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Mountain Valley Pipe Asks FERC for 2-Yr Extension to Finish Project

It’s been an uphill battle to complete Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP), a 303-mile Marcellus/Utica gas pipeline from Wetzel County, WV to Pittsylvania County, VA. The project has been vigorously opposed by radical environmentalists from the beginning. Frivolous lawsuit after frivolous lawsuit has been filed by Big Green groups bankrolled by billionaires. Finally in June Equitrans, the builder, said they should be able to complete the 92% done pipeline by next spring (see Mountain Valley Pipe Will be Done and In-Service Early 2021). That is now in doubt. MVP made an official request with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to extend the completion deadline by an extra two years.
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PA Enviro Hearing Board Allows ME2 to Restart Work

NOTE: This post has been corrected from a previous version. Sunoco Logistics Partners’ work on underground drilling to install sections of the Mariner East 2X pipeline in Chester County, PA has resumed in one of two locations–Shoen Road. The work there was stopped by the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) after Sunoco Logistics reported hitting (but NOT spilling any mud into) a water aquifer in the area.
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WV Gov. Jim Justice Trash-Talks Brooke County Gas-Fired Power

WV Gov. Jim Justice

Just when you thought West Virginia Governor Jim Justice could be trusted with oversight of the state’s Marcellus/Utica industry, he goes and spoils it. Justice, who made his fortune in coal, is once again trash-talking shale gas. This time Justice is questioning a proposed shale gas-fired power plant planned for Brooke County.
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Equinor (Statoil) Cutting US Workforce, No New M-U Drilling 2020

Oil and gas drilling giant Equinor (formerly called Statoil) is owned by the Norwegian government. Equinor/Statoil has drilled in the Marcellus/Utica for years. As recently as June 2019 the company reported drilling 9-14 Utica wells per year (see Equinor (Statoil) Drilling Long Utica Laterals, Production Up 5X). But then in March of this year, just prior to the pandemic, the company decided to temporarily suspend it’s Utica (and Bakken) drilling program (see Equinor (Statoil) Stops All U.S. Shale Drilling, Incl. Marcellus). The company is now saying it won’t drill any more new wells this year in the U.S. and is cutting jobs here (and in Canada and the U.K.).
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SWPA Union Members Rally Against Gov. Wolf’s RGGI Carbon Tax

We have chronicled the break between trade unions and Pennsylvania. Gov. Tom Wolf over Wolf’s stubborn insistence on forcing the state to join a carbon tax scheme called RGGI–the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (see our union stories here). Union members know that RGGI will kill the Marcellus industry in the state and lead to massive job losses–all in the name of fixing so-called climate change. Yesterday union members in southwestern PA rallied at a power plant to (once again) voice their strong opposition to Wolf’s highly unpopular plan.
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Williams Aims to Hit Net-Zero Carbon Emissions by 2050

Yesterday MDN told you that Range Resources is planning to operate at net-zero carbon within the next five years, by 2025 (see Range Resources Aims to be 1st O&G Company to Hit Net-Zero Carbon). Williams, a huge midstream (pipeline) company has issued its net-zero carbon goal (all the cool kids are doing it). Williams says it will achieve net-zero carbon by 2050.
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Shale Energy Stories of Interest: Thu, Aug 27, 2020

MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: RG&E to raise rates, limit natural gas development in 2020 rate case; EQT Corporation: Successful race to catch up; OTHER U.S. REGIONS: U.S. Army Corps asks appeals court to reverse Dakota Access pipeline ruling; The potential hurricane impacts on Sabine Pass, Cameron LNG exports; Hurricane Laura targets the heart of America’s oil refining industry; NATIONAL: The United States set record for daily natural gas power burn in late July; INTERNATIONAL: Philippine energy chief says 4 LNG projects still on track despite virus delays.
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MDN Stories Slightly Delayed Today, Aug 27

We always aim to have stories posted by noon each day. Due to an unforeseen circumstance, MDN stories are slightly delayed today. Look for them by mid-afternoon. An email will be sent with headlines as soon as stories are posted. Stay tuned!