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Future FERC Approvals for Pipes May Hinge on Transco’s REA in NJ

It used to be that freedom and justice and capitalism were baked into our psyche via the U.S. Constitution. All of those things–freedom, justice, and capitalism–are rapidly disappearing. They are replaced with totalitarian statism. The people we “elect” actually think we serve them and that they tell us what we can and can’t do. Example: A pipeline expansion (looping pipe and expanding some compressor stations) by Williams in the Marcellus/Utica is now imperiled by authoritarians in New Jersey.
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NJDEP Hearing on Transco Compressor Upgrade Brings Out the Antis

In March 2019, MDN told you about a new Williams plan to beef up the Transco pipeline in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, to deliver an extra 829 MMcf/d (originally 1 billion cubic feet per day) of Marcellus gas to PA, NJ, and Maryland (see Williams Announces Transco Competitor to PennEast Pipe in NEPA). The project, called the Regional Energy Access (REA) expansion project, was aimed at competing with the PennEast Pipeline project by flowing gas from northeastern Pennsylvania to the Trenton, NJ area. PennEast is no more, but REA is still alive and well. Last Thursday, the New Jersey Dept. of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) held a hearing about upgrades to a compressor station in Branchburg, part of REA. The antis came out to lie.
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Williams 2Q: Summer Heat + LNG = High Activity on Transco Pipe

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Williams CEO Alan Armstrong was jazzed on yesterday’s second quarter update call with analysts. Armstrong said, “We continue to see strong fundamentals driving a great pipeline of growth opportunities, particularly increasing demand for U.S. LNG exports and power generation along the Transco corridor.” The mighty Transco pipeline (Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line) is a 10,000-mile pipeline network with a mainline extending approximately 1,800 miles between South Texas and New York City. Most of the gas flowing through Transco comes from the Marcellus/Utica. Net income for Williams was $484 million in 2Q22, up 48% from 2Q21. A big focus for Williams in the near term will be new gas gathering projects in the Marcellus region.
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Williams’ PennEast Pipe Competitor Hits a Brick Wall in New Jersey

In March 2019, MDN told you about a new Williams plan to beef up the Transco pipeline in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, to deliver an extra 829 MMcf/d (originally 1 billion cubic feet per day) of Marcellus gas to PA, NJ, and Maryland (see Williams Announces Transco Competitor to PennEast Pipe in NEPA). The project, called the Regional Energy Access expansion project, was aimed at competing with the PennEast Pipeline project by flowing gas from northeastern Pennsylvania to the Trenton, NJ area. PennEast got canceled after stiff opposition from liberal state officials in New Jersey. Williams is now facing the same opposition for its project.
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Williams to Expand Capacity on Transco Pipe by 423 MMcf/d in NC

Transco & laterals

Here’s one that slipped by under the radar. Last month pipeline giant Williams filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to beef up capacity along the mighty Transco pipeline by upgrading compressor stations and other infrastructure (no new pipeline) in order to flow an extra 423 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d) to Piedmont Natural Gas and its customers located in eastern North Carolina. The Southside Reliability Enhancement Project, as it is called, is a partial replacement of volumes Piedmont had planned to purchase from Dominion Energy’s now-canceled Atlantic Coast Pipeline project.
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Stagecoach, Transco, Other Pipelines Face Expiring Contracts 2Q22

When a pipeline company considers whether or not to build a new pipeline, the company conducts an “open season”–a time when drillers (producers), traders, buyers, and others who want guaranteed capacity along that pipeline can sign long-term contracts. Such contracts guarantee pipeline companies will be able to make back the considerable amount of money they have to spend to build the pipeline. What happens when those 5-, 10-, and 20-year contracts expire?
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Williams 1Q: Expansion Projects Adding 1.9 Bcf/d, Mainly in M-U

Pipeline giant Williams issued its first quarter 2022 update earlier this week. Among the bits of news coming from the update is that Williams has reached an agreement on two new gathering expansions for the “rich” Utica and Marcellus regions. Also newsworthy: the company has signed customers on the dotted line for its Texas to Louisiana Energy Pathway Project, a 364 MMcf/d Transco expansion project to serve the growing LNG export market along the Gulf Coast.
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Biden EPA Bashes Two Southeast Virginia Pipeline Projects at FERC

In July 2020 Dominion Energy announced it was canceling the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP)–a 600-mile Marcellus/Utica pipeline project from West Virginia through Virginia and into North Carolina (see Dominion Cancels Atlantic Coast Pipe, Sells Pipe Biz for $9.7B). Two very small and separate pipeline upgrade projects in southeast Virginia proposed in December 2021 would substitute, at least to some degree, for the absent gas volumes from ACP. However, the Biden EPA is bashing both projects based on irrational global warming fears. Another attack of the Bidenistas against the oil and gas industry.
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Lack of New M-U Pipelines Hitting East Coast Manufacturers Hard

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The trade group Industrial Energy Consumers of America (IECA) sent a letter to members of Congress yesterday telling our dear leaders that not enough new natural gas pipelines are getting built, especially in the eastern part of the country, and that lack of new pipelines is having a seriously negative impact on U.S. manufacturers that can’t get enough gas, and the gas they’re buying costs too much. Lack of pipelines is “detrimental to new investments and job creation” according to the letter. In particular, the letter complained about flows along the mighty Transco pipeline, owned by Williams.
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Electric Production in Southeast US Dominated by NatGas; Prices Up

Anecdotally in reading articles about electric power production in New England, we know that almost all electricity is produced in the region by natural gas (unless they run low, then they use fuel oil). We also know a majority of the electricity produced in the PJM region, including the M-U area, is also produced by natural gas. What we didn’t know (but do now) is that the vast majority of electricity in the southeastern U.S. is produced by natural gas. Most of the molecules feeding southeast gas plants come from the M-U.
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Mighty Transco Pipeline Delivers Highest-Ever Volumes Thx to M-U

The mighty Transco pipeline (Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line) is a 10,000-mile pipeline network with a mainline extending approximately 1,800 miles between South Texas and New York City. It is owned and operated by midstream giant Williams. Years ago Transco reversed much of its flow to send Marcellus/Utica gas southward. A good deal of M-U gas also flows into the NYC area via Transco as well. The Transco system recently added the Leidy South project in Pennsylvania to bump up Marcellus flows through the system. Those extra flows have led to an all-time high record flow rate on Transco of 17.15 million dekatherms (MMdt) on Jan. 3, 2022.
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Transco Pipe’s Leidy South Startup Keeps Gas Prices Up in M-U

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The spot price for physical natural gas traded at the Eastern Gas South trading hub near Pittsburgh (formerly called Dominion South) has taken quite a hit over the past few weeks, as evidenced by the chart at the left. However, the Eastern Gas South price most likely would have fallen even more were it not for a new pipeline expansion project for the mighty Transco system–the Leidy South project which began partial service in November with 225 MMcf/d of extra gas flows. The rest of Leidy South, a full 582 MMcf/d capacity, is set to be online sometime this month.
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Transco Pipe Seeks to Build New Compressor Boosting Flows in Va.

Transco’s Commonwealth Energy Connector Project (click for larger version)

Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line (Transco) and Columbia Gas Transmission both asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for permission to enter the early review process for linked projects to move another 100,000 dekatherms per day of natural gas (roughly 100 MMcf/d) to Virginia Natural Gas (VNG) markets in southeast Virginia. Transco’s Commonwealth Energy Connector Project, as it is called, proposes adding six miles of new pipeline in an existing right-of-way and one new electric compressor station.
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Sisters of the Corn Appeal Lost Lawsuit Against Lancaster Pipe

In October 2020 the Sisters of the Corn (our name for a group of leftist nuns in Lancaster County, PA) filed yet another frivolous lawsuit against Williams over a pipeline that crosses their land–a pipeline (Atlantic Sunrise) that has been up and running safely for years (see Sisters of the Corn Return – Sue Williams re Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline). The Sisters claim an infringement of their “religious liberties” in the lawsuit. Two weeks ago a federal judge dismissed their frivolous lawsuit (see Sisters of the Corn Lose Yet Another Lawsuit Against Lancaster Pipe). The Sisters, using money from Big Green groups, is appealing that court decision.
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Sisters of the Corn Lose Yet Another Lawsuit Against Lancaster Pipe

In October 2020 the Sisters of the Corn (our name for a group of leftist nuns in Lancaster County, PA) filed yet another frivolous lawsuit against Williams over a pipeline that crosses their land–a pipeline (Atlantic Sunrise) that has been up and running for years (see Sisters of the Corn Return – Sue Williams re Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline). The Sisters claim an infringement of their “religious liberties” in the lawsuit. It’s not the first such lawsuit they’ve filed against the pipeline.
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Williams Update: LNG Exports Will “Grow Pretty Dramatically”

Appearing on a Barclay’s energy conference webcast yesterday, Williams CEO Alan Armstrong said his company plans to keep spending around $1.2 billion per year through 2026 to keep growing and expanding. One of the prime drivers of growth and expansion for Williams in the coming years is LNG exports. Feedgas to LNG plants continues to increase. According to S&P Global Platts, U.S. LNG feedgas demand will increase from 10.9 Bcf/d this year to 14.9 Bcf/d in 2026. Williams intends to deliver much of that increased demand to the plants that use it.
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