Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Fri, Sep 5, 2014

The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading:

Maryland

Maryland Fracking and Cove Point Up Against Usual Suspects
Natural Gas Now/KJ Rodgers
Despite small victories with natural gas development in Maryland it has been a major struggle the whole way. Even the Cove Point liquified natural gas (LNG) export facility has proven to be a major challenge.

New England

Factors that Contributed to Last Year’s Propane Price Volatility Remain
Brattleboro Reformer News
Northeast propane dealers are urging customers to fill their tanks this summer to help prevent shortages linked to last winter’s record high prices. Residential propane prices have dropped from the more than $4 per gallon peak last winter, but the infrastructure challenges in the region that drove those shortages remain, industry representatives say.

New Jersey

In Speech on Mexico Trip, Gov. Christie Lays Out Vision for Energy ‘Renaissance’
New York Times
Chris Christie of New Jersey offered a prescription for what he called a “North American energy renaissance” in an expansive speech here, calling for an end to Washington’s 40-year ban on crude oil exports, faster approval of natural gas pipelines between the United States and Mexico, and construction of the Keystone XL pipeline from Canada to the Gulf Coast. On the opening day of Mr. Christie’s trip to Mexico, a rare journey abroad as he considers a run for the presidency, he abandoned his trademark swagger for a data-filled, policy-rich and humility-heavy approach. He quoted the writer Bill Bryson and the energy expert Daniel Yergin. He offered lavish praise for the market-oriented overhauls of the Mexican president, Enrique Peña Nieto. And he took pains to present himself, over and over, as an eager student prepared to absorb the lessons of his Mexican counterparts.

New York

Former Binghamton Mayor Matt Ryan Doubles Down?
Natural Gas Now/Victor Furman
Vic Furman provides an update on the strange story of former Binghamton Mayor Matt Ryan who he alleges lost it and assaulted him in an argument recently. Wednesday night, September 3, 2014, former Binghamton Mayor and fractivist Matt Ryan returned to Davy’s Last Chance Saloon, the scene of the events I related in this earlier post. He arrived, according to friends and patrons, about 5:30pm and left when there was an incident involving a gentleman who fell on the sidewalk. There were two ambulances and multiple police showed up at 6:30pm. I am told Ryan made a joke about how he had better “leave the area before he got accused of beating up Victor Furman again.” I arrived shortly after Ryan left and didn’t cross paths again with him but what in the world is this man doing back in Chenango Forks, which is 40 miles from where he now resides in Ithaca? Looking for more confrontation? Buying drinks for potential witnesses? This is bizarre.

Ohio

New Ohio Utica Shale Permits Issued Aug 25-30, 2014
Utica Shale Blog
The latest report from the Ohio DNR is out showing activity and new permits issued the week of August 25th, 2014. 17 new permits are recognized in this post though the Ohio DNR reports 20 new permits. For some unknown reason, three Trumbull County BP wells appeared on the list of new permits though these wells were previously reported and already show as producing, as a result, the 3 BP wells are discounted in the data and map below. New permits continue to be focused in the South. Select “Maps” in the main menu above to see all wells by status.

Noble County Ohio, Seneca Township Utica Shale Production Shines
Utica Shale Blog
According to recent Ohio DNR well activity and production reports, Noble County Ohio wells (Seneca Township in the Northeast specifically) are some of the most prolific liquid producers in the state. The Q1 2014 released production data showed Noble County with 7 wells (all in Seneca Township) among the top 10 liquid producers during the quarter. Harrison and Guernsey County wells rounded out the top 10 liquid producers.

New Hotel Opens in Carroll County to House Shale Workers
Shale Play Ohio Valley
A new hotel opened recently in Carroll County as a result of the shale boom and the investors said two more in Ohio are planned. Last November, Drill Capital LLC in New York announced it was entering the Utica Shale area. The company calls itself an alternative asset manager focused on investments in the North American energy sector. At the time it said it had closed a transaction for a new hotel located in eastern Ohio, at the center of the Utica Shale formation.

Ohio has 1,059 Drilled Utica Wells, 554 Producing Utica Wells
Akron Beacon Journal
Ohio has approved 1,474 Utica shale permits, as of Aug. 30. Ohio has 1,059 drilled Utica wells and 554 Utica wells that are producing, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources says. Ohio has 45 rigs at work. A total of 17 new permits have been approved: four in Belmont County, three in Carroll County and 10 in Harrison County.

Pennsylvania

Proposed ‘Rover’ Pipeline to Cross Northern Washington County
Washington (PA) Observer-Reporter
Maps for a proposed interstate natural gas pipeline that will cross a portion of northern Washington County are being made available at Citizens Library in Washington. The announcement was made this week by Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners. Library staff members said Wednesday the maps were not yet available.

Philadelphia: A Future ‘Silicon Valley of Energy Research’?
Philadelphia Business Journal
Michael Krancer, former Department of Environmental Protection in Pennsylvania, recently wrote about how he was often asked by his fellow Philadelphians, “What’s in it for me?” regarding shale energy development in the state. This is a great question for a city that has seen energy production and economic development occurring throughout the Northeast and Western parts of Pennsylvania, but not in Philadelphia. However, there is a great answer to this question: it means jobs. Luckily for Philadelphia, the shale boom has the potential to create more economic opportunities for the city and more jobs for our neighbors.

Southeast

Fracking Takes Center Stage at Northern Neck Panel
Northumberland (VA) Echo
Jerry Davis, executive director of the Northern Neck Planning District Commission, characterized the Northern Neck’s economy to an audience of over 100 local residents and officials by using a few “f-words.” They were farming, fishing, forestry and fun, “because tourism doesn’t start with an “F,’ Davis clarified to a few chuckles in the room. “Now, we’re here to talk about fracking,” Davis said to the packed Lecture Hall at Warsaw’s Rappahannock Community College on Wednesday as the Northern Neck Chesapeake Bay Region Partnership-sponsored panel on fracking kicked into action. Davis recapped the 84,000 acres of land leased by Shore Exploration for fracking purposes, as well as their intentions to sell those leases to another entity that would begin drilling explorations.

West Virginia

Shale Gas Stories – The Benwood Revitalization Story
Natural Gas Now/Tom Shepstone
A small West Virginia town is experiencing a rebirth due to the shale revolution. The Benwood revitalization story is what shale gas is all about for us.

National

Chemical Boom at Risk as U.S. Ethane Heads Abroad
Bloomberg/Washington Post
“Ethane exports have the potential to get really big,” Ben Nolan, a Chicago-based shipping analyst at Stifel, Nicolaus & Co., said by phone Sept. 4. “What people are assuming will be a lot of petrochemical manufacturing growth in the back end of the decade may not materialize.” Interest in ethane exports has soared since Enterprise Product Partners LP announced April 22 its plan to ship 240,000 barrels a day from its Texas terminal starting in 2016. Space is nearly sold out and Enterprise is eyeing an expansion. Saudi Basic Industries Corp. and India’s Reliance Industries Ltd. are among those lining up to buy U.S. ethane, and Reliance has ordered specialty ships.

The Popping of the Shale Gas Bubble
Forbes
Discredited peak oil/gas theorist Bill Powers continues to peddle his wrong theories (this time in Forbes) that shale gas will run out–any day now. Meanwhile production keeps expanding and will expand for the next generation, or two…

Peak Shale Gas, Shale Gas Opposition That Is
Natural Gas Now/Nick Grealy
We have reached peak shale gas opposition says No Hot Air blogger Nick Grealy, the tipping point where their radical message is being consigned to history.

Coloring Reality: Fractivist Fantasies
Natural Gas Now/Tom Shepstone
A coloring book aimed at fracking illustrates the vapid nature of the anti-gas cause, forever engrossed in self-indulgent fractivist fantasies.

Green Energy Double Standards
Natural Gas Now/Rachael Bunzey
Reading a recent news online an article entitled “Emerging Solar Plants Scorch Birds in Mid-air” that caught my eye reminded me, yet again, of the green energy double standards that seem to apply with so many renewables projects. I am fully in support of both renewables and natural gas development but have always argued that so called “green energy” has unintended consequences that are very commonly overlooked, while any theoretical impact from natural gas development is treated like word of a Martian invasion in War of the Worlds with nothing less than mass hysteria in some instances. The article demonstrates there are environmental risks to solar power I bet you haven’t even thought about; risks that wouldn’t be tolerated but for green energy double standards.

Natural Gas Price Tumbles on Big Inventory Build
24/7 Wall St.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported Thursday morning that U.S. natural gas stocks increased by 79 billion cubic feet for the week ending August 29. That compared with an expected increase of 73 billion cubic feet anticipated by analysts. The five-year average gain for the week is 55 billion cubic feet. Natural gas futures were trading up about 0.7% in advance of the EIA’s report, at around $3.87 per million BTUs, and tumbled to $3.80 immediately following the EIA report. Natural gas futures have risen by about $0.30 per million BTUs since last week.