Oil and Gas Watch

February 19, 2026

Massive gas-powered data center in Permian Basin is latest in string of Texas AI computing hubs

Texas’s environmental agency recently approved the latest in a string of large gas-fired power plants to support the state’s burgeoning data center industrial complex. The GW Ranch Project, set to be constructed in Pecos County, West Texas, in the Permian Basin, could generate up to 7.65 gigawatts of electricity, making it the largest power project in the U.S. One gigawatt of electricity can power about 750,000 homes, so this single data center complex could power over five million homes, or a large American city.

February 12, 2026

Trump Administration sues California to block new law protecting schools and homes from nearby drilling

The Trump Administration's Department of Justice recently sued California to try to block a new state law designed to prevent oil wells from being drilled dangerously close to schools, homes, hospitals, and other sensitive locations where people live, work, and gather. The federal lawsuit comes after the failure of an expensive effort by the oil and gas industry to try to revoke the California law by voter referendum, which was rejected in a wave of community pushback and public outcry.

Brendan Gibbons

February 5, 2026

Trump Administration gives pipeline companies a new way to sidestep safety rules

As companies plan a massive expansion of fossil fuel pipelines across the U.S., the Trump Administration is making it easier for operators to avoid following pipeline safety regulations. Under a new policy directive, the nation’s pipeline safety agency stated it would not take up enforcement actions against companies that receive waivers to avoid safety rules. Concerns of spills and explosions grow among environmental groups.

January 29, 2026

After economic ‘rupture’ with U.S., Canada looks to Asia for oil exports

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney signed a sweeping agreement with the government of Alberta, home to the country’s vast tar sands oil reserves, laying the groundwork for a new oil pipeline to transport oil to British Columbia’s northern coast for export. With Canada engaged in an increasingly tense trade war with the United States, Carney is seeking to send more of Canada’s oil to Asia and to develop stronger energy sector relations with Pacific Rim countries.

Brendan Gibbons

January 22, 2026

In Trump’s first year, fuel prices and energy jobs fall far short of campaign promises

Since Trump took office in January 2025, gasoline prices have declined about 6 percent to an average of $3.02 at the end of December, far short of Trump's campaign promises to cut fuel prices in half and bring the price at the pump down to $2 per gallon. Low fuel prices are a result of persistently low oil prices, which is causing pain for oil and gas workers as companies cut thousands of jobs.

January 15, 2026

U.S. oil refinery investors, not consumers, will benefit from seizure of Venezuelan oil

The U.S. military’s seizure of Venezuela’s oil exports is unlikely to lower gasoline prices for consumers – as President Donald Trump has claimed – but could funnel billions of dollars to American oil companies that donated to Trump’s election, according to industry analysts. Among the oil refinery owners who could benefit is billionaire Trump donor Paul Singer, founder of an investment management company that is buying Citgo Petroleum, a refining firm owned by Venezuela’s state oil company. Also positioned to potentially cash in are ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, and Chevron, which also gave millions to Trump’s political campaign.