Inflation Reduction Act
Supermajors, dividends and the energy transition
I am sitting in my garden at home on a sunny afternoon with a glass of white wine – and yes I had booked this day off as leave. I check my phone and see that all hell is breaking...
Bracewell Legal Bites: Contingent Price Adjustments and Volatile Oil Prices
What 5 key points do buyers and sellers need to negotiate to get oil and gas deals done in today’s challenging market? Alastair Young , a partner in Bracewell’s London office, shares his perspective. View video.
Environmental Audit Opportunities to Consider for Return-to-Work in the Wake of COVID-19
As regulated companies and facilities around the country consider their approaches to partially or even fully returning to the workplace – even essential facilities that have remained open but with limited staffing – it seems inevitable that they will discover...
Bracewell Legal Bites: 5 Things to Consider About Force Majeure Relief
During the coronavirus lockdown, many companies are turning to their contracts to consider whether relief might be available under force majeure provisions. Watch this Bracewell Legal Brief , where Darren Spalding , a partner in our London office, details 5...
Montana District Court Vacates and Remands Clean Water Act Nationwide Permit 12
In a surprisingly broad decision, the District of Montana vacated the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“Corps”) Nationwide Permit (“NWP”) 12 on April 15, 2020. NWP 12 authorizes impacts from “utility line activities” to jurisdictional waters that have minimal individual...
Nigeria considers changes to Nigerian content requirements in the oil and gas sector
What has happened? The Nigerian government has prepared new legislation – the Nigerian Content Development and Enforcement Bill (“ Bill ”) – to revise the country’s regulatory approach to mandatory Nigerian content in the oil and gas sector and beyond...
Force Majeure and Material Adverse Change in Reserve Based Lending (RBL): When Two Black Swans Collide
A “black swan event” is an unpredictable event that is beyond what is normally expected and which has potentially severe consequences. Black swan events are characterised by their rareness and severity. Independent exploration and production oil and gas companies (“...
Climate change disclosures for premium-listed companies on the London stock exchange
Climate change is now a regular feature of boardroom discussions. Companies have acknowledged that it will directly impact their business, with the former Bank of England Governor Mark Carney recently noting that “ changes in climate policies, new technologies and...
COVID-19 and "Electronic" Execution of English Law Documents
In light of the on-going Covid-19 pandemic, many organisations are implementing remote working policies and limiting access to offices in order to effect social distancing measures. Notwithstanding the changes to usual working practices, organisations continue to enter into binding contractual...
As Cyberthreats Continue, PHMSA and TSA MOU Stresses Information Sharing and Coordination
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently finalized an Annex to a longstanding Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) regarding pipeline safety and security. This Annex comes just weeks after a publicized natural gas...
COVID-19 and “Electronic” Execution of English Law Documents
In light of the on-going Covid-19 pandemic, many organisations are implementing remote working policies and limiting access to offices in order to effect social distancing measures. Notwithstanding the changes to usual working practices, organisations continue to enter into binding contractual...
Tips for Trading Compliance During a Pandemic
As many workplaces shutter and transition to telecommuting in response to the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), we are reminded that change always brings with it compliance risk. Even if your company has an emergency plan in place, assessing its effectiveness early...
Administrative Enforcement Reforms Continue
The current Administration has focused on reforming federal administrative agency enforcement by emphasizing transparency, due process, and fair notice. The concepts of due process and fair notice are well-established legal precepts, and they are critical to the regulated community. For...
JOAs: “Good Faith” and the implied qualification of express contractual powers
There have been a number of recent English Court decisions concerning implied obligations of good faith. In May 2019, we considered the potential impact of those decisions on joint operating agreements in the oil & gas industry (“ JOAs ”)...
Nigeria’s upstream petroleum sector: looking back at 2019 and looking ahead in 2020
We review what happened in Nigeria’s upstream petroleum sector during the year just gone – a year that saw changes to the petroleum royalty regime, an uptick in deal activity and, of course, an election and changes to the leading...