Wildfires spark legislator to urge more funding in fight against cedar trees

As Oklahomans in the northwest and the Panhandle suffered from disastrous wildfires this past week that burned nearly 155,000 acres in the state and grew to nearly 300,000 acres total combined with Kansas, observers witnessed what fueled some of the quickly spreading fires—–cedar trees that turned into firebombs. Now Rep. Mike Dobrinski, R-Okeene, has picked …

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Work begins Monday on John Kilpatrick Turnpike widening in north OKC

This map shows the area of the I-344/John Kilpatrick Turnpike that will be widened to six lanes between W. Wilshire Blvd. (mm 116) to just north of N.W. 122nd St. (mm 120) starting Feb. 23, 2026.   Widening work is scheduled to begin Monday on the I-344/John Kilpatrick Turnpike in north Oklahoma City as part …

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ONE Gas announces annual shareholders meeting date

  ONE Gas, one of the largest natural gas utilities in the United States and parent to natural gas operations in Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas, plans its 2026 annual meeting of shareholders in a few months. The Tulsa-based company said the virtual meeting will be held Thursday, May 21 at 9 a.m. central daylight time. …

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Record increase in construction of battery storage systems in US

Electrical grid batteries, such as those planned by Oklahoma Gas and Electric near Enid and Ponca City, are breaking records nationwide….their development that is. Canary Media reported that more than 13 gigawatts of energy storage was installed last year across the nation. It cited the information in a new report from the Business Council for Sustainable …

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Data Center campus being built in Wichita Falls

Wichita Falls, Texas is getting a large data center to be built by Skybox, a data center builder and operator. Skybox has other projects in Houston, Round Rock, and San Angelo, Texas, and in Santa Clara, California. The 225-acre site will include a first building of 150,000 square feet in size but eventually the company plans up …

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AG warns of price gouging in four counties hit hard by wildfires

Attorney General Gentner Drummond is warning businesses that the Emergency Price Stabilization Act is in effect in the four counties where a State of Emergency has been declared due to the past week’s wildfires. The law, also referred to as the price gouging statute, prohibits an increase of more than 10 percent for the price …

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Energy briefs

** The Pentagon and the Energy Department for the first time airlifted a small nuclear reactor from California to Utah, demonstrating what they say is the U.S. potential to quickly deploy nuclear power for military and civilian use. ** The Trump administration is appealing a federal judge’s order that voided Donald Trump’s day one memorandum …

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Crude oil offered weak response in Friday’s trading—Iran remains an issue

Crude oil prices split their results on Friday as the clock is ticking on President Trump’s deadline for Iran to come to a decision about ending its nuclear weapon development. One recorded a slight gain while another ended with a slight loss. The gain was recorded late in the trading day as Brent and WTI …

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US and Oklahoma rig counts unchanged from prior week

Unchanged…..rig counts in Oklahoma and the U.S. according to the latest rig count from Baker Hughes Co. While Oklahoma held at 45 compared to last week, the U.S. total remained at 551. The U.S. count saw no change in the 409 oil drilling rigs active across the country. The number of gas drilling rigs remained …

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Wildfires not under control in Oklahoma Panhandle and SW Kansas

The devastating wildfires that wreaked havoc in the Oklahoma Panhandle and southwest Kansas last week are still torching more land. Over the weekend, the Oklahoma Forestry Division reported the largest of the fires, the Ranger Road Fire which burned in Beaver and Harper Counties in the state and more in Kansas, was only 30 percent …

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