Past Contributions

• Cryptocurrency miners line up to come to Texas, and rural counties are welcoming them

  By Mitchell Ferman Oct. 3, 2022

  Eager to bring new jobs to their towns and boost their tax base, rural Texas counties are courting companies that produce cryptocurrencies. Full Story 

• Texas Democrats try to convince voters they aren’t bad for oil and gas

  By Patrick Svitek and Mitchell Ferman Sept. 27, 2022

  Candidates like Beto O’Rourke and Mike Collier say they want to work toward a cleaner energy future but aren’t looking to eliminate the energy jobs that boost Texas’ economy. Full Story 

• Key Texas industries could face bottlenecks over railroad labor dispute

  By Mitchell Ferman Sept. 14, 2022

  If railroad companies and workers can’t resolve their dispute by Thursday night, the country could see its first railroad strike in 30 years. Full Story 

• Gov. Greg Abbott touts Texas power grid’s readiness heading into fall, election season

  By Mitchell Ferman Sept. 6, 2022

  The governor shared the favorable forecast — which is normal for the fall months — ahead of a competitive race in which the grid’s performance during last year’s fatal winter storm may factor into Texans’ decisions at the polls. Full Story 

• EPA reverses course, rejects permit for massive oil exporting project offshore from Corpus Christi

  By Erin Douglas and Mitchell Ferman Sept. 2, 2022

  During the Trump administration, the Environmental Protection Agency exempted a proposed oil export terminal off the Texas coast from air pollution requirements. This week it rejected the permit because of pollution concerns. Full Story 

• Texas gas companies face fines up to $1 million for failing to prepare for extreme weather

  By Mitchell Ferman Aug. 30, 2022

  Critics are skeptical about whether the new rules by the Railroad Commission will prevent another catastrophe like the power grid disaster in February 2021. Full Story 

• Texas bans local, state government entities from doing business with firms that “boycott” fossil fuels

  By Mitchell Ferman Aug. 24, 2022

  Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar singled out financial firms under a 2021 state law that prohibits most state entities from contracting with companies that have reduced or cut investments in the oil and gas industry. Full Story 

• Pablo Vegas, a utility executive in Ohio, named ERCOT’s new CEO

  By Mitchell Ferman Updated: Aug. 16, 2022

  The state power grid operator has been run by an interim chief since the previous CEO was fired following the deadly 2021 winter storm that crashed much of the grid. Full Story 

• “He has total veto power”: Greg Abbott takes control over who will lead Texas’ troubled power grid, sources say

  By Mitchell Ferman Aug. 10, 2022

  Locked in a potentially tight reelection race and facing criticism over the grid’s 2021 collapse, the governor is exerting unprecedented influence over what the state grid operator shares with the public — and who will be its next CEO. Full Story 

• Black and Latino residents’ complaints about illegal trash dumping in Houston lead to federal investigation

  By Mitchell Ferman July 22, 2022

  The U.S. Justice Department says it has launched a civil rights investigation to determine whether the city’s response to residents’ complaints about illegal dumping was discriminatory. Full Story