2024-02-22 21:41

Feb 22 (Reuters) - The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has removed some of its most ambitious greenhouse gas emission disclosure requirements from corporate climate risk rules it is preparing to adopt, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. The SEC has dropped a requirement for U.S.-listed companies to disclose so-called Scope 3 emissions, which was included in its original draft of the rules published in March 2022, the sources said. Scaling back these rules would be a blow for President Joe Biden's agenda to address climate change threats through federal agencies. Biden, a Democrat, has been under pressure from many lawmakers in his party to do more and move at a faster pace. Scope 3 emissions account for greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, released in the atmosphere from a company's supply chain and the consumption of its products by customers. For most businesses, Scope 3 emissions represent more than 70% of their carbon footprint, according to consulting firm Deloitte. If adopted, the new draft would represent a win for many corporations and their trade groups that lobbied to water down the rules. But it would also deviate from European Union rules which make Scope 3 disclosures mandatory for large companies starting this year and potentially complicate compliance for some global corporations. The SEC's original draft proposed mandatory disclosure of emissions for which companies are more directly responsible, dubbed Scope 1 and Scope 2. Some lobbyists pushed the SEC to require such disclosures only if they are material to a company's business. Reuters could not ascertain whether the latest draft changed the Scope 1 and 2 requirement threshold. Once the SEC settles on a final draft, it must be put to a vote among its five commissioners. The timing of the vote is not clear, and it is possible that the draft is revised before then. The sources requested anonymity because the matter is confidential. An SEC spokesperson said the agency considered adjustments to its draft rules based on public feedback, but declined to comment on the contents of the latest draft of the climate risk rules. "The Commission moves to adopt rules only when the staff and the Commission think they are ready to be considered," the SEC spokesperson said. The SEC's March 2022 proposal would require publicly listed companies to disclose a range of climate-related risks that could affect their business. It argued that greenhouse gas emission disclosures are important for investors' due diligence. Companies have pushed back, arguing the data is hard to produce and legally contentious. Reuters reported in November that the SEC told lobbyists and corporate executives it was considering watering down the rules. Some SEC officials worry that mandating disclosures across the board could make the rule more vulnerable to legal challenges which, if successful, could tie the agency's hands when writing other rules, Reuters reported at the time. Those concerns were fueled by a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 2022 curbing the Environmental Protection Agency's power to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. This raised doubts over whether SEC rules would survive a court challenge. Some corporate groups and Republican lawmakers also argued that tackling climate change-related issues exceeds the SEC's authority, and that the rules would be unduly burdensome for companies and cloud truly material information for investors. LITIGATION RISK SEC Chair Gary Gensler told an event held by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in October that he hoped the emissions disclosure rules, which received some 16,000 public comments, will survive any legal challenges once they are finalized and adopted. "I would expect that whatever the rule says, unless they really water it down tremendously, there will be litigation," Columbia Law School Professor John Coffee, a securities regulations expert, said in an interview. Last year, California adopted a law that will require companies active in the state to disclose Scope 3 emissions as early as 2027. Corporate lobbyists said companies would still be reluctant to disclose Scope 3 emissions in SEC filings, even if they produced them for California, because including such information in securities filings gives grounds for more lawsuits from investors. Some voluntary initiatives such as the International Sustainability Standards Board already specify that it is best practice to disclose Scope 3 emissions. "There is no question Scope 3 reporting is important, because otherwise you risk presenting a somewhat misleading picture of the company's greenhouse gas emissions," said Ben Schiffrin, director of securities policy at Washington, D.C-based consumer and investor advocacy group Better Markets. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/us-regulator-drops-some-emissions-disclosure-requirements-draft-climate-rules-2024-02-22/

2024-02-22 21:40

Feb 22 (Reuters) - Coterra Energy (CTRA.N) , opens new tab on Thursday forecast a decline in natural gas production for 2024 after it reported its quarterly profit below Wall Street estimate. The company sees total equivalent production of 635,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) to 675,000 boepd in 2024, down about 2% at the mid-point from a year earlier. Companies producing natural gas have struggled with low prices during 2023, with average natural gas prices (.NGc1) , opens new tab declining more than 50% in the fourth quarter compared with last year. They have also hit a three-and-a-half year low this month. Coterra joins natural gas producer Chesapeake Energy (CHK.O) , opens new tab in cutting down rigs and trimming production this year, citing oversupply in the market. Houston-based Coterra is expected to operate one rig and drop spot crew during 2024 in Marcellus, Coterra's biggest operating area in terms of production volumes, in response to the weak near-term natural gas outlook. Coterra expects to slash its 2024 capital expenditure for Marcellus by less than 55% and adjusted spending for the company to between $1.75 billion and $1.95 billion, the midpoint of which is down compared to 2023. However, the company reported a rise in production during the fourth quarter to 697,400 boepd, compared to 632,200 boepd a year earlier, helping offset lower crude prices. Coterra said its U.S. average crude realized price fell to $77.10 per barrel in the reported quarter, from $82.26 per barrel. The company's adjusted profit was 52 cents per share for the three months ended Dec. 31, compared with analysts' average estimate of 55 cents per share, according to LSEG data. However, Coterra hiked its quarterly dividend by 5% to 21 cents per share, sending the company's shares up about 3% in after-hours trading. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/coterra-energy-misses-quarterly-profit-estimates-2024-02-22/

2024-02-22 21:39

BOGOTA, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Colombian electricity generator Celsia (CEL.CN) , opens new tab said on Thursday it is considering pulling out of its wind power projects in the northern province of La Guajira because of problems including opposition by local communities. Colombia has set its sights on developing renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and geothermal as part of President Gustavo Petro's goal to wean the major regional coal and oil producer off its dependence on fossil fuels. But many renewable projects have faced significant hurdles due to resistance from Indigenous communities and regulatory delays, with dozens of promised projects still not in operation. Celsia said in a statement to the financial regulator that among its options is the relocation of equipment to a new project in Peru. "The wind projects in La Guajira have long delays or have stopped being constructed because of difficulties with communities for the completion of prior consultation processes, delays in getting or modifying environmental licenses and technical impossibilities to enter into operation ... because of delays in transmission lines," Celsia added. The situation has led the company to consider alternatives for its Acacia and Camelias projects, which were to generate 330 megawatts. Celsia has said its net profit was down 21.2% year-on-year in 2023 to about $89 million. Italy's Enel (ENEI.MI) , opens new tab indefinitely suspended its Windpeshi in La Guajira last May because of community blockades. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/colombias-celsia-weighs-pulling-out-wind-projects-amid-community-resistance-2024-02-22/

2024-02-22 21:26

Feb 22 (Reuters) - EOG Resources (EOG.N) , opens new tab on Thursday joined rivals in reporting a fall in its fourth-quarter profit but the U.S. oil and gas producer forecast higher output for 2024. Concerns over global demand capped gains in oil prices throughout the reported quarter, with West Texas Intermediate prices declining compared to the year-ago quarter. Its average crude oil and condensate prices for the quarter ended Dec. 31 was $80.60 per barrel, compared with $85.67 per barrel, last year. Shares of the company were down 2.7% after the bell. Rivals Diamondback Energy (FANG.O) , opens new tab and Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD.N) , opens new tab have also reported a fall in quarterly profit on lower realized prices. On an adjusted basis, EOG reported a profit of $3.07 per share, in line with estimates, according to LSEG data. However, production rose to 1.03 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd), compared with 909,100 boepd in the year-ago quarter. U.S. crude oil production had reached record heights in 2023 as companies emphasized on boosting drilling efficiency and cutting costs. The company forecast 2024 total production to grow about 7%. The company also said it would operate 27 rigs this year, down from 31 last year. EOG expects 2024 capital expenditure to be between $6.0 and $6.4 billion. The Houston, Texas-based company's net income fell to $1.99 billion, or $3.42 per share, in the quarter, from $2.28 billion, or $3.87 per share a year ago. The company has also entered into a 10-year gas sales agreement with Vitol, linked to Brent crude oil prices. Under the contract, EOG would supply 180,000 million metric British thermal units of natural gas to the global energy trader starting in January 2027. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/oil-firm-eog-resources-quarterly-profit-falls-2024-02-22/

2024-02-22 21:08

HOUSTON, Feb 22 (Reuters) - U.S. energy regulators on Friday said they would decide quickly on liquefied natural gas developer Venture Global LNG's request for a one-year extension to its construction permit for its Calcasieu Pass LNG plant in Louisiana. The LNG developer last week asked for an extension to complete construction on the gas-export plant, or to receive assurances it did not need an extension. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) said it aims to issue an order on the company's request within 45 days. It first will accept public comments through March 8 but will not revisit the plant's original export authorization, FERC said. "The Commission will address all arguments relating to whether the applicant has demonstrated there is good cause to grant the extension," the FERC said on its website. Thursday's announcement came on the same day that Italian electric firm Edison SPA (EDNn.MI) , opens new tab and Portugal's Galp Energia (GALP.LS) , opens new tab joined three other Venture Global LNG customers in asking to be allowed to challenge Venture Global LNG's extension request. Customers BP PLC (BP.L) , opens new tab, Shell plc (SHEL.L) , opens new tab, and Repsol SA (REP.MC) , opens new tab sought permission to intervene in considerations on the proposed extension. The Calcasieu Pass facility has been operating since March 2022 but considers those operations pre-commercial. The five contract holders have pressed regulators for the FERC's evaluations to show whether they could be supplied cargoes under long-term contracts. Galp Energia wants documents that Venture Global filed under privilege released to it so it can evaluate the LNG developer's request for the extension, it wrote. "It should be beyond dispute that documents related to the status and progress of construction are relevant to a request for extension of time to complete construction," Galp said in its letter to the FERC. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/italian-electric-company-challenges-venture-global-lngs-permit-extension-request-2024-02-22/

2024-02-22 21:04

TORONTO, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Canadian miner Teck Resources Ltd (TECKb.TO) , opens new tab plans to close the sale of its steel-making coal unit to Glencore (GLEN.L) , opens new tab no later than the third quarter of 2024, CEO Jonathan Price told Reuters in an interview on Thursday. Price also said that last year's Chinese restrictions on the export of rare earth metal gallium had been "positive" for the company due to improved pricing. Teck is one of the largest producers of gallium outside of China. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/teck-resources-expects-close-coal-unit-sale-glencore-by-q3-ceo-says-2024-02-22/