Posted inBusiness, Energy, Environment, News

Colorado gives oil and gas company 6 more months to clean up its act. If not, KP Kauffman faces nearly $1 million in fines — or worse.

Frustrated, but patient, state oil and gas regulators on Monday gave the troubled KP Kauffman Co. one more, six-month chance to clean up its act or face close to $1 million in fines — or worse. The Denver-based oil and gas operator, which runs 1,200 low-producing wells around the state, is under an agreement to […]

Posted inNews

Colorado regulators overhaul rules to ensure there’s money to clean up orphan wells

Colorado oil and gas regulators Tuesday adopted complex financial assurance rules aimed at guaranteeing there is enough money to properly plug all the wells in the state — especially the ones that are low-producing or left orphaned by defunct drillers. The rules come after months of hearings that pitted environmental and community groups that wanted […]

Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns

Pritchett: Conservation from 1,500 feet reveals an important — if slightly unnerving — perspective

We all have our favorite “little-engine that could” nonprofits—the ones not on most people’s radar, not the Red Cross or UNICEF, but rather the little fellas doing enormous work. My favorite actually has little engines, housed in a few Cessnas, and a few little dogs to boot. EcoFlight is the one for me, not only […]

Posted inBusiness, Climate, Energy, Environment, News

Colorado to request $25M in federal aid to help clean up its more than 1,200 orphan wells

Colorado is seeking $25 million from a federal fund to plug orphan oil and gas wells, state officials said, in what could be the first installment of millions in cleanup aid. The money is part of the Biden administration’s infrastructure program, passed by Congress last November. A total of $1.4 billion in plugging and abandonment […]

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When Colorado oil and gas wells are sold to small companies, can the new owners afford the cleanup costs?

While a bunch of aging Rio Blanco County wells haven’t moved a whit, or produced much oil and gas, their corporate address has jumped in the last six years from Kansas to Texas to Highlands Ranch.  Owner 1: Koch Exploration was located on the sprawling Wichita, Kansas, campus of Koch Industries, the privately-held conglomerate with […]

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An oil and gas company wants to plug four idle wells. The wells could end up owned by a troubled Colorado operator instead.

THORNTON – An oil and gas rig whirled away on a recent winter day, just a few hundred feet from the swings and slides in Talon View Park. It wasn’t drilling a well, but plugging a string of old, played-out ones – save four of them. Those four may not be plugged, even though the […]