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In the Haynesville and the Utica Shales, two major natural gas plays, over half of the drilling is being done by private equity-backed companies; in the oil-rich Permian Basin, its about a quarter of the drilling. She has co-authored multiple bestselling books, including The Smartest Guys in the Room and All the Devils Are Here. But among those angling for a federal handout is one of the wealthiest sectors of the American economy: private equity. A college student in Indiana died in her dorm room after testing positive for the coronavirus, school officials and her family said. And North American oil and gas drillers have almost $100 billion of debt that is set to mature in the next four years. And President Trump reveled in the rhetoric: We hadnt merely achieved independence, his administration said, but rather energy dominance.. Bethany McLean is a . Ad Choices. We could also limit the deductibility of interest payments for tax purposes even more than President Donald Trumps new tax law already did, so companies arent encouraged to load up on debt. James Glassman says his seven-year-old prediction that the Dow Jones industrial average will rise to 36,000 wasn't wrong, just early. Nocera is a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion and co-author of Indentured, about the NCAA. On April 20, oil prices did something theyve never done before. Writer: Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room. Certainly, President Trump, who has staked so much on the American shale industry, wants to save it. Paying members will get access to perks like a monthly happy hour with Kate, Daniel, and friends, a free ebook of A Planet to Win: Why We Need a Green New Deal by Kate Aronoff, Alyssa Battistoni, Daniel Aldana Cohen, and Thea Riofrancos, and much more. (And not all private-equity firms care equally about all of the programs.) How concerning are things like long covid and reinfections? There were rumblings that shale companies would seek a federal lifeline. McLean was born in Hibbing, Minnesota on December 12, 1970. Dont hesitate: sign up on Patreon today. [1] It details how the financial crisis bubbled up from a volatile, and bipartisan, mixture of government meddling and laissez-faire. Pension funds that have poured money into private equity firms may take a hit soon, too. More than 100,000 people already have died in this country from the virus. Ever since Congress voted to hand out $2 trillion in taxpayer money to those hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic, American businesses have been scrambling for a piece of the action. [10][11] She has been married to Sean Murray Berkowitz since May 2008. By Bethany McLean Coronavirus May Kill Our Fracking Fever Dream America's energy independence was an illusion created by cheap debt. She is known for her writing on the Enron scandal and the 2008 financial crisis. The private-equity industry also wants the companies they have invested in to have access to the $454 billion being doled out through the Treasury, an amount that the Fed said could be leveraged into over $2 trillion. . Bethany McLean is a Vanity Fair contributing editor. By Bethany McLean. 500 energy sector fell, questions weve gathered from readers recently, adequate research and support for sufferers, according to the law firm Haynes and Boone. The value of West Texas Intermediate crude, a U.S. benchmark, dipped below zero for a few hourstrading as low as negative $40 a barrel. Driven partly by public pensions, the private-equity industry has mushroomed. Clients who show symptoms of COVID-19 (for example have a fever, cough, or difficulty breathing) and/or are waiting for their test results. Its thanks to those who are able to contribute that were able to make the podcast free for anyone to listen to. The industrys boosters argue that technological gains, such as drilling ever bigger wells, and clustering wells more tightly together to reduce the cost of moving equipment, eventually would lead to a gusher of profits. Bethany McLean is a Vanity Fair contributing editor. She is known for her writing on the Enron scandal and the 2008 financial crisis. The SHIELD saliva-based testing is available for all ages. [citation needed] She began as a contributor to Slate's Moneybox column, in 2010 and "The Bulldog" column in Fortune. Thats because some of the major investors in private-equity funds are public pension plans; at Blackstone, roughly one-third of the firms money comes from retirement plans set up to provide for over 30 million working-class Americans, according to someone with knowledge of its portfolio. Jack Ewings Faster, Higher, Farther is more than the story of a scandal. Thats because one big source of funding didnt dry up: private equity. Workers monitoring a hydraulic fracturing operation near Wink, Texas. What the Theranos trial says about the blurred lines between visionaries and frauds. Airlines, hotels, and restaurantsall of whose revenues have cratered in the wake of sweeping stay-home ordershave engaged in Hunger Gameslike lobbying to cash in on the CARES Act, making their case for a share of the disaster relief. In each of the past four years, according to data-provider Preqin, private-capital managers raised over $500 billion of new money to invest. Fracking, they said, was just manufacturing, in which process and human intelligence could reduce costs and conquer geology. This week, Ms. McLean begins promoting her new book, "All the Devils are Here," about the current financial crisis. We could go even further. Contents 1 Early life and education 2 Career The Wuhan Institute of Virology, the cutting-edge . Daily updates from Washington, Wall Street, and Silicon Valley. If you need help with the Public File, call (713) 778-4745. A deal, and higher oil prices, might help the industry. Rasmussen points out that after the financial crisis in 2008, the Federal Reserve set a limit on the amount of debt it considered prudent. They subprimed the American energy ecosystem, says a longtime energy market observer. on March 2.Read more about the C.D.C . Unfortunately, there isnt really an alternative to providing private equity with federal funds. They have two children. Almost everything thats happened since 2008 has tilted in their favor. Like so many other facets of the COVID-19 crisis, however, this unprecedented crash exposed long-running cracks in the facade. Increasingly desperate to boost the portfolios of retiring workers, they too turned to private equity as their saviorurged on by private equitys promises that it alone could deliver the necessary returns. Fueled by debt and years of easy credit, Americas energy boom is on shaky footing. By Bess Levin . Coronavirus May Kill Our Fracking Fever Dream, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/10/opinion/sunday/coronavirus-texas-fracking-layoffs.html. Hot & Bothered is produced by Colin Kinniburgh. If private equity suffers, the blow will reverberate throughout the entire economy. How will the virus continue to change? All thats left to tally is the damage. As for Pelosi, she doesnt want to see companies backed by venture capital excluded from federal relief, given her Silicon Valley constituents. In a January 4 opinion piece for the New York Times, Bethany McLean had this to say about the outcome of the Elizabeth Holmes trial: "A jury's verdict is black-and-white, but the real story is . Best-selling author Bethany McLean reveals the true story of fracking's impact - on Wall Street, the economy, and geopolitics. FILE - In this Friday, June 12, 2020 file photo, a nurse uses a swab to perform a coronavirus test in Salt Lake City. Ms. McLean is the author of Saudi America: The Truth About Fracking and How Its Changing the World., Ever since the oil shocks of the 1970s, the idea of energy independence, which in its grandest incarnation meant freedom from the worlds oil-rich trouble spots, has been a dream for Democrats and Republicans alike. McLean is a contributing editor at Vanity Fair and co-author of the Enron book The Smartest Guys in the Room. Nocera is a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion and co-author of Indentured, about the NCAA. Saudi America: The Truth About Fracking and How Its Changing the World., stocks that make up the S.&P. To revisit this article, visit My Profile, thenView saved stories. Its a rich history of a company, and a case study in how a corporate culture can turn toxic. Mortgages should be used to buy homes, not for refinancing. Previous to her current roles, McLean was an editor-at-large at Fortune Magazine. COVID-19 Origins: Investigating a "Complex and Grave Situation" Inside a Wuhan Lab. No food or drink for one hour prior to testing. Paying members will get access to perks like a. by Kate Aronoff, Alyssa Battistoni, Daniel Aldana Cohen, and Thea Riofrancos, and much more. She co-authored a book on the 2008 financial crisis titled All the Devils Are Here. Its essential that we do the same today. On Thursday's show: The job forecast for the region in 2022, lessons from the collapse of Enron, a conversation with the late Stephen Sondheim, and the best new restaurants from the past year. These cookies are used to collect information on how users interact with Chicago Booth websites allowing us to improve the user experience and optimize our site where needed based on these interactions. In the five years ending in April, there were 215 bankruptcies for oil and gas companies, involving $130 billion in debt, according to the law firm Haynes and Boone. McLean graduated from Hibbing High School in 1988. By early 2019, America was the worlds largest producer of crude oil, surpassing both Saudi Arabia and Russia. In reality, the dream was always an illusion, and its collapse was already underway. "[3] The article noted some irregularities in Enron's financial documents that were available to the public, suggesting the company's then-record high stock price was unjustified but she did not at that point suspect fraud at Enron. When will the pandemic end? Not only should taxpayer funds not be used to pay management or consulting firms, she says, but companies that take the money should also, for instance, be required to include workers on their corporate boards and gradually increase their minimum wage to at least $15 an hour. Its thanks to those who are able to contribute that were able to make the podcast free for anyone to listen to. Over the past 10 years, the entire energy industry has issued over $400 billion in high-yield debt. The 42 Best Romantic Comedies of All Time, The 25 Best Shows on Netflix to Watch Right Now. Confirmed cases include those reported since the beginning of the current active outbreak and may include cases that . He and McLean previously worked together on All the Devils Are Here: The Hidden History of the Financial Crisis, about the 2008 market crash. That, too, is ending, as investors in such funds have become disillusioned. She resides in Chicago with her children. What could endemic Covid look like? At least 1 in 303 residents have died from the coronavirus, a total of 2,512 deaths. NEW YORK Business writers Bethany McLean and Joe Nocera are collaborating on a critical take of the U.S. response to the coronavirus pandemic. The allies of private equity hope that similar exemptions will soon be forthcoming for their firms.We are in a wait-and-see mode, Chris Hayes, the ILPAs senior policy counsel, told me. Dylan Hollingsworth for The New York Times. David Wallace Wells writes that by one estimate, 100,000 Americans could die each yearfrom the coronavirus. These firms not only have a record $1.5 trillion in cash on the sidelines, waiting to be invested, but their CEOs are among Americas richest executives. In 2019, Mclean launched a podcast titled Making a Killing on Luminary. Music: Mercurias Meet Victor Rice, Carregar (Instrumental), courtesy of Total Running Time. Months into the outbreak, no one really knows how well many of the screening tests work, and experts at top medical centers say it is time to do the studies to find out. . He and McLean previously worked together on All the Devils Are Here: The Hidden History of the Financial Crisis, about the 2008 market crash. Manage all aspects of the daily operation for Ham Conversion, processing up to 1.5 million lbs/day . sure to go down in history as one of the wildest business stories ever. [citation needed], She authored an article on Enron for the March 5, 2001, issue of Fortune entitled, "Is Enron Overpriced? Has its bubble finally burst? "Dow 36,000" co-authors stand by book's premise. Because rules for access to this money werent specified in the CARES Act, as ILPA notes, the executive branch will have a fair amount of discretion over who gets access to the moneyand private-equity firms want to take full advantage of that opening. Then came Covid-19, and, on March 8, the sudden and vicious end to the truce between Saudi Arabia and Russia, under which both countries limited production to prop up prices. In 2019, Oxy, as its known, topped a competing bid from Chevron and paid $38 billion to take over Anadarko Petroleum, which is one of the major shale companies. 500 energy sector fell 20 percent, marking the sectors largest drop on record. This kind of rewrites the economics of oil trading.. She was previously married to Christopher Roberts Wilford. If private equity is handed billions in taxpayer money, it could use some of it to pay themselves hefty fees today, then pocket even more of it down the road, when they sell their portfolio companies and collect their 20% of the taxpayer-enabled gains. Copyright 2023 WSLS.com is managed by Graham Digital and published by Graham Media Group, a division of Graham Holdings. On the surface, it appears that two unforeseeable and random shocks are threatening our dream. As early as 2018, some investors had begun to tell companies that they wanted to see free cash flow, and that they were tired of compensation models that rewarded executives with rich paydays for increasing production, but failed to take profits into account. Now, it has been shut off. You can see how all of this is playing out by looking at Occidental Petroleum. NEW YORK Business writers Bethany McLean and Joe Nocera are collaborating on a critical take of the U.S. response to the coronavirus pandemic. COVID-19 Origins: Investigating a "Complex and Grave Situation" Inside a Wuhan Lab. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Cond Nast. The taxpayer handouts will also help private equity continue its relentless march through the global economy, snapping up troubled companies at bargain prices or extending high-priced credit as other investors, including hedge funds, are forced to sell off their holdings in the post-corona landscape. If you like the episode and want to hear more, sign up as a monthly member at patreon.com/hotbotheredclimate today. Veuer's Tony Spitz has the details. All we know for sure is that fracking company executives and private equity financiers have made a fortune by touting the myth of energy independence and they wont be the ones who have to pick up the pieces., Bethany McLean, a contributing editor at Vanity Fair, is the author of Saudi America: The Truth About Fracking and How Its Changing the World.. All rights reserved). Months into the outbreak, no one really knows how well many of the screening tests work, and experts at top medical centers say it is time to do the studies to find out. Exclusive: Inside the S--tshow That Was the Trump-Biden Transition. FILE - In this Friday, June 12, 2020 file photo, a nurse uses a swab to perform a coronavirus test in Salt Lake City. She is also a columnist at Yahoo Finance and a contributor to CNBC. Smithfield Foods. There are several pots of federal money that the private-equity industry is lobbying to access. Like the big banks in 2008, private equity is holding us all hostage. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. The Next Financial Crisis Lurks Underground, Coronavirus May Kill Our Fracking Fever Dream. Investors in the equity of these companies have already seen the value of their holdings decimated. Waters, in her letter, argues for placing even more strings on the money taken by private-equity-backed companies. Traders last year at the New York Stock Exchange near the post that trades Anadarko Petroleum and Occidental Petroleum. Novavax Inc said on Thursday it would require six months to produce a COVID-19 vaccine designed to match whichever coronavirus variants are circulating for an annual immunization program each fall . The Wuhan Institute of Virology, the cutting-edge biotech facility at the center of swirling suspicions about the pandemics onset, was far more troubled than previously known, explosive documents unearthed by a Senate research team reveal.