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New Fortress Working on Deal to Send Marcellus LNG to Philippines

A newspaper in the Philippines is reporting that New Fortress Energy, the company currently building one (rumored to be two) liquefied natural gas (LNG) liquefaction plants in the northeastern Pennsylvania Marcellus, has approached the Philippines Department of Energy (DoE) about building an onshore LNG import terminal that would be integrated with a gas-fired power plant.
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EPA’s “No Wastewater @ Sewage Plant” Rule Snags PA Conv. Drillers

A federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulation meant to ban wastewater coming from unconventional (shale) wells from being disposed via municipal sewage treatment plants is about to go into effect in August. The new reg, which was first issued by the Obama EPA in 2016 (see EPA Bans Disposal of Frack Wastewater at Public Sewer Plants), will also apply to (snag) a number of Pennsylvania’s conventional oil and gas drillers. Further collateral damage from the new regulation will be local municipalities, some of which will lose hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue–an economic catastrophe for those communities.
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Connecticut Approves New Natgas-Fired Electric Plant in Killingly

The State of Connecticut’s “Siting Council” has changed its mind. In 2016, NTE Energy proposed building a 650-megawatt natural gas-fired electric plant in Killingly. The Siting Council said NTE couldn’t justify the plant and refused to issue a certificate. In February, we reported the Siting Council was once again actively considering the project (see CT Wisely Reconsiders, Allows NatGas Power Plant to Proceed). Good news: the Siting Council has approved the project.
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Newspaper Editors Say Impact Fee Superior to Severance Tax in PA

It’s not every day you read an editorial in a prominent Pennsylvania newspaper lending a full-throated endorsement for PA’s impact fee over a so-called severance tax, but it just happened in Williamsport. The Sun-Gazette editorial board published a column pointing out the superiority of an impact fee (actually an impact tax) over a severance tax. They make some great points, pointing out the numbers speak for themselves…
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NatGas Trading Volume Up 4th Year in a Row – Sets New Record

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The amount of natural gas that gets produced, and the amount that actually gets traded (bought and sold), are two different numbers. Don’t try to figure out–just accept it on faith. Cornerstone Research has just published its annual report (full copy below) looking at the amount of natural gas traded in the United States for 2018. The report says both natural gas trading activity and marketed production reached record highs in 2018. Total trading activity increased for the fourth consecutive year and marketed production continued steady growth that first began in 2005. The reason? Shale.
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Liberty Utilities to Make Case for Granite Bridge LNG Tank in NH

In May 2018, Liberty Utilities, a New Hampshire company, announced a new pipeline project called Granite Bridge–27 miles of new natural gas pipeline to be buried along Route 101 from Stratham to Manchester (see Liberty Utilities Floats Plan for 27-Mile Pipeline in Southern NH). Part of the Granite Bridge project includes building an LNG storage facility located midway along the pipeline near Epping. Later this month Liberty will host an LNG safety demonstration at the Epping Middle School gymnasium in their effort to win state and public approval for the project.
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Antis Ask NY DEC to Shut Down Operating Gas-Fired Plant

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo tried to stop a fully built, brand new natural gas-fired electric generating plant in Orange County from going operational last year by instructing his Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to deny renewing an air permit it had approved just five years earlier (see Cuomo Strikes Again: Blocks Completed Gas-Fired Plant from Starting). Fortunately a judge stepped in to prevent the DEC from shutting down the now-operational Competitive Power Ventures (CPV) 680-megawatt Valley Energy Center in Wawayanda (see Judge Refuses to Shut Down Orange County, NY Gas-Fired Plant). Cuomo’s corrupt DEC is just conducted public hearings on the air permit.
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Energy Stories of Interest: Fri, Jul 19, 2019

MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: Nine permits issued in Ohio Utica/Point Pleasant shale; Cuomo tilts with windmills; Wheeler hits Cuomo for blocking pipelines; OTHER U.S. REGIONS: Berkeley approves $273,341 salary for new czar to enforce nation’s 1st natural gas ban; NATIONAL: Summer natural gas prices on track to be the lowest in more than 20 years; Working natural gas stocks are more than half full in all regions as the deficit to the five-year average declines; Ryan Zinke touts new career in the oil and gas industry during Houston visit; U.S. energy is hotspot in Trump’s economy; INTERNATIONAL: How to reduce Europe’s dependence on Russian energy.
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