-Chesapeake Energy has decided it will move forward with spinning off its oilfield services unit. The company in March filed documents with the SEC to separate the $2.2 billion division, which will be re-christened as Seven Seventy Energy.
-A Bloomberg Businessweek piece digs into a report issued yesterday by the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) asserting Bakken crude does not pose risks different from other oils transported by rail. AFPM President Charles Drevna says railroads should address major maintenance and integrity issues with their networks rather than blame certain types of crude oil.
-The Senate on Thursday failed to pass a measure that would have retroactively reinstated and extended tax credits for the production of biodiesel and cellulosic biofuels. A study released on Wednesday showed 78% of U.S. biodiesel producers have cut back production this year due to the expiry last year of the tax credits and a recent EPA proposal to lower the Renewable Fuel Standard for 2014.
-San Francisco-based Recurrent Energy on Thursday signed a deal with Austin Energy to build Texas’ largest solar power farm. Via FuelFix, Recurrent will build 150 megawatts of solar power at a site in West Texas. The solar farm is expected to be operational by 2016.
-Meanwhile, Texas’ grid operator said the state’s renewable energy production grew 12% year-over-year in 2013. A full 97% of that production came from wind power.
