environmental regulations.

In October 2016, the International Maritime Organization decided to cut global sulfur emission limits for marine fuels from 3.5% to 0.5% by 2020.

Currently, the demand for heavy fuel oils as marine fuel is about 250 million mt/year. Ship operators will have to switch to cleaner, more expensive fuels or invest in emissions cleaning systems. LNG is another option.

Major impediments to the widespread adoption of LNG bunkering have been high infrastructure costs, lack of sufficient enforcement as well as current low crude oil prices.

Another problem is matching the expectations of the buyers and sellers. While sellers are keen to lock in long-term contracts, ship operators, who are already facing challenging market conditions, prefer to buy spot cargoes.

LNG could be a viable and cheaper alternative as the price for middle distillates rises, sources said.

Besides tackling sulfur emissions, LNG addresses other environmental aspects too.

It has no detectable sulfur, and LNG-fueled vessels emit lower particle and nitrogen oxide than those using marine fuels.

"The volume of fuel oil bunkering, which has to be replaced by low sulfur fuel oil is huge. It is 2 million b/d. Almost equal to... or a little bit less than Iran's oil production. But it is huge. How can it be replaced in three years?" Fereidun Fesharaki, chairman of Facts Global Energy, said at an energy event in Tokyo last week.

Blending diesel and fuel oil to create 5,000 ppm sulfur fuel was extremely difficult, he said, adding that compliance would be impossible.

"Not in 2020, not in 2023, 2024, 2025. In that process, there will be more LNG bunkering definitely ... it is a very, very big challenge," Fesharaki said.

Demand from LNG will also be boosted by the lower prices of natural gas in the future, Robin Meech, managing director at Marine & Energy Consulting, said, adding that global annual demand for LNG bunkers could rise from less than 1 million mt currently to as high as 8 million mt by 2025.

LNG BUNKERING IN JAPAN

Japan carried out a feasibility study for the development of an LNG bunkering hub at the port of Yokohama, on the Pacific side as it serves as a bunkering base on the Asian side of the Pacific route.

A report by Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism in December set a three-phase road map for the development of an LNG bunkering base.

According to the report, Phase I has already started with the introduction of truck-to-ship bunkering.

"The optimization has been realized since November 2016," the report said. Phase II comprises ship-to-ship bunkering by using the LNG terminal in Tokyo bay (Sodegaura terminal) where the required facilities are already in place for supplying LNG to ships by 2020.

Phase III will strengthen ship-to-ship supply capacity by introducing new LNG supply system and another bunkering ship at Yokohama once demand reached a certain scale, it said.

In October 2016, the ministry became part of an international focus group to co-operate on LNG bunkering. The group comprises the ports of Singapore, Rotterdam, Antwerp, Zeebrugge, Jacksonville, the Norwegian Maritime Authority, and South Korea's Ulsan Port Authority.

"We think the market [for LNG bunkering] will be surely growing, seeing strong environmental regulations ... Yes, Japan can be one of the most important hubs," a spokesman at NYK Line said.

The Japanese shipping line said on Wednesday that it, together with ENGIE, Fluxys and Mitsubishi Corporation, has taken delivery of ENGIE Zeebrugge, the first purpose built LNG bunkering vessel.

A number of other vessels that NYK could use for LNG bunkering are also under study. "Details are not been decided though, study is on-going," a company spokesman said.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, another Japanese shipper, said last month that it had reached an agreement to launch a joint study of an LNG-fueled Capesize bulker with five other companies -- BHP Billiton, DNV GL, Rio Tinto, Shanghai Merchant Ship Design and Research Institute and Woodside Energy.

"The MOL Group continually takes a proactive approach to developing and adopting technologies that contribute to reducing environmental impact and enhancing safe operation, while providing safe and reliable transport services," it said in a statement in January.

http://www.platts.com/latest-news/shipping/singapore/feature-japan-readies-for-lng-bunkering-as-marine-27772412

Malaysian state-owned oil and gas firm Petronas is aiming to sell a large minority stake in a prized upstream local gas project for up to $1 billion (804.57 million pounds) as it seeks to raise cash and cut development costs, two sources familiar with the matter said.

Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) is looking to sell a stake of as much as 49 percent in the SK316 offshore gas block in Malaysia’s Sarawak state, the sources told Reuters, a move that would be one of its first major recent sales as it grapples with oil prices that have slumped by half from two-and-a-half years ago.

Petronas is working with an investment bank on the stake sale and kicked off the process this month, one of the sources said. Petronas did not respond to a request for comment.

Gas from the NC3 field in the SK316 block feeds Malaysia’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) export project, known as LNG 9, Petronas’ joint venture with JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp that started commercial production in January.

The sources said the stake is expected to include a combination of the producing NC3 gas field, the potential development of the Kasawari field in the same block and other exploration acreage in the block.

The funds raised could contribute to the future development of the Kasawari field, one of the largest non-associated gas fields in Malaysia, which has an estimated recoverable hydrocarbon resource of about three trillion standard cubic feet.

The stake could appeal to firms such as Indonesia’s state-owned Pertamina, Thailand’s PTT Exploration, and Production PCL and some Japanese companies, the sources said.

As huge production comes online in Australia and the United States, LNG markets are oversupplied, resulting in an almost 70 percent slump in the Asian spot LNG price since 2014 to $6.40 per million British thermal units now.

Despite this, Malaysia’s LNG assets are viewed as attractive thanks to comparatively low production costs and due to their proximity to North Asia’s big consumption hubs of Japan, China, and South Korea.

Petronas is currently gauging interest from potential bidders, said the sources, who declined to be identified as they were not authorised to speak about the matter.

A slump in oil markets since 2014, which has seen crude prices halve to little more than $50 per barrel, has squeezed Petronas’ cashflow and forced it to announce a 50 billion Malaysian ringgit ($11.2 billion) cut in capital expenditure in January 2016 over four years.

http://www.lngworldnews.com/petronas-considers-1-bln-stake-sale-in-offshore-gas-project/

A consortium led by Russian oil major Rosneft plans to finally complete its $12.9 billion acquisition of India's Essar Oil next month, two Russian sources close to the deal told Reuters.

Acquiring the refiner will give state-owned oil Rosneft access to India, one of the world's fastest-growing energy markets. The deal was announced to fanfare in October but has still not closed.

The sources said the delay was due to the complexity of Essar's structure and financing, not to any issues relating to the buyers, who will buy 98 percent of Essar. Rosneft is under Western sanctions due to Moscow's role in the Ukraine crisis.

The deal, announced during a visit to India by Russian President Vladimir Putin, is now set to be completed on March 15, the two sources said.

Rosneft will acquire a 49 percent share in Essar and another 49 percent will be shared between commodities trader Trafigura and Russian private investment group United Capital Partners (UCP).

The deal was structured to avoid the risk of Western sanctions, the chief executive of Russian bank VTB, which is involved in financing the deal, told Reuters last year.

Essar Oil operates a 400,000 barrel-a-day refinery in Vadinar on India's west coast and sells fuels through its 2,470 filling stations across the country.

Trafigura has said that VTB would co-fund Trafigura and UCP's 49 percent stake. Rosneft has said it may use its own funds, external financing or both to pay for its share.

One of the sources close to the deal said discussions about the management team at Essar were holding up completion of the deal, but did not elaborate.

The second source said that Essar's Indian creditor banks, who include State Bank of India (SBI), must approve a change of control at the company. The deal was also complicated by Essar's ongoing debt restructuring programme, the source said.

"The process of receiving lender approvals, including SBI, for the transaction is underway. Sanctions provisions do not apply to the transaction," Essar said in emailed comments to Reuters.

A senior SBI official said the bank was on course to approve the deal, and did not see U.S. sanctions getting in the way, but did not give a timeframe.

VTB earlier agreed to provide Essar with up to $3.9 billion for debt reconstruction.

In response to Reuters queries, Rosneft said it expected to close the deal in the first quarter of 2017. Trafigura gave the same timeframe, and said it was also replying on behalf of UCP.

http://www.reuters.com/article/essar-oil-ma-rosneft-oil-idUSL8N1G21U8

Oil pricing agency S&P Global Platts said on Monday it was making the first major overhaul of its Brent oil assessment in a decade to address falling supply underpinning the benchmark that prices most of the world's oil.

A decline in supply from North Sea fields has led to concerns that physical volumes could become too thin and hence at times could be accumulated in the hands of just a few players, making the benchmark vulnerable to manipulation.

Platts said on Monday it would add Norway's Troll crude to the four British and Norwegian crudes it already uses to assess dated Brent from Jan 1. 2018. This will join Brent, Forties, Oseberg and Ekofisk, or BFOE as they are known.

"Overall we have had significant support for the addition of a new grade to the basket," Jonty Rushforth, global editorial director for S&P Platts Global's oil and shipping price group, said at an industry conference.

"Far and away, Troll has received the most support."

Brent is used to set the price of billions of dollars of daily oil trade though a forward market for BFOE crude cargoes, swaps markets, physical benchmark dated Brent and Brent crude futures.

Supply of the four BFOE grades is expected to fall next month to a rate of 884,000 barrels per day (bpd), from February's originally planned 943,000 bpd rate, based on loading programmes from trading sources.

This will be the smallest programme since November.

Typically, Troll produces about 10 to 15 cargoes of 600,000 barrels each per month. Platts said its inclusion should boost volumes by about 20 percent, helping to improve liquidity.

Troll, a light, sweet crude, is operated by Norwegian state producer Statoil, which also contributes to the Oseberg, Statfjord, Gullfaks, Grane and Asgard streams.

The last change to the dated Brent benchmark was in 2007 when Platts added Ekofisk, a light, sweet crude produced jointly by British- and Norwegian-owned fields.

Platts added Oseberg and Forties, a slightly heavier, more sour grade, to the basket in 2002.

In an earlier move to boost liquidity, Platts began to apply quality premiums to two better-quality crudes - Oseberg and Ekofisk - to encourage delivery of these into contracts. There are no plans yet to apply one to Troll.

"The market appreciates a measured response in terms of changes," Rushforth told a media briefing. Platts will be sticking with the BFOE name.

Thomson Reuters, parent of Reuters news, competes with Platts in providing news and information to the oil market.

http://www.reuters.com/article/nsea-oil-troll-idUSL8N1G524W

The Hague-based LNG giant Shell on Monday launched its first” LNG Outlook”, an assessment of the global liquefied natural gas (LNG) market.

According to the outlook, global demand for gas is expected to increase by 2% a year between 2015 and 2030 while LNG demand is set to rise at twice that rate at 4 to 5%.

The oulook says that many expected a strong increase in new LNG supplies would outpace demand growth during 2016. Instead, demand growth kept pace with supply as greater than expected demand in Asia and the Middle East absorbed the increase in supply from Australia, according to the outlook.

“Global LNG trade demonstrated its flexibility time and again in 2016, responding to shortfalls in national and regional gas supply and to new emerging demand,” said Maarten Wetselaar, Integrated Gas and New Energies Director at Shell.

China and India driving growth

China and India – which are according to the report set to continue driving a rise in demand – were two of the fastest growing buyers, increasing their imports by a combined 11.9 million tones of LNG in 2016. This boosted China’s LNG imports in 2016 to 27 MT and India’s to 20 MT.

Total global LNG demand increased following the addition of six new importing countries since 2015: Colombia, Egypt, Jamaica, Jordan, Pakistan and Poland. They brought the number of LNG importers to 35, up from around 10 at the start of this century.

Egypt, Jordan and Pakistan were among the fastest growing LNG importers in the world in 2016. Due to local shortages in gas supplies, they imported 13.9 MT of LNG in total.

The bulk of growth in LNG exports in 2016 came from Australia, where exports increased by 15 MT to a total of 44.3 MT. It was also a significant year for the USA, after 2.9 MT of LNG was delivered from the Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana, the report said.

LNG prices and trade changes

Global LNG prices fell dramatically in the last two years following to the slump in oil prices.

According to the report, global LNG prices are expected to continue to be determined by multiple factors, including oil prices, global LNG supply and demand dynamics and the costs of new LNG facilities. In addition, the growth of LNG trade has evolved into helping meet demand when domestic gas markets face supply shortages.

In addition, the growth of LNG trade has evolved into helping meet demand when domestic gas markets face supply shortages.

LNG trade also is changing to meet the needs of buyers, including shorter-term and lower-volume contracts with greater degrees of flexibility. Some emerging LNG buyers have more challenging credit ratings than traditional buyers, the report noted.

New investments needed

While the industry has been flexible in developing new demand, there has been a decrease in final investment decisions for new supply.

Shell said it believes further investments would need to be made by the industry to meet growing demand, most of which was set to come from Asia, after 2020.

The report noted that in China, a government target has been set for gas to make up 15% of the country’s energy mix by 2030, up from 5% in 2015. Meanwhile, Southeast Asia is projected to become a net importer of LNG by 2035, a significant transformation for a region which includes Malaysia and Indonesia – currently among the major LNG exporters in the world, the report said.

Looking forward, the outlook says that from 2020 to 2030 most new LNG demand growth will be driven by: policy, floating storage regasification units (FSRUs), replacing declining domestic gas production, small scale LNG and transport.

http://www.lngworldnews.com/shells-first-lng-outlook-lng-demand-to-grow-at-twice-the-rate-of-gas-demand/

India’s imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) dropped 14.7 percent in January as compared to the same month a year ago.

This is the third monthly LNG import decline since April 2016. India’s monthly LNG imports were down in July and December, respectively.

India imported 1.64 billion cubic meters or about 1.21 million mt of LNG in January, as compared to 1.92 Bcm in the same month in 2015, according to the data from oil ministry’s Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC).

Domestic natural gas production rose 11.9 percent in January to 2.73 Bcm.

In the April-January period, India’s LNG imports rose 16.1 percent year-on-year to 20.73 Bcm or about 15.09 million mt of LNG, PPAC data shows.

India’s LNG imports have been rising steadily in the last 12 months, boosted by low prices of the chilled fuel.

Costs of importing LNG into India have dropped sharply last year after the country’s largest importer, Petronet LNG signed a revised long-term contract with Qatari LNG producer RasGas.

India paid $0.5 billion for January LNG imports. In the April-January period, LNG import costs reached $4.8 billion, PPAC said.

To remind, the country also recently announced plans to halve its basic customs duty on imports of the chilled fuel.

India aims to reduce the basics customs duty on LNG from current 5 percent to 2.5 percent as part of its plans to shift to a natural gas-based economy.

http://www.lngworldnews.com/indias-lng-imports-down-almost-15-pct-in-jan/

Iraq and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday to study the construction of a pipeline to export crude oil from the northern Iraqi fields of Kirkuk via Iran, the Iraqi oil ministry said in a statement.

The agreement, signed in Baghdad by the oil ministers of the two countries, also calls for a commission to solve a conflict about joint oilfields and the possible transportation of Iraqi crude to Iran's Abadan refinery, it said.

Iraqi Oil Minister Jabar al-Luaibi said in the statement that he also agreed with visiting Iranian counterpart Bijan Zanganeh to cooperate on the policies of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

http://www.reuters.com/article/iraq-iran-oil-idUSL8N1G532F

Australia's Oil Search Ltd said it will boost capital spending this year to help expand output in Papua New Guinea in coming years, despite reporting a 70 percent drop in annual core profit on weak oil and gas prices.

The PNG-focused oil and gas firm is pushing global giants ExxonMobil Corp and France's Total SA, its partners in two rival projects, to work together to expand liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports from the country.

While slumping LNG prices due to a flood of new supply have forced several proposed projects to be shelved, projects in PNG are still seen as promising, thanks to the quality of the gas, low costs and proximity to big buyers in Asia.

Oil Search Managing Director Peter Botten said on Tuesday a recent rebound in Asian LNG prices, which more than doubled to $9.75 per million BTUs between April and January, was unlikely to last, but saw the market improving within a few years.

"While we expect spot LNG prices to soften from current levels through 2017, the long-term LNG market fundamentals remain strong, with major Asian buyers expected to have substantial new LNG requirements early next decade," he said in a statement.

Oil Search plans to roughly double capital spending this year to between $360 million and $460 million, particularly on work to understand a new find, Muruk, in the highlands of PNG, which could provide a cheap source of gas to expand PNG LNG.

The Muruk partners, ExxonMobil, Oil Search and Santos Ltd , believe the field could hold between 1 trillion and 3 trillion cubic feet of gas, which would be on top of a recent 25 percent increase in the resource estimate for the PNG LNG fields to 11.5 trillion cubic feet.

Oil Search is also a partner in the Papua LNG project, run by Total, which is looking to develop the Elk-Antelope gas fields. Oil Search believes billions of dollars could be saved if those fields are used to help expand the PNG LNG project, rather than building a completely new LNG plant.

ExxonMobil will also become a partner in Papua LNG, once it completes its delayed takeover of InterOil.

Oil Search's net profit before one-offs fell to $106.7 million for 2016 from $359.9 million a year earlier, as average liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices dropped by a third and oil prices slid 12 percent. The result matched analysts' forecasts of $107.9 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The firm cut its full year dividend to 3.5 cents a share from 10 cents, slightly ahead of analysts' forecasts at 3 cents.

Oil Search expects to produce between 28.5 million and 30.5 million barrels of oil equivalent in 2017, flat to slightly weaker than last year's record output.

http://www.reuters.com/article/oil-search-results-idUSL4N1G547I

Scott Pruitt was confirmed Friday as administrator of the US Environmental Protection Agency by a 52-46 Senate vote.

Oklahoma's attorney general since 2011, Pruitt has sued EPA on behalf of the state and argued it overstepped its authority into areas that states should control. But he struck a more moderate tone during his confirmation hearing, saying he would honor Congress' intent in carrying out regulations.

Highlights of his energy-related comments during the confirmation process that could signal his impact on policy ahead:

BIOFUEL MANDATE

Pruitt said he would uphold the Renewable Fuel Standard and only deviate from statutory volume increases after careful deliberation, distancing himself from his previous criticism of the policy as an "unworkable" and "flawed program."

While Pruitt is not expected to change 2017 blending levels, he could lower 2018 targets due in November and possibly side with refiners and blenders urging the agency to move the RFS point of obligation to the wholesale rack.

"The EPA needs to better administer this program to provide involved entities with the certainty they need," he said.

FUEL ECONOMY RULES

Pruitt said he would work with Congress to administer the corporate-average fuel economy standards but did not say whether he would uphold a midterm review that the Obama administration finalized in its last weeks in office. The review found that automakers are meeting the 2022-25 emissions standards quicker and at lower costs than expected, creating no need to curb the federal targets set in 2012.

Pruitt would ensure the rules "provide the best possible legal framework for governing American fuels, fuel infrastructure, and vehicles, and for promoting American energy independence, energy security, and environmental protection," he said.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTIONS

While President Donald Trump expressed a desire to get rid of EPA while campaigning and has called the agency's work a disgrace, Pruitt said EPA served a valuable role and still has much work to do. But he said the agency under his leadership would respect the rule of law, partner with states and respect public participation when making regulations.

"We must reject as a nation the false paradigm that if you're pro-energy, you're anti-environment, and if you're pro-environment, you're anti-energy," Pruitt said. "I utterly reject that narrative."

When asked about his environmental philosophy and what he would do to protect the environment, Pruitt said the regulated community currently suffers from an "inability to predict or know what's expected of them as far as their obligations under our environmental laws." He said EPA's mission is to protect natural resources, improve air and water quality, help ensure the health and welfare of citizens and pursue vigorous enforcement where necessary.

When asked if he believed there was a need to transform the US energy system away from fossil fuels to protect the planet for future generations, Pruitt said that the EPA and its administrator have "a very important role in regulating the emissions of CO2." He declined to expand on that response.

COOPERATION WITH STATES

Pruitt said states are "not mere vessels of federal will -- they don't exist simply to carry out federal dictates from Washington, DC."

"There are substantive requirements, obligations, authorities, jurisdiction granted to the states under our environmental statutes," he said.

When states' rights are not respected, "that is what spawned most of the litigation referenced here today," he said. "It matters that the states participate in the way Congress dictated, and they've been unable to do so for a number of years."

CLIMATE CHANGE

Pruitt made clear that he disagreed with Trump's campaign statements that climate change was a hoax, conceding that the climate is changing and that "human activity in some manner impacts that change." But, "the ability to measure with precision the degree and extent of that impact and what to do about it are subject to continuing debate and dialogue," he said.

When pressed to share what he believed to be causing climate change, Pruitt said his personal opinion was immaterial to the job of EPA administrator. Rather, that job "is to carry out the statutes as passed by this body," and those statutes put constraints on what EPA can do in regards to carbon emissions, Pruitt said.

OKLAHOMA EARTHQUAKES

Asked why he took no action as Oklahoma attorney general in response to a spike in earthquakes tied to wastewater injection wells, Pruitt said the state has taken the issue very seriously and has successfully regulated hydraulic fracturing for decades.

"While earthquakes have increased in frequency in recent years, the state has taken aggressive actions and reports have indicated the rate of seismic events has recently declined," he said. "Seismic activity can of course have significant impacts on communities and the activities linked to seismicity concerns in Oklahoma are regulated under state law by other agencies that my office works with as appropriate under Oklahoma law."

EPA BUDGET

Asked about reports that the Trump administration wanted to slash EPA's budget, Pruitt said he had no first-hand knowledge of such a plan. "If confirmed, I will work to ensure that the limited resources appropriated to EPA by Congress are managed wisely in pursuit of that important mission and in accordance with all applicable legal authorities," he said.

http://www.platts.com/latest-news/oil/washington/factbox-energy-impacts-of-pruitts-confirmation-26666487