An article in today's Shreveport Times discusses the initial production results of Bossier Shale formation, and the findings are encouraging enough that it is expected to become a major player in U.S. natural gas development. The first Bossier Shale well was drilled in August flowed at 9.4 million cubic feet per day.

Today, the Senate's Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a hearing concerning environmental stewardship policies related to offshore energy production. (Watch the archive Webcast of the hearing).

October U.S. crude oil production averaged 5.36 million barrels per day, continuing at levels not seen since 2005, according to API's Monthly Statistical Report.

Crude production from the Lower 48 states averaged 4.67 million barrels per day, up from both last year and prior months. And Alaskan output, at 696,000 barrels per day, slipped from last October by 2.8 percent but rebounded from this summer's lows of less than 600,000 barrels per day.

In this episode, I interview Bob Stallman, president of the American Farm Bureau, on the potential impact of climate change legislation on agriculture.

Late last week, the Minerals Management Service (MMS) announced that they will shorten lease sale terms on nearly 36 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico off the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

The proposed plan would set five-year terms for leases in water depths of 1,300 to 2,600 feet, instead of the standard eight-year term. Leases in water depths between 2,600 and 5,200 feet would run for seven years instead of 10.

Last week, the Pacific Research Institute (PRI) released a report--"Top Ten Energy Myths"--that confronts ten common myths about America's energy sources, uses and risks, utilizing U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Energy Information Administration (EIA) data.

On Tuesday, yet another voice spoke out against the proposed climate legislation under consideration in Congress. This time it was Margo Thorning, senior vice president and chief economist at the American Council for Capital Formation (ACCF), speaking before the Senate Finance Committee.

Yesterday, we launched our newest interactive--Smart House, a game that teaches players about energy efficiency and tests personal energy awareness.

Last week's blog post showing that the United States is #1 in total energy resources generated some buzz in the blogosphere. To recap, the post noted that the Congressional Research Service (CRS) found that the United States has resources amounting to 1,321 billion barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) which was substantially higher than any other country.

A Walton Sun (Florida) op-ed, authored by geoscientist Al Swiercz and published last week, discussed the benefits of offshore drilling for Florida residents and the United States. Swiercz said that exploration would "not only protect the beauty of our beaches, but allow us to reap the benefits of offshore exploration," including tax revenues, jobs--including "blue-collar" rig jobs which pay upwards of $75,000 per year--and great fishing areas around offshore platforms.

At least three oil companies announced yesterday they were shutting in some production as Ida began to bear down on oil and natural gas facilities in the Gulf of Mexico. BP, Chevron and Marathon reduced production and evacuated some of their offshore facilities. Also, the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP) stopped offloading tankers as sea conditions began to deteriorate.

Eighteen oil and natural gas companies had reported their third quarter 2009 earnings as of yesterday afternoon, and the results have been a mixed bag. Companies that focus on oil and natural gas production--also called the upstream sector of the business--experienced a better financial quarter than large integrated companies that have both upstream and downstream operations--refining and marketing. The companies that fared worst are in the downstream portion of the business, and some of them actually lost money.

The chart below puts the companies' earnings in perspective.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee today voted to send the Kerry-Boxer climate bill to the Senate floor without amendments. Only Democrats were in attendance for the vote, and Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mt.) voted against the bill, saying he would withhold his support contingent on the adoption of some pro-agriculture amendments.

A recent poll shows that the more Americans learn about climate legislation, the less they like it. Especially when they realize that it will take money out of their pockets.

How much money? About $2,300 per year per average U.S. household, according to the American Farm Bureau. That's nearly $200 a month.

Did you know that the United States has largest energy resources on Earth? You might be surprised to learn that a recent Congressional Research Service (CRS) report found just that.

The United States with its 1,321 billion barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) tops number 2 Russia with 1,248 billion BOE, and number 3 Saudi Arabia with 543 billion BOE.

In this episode, I interview Alan Gelder of Wood Mackenzie, who recently conducted a study on the potential impact of climate change legislation on refiners.

When energy consultant Daniel Yergin calls unconventional natural gas a "game changer," people listen. And in today's Wall Street Journal op-ed, Yergin and his colleague Robert Ineson of IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates (IHS CERA) say that the ability to produce natural gas from shale could "transform the debate over generating electricity."

"Remarkable" was the word used by Energy Information Administrator Richard Newell last week to describe the sharp rise in U.S. natural gas reserves. In a report issued by his agency last week, Newell noted that U.S. proven natural gas reserves rose 3 percent in 2008.

The report also showed that natural gas reserves in shale formations rose an astonishing 51 percent over 2007. "This year's report underscores for a second year the technological shift in domestic exploration and production from conventional reserves to unconventional shales," Newell said.