Energy Services

  • | | | | | | |

    Radical Antis Ask FERC to Stop ET Construction on Rover Pipeline

    Radical environmental groups are seeking to stop the Energy Transfer Rover Pipeline project by using recent violations as leverage. The FreshWater Accountability Project, begun in Ohio after the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District signed agreements to sell water to the shale industry, along with Michigan Residents Against the ET Rover Pipeline, filed a complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on Wednesday asking the federal agency to stop all construction on Rover. The request will almost certainly go nowhere–but Rover’s own actions have opened the door to this action. We understand that accidents happen when drilling horizontally underground for pipelines and that sometimes you get an “inadvertent return” (leak) of drilling mud slipping up to the surface. But it’s tough to explain away a 2 million gallon leak (see Rover Pipeline Accident Spills ~2M Gal. Drilling Mud in OH Swamp). It’s also hard to ignore storm water runoff fouling farmers’ fields where Rover is digging trenches (see OEPA & Rover at Odds Over Storm Water Runoff, “Fine” Now $714K). It smacks of a rush job, and that gives the other side an opening in their quest to stop fossil fuel infrastructure projects like Rover… Read More “Radical Antis Ask FERC to Stop ET Construction on Rover Pipeline”

  • |

    Halliburton CEO Dave Lesar Out, President Jeff Miller Promoted

    Dave Lesar – Retiring CEO of Halliburton

    There’s a shakeup at the top of the world’s second largest oilfield services company, Halliburton. Dave Lesar has been Halliburton’s chairman and CEO since 2000 when he replaced Dick Cheney (when Cheney was nominated to become Vice President of the United States). Lesar is retiring effective next week and being replaced by the company’s current president, Jeff Miller. The financial media is calling this “an expected move” because Lesar will reach mandatory retirement age next year. Some analysts, however, are not as kind–saying that Lesar’s botched attempt to buy Baker Hughes last year (with a resulting $3.5 billion breakup fee paid by Halliburton), and the company’s poor balance sheet over the past few years, are reasons enough to make the transition now. Halliburton, one of the largest fracking companies in the world, has major operations in the Marcellus/Utica region–hence our interest in changes at the top…
    Read More “Halliburton CEO Dave Lesar Out, President Jeff Miller Promoted”

  • | | | | | |

    MarkWest’s Washington, PA Processing Plant Plans Reactivated

    In October 2016, MDN reported that electric company FirstEnergy had begun construction of a new electric substation in Washington County, PA to provide electricity to “support two natural gas processing facilities being developed in the area” (see Work Begins on $40M Electric Substation in W PA to Help Marcellus). At the time we speculated that at least one of the beneficiaries would be MPLX’s MarkWest Energy subsidiary. We were right. Not long after, NGI’s Shale Daily reported that one of the projects to be served by FirstEnergy’s new substation will be the MarkWest Harmon Creek Complex, a new processing plant that would be built to process natgas for Range Resources (see MarkWest Building New Processing Plant in Washington County, PA). But then all went quiet, when the project went on “indefinite hold.” The hold is now over. MarkWest officials recently attended a Smith Township planning commission meeting (where it will get built) to discuss the project which is now front and center once again. According to MarkWest, plans call for initially building one cryogenic plant and one de-ethanizer. Eventually MarkWest wants to build four cryogenic plants and two de-ethanizers at the Harmon Creek Complex… Read More “MarkWest’s Washington, PA Processing Plant Plans Reactivated”

  • | | | | | | | | |

    Local Lancaster Businesses Ready to Profit from Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline

    When (not if) the Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline begins construction this summer in Lancaster County, PA, area businesses plan to take advantage of the economic boon that will arrive along with some 250 workers who will build it. Atlantic Sunrise is a $3 billion, 198-mile pipeline project running through 10 Pennsylvania counties to connect Marcellus Shale natural gas from northeastern PA with the Williams’ Transco pipeline in southern Lancaster County. Construction in Lancaster County will last approximately nine months and is projected to inject $75 million in the local economy. What kinds of businesses will benefit? Some include “housing, rental equipment, food sources, welding supplies, waste disposal, construction material, security, fuel, water trucks, concrete services, buses and transportation, auto repair, laundry services, drain tile work and hauling services.” And that’s only some of the services needed. Campgrounds are another business expected to experience a big uptick in demand. According to Williams spokesman Christopher Stockton, “We are encouraging all our construction contractors to utilize local service providers as much as possible.” That’s good news for local businesses. Here’s how local businesses in Lancaster County (and elsewhere) can sign up to get their piece of the Atlantic Sunrise action… Read More “Local Lancaster Businesses Ready to Profit from Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline”

  • | | | | | |

    Dela. Riverkeeper Loses Another Court Case Against Marcellus Pipe

    The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit slapped down THE Delaware Riverkeeper in yet another crushing defeat for the virulent anti-fossil fuel organization (and mouthpiece for the William Penn Foundation, its main funder). Even though Williams’ Transco Leidy Southeast expansion project went online some 18 months ago, Riverkeeper sued the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) some 14 months ago over its approval of the project (see Dela. Riverkeeper Sues FERC Again – Over Leidy Pipeline Expansion). Leidy Southeast was/is 30 miles of additional pipeline segments laid next to existing pipe, called loops, in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, along with upgrades at several compressor stations. The project bumped up the capacity of the mighty Transco pipeline by an extra 525,000 dekatherms of natural gas per day–enough natural gas to serve 2 million homes. The project means more Marcellus gas now flows south to new markets. Riverkeeper claimed FERC should not have approved the project until PA had issued federal 401 stream crossing permits under the Clean Water Act. It was a “procedural” objection. That is, Riverkeeper claimed FERC did things out of order and should be, we don’t know, shut down? Punished? Flogged? Prevented from doing it ever again? Riverkeeper also went after PA and NJ after they issued the 401 certificates, saying they shouldn’t have. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals (in Philadelphia) rejected that argument last August (see Court Rejects Dela. Riverkeeper Case Against PA DEP Pipe Approval). The new news is that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has now rejected Riverkeeper’s case against FERC. The justices said FERC is free to approve projects prior to states issuing 401 certificates because a project approval still doesn’t mean the project will get built–unless the states DO issue those 401 certificates. It all sounds rather complicated to follow. The short version is this: Delaware Riverkeeper lost yet another court case against a pipeline project…
    Read More “Dela. Riverkeeper Loses Another Court Case Against Marcellus Pipe”

  • | | | |

    PA Manufacturers’ Assoc: NatGas Demand Going up 40% Next 10 Yrs

    Yesterday the 11th “Think About Energy” Briefing was held at Misericordia University, near Wilkes-Barre, PA. The session aimed to provide an update on the economic and environmental benefits of PA natural gas, and was organized/sponsored by Borton-Lawson, Cabot Oil & Gas, UGI Energy Services, UGI Utilities, and Williams, in conjunction with ACT for America and the Back Mountain Chamber of Commerce. About 100 people attended. Carl Marrara, vice president of government affairs for the Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association, had this to say: “The demand for natural gas is expected to increase by 40 percent over the next decade, and even more in Pennsylvania.” He said that more natural gas is needed by PA manufacturers, but slow pipeline infrastructure approvals by “government officials” are “holding up growth.” MDN friend Bill desRosiers of Cabot Oil & Gas was the moderator and master of ceremonies. Other speakers included: Abe Amorós of the Laborers’ International Union of North America (LiUNA), Mike Atchie of Williams, and Larry Godlasky of UGI Energy Services. Although it was a gas-friendly crowd, the session wasn’t, however, without a touch of controversy. One anti showed up–a math professor from Luzerne Community College–and left in a huff when the audience told him to shut up and sit down during the Q&A portion…
    Read More “PA Manufacturers’ Assoc: NatGas Demand Going up 40% Next 10 Yrs”

  • | | | | | | |

    NG Advantage Virtual Pipeline May be Coming to MDN’s Backyard

    For the past few years MDN has had an eye on a trend we find exciting–“virtual pipelines”–by which we mean facilities that are located along a pipeline that compress natural gas (CNG), load it onto tanker trucks, and then distribute that gas to businesses that are not fortunate enough to be located near a natgas pipeline. With irrational opposition to pipelines rampant, virtual pipelines are a good alternative. We were first alerted to this trend when International Paper’s Ticonderoga mill in northern New York, near the Vermont border, opted for a virtual pipeline from NG Advantage, back in 2015 (see NY Paper Plant Opts for “Virtual” NatGas Pipeline Over Real One). NG Advantage has established a presence throughout New England, most recently adding Maine to their delivery options (see NG Advantage’s “Virtual” NatGas Pipeline to Maine Begins Flowing). In January, a competitor of NG Advantage–Xpress Natural Gas (XNG) set up a virtual pipeline in Susquehanna County, PA–not far from MDN HQ (see Major CNG Virtual Pipeline Coming to Susquehanna County, PA). Imagine our surprise–and delight–to find out that NG Advantage wants to build a virtual pipeline about 9 miles from MDN HQ–along the edge of Binghamton in an adjacent suburb called Port Dickinson! This one flew mostly under the radar. NG Advantage has proposed a new compressor station and tap into the Millennium Pipeline where it crosses the Chenango River. They already have three businesses lined up to buy CNG from the project. Port Dickinson approved the project last night, but it’s still not a done deal yet…
    Read More “NG Advantage Virtual Pipeline May be Coming to MDN’s Backyard”

  • | | | | | |

    Update on Orange County, NY Marcellus-Fired Power Plant

    MDN previously reported on a $900 million Marcellus gas-fired electric generating plant coming to Orange County, NY (see Orange County, NY Marcellus-Fired Electric Plant OK’d by Judge). The CPV (Competitive Power Ventures) Valley Energy Center project was vigorously opposed by local anti-drilling ninny nannies, including Hollywood star James Cromwell. No matter. The plant is now under construction, as we reported in March (see Construction Update on CPV NatGas Power Plant Near Middletown, NY). The good news is that construction of the plant is “moving full-steam ahead” and is on track to go online in early 2018. The local economic development agency said the plant has been a boon to the local economy. Here’s the latest about the CPV Valley Energy Center project, that somehow, against all odds, is getting built in New York State… Read More “Update on Orange County, NY Marcellus-Fired Power Plant”

  • | | | | | | | | |

    Poll: Majority of Voters in VA, WV, NC Support Atlantic Coast Pipe

    Leftist anti-fossil fuelers are only too happy to poll anything and everything–except for what really matters. How do the VOTERS in Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina feel about the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP)? ACP is Dominion Energy’s $5 billion, 594-mile natural gas pipeline that will stretch from West Virginia through Virginia and into North Carolina. The Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), the “voice of the energy consumer,” set out to answer the question: How do voters feel about ACP? In a poll commissioned by ACP, a majority of voters in all three states support the project–by an overwhelming majority. ACP hired Hickman Analytics Inc., a “Democratic-leaning,” Maryland-based firm to do the polling. Harrison Hickman, founder of the firm, said, “By any measure, whether it’s a policy matter or a voting matter, the pipeline has widespread support.” That’s something you won’t read in most news outlets. Here’s the results of the poll… Read More “Poll: Majority of Voters in VA, WV, NC Support Atlantic Coast Pipe”

  • | | |

    Fracker Keane Group Continues Expansion, Buys RockPile Energy

    Keane Group is a Texas-based oilfield services company that provides fracking, wireline and top-hole air drilling services to oil and gas companies in the Marcellus/Utica as well as several other major basins. In January 2016, Keane announced they were buying out Canadian-based Trican Well Service for $247 million (see Oilfield Serv. Co. Keane Group Buys Trican Well Service for $247M). The expansion tripled Keane’s fracking capacity and gave it access to proprietary new technology. The buyout, and Keane’s hard work, bore fruit. Last December the privately-held company announced it will go public with an initial public offering (IPO) of stock, hoping to raise $287.5 million with the IPO (see Oilfield Services Co. Keane Group Floats $288M IPO). Keane is expanding again. Last week the company announced it’s buying out fracker RockPile Energy Services for $284.5 million. The newly expanded Keane will then take it’s place as one of the “top four or five” fracking companies in the United States… Read More “Fracker Keane Group Continues Expansion, Buys RockPile Energy”

  • | | | | | |

    OEPA & Rover at Odds Over Storm Water Runoff, “Fine” Now $714K

    More trouble for Energy Transfer and the Rover Pipeline project as the company is working against a tight deadline to get the $3.7 billion, 711-mile Marcellus/Utica natural gas pipeline that traverses Ohio up and running this year. It appears as if the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA) is hellbent on picking a fight with the project. Perhaps some of OEPA’s criticisms are justified–perhaps some are not. We’ll give you the “lay of the land” (pun intended) as we see it. Early on Rover appeared to rush too much, resulting in numerous drilling mud spills in locations where Rover was drilling underground to avoid creeks and rivers and other structures. One of those spills dumped 2 million gallons of drilling mud (i.e. bentonite) in a wetland next to the Tuscarawas River (see Rover Pipeline Accident Spills ~2M Gal. Drilling Mud in OH Swamp). Following that accident and other accidents where mud was spilled, the OEPA announced it had fined Rover $431,000. As it turns out, that OEPA claim, made by OEPA spokesman James Lee, was a little white lie (see Turns Out OEPA & Columbus Dispatch Were Lying – Rover NOT Fined). Apparently the OEPA has “suggested” such a fine, but a long process now ensues where such a fine (and the alleged infraction) are negotiated. So no, no fine has actually been assessed, yet. The James Lee from the OEPA is back, partnering up his favorite mainstream mouthpiece–the Columbus Dispatch–to claim that Rover did not plan storm water management properly and that Rover’s poor planning has resulted in heavy storm water runoff into farmers’ fields where Rover is digging trenches. So OEPA is upping their $431,000 “fine” (that’s not actually a fine, yet) to $714,000! Here we go again… Read More “OEPA & Rover at Odds Over Storm Water Runoff, “Fine” Now $714K”

  • |

    Williams Gets a New Chairman of the Board

    Stephen W. Bergstrom

    Midstream giant Williams has just appointed a new chairman of the board, Stephen W. Bergstrom, to replace current chairwoman, Dr. Kathleen B. Cooper. Cooper will remain on the board. Williams is the premier midstream (i.e. pipeline) operator in the Marcellus/Utica. The company’s assets are broad and deep, across the entire country. As we pointed out earlier this month, Williams has had quite a ride over the past five years (see Williams is Done Buying & Selling Assets – For Now). The company, according to CEO Alan Armstrong, has retooled itself to focus on natural gas. And perhaps that’s why there has been a change on board. By all accounts Dr. Cooper has done a great job. But she’s an economist, working at various energy companies and for the government. Bergstrom, on the other hand, is former CEO of American Midstream and Dynegy. He’s been in the trenches (pun intended) at other pipeline companies. At least, that’s our observation. The happy thing is that the change does not appear to be from undue influence by corporate raiders, like Keith “Mini-Me” Meister (protege of Carl Ichan)… Read More “Williams Gets a New Chairman of the Board”

  • | | | | | |

    Noble/CONSOL Breakup Continues: Noble Sells 50% of CONE Midstream

    Noble Energy dropped a bombshell that it has sold its 100% interest in 385,000 Marcellus/Utica acres and wells producing 415 million cubic feet equivalent of natural gas in West Virginia and Pennsylvania for $1.225 billion to “an undisclosed buyer” (see Noble Energy Sells Remaining M-U Assets for $1.2B – Who Bought?). MDN exclusively shared the news of exactly the who the “undisclosed buyer” is: HG Energy (headquartered in Parkersburg, WV), backed with money from investment firm Quantum Energy Partners. HG is a “portfolio company” of Quantum. The press release announcing the acreage/asset sale went to great lengths to stress that Noble’s half operating interest in the CONE Midstream pipeline gathering system was not part of the deal. CONE is a 50/50 joint venture between CONSOL Energy (the “CO” part of the name), and Nobel Energy (the “NE” part of the name). CONE was Noble’s final connection to our region. No more. Yesterday, Noble Energy announced they’ve sold their 50% stake in CONE to Quantum Energy Partners for $765 million. This time Noble went ahead and announced the buyer, perhaps figuring MDN would find out and blab it any ;-). Here’s the announcement that Noble Energy has left the Marcellus/Utica building…
    Read More “Noble/CONSOL Breakup Continues: Noble Sells 50% of CONE Midstream”

  • | | |

    Digital H2O Comes to the Marcellus/Utica

    Digital H2O is a “digital oilfield water management solutions company.” What the heck does that mean? Water is not only the key ingredient in life, it’s also the key ingredient in the shale industry. It takes a lot of water to drill and frack a shale well. Locating sources for that water, getting it shipped to and then from a well pad, and disposing of it, is a logistical challenge. Digital H2O helps helps drillers source water, transport it, and dispose of it–at a cheaper cost than they otherwise could have. Digital H2O accomplishes this magic with a sophisticated computer software program–populated with all sorts of information (i.e. data). Until now, Digital H2O has concentrated its service on the Permian and Bakken shale regions in Texas, North Dakota, and New Mexico. The company has now turned its attention to the Pennsylvania Marcellus and now offers it service in our neck of the woods… Read More “Digital H2O Comes to the Marcellus/Utica”

  • | | | | |

    Mountaineer NGL Storage Facility in OH Under Construction

    We spotted a story that makes reference to an ethane storage facility currently under construction in Monroe County, OH. That got our attention. The story said that Energy Storage Ventures has plans to begin storing ethane in the underground facility by the end of 2018. Who’s Energy Storage Ventures? We went looking and discovered it’s another name for the Mountaineer NGL Storage project that we’ve been covering. In April 2016, Mountaineer NGL Storage (aka Energy Storage Ventures) announced an open season for a new underground NGL storage facility in Monroe County, Ohio, near Clarington, along the Ohio River (see New Company Announces Open Season for NGL Storage in Ohio Utica). The open season was a success, and in October 2016, Mountaineer completed a test well in the salt formation (see Mountaineer NGL Storage Test in OH a Success, Construction in 2017). But the last word we had on the project, in April of this year, said that construction had not yet begun due to problems with red tape (see Mountaineer NGL Storage in Monroe County, OH Caught in Red Tape). Yet this new story says, “contractors continue working to build the caverns required for storing up to 168 million gallons of ethane and other natural gas liquids more than one mile underground.” Which we take to mean there is active work going on at the site. That, for us, is new news–that the Mountaineer NGL Storage facility is *currently* under construction…
    Read More “Mountaineer NGL Storage Facility in OH Under Construction”

  • | | | | | | | |

    Rover Gets Serious About Mud Spills, Asks FERC for OK to Drill

    While reviewing documents filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for the Energy Transfer Rover pipeline project, we came across a letter filed by ET yesterday. The letter (full copy below) addresses the recent “inadvertent return” (i.e. major leak) of 2 million gallons of drilling mud in a swamp next to the Tuscarawas River (Stark County, OH). Following that leak and other leaks, FERC told Rover to stop any new underground drilling not already under way (see FERC Slaps Rover Pipeline with Stop Drilling Order). In yesterday’s letter, Rover says they have hired a new firm, GeoEngineers, to review all of the plans and data around drilling horizontally underground (horizontal directional drilling, or HDD) in locations where you can’t dig a trench. Rover is also posting GeoEngineers personnel at each HDD location, to help supervise HDD activities. But wait, there’s more! Rover is hiring extra watchers at each HDD location to watch for the first signs of, the first bubble, that indicate drilling mud isn’t staying underground where it belongs. Given all of what Rover is doing (there is more, read it in the letter), Rover then goes on to ask FERC, can Rover please please please drill in two spots where all of the equipment is ready to go? Those spots are Captina Creek in Belmont County, OH, where Rover wants to complete the Clarington lateral, and Middle Island Creek in Tyler County, WV, where Rover wants to complete the Sherwood lateral. Rover argues it will do more harm to the environment to pull down erosion control devices and move equipment out and back in, than if they just went ahead and did the work now. Will FERC agree?…
    Read More “Rover Gets Serious About Mud Spills, Asks FERC for OK to Drill”