Shale Insight 2026: McCormick, Meta, EQT, Expand Headline Erie Event

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Shale Insight 2026, the Marcellus/Utica tribe’s biggest annual gathering, kicks off next Tuesday, September 22, and runs through Thursday, September 24, at the Bayfront Convention Center in Erie, PA. This year’s big theme? Energy demand is exploding, and Appalachian natural gas is the answer to where all that energy will come from. The Marcellus Shale Coalition (MSC) put out a press release earlier this week giving us a peek at what’s planned for the 16th annual event. The short version: the conference will focus on how to meet soaring energy demand (think AI data centers and new factories) and how to clear the roadblocks standing in the way.

The MSC says Appalachia, the country’s largest natural gas-producing basin, is key to meeting that challenge. Speakers include U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick, the U.S. Department of Energy’s James Danly (formerly a FERC commissioner), Meta’s Etta Lockey, and executives from Expand Energy and EQT. Topics range from permitting reform to EPA’s rescission of the Endangerment Finding to training the next generation of workers. The exhibit hall is already sold out.

Who’s Talking

The speaker lineup is a nice mix of politicians, regulators, drillers, pipeliners, labor leaders, and, yes, Big Tech:

  • Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA), one of the loudest voices in Washington for Pennsylvania natural gas.
  • James P. Danly of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).
  • Etta Lockey, Meta’s Director of Energy Supply. Meta (the Facebook people) needs mountains of electricity for its data centers.
  • Executives from Expand Energy and EQT, the two biggest natural gas producers in the country.
  • Folks from the American Exploration and Production Council (AXPC), the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA, the pipeline trade group), ClearView Energy Partners, and the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry.
  • Timothy Simmons and Shawn Steffee of the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, speaking on workforce and the partnership between energy companies and the building trades.

There will also be fireside chats with senior leaders from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC, which approves interstate pipelines) and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA, which polices pipeline safety).

What’s on the Menu

The agenda runs “from the wellhead to the burner tip.” That’s industry-speak for everything from drilling the well to the blue flame on your kitchen stove. Key topics include:

  • Permitting reform. Getting approval to build a pipeline in this country still takes years.
  • Fallout from EPA’s 2026 rescission of the Endangerment Finding. That’s the 2009 EPA ruling that labeled greenhouse gases a danger to public health. It became the legal foundation for a mountain of federal climate regulations. Now that it’s gone, lawyers and regulators are sorting out what happens next.
  • Emissions management and data practices that will hold up under scrutiny.
  • Community engagement strategies.
  • Workforce training using immersive technology (think virtual reality).

Attendees can also check out the Technology Showcase, featuring new gadgets and gizmos for the industry, and the University Research Showcase, where students and professors show off their work.

Why You Should Care

If you have a financial stake in Northeast shale, whether you’re a landowner collecting royalties, a driller, a pipeline company, a supplier, or an investor, the conversations in Erie next week will shape what gets built in our region over the next several years. As MSC President Jim Welty put it, “The leaders gathering here will determine what gets built next.”

Want to see the full schedule and speaker list? Head over to shaleinsight.com.

MDN’s Take

Your humble editor won’t be in Erie this year, but we can’t recommend this event enough. If you can go, go.

Look at who’s on that stage: a Big Tech energy buyer, a U.S. senator, the DOE, FERC, PHMSA, and the Boilermakers union. Not long ago, the antis were busy telling everyone that natural gas had no future. Today, the people who run the world’s biggest data centers are showing up at a shale conference. They’ve figured out what we’ve been saying all along: the sun sets, the wind stops, and a data center has to run 24/7/365. Gas doesn’t take nights off.

We also love seeing the Boilermakers there. Union tradespeople know exactly who signs their paychecks. It’s a shame so many of the politicians they vote for still side with the Keep-It-In-The-Ground crowd.

Finally, the Endangerment Finding session should be a lively one. For 17 years, that ruling was the crowbar environmental groups and federal agencies used to pry open the door to regulation after regulation. With it gone, expect the lawsuits to fly. Drillers and pipeliners need to know where the legal landmines are buried, and Erie is a good place to find out.

If you’re attending, we’d love to hear what you learn. Drop us a line!

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