WASHINGTON, Nov 29 (Reuters) – The U.S. Senate is set to
consider a broader set of economic sanctions on Iran’s energy,
port, shipping and ship-building sectors, as lawmakers look for
new ways to pressure Tehran to stop efforts to enrich uranium to
levels that could be used in weapons.

It is the third time in a year that U.S. lawmakers have
looked for new ways to cut off revenues they believe fund Iran’s
nuclear program, which Tehran has said is strictly for civilian
purposes.

WASHINGTON, Nov 29 (Reuters) – A recent crackdown on suspect
power trades by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has
made a fan out of one of the most fervent critics of the
nation’s electricity regulator.

Maria Cantwell, a Democratic senator from Washington state,
led the charge several years ago to give FERC more power to root
out market manipulation after the Enron scandal. She has kept a
close watch as a regulator she once viewed as “reticent” built
up its team and gained expertise in monitoring traders.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. government temporarily banned BP Plc from federal contracts on Wednesday over its “lack of business integrity” in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010, a move that the British company had said could force it to rethink its entire U.S. operations.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said the suspension was “standard practice” following criminal actions. Earlier this month, BP plead guilty to criminal misconduct in the Gulf of Mexico disaster, the worst oil spill in U.S. history, and agreed to pay record penalties of $4.5 billion.

WASHINGTON, Nov 28 (Reuters) – The U.S. government
temporarily banned BP Plc from federal contracts on
Wednesday over its “lack of business integrity” in the Deepwater
Horizon oil spill in 2010, a move that the British company had
said could force it to rethink its entire U.S. operations.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said the suspension
was “standard practice” following criminal actions. E arlier this
month, BP plead guilty to criminal misconduct in the Gulf of
Mexico disaster, the worst oil spill in U.S. history, and agreed
to pay record penalties of $4.5 billion.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – New sanctions aimed at reducing global trade with Iran in the energy, shipping and metals sectors may soon be considered by the U.S. Senate as part of an annual defense policy bill, senators and aides said on Tuesday.

The sanctions legislation, which has not yet been unveiled, comes during a crowded calendar as the Senate races to deal with deficit reduction, the defense bill and other pressing issues by the end of the year.

WASHINGTON, Nov 27 (Reuters) – The U.S. Justice Department
should investigate whether oil refineries created a perceived
shortage of gasoline supply in May and October of this year when
West Coast prices spiked to record highs, six Democratic
senators said on Tuesday.

The senators want the Justice Department to subpoena records
from California refineries to see whether public reports of
maintenance shutdowns were accurate. If not, the refineries
could face fines.

WASHINGTON, Nov 22 (Reuters) – New comments from top
Republican lawmaker John Boehner slamming health care reforms
illustrate how hard it will be for Washington to reach a deficit
reduction deal when talks resume next week, analysts said on
Thursday.

President Barack Obama and the U.S. Congress will begin
negotiating next week on a plan that could avert tax hikes and
spending cuts set to begin in January that economists worry
could push the U.S. economy over the “fiscal cliff” and into
recession.

WASHINGTON, Nov 21 (Reuters) – While the debate has been
fierce in Canada over whether a $15.1 billion takeover bid by
China’s CNOOC for Canadian oil company Nexen Inc
is in the national interest, a much quieter U.S. review
of the deal could soon come to a head.

A panel chaired by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has
been looking at the national security implications of a Chinese
state-owned oil company taking over Nexen’s U.S. assets, which
include oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.

WASHINGTON, Nov 18 (Reuters) – Hundreds of people who say
they worry oil that would be carried the Keystone XL pipeline
will accelerate climate change marched around the White House on
Sunday, hoping to revive a movement credited with slowing down
the permit process for the crude oil project.

The protesters changed “Hey, Obama! We don’t want no climate
drama” and said they hope President Barack Obama’s
election-night promise to address climate change means he will
reject the pipeline. It needs a presidential permit to cross
into the United States from Canada.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A high-profile group of senators – nine Democrats and nine Republicans – has urged President Barack Obama to quickly issue a permit for the northern leg of the Keystone XL pipeline, a project environmental groups have vowed to keep fighting.

The senators asked Obama to approve the pipeline because it will reduce the need for oil imports from the Middle East and create jobs. They were led by Max Baucus, a Montana Democrat and powerful chair of the Senate Finance Committee, and John Hoeven, a North Dakota Republican, who both represent the booming Bakken oil region.