As oil price crisis grips the globe, small Texas producers feel the ripple effects
Plummeting demand and an international price dispute have forced Texas oil producers to begin shutting wells. Full Story
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![Oil pumps during sunset.]()
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Someone says they have 2 million N95 masks for sale. The asking price is six times the usual cost.
As health care professionals beg for supplies to protect themselves from COVID-19 infection, a Texas company found a seller with at least 2 million masks and quietly offered them for sale at $6 each. Before the pandemic, they cost around $1. Full Story
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![An N95 respiration mask.]()
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Texas shale producers ask state to cut oil output as demand plummets during coronavirus pandemic
Two Texas oil companies with big business in the Permian Basin wrote to state regulators requesting an emergency meeting to consider reducing oil production as demand around the world has collapsed due to the new coronavirus. Full Story
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![A new pump jack on the north side of Midland.]()
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Midland confronts coronavirus after oil prices plummet
The city’s new mayor is struggling to inspire in a moment of overlapping crises. Full Story
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![Midland Mayor Patrick Payton.]()
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Citing coronavirus pandemic, Trump administration stops enforcing environmental laws
A Texas environmental protection group said it is "reckless" for the Environmental Protection Agency to waive enforcement of many protections. The federal agency said companies could have trouble complying due to the new coronavirus. Full Story
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![A gas flare burns bright on a production site northeast of Andrews, Texas.]()
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Texas regulators contemplating a reduction in oil production amid coronavirus crisis
A Texas Railroad Commission official said no decision has been made yet and the agency is looking into options. Full Story
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![A worker waits to load a piece of pipe, or casing, that will be lowered into the well at a Chesapeake Energy drill site in...]()
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Texans were already feeling coronavirus' financial squeeze. Then the cases increased and cancellations mounted.
The state's oil and gas industry has cratered. Major events have been called off, and tourism across Texas has dipped. It is too soon to tell the statewide economic impact from COVID-19, but Texans are already feeling a pinch. Full Story
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![Billy Benedict, the owner of J&J Spirits in Austin's historic East 11th street, poses for a photo amid the economic uncert...]()
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White House likely to pursue federal aid for shale companies hit by oil shock, coronavirus downturn
The idea could face resistance from those who support direct aid to workers. One critic called the idea ‘absurd.' Full Story
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![President Donald Trump delivers remarks on the humanitarian crisis on the Southern border and the shutdown at the White Ho...]()
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How will collapsing oil prices affect Texas? It depends on these two factors, experts say.
A dramatic drop in oil prices over the weekend could harm Texas' oil and gas industry and economy, but experts say it all depends on how long they remain low — and how the COVID-19 epidemic plays out. Full Story
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![Pumpjack with oil on the ground in Pecos County near Fort Stockton, Texas.]()
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U.S. markets crater as coronavirus-sparked oil war sends prices spiraling; trading suspended
The Dow plunges more than 1,900 points in a brutal global sell-off, and treasury yields dive to new lows, amplifying recession fears. Full Story
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![An oil refinery is shown in the Houston Ship Channel in 2011.]()
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T-Squared: Take The Texas Tribune's annual reader survey
Your responses will help us better understand the people consuming our journalism and how they use it — and that will make us better equipped to serve you. Full Story
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![Amanda Elise Salas asks a question to state Senator and Representatives during a panel of The Rio Grande Valley & 86th Leg...]()
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"It's a joke": Flaring expert finds big problems in report from Texas oil and gas regulator
"It looks more like a political manifesto to me," a Texas A&M professor said about a report from the Railroad Commission of Texas. Full Story
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![A gas flare burns bright on a production site northeast of Andrews, Texas.]()
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Report: Six Texas oil refineries spewing cancer-causing pollutant above federal threshold
An environmental nonprofit has released an analysis of first-of-its-kind air monitoring data that shows benzene levels at 10 U.S. petroleum refineries exceeded limits established in an Obama-era environmental regulation. Six are in Texas. Full Story
![An oil refinery is shown in the Houston Ship Channel in 2011.]()
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Partisan tension hung over State of the Union — even before Texas congresswoman gave rebuttal from El Paso
President Donald Trump touted economic and military successes. U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Austin was among Democrats who walked out. Afterwards, U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar rebutted Trump's speech from El Paso. Full Story
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![President Donald Trump during his State of the Union Address in the House Chamber of the Capitol, in Washington D.C. on Tu...]()
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Ahead of explosion, Port Neches plant reported an increase of rogue emissions of explosive gas
After the federal government required TPC Group to install air monitors at its Port Neches plant, the company detected a significant increase in the number and size of butadiene emissions in the months leading up to multiple blasts at the plant on Nov. 27. Full Story
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![A process tower flies through air after exploding at the TPC Group Petrochemical Plant in Port Neches. An earlier massive ...]()
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Texas oil and gas industry could see a major slowdown in 2020
The Texas Oil and Gas Association reported that companies paid a record level of taxes and state royalties last year amid a historic oil boom. But association President Todd Staples said that continued growth is not guaranteed. Full Story
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![Pumpjacks at sunrise in the Permian Basin in West Texas.]()
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Texas regulators want stiffer penalties for company whose Port Neches plant exploded
In a surprising vote, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality rejected a staff-proposed penalty against TPC Group's Port Neches chemical plant — which was rocked by explosions last month — for a slew of 2018 pollution violations and asked that they be referred to the Texas Attorney General's Office. Full Story
![A process tower flies through air after exploding at the TPC Group Petrochemical Plant in Port Neches. An earlier massive ...]()
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County ends voluntary evacuation of Port Neches, the second since last week's plant explosion
After recommending Wednesday night that residents leave the area, Jefferson County officials have told residents it's safe to return home. Full Story
![A process tower flies through air after exploding at the TPC Group Petrochemical Plant in Port Neches. An earlier massive ...]()
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Report: Texas ranks second in budget cuts for environmental protection
An analysis by the Washington, D.C.-based Environmental Integrity Project found that 30 states have cut funding to environmental agencies over the past decade. In Texas, lawmakers slashed spending by more than a third between 2008 and 2018. Full Story
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![Fog in a low lying area where pumpjacks and powerlines populate the range along SW 5000 in Andrews County northeast of Ker...]()
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Retired Texas shrimper wins record-breaking $50 million settlement from plastics manufacturing giant
U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Hoyt approved the settlement agreement between a scrappy environmental coalition and plastics giant Formosa. The settlement is the largest in U.S. history resulting from a citizen environmental suit. Full Story
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![Diane Wilson organizes bags of that contain plastic pellet samples she's collected over the past three years. Seadrift, Te...]()