American Oil and Gas Reporter - July 2019 - 90

ConventionSection: Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners
Longanecker says.
The association submitted formal
comments earlier in the year, and any
revisions likely will be met with lawsuits,
he predicts.
"We will have to work through that
process, but this administration understands
that OOOOa is an overly burdensome
set of regulations that has put a significant
strain on the industry," Longanecker says.
"We are hopeful things will be improved
through the regulation rewrite, but it is
going to be a long process. We expect
action late this summer, but in the meantime, there is an effort to change the regulated pollutant back to volatile organic
compounds instead of methane."
A bill has been introduced in the U.S.
House of Representatives to codify the
Obama-era regulation, and Longanecker
says TIPRO expects to see efforts to
attach it as a rider to appropriations bills.

"It's a pretty convoluted and confusing
process, but progress is being made. We
hope to have something to look forward
to later in the summer," he reiterates.
WOTUS Definition
On May 28, U.S. District Judge George
Hanks Jr. issued a ruling in favor of
plaintiffs Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi
that the Obama-era final rule defining
"waters of the United States" subject to
regulation under the Clean Water Act violated the Administrative Procedure Act,
Longanecker reviews.
While the states' original motion had
requested vacating the WOTUS definition,
which was promulgated by EPA and the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 2015,
Longanecker says Hanks ordered the regulation be remanded to the federal agencies, which already are working on a replacement.

"We always have engaged in issues
related to WOTUS, generally voicing industry concerns with congressional leaders
and with the administration if the opportunity ever presented itself," he notes.
With the state legislative session behind
it, Longanecker says he expects TIPRO
to work closely with relevant regulatory
agencies on matters that include produced
water recycling, National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permitting,
and any rewrite warranted on OOOOa.
"We obviously do not want to impose
unreasonable restrictions or regulations
on operations," Garcia says. "I think
Texas operators manage emissions well.
We are proactive on that. We work with
the Texas Commission on Environmental
Quality in making sure we operate responsibly, and I would hate to see unduly
burdensome regulations applied where
they aren't needed."
r

Association Looks At M&A Dynamics
AUSTIN, TX.-Members of the Texas
Independent Producers & Royalty Owners
Association who attend the association's
2019 summer conference will hear about
the latest developments in a trend of interest to the entire oil and gas industry:
the acceleration of mergers and acquisitions expected to gain steam in the months
ahead.
TIPRO's meeting is Aug. 7-8 at the
Hyatt Hill Country Resort in San Antonio.
The event kicks off with a reception the
evening of Aug. 7, followed by a full day
of speakers on Aug. 8, and culminating
with the Chairman's Dinner and casino
night.
The meeting will include special insights into the anticipated pick up in upstream M&A activity, says TIPRO President Ed Longanecker.
"Obviously, Occidental and Chevron
battling it out for Anadarko Petroleum
has piqued the interest of a number of
people in the industry," Longanecker
comments. "We are going to bring in experts to talk about trends and what we
can expect in the latter part of 2019 and
into 2020."
TIPRO Chairman Eugene Garcia says
a chief financial officer who attended the
May 8 Leaders Luncheon hosted by
TIPRO and the Independent Petroleum
Association of America in Houston told
him that some larger independents and
90 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

investors in shale plays were beginning
to emphasize free cash flow over aggressive growth, which has changed industry
dynamics.
"If you look at commodity prices coupled with that change in focus from a financial standpoint, I think we are going
to see more opportunities for mergers
and acquisitions such as we saw in the
first quarter," says Garcia, president of
San Antonio-based Hurd Enterprises Ltd.
Whether large or small, more producers
are likely to start examining how to enhance or dispose of their holdings to

TIPRO Summer
Conference - San Antonio
Wednesday, Aug. 7
1 p.m. Audit Committee Meeting, Hyatt
Hill Country Resort
3 p.m. Board of Directors Meeting
5 p.m. Welcome Reception

Thursday, Aug. 8
8 a.m. Membership Breakfast, Hyatt Hill
Country Resort
9 a.m. General Session Presentations
Noon Networking Luncheon
2 p.m. General Session Presentations
4 p.m. General Session Ends
6 p.m. TIPRO Reception
7 p.m. Chairman's Dinner

allow for more free cash flow, or to
solidify their positions to promote more
cash flow within their asset portfolios,
Garcia posits.
"I think that is a dynamic we are
going to see going forward this year," he
predicts. "We hope to have a slate of operating company representatives and economists at the summer conference who
can give our members insight into what
they see building."
Beneficial Changes
Members also will hear updates on
challenges and growth opportunities in
West Texas, including the build-out of
additional infrastructure and what is happening to alleviate take-away capacity
constraints, Longanecker reports, with a
midstream perspective and general updates
planned.
Speakers are expected to review legislation passed by the Texas Legislature
related to road expansion and repair,
pipeline protection, and water use and
waste ownership, among other topics,
Longanecker says.
Included will be a review of HB 3246
authored by Representative Drew Darby,
R-San Angelo, which amended state
statutes to clarify that fluid waste for the
purpose of recycling and reducing freshwater consumption is the property of the
operator who takes possession of the

American Oil and Gas Reporter - July 2019

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