• | |

    GE Dumping Baker Hughes in Bid to Boost Stock Price

    Looks like “Baker Hughes, a GE Company” will soon become just plain old “Baker Hughes” once again. This morning GE released the results of a year-long internal review. GE has its fingers in a lot of pies and wants to pull its fingers out of some of those pies. The results of the review recommend GE dump Baker Hughes (over the next 2-3 years), and also dump its healthcare division. The company will concentrate on three “complimentary” areas: aviation, power and renewable energy. The hope is that by focusing and shedding peripheral business units, the company’s financial performance, and stock price, will improve. Just last week GE was booted from the Dow Jones Industrial Average after being a component of that average for over 100 years. The company’s stock was replaced on the DJIA by Walgreens. Truly humiliating. You may recall Halliburton originally wanted to buy Baker Hughes but the Obama Justice Department blocked the deal (see Obama DOJ Kills Halliburton/Baker Hughes Merger, Deal “Terminated”). Then GE came sniffing around and ended up buying BH in July last year, combining BH with GE Oil & Gas (see Baker Hughes and GE Complete Merger, World’s 1st Fullstream Co.). The resulting merged company was billed as a “fullstream” company–ticking all of the boxes in the oil and gas sector: upstream, midstream and downstream. But just four months after the merger there were signs of marriage problems (see 4 Months After Buying Baker Hughes, GE Wants to Sell It). And now it’s official. The two will be splitsville…
    Read More “GE Dumping Baker Hughes in Bid to Boost Stock Price”

  • | | |

    Cabot Files Permit #3 for Knox Formation Test Well in Ashland, OH

    As we have reported since late last year, Cabot Oil & Gas, long-known for the incredible amount of Marcellus natural gas they produce from Susquehanna County in northeastern Pennsylvania, is eyeing north central Ohio as a potential spot for “what’s next” after the Marcellus (see Cabot O&G Considers Drilling in Ashland County, OH). Cabot locked up leases with plans to drill a number of test wells in not only Ashland, but also Holmes, Knox, Richland and Wayne counties in the Buckeye State (see New Details Emerge on Cabot’s Shale Plans in Central Ohio). Cabot began to push dirt around on its first wellpad (in Ashland) in April, and last week began to drill a hole on that pad (see Cabot O&G to Begin Drilling in Ashland County, OH This Week). They also began pushing dirt around on a second wellpad site. And now, Cabot has filed for a third permit to drill–in Vermillion Township in Ashland County. Cabot plans to drill into the Knox formation vertically, and if they find anything worthwhile, they will then drill horizontally…
    Read More “Cabot Files Permit #3 for Knox Formation Test Well in Ashland, OH”

  • | | | | | |

    Constitution Pipe Asks FERC for Speedy Rehearing, 2020 Deadline

    Seems like a week doesn’t go by that MDN isn’t asked (by someone from Pennsylvania), “Is there any hope of building the Constitution Pipeline through New York?” Our standard response is this: The only way it gets built is (a) NY elects a new governor favorable to the industry–about a 1% chance of that happening, (b) President Trump issues an Executive Order overriding Cuomo’s blockade of Constitution (and other pipeline projects)–maybe a 10% chance of that happening, or (c) the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) reconsiders a decision to not overrule NY’s move to block the project–maybe a 15% chance. The U.S. Supreme Court in April refused to consider the Constitution Pipeline case, closing that door (see Supreme Court Rejects Constitution Pipe Request to Overrule NY). In January of this year, FERC turned down Constitution’s request to overrule NY (see Death of the Constitution Pipeline? FERC Refuses to Overrule NY DEC). But then Constitution (i.e. Williams) asked FERC to reconsider their ruling, to “rehear” the case as it’s called, in Feburary (see Constitution Pipe Files for FERC Rehearing, Then Back to Court). In March, FERC gave themselves a little more time to think about rehearing the decision, but since that time, the agency has been silent. Yesterday Williams/Constitution filed a request with FERC asking them to urgently, speedily, quick-like-a-bunny, pretty-please with a cherry on top hurry up and reconsider/rehear their earlier decision, this time hopefully overruling NY. Could it happen? Sure, it could. Will it? Doubtful, but hey, hope springs eternal! Williams/Constitution also filed an official request yesterday with FERC to extend the deadline to build the Constitution project–from this year to 2020. If FERC grants the extension, then maybe there is a glimmer of hope that FERC will change its mind, or that FERC somehow sees a way that Constitution can still get built…
    Read More “Constitution Pipe Asks FERC for Speedy Rehearing, 2020 Deadline”

  • | | | |

    Ohio Approves $900M Harrison County Power Plant in Cadiz, OH

    Click for larger version

    In September 2016, MDN reported that EmberClear planned to fund and build a new $900 million, 1,000-megawatt electric generating plant in Harrison County, OH (see $900M Utica Gas-Fired Electric Plant Coming to Harrison County, OH). The new plant will be fed by Utica Shale gas. EmberClear was, until July 2016, a Canadian-based company. But it went bankrupt and after emerging from bankruptcy it changed its name to Ember Partners, now based in Houston, TX. Since 2016 we haven’t heard anything about the project. But things were/are happening. Last week the Ohio Power Siting Board (OPSB) authorized construction of the 1,050 megawatt (MW) natural gas-fired, combined-cycle electric generation facility in Cadiz–called the Harrison Power Plant. Which is good news indeed. The plant will generate 500 temporary construction jobs and 30 permanent jobs and use a huge amount of natural gas to power it (good for Utica drillers!). Construction on the plant is due to begin in October of this year and the plant will be done and online in June 2021. Here’s the details…
    Read More “Ohio Approves $900M Harrison County Power Plant in Cadiz, OH”

  • | |

    FERC Issues Favorable Enviro Assessment for Rhode Island LNG Plant

    Click for larger version

    In 2016 MDN told you about a plan by utility company National Grid to build a teeny tiny LNG liquefaction plant in Providence, Rhode Island (see Rhode Island Commies Oppose “Fracked Gas” LNG Plant). The Fields Point LNG plant, facing stiff opposition from a small group of RI House and Senate members (who said they hate fossil fuels), would cost $180 million and liquefy 20 million cubic feet (MMcf) of natural gas per day and store it. All of the opposers–socialist Democrats–called on FERC to reject the project. Nearly two years later, FERC just issued a favorable environmental assessment (EA) for the project. No, it’s not a final approval–but it’s the one key step prior to a positive final approval. FERC will almost certainly now approve the project, much to the consternation of the fossil fuel haters…
    Read More “FERC Issues Favorable Enviro Assessment for Rhode Island LNG Plant”

  • |

    EIA Report Shows Low Demand for NGLs in Marcellus/Utica Region

    Click for larger version

    We spotted a blog post from our favorite government agency, the U.S. Energy Information Administration, that made us sit up and take notice. The EIA wrote about the consumption rates of what they call hydrocarbon gas liquids (HGLs). We call it natural gas liquids (NGLs). We typically define NGLs–the “other” hydrocarbons that come out of the hole along with oil and gas–as compounds like ethane, butane, propane, isobutane and pentane. All the “-anes.” EIA goes one step further and includes the “-enes”–ethylene, propylene, butylene and isobutylene. The EIA post talks about what these compounds are used for. The thing that caught our attention was the chart showing “Top ten hydrocarbon gas liquids-consuming states, 2016.” The chart lists which states “consume” or use the most NGLs (HGLs). Put another way, the chart shows where the best markets are for selling NGLs. And frankly, it ain’t around here! Only one M-U state, Pennsylvania, even appears in the list of top 10 states. Both Iowa and Illinois use more NGLs than PA! Why is that? Simple answer: Both of those states, along with Texas, Louisiana, and Kentucky are the only states in the country that possess functioning ethane cracker plants. Cracker plants sop up a LOT of ethane, a lot of NGLs, and it shows in the numbers. PA will no doubt make its up the top 10 list when the Shell cracker goes online. Ohio, should PTT build a cracker there, will begin to appear in the list. And WV, if LyondellBasell buys Braskem and builds a cracker near Parkersburg, will also begin to appear in the list. Until that time, the brutal fact is that there just isn’t much of a market in our region for the abundant volume of NGLs we produce–meaning drillers must export NGLs out of our region, or those NGLs become an expense, costing money to get rid of…
    Read More “EIA Report Shows Low Demand for NGLs in Marcellus/Utica Region”

  • |

    Dominion Energy Launches New Debt Financing Program with a Twist

    Dominion Energy, a huge company that not only is a “local” utility providing gas and electric through much of the Marcellus/Utica region, but also a midstream (pipeline) company and the builder/operator of the Cove Point LNG export facility, is launching what looks to be a slightly different twist on using OPM–other people’s money–to finance operations. Disclaimer: We’re not high finance experts. It seems to us that Dominion’s new debt financing program, called “Dominion Energy Reliability Investment,” is not the typical way of selling a bunch of notes (IOUs) as others have done. With Dominion’s program, just launched, investors can invest from $1,000 up to $1.25 million at any time, buying and selling their notes whenever. There are no maintenance fees for investing in the notes program, nor any charges for redemption checks. However, these notes/investments are not insured by the FDIC. Buying these notes is not like investing in a money market fund where your investment is insured. However, we seriously doubt there’s any risk of Dominion defaulting. Here’s what Dominion says about their new debt financing program…
    Read More “Dominion Energy Launches New Debt Financing Program with a Twist”

  • Energy Stories of Interest: Tue, Jun 26, 2018

    The “best of the rest”–stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading: Promoting WV northern panhandle internationally; Utica rig count unchanged from last week; MVP begins to drill under highways in Va.; county seeks grant for pipeline emergency training; Eagle Ford Shale – slumbering energy powerhouse; o&g companies form group to study how to lower methane emissions; failed climate prognostications; free markets better than energy favoritism; judge dismisses bogus San Francisco climate lawsuit against oil companies; Putin uses North Korea summit to make energy moves; France’s Total moving up to #2 LNG producer in the world; and more!
    Read More “Energy Stories of Interest: Tue, Jun 26, 2018”