CNG/LNG

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    US LNG Exports Report 2016 to 2017 – Where is Our Gas Going?

    The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy has just released an interesting report that shows the number and volume of LNG (liquefied natural gas) exports from Feb. 2016 (when U.S. LNG exports began) to Dec. 2017. It’s really quite fascinating. For example, which country do you think we have (so far) shipped more LNG to than any other country? Someplace in Europe? Maybe Japan or China? Nope. The #1 one trading partner that received our LNG for 2016-2017 was…Mexico! That’s right, Mexico. Even though we have all sorts of natural gas pipelines crossing the border into Mexico. Apparently those pipelines don’t connect with large parts of the country, so LNG tankers meet the need instead. Number two on the list of countries receiving our LNG exports: South Korea. Followed by China (#3), Japan (#4) and Chile (#5). The report also breaks down deliveries by other criteria. For example, even though Mexico was #1 on the list for our exports, if you break our exports down regionally, Asia/Pacific received most of our exports, while Latin America (including Mexico) was the #2 region. Or how about this: Free Trade Agreement (FTA) countries vs. non-FTA countries. Would it surprise you to learn that non-FTA countries got more of our exported LNG (52.7%) than FTA countries (43.3%)? The reason MDN readers should be interested in LNG exports is because exports are a huge future market for Marcellus/Utica gas. Be sure to spend some time with this important report…
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    Boston Globe Takes Aim at Mass. Politicians Blocking Gas Pipelines

    It’s fun to watch the left eat its own. That’s exactly what’s happening in Boston. We’ve provided a fair bit of coverage on the issue of lack of pipelines in New England and the fallout from it. Because of lack of natural gas pipelines, both natural gas AND electricity prices in New England are sky high. Natgas is used to generate most of New England’s electricity. When it gets cold out, residents and businesses use more natgas for heat, causing a shortage of natgas, further causing insane price hikes. At some point, there just won’t be any more gas at any price–and that’s when rolling blackouts begin. It will happen sooner than you think. Important politicians in New England, like U.S. Senator Elizabeth “Pocahontas” Warren and Attorney General Maura Healey (both from Massachusetts) have actively worked to block new natgas pipelines. The result? LNG tankers with illegal Russian gas are supplying a good share of the region’s natgas supplies during cold snaps. It’s disgusting. It’s so disgusting, even the far-left libs who write and edit the Boston Globe can’t stand it anymore. The Globe published an editorial yesterday titled “Our Russian ‘pipeline,’ and its ugly toll,” taking Healey and the enviro left to task. Yeah, it’s fun to watch the left eat its own!…
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    Can Virtual Pipelines Rescue New England from Russian LNG?

    The whole story of Russian LNG coming to Boston to help New England with its crisis shortage of natural gas continues to irk us. Although Russia and the Yamal plant where the gas was liquefied were sanctioned under President Obama. However, the actual gas itself was/is not sanctioned, for whatever reason. We have a situation where New England continues to obstinately refuse new natgas pipelines, instead buying LNG from Russia during critical shortages. We’re paying (and depending on) our enemies for natural gas when world-class supplies of it exist a few hundred miles away in the Marcellus. We’ve written about this confounding situation since early January (see our Russian LNG stories here). Last Friday the co-founder of NG Advantage–a “virtual pipeline” company that compresses natural gas from interstate pipelines and transports it, via trucks, to businesses and organizations that want gas but can’t get it via pipelines–wrote an intriguing blog post. Tom Evslin’s post makes a case for using virtual pipelines (i.e. CNG transported by trucks) as an alternative to help alleviate the extreme winter shortages in New England. Could trucked CNG (and LNG) actually eliminate the need for a pipeline to New England? We would argue “no.” However, without a doubt a virtual pipeline could help in certain places and under certain circumstances. Here’s Tom’s argument in favor of using virtual pipelines to alleviate New England’s stubbornly high prices for natural gas, and possibly save us from importing Russian LNG…
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    UGI Energy Tweaks LNG Peak Shaver for Bethlehem, PA

    UGI LNG’s Temple I peak shaver near Reading, Pa. with 3-million-gallon storage tank

    It’s time to learn something new (there’s always something new to learn in this industry). Ever hear of a peak shaver? No, nothing to do with that thing guys use in the morning to shave off the stubble. An LNG peak shaver is a unit used for storing surplus natural gas, to have extra natgas on hand and ready during times of peak consumption during really hot summers or really cold winters. Sometimes your local gas utility will build and use a peak shaver (small LNG storage facility), so they don’t run out of natgas at a critical time, and to help with keeping prices lower by drawing down from storage if prices spike. Low prices make for happy customers. UGI, a diversified energy company with both midstream (pipeline) operations and one of PA’s largest utility companies, uses peak shavers. We’ve written about their use of peak shavers in the past (see UGI Building LNG Plant in NEPA, Local Marcellus Gas to Feed It). We’re interested in such facilities because of their potential as a new demand source for our plentiful gas supplies. UGI is proposing a new peak shaver for Bethlehem, PA. The project hit some early opposition, so UGI has tweaked the design, meaning they can proceed…
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    Dominion Cove Point Begins Producing LNG – for Shell

    On Monday, Dominion Energy CEO Tom Farrell reported that the company’s Lusby, Maryland Cove Point LNG export facility will become operational and begin to export LNG in “early March” (see Dominion CEO Says Cove Point LNG Operational in “Early March”). Then yesterday, Dominion issued a press release to say Cove Point has now (as of this week) begun producing LNG! What gives? This “we’re now producing LNG” is part of the commissioning process which began back in December (see Dominion Cove Point LNG Export – Dress Rehearsal Begins). Feed gas is imported and used for testing purposes, and is the final step before the plant goes online into full production. The feed gas came from Shell (sourced from Nigeria), and Shell will take delivery of the LNG that results. When the initial commissioning is done, Marcellus/Utica gas will then begin flowing to the plant and the LNG produced will begin shipping (by “early March”) to Japan and India…
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    NYT, Boston Globe Delve into Russian Gas Coming to America

    The more we read about and dig into the story of Russian gas coming to Boston, the angrier we get. Just yesterday we told you that a rumored second shipment of Russian gas may be heading to Boston (see 2nd LNG Tanker with Russian Gas Coming to Boston?!). We have more details about the story. According to a New York Times article, in 2014 then-President Obama slapped sanctions on the “financiers and producers of Russian oil and natural gas, not the output.” Russia, at that time and since, has tried to “destabilize eastern Ukraine” with an ongoing occupation of Crimea. Sanctions against the financial services and energy sectors followed. Vladimir Putin (one of his cronies) was building an LNG export plant in the Arctic–Yamal LNG. The sanctions were aimed at stopping the plant from getting built–but it got built anyway with the help of Chinese banks. Yamal’s very first shipment of LNG recently left the facility and (as we previously outlined) was offloaded for a couple of days in the UK (see Confirmed: LNG Coming to Boston on Jan 22 is Illegal Russian Gas). What we still don’t understand is this: How can you impose sanctions on the financers and producers, but not on the outcome, the production (gas) itself? That seems crazy. We still think the gas is illegal–but nobody in D.C. (wake up Trump Administration!) is doing anything to stop it. Regardless of whether or not the shipments are illegal, even the far-left libs at the Boston Globe think this is nuts. It is humiliating (and an outrage) that sanctioned Russian gas–the VERY FIRST SHIPLOAD–is now being unloaded in Boston Harbor…
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    2nd LNG Tanker with Russian Gas Coming to Boston?!

    Gaseyls tanker (now docked in Boston Harbor)

    A shipment of arguably illegal Russian natural gas (LNG) arrived in Boston Harbor on Sunday and will soon be offloaded, according to Russian news service Sputnik International. The U.S. slapped the Russian Yamal LNG plant, located in the Arctic, with sanctions following Russia’s moves against the Ukraine several years ago. Those sanctions make it illegal to receive gas produced from that plant. So shippers “whitewashed” the gas by unloading it in the UK, and a few days later, reloading it on a different ship–the Gaselys. The Gaselys is now docked and undergoing inspection and will then offload the gas for use in New England. It is an outrage that for a couple of reasons: (1) because New England is blocking pipelines from the Marcellus that would carry domestically produced gas that is cheaper, and (2) the Jones Act prevents our ships from the Gulf Coast and other locations from carting our own LNG to Boston. So, using a slight-of-hand to hide the origin of the gas, illegal Russian gas has now arrived and will be used in New England to heat homes–while they watch the Superbowl. Plenty of irony, wouldn’t you say? But the outrage doesn’t end there. A second shipment of Russian gas is rumored to be on its way to Boston. HELLO–IS ANYBODY AWAKE IN D.C.? How can this continue? Here’s an update on the first shipment now arrived, and a second shipment that quite possibly is now on its way…
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    Dominion CEO Says Cove Point LNG Operational in “Early March”

    Earlier this month MDN brought you news that Dominion’s Cove Point LNG export facility along the shore of Maryland has delayed its official start-up until perhaps as late as April (see Uh-Oh: Cove Point LNG Exports Possibly Delayed Until April). An expert analyst theorized the reason for the delay is to install two flaring systems at the plant (a safety precaution). We still don’t know the exact reason for the delay, but we now have confirmation direct from the top at Dominion, from CEO Tom Farrell, that Cove Point will become operational and begin to export in “early March.” On an analyst phone call yesterday to discuss Dominion’s fourth quarter and full year 2017 results, Farrell had this to say about Cove Point…
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    NG Advantage Virtual Pipe Hearing in Fenton an Eye-Opener for MDN

    Last night MDN editor Jim Willis attended a Zoning Appeals Board hearing in the Town of Fenton (near Binghamton) where board members held a public hearing on a proposed virtual pipeline (i.e. compressor station) application by NG Advantage. It was, for Jim, a real eye-opener–causing him to reassess previous comments he made about the people opposing the project. Let’s begin with a brief background and the purpose of the hearing. NG previously filed an application with the Town of Fenton to build a natural gas compressor station/trucking facility in the very corner of the township, where it borders other towns/communities (bedroom communities). The people in those adjoining communities, when they learned of the plan, were upset that they had not been notified of the plan. In short order lawsuits were filed, and a county judge ruled that the Town of Fenton Planning Board did not take a hard enough look at environmental and traffic issues related to their approval of NG’s plan (see Judge Rules Against Broome Virtual Pipe, NG Advantage to Try Again). That forced NG to reapply for permits to build the facility. The area is zoned light industrial, allowing certain uses. Among the uses in that area are freight/trucking facilities. Not on the list are compressor stations. A Fenton building inspector researched the issue and agreed (with NG) that the facility fits the definition of a freight/trucking facility. That determination was immediately appealed by a number of people and organizations, including the local Chenango Valley School District. The meeting last night was to hear arguments for and against the finding that the facility is a freight/trucking facility and qualifies as an acceptable use in that zone. There were about 200 or so present for the hearing. Passions ran high. We’d say about three-fourths present were against and one-fourth in favor, judging from applause following various speakers. We will outline the evening and the testimony given below, but right up front we want to apologize to those opposing the project. In previous posts we used strong language to describe them, including the phrase “selfish antis” and the word “bullies.” That was wrong and we retract those statements. While we still disagree with those opposing this facility, we listened closely to their arguments and to their hearts. We found the vast majority speaking against the NG facility were not your typical anti-fossil fuel protesters (although there were a few of those there too). Instead, we found they are simply everyday folks who fervently do not want this facility in their neighborhood for a variety of reasons, including (yes) protection of their children. We heard and appreciate their arguments, and we want to acknowledge their position and attempt to fairly and dispassionately state what that position is…
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    Illegal Russian LNG Tanker Delayed, but Still Coming to Boston

    Gaselys tanker on the way to Boston

    We previously told you about an illegal shipment of Russian LNG coming to Boston, for use in New England to alleviate a natural gas shortage (see Confirmed: LNG Coming to Boston on Jan 22 is Illegal Russian Gas). The U.S. slapped the Russian Yamal LNG plant, located in the Arctic, with sanctions following Russia’s moves against the Ukraine several years ago. Those sanctions make it illegal to receive gas produced from that plant. So shippers “whitewashed” the gas by unloading it in the UK, and a few days later, reloading it on a different ship–the Gaselys. The Gaselys was, at last check, heading at full speed for Boston. Then the ship suddenly stopped and turned around in the middle of ocean, with new instructions to go to Spain. Then it turned around again, to head back to Boston. The people who own the shipment said the U-turn was to avoid foul weather–that the shipment will still go on to Boston. As near as we can tell, the Gaselys has not yet landed. We just wanted to keep this story alive because it is so outrageous. Vladimir Putin is laughing at us right now. We have enormous amounts of fracked Marcellus Shale gas that could/should be going to New England, instead of buying LNG from a sanctioned Russian facility located in the Arctic…
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    Although Cove Point LNG Not Yet Operational, Gas Flowing to Plant

    Last week MDN brought you news that Dominion’s Cove Point LNG export facility along the shore of Maryland has delayed its official start-up until perhaps as late as April (see Uh-Oh: Cove Point LNG Exports Possibly Delayed Until April). An expert analyst theorized the reason for the delay is to install two flaring systems at the plant (a safety precaution). So if the plant is not yet started up for commercial operations, why is gas still flowing to the facility? Other experts, at BTU Analytics, have been watching pipeline flow data and maintain the Cove Point facility has been receiving a steady flow of Marcellus gas since last September! No doubt some of the gas flowing to Cove Point is used for testing the equipment. But how can gas continuously flow to the plant if it’s not yet being liquefied and shipped out? We suspect some of the gas can be stored. As for the rest? We don’t know. What we do know, based on a post by BTU Analytics, is that even though Cove Point isn’t receiving the volumes it eventually will receive (3.5 billion cubic feet per day once it is fully up and running), Cove Point is getting a smaller, steady flow now–and (the point of this post), that smaller, steady flow is an important new market for Marcellus gas…
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    Tellurian Founder Says U.S. Needs $150B in Gas Infrastructure

    Charif Souki

    In December 2015, evil corporate raider Carl Icahn (invests in companies so he can fire a bunch of people, boost the stock and pocket the profit) fired Cheniere Energy CEO Charif Souki (see Evil Corporate Raider Carl Icahn Claims Another CEO Scalp). Souki didn’t let it slow him down. He started a new LNG export company, Tellurian, to compete with his old company (see Revenge: Fired Cheniere CEO Starts Competing LNG Company). We kind of had (past tense) a soft spot for Souki, getting tossed from the company he started. But then we read comments he made about Donald Trump in the run-up to the 2016 election. Souki thought (like many) that Trump had no chance of winning, but if he did, Souki said he would “reconsider my nationality.” Souki was born in Egypt but is an American citizen now. After Trump’s victory, Souki forgot about his threat to leave the country and change his citizenship. We didn’t. We’re still waiting. Souki turned up on CNBC again yesterday, this time with faint praise for Trump (but also words of praise for the abysmal failure Obama). Souki had a chat with Jimmy Cramer, telling Cramer the U.S. urgently needs $150 billion worth of infrastructure investment (i.e. pipelines) in order to get our prodigious amounts of natural gas from inland places where’s extracted to the shoreline–so it can be exported…
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    Illegal Shipment of LNG Coming to Boston has Huge CO2 Footprint

    This story continues to grate on our nerves–the fact that mainstream media is covering up a MAJOR scandal. What scandal? The scandal of Russian LNG banned from the U.S. coming to the U.S. (to Boston) because it was offloaded in the UK and reloaded on a different ship, to “whitewash” the gas (see Confirmed: LNG Coming to Boston on Jan 22 is Illegal Russian Gas). To make matters worse, the gas, from the sanctioned Russian Yamal LNG facility in the Arctic, has a massive CO2 footprint relative to LNG produced elsewhere (for those like who care about such things, like mainstream liberal media). And yet mainstream liberal media (i.e. fake news) totally ignores the story. We’d go so far as to say they are covering it up. Not here on MDN! Nick Grealy, a Brit who contributes articles to our friends at Natural Gas Now, has written an article delving into the sordid details of Russian gas coming to Boston–and how mainstream media in the UK has totally ignored the story. Nick uncovers some great information that continues to make our blood boil…
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    Following Constitution Pipe Decision, NY Virtual Pipe Now Vital

    1/24/18 Note: We have edited this post to be less incendiary and more respectful of the opposing viewpoint.

    Yesterday the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) rejected a request by Constitution Pipeline to overrule the (very corrupt) New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation and allow construction of the pipeline to commence (see our lead story today: Death of the Constitution Pipeline? FERC Refuses to Overrule NY DEC). As we report in that story, Williams is not (yet) giving up the hope and dream of building the Constitution. However, given that tree clearing for the pipeline would have to begin now, and be done by the end of March (in order to save the bats–don’t ask), another year will go by before the Constitution could even begin construction. And it will take a year to build. That’s IF Williams prevails in court. In the meantime, businesses in New York State are DESPERATE to receive shipments of natural gas. Major employers in the Southern Tier of New York had planned to tap into the Constitution and use cheap, abundant, clean-burning Marcellus Shale gas from Pennsylvania, saving them money and lowering emissions. Without the Constitution, what can these employers do? Yes, they can leave the state (and some already have). But there is a solution. NG Advantage is planning to build a “virtual pipeline” in the Town of Fenton, on the outer edge of Binghamton, NY (Broome County). A virtual pipeline is a compressor plant (series of compressor plants) that grabs gas from a pipeline–in this case the Millennium Pipeline–and compresses it and loads it onto special tractor trailers that then deliver the gas to industrial customers like manufacturing plants, hospitals, and even small regional gas distribution systems servicing residential homes. NG’s project got derailed last year when a group of residents living nearby sued, stopping the project in its tracks (see Broome Virtual Pipe Project in Limbo, Fenton Board Refuses to Act). The residents claim three trucks per hour going through side streets will negatively alter the neighborhood. It’s bogus. NG is undaunted. They have patiently, calmly and repeatedly reached out to the community to answer questions and address concerns. NG has more than bent over backwards in an attempt to work with community. NG followed the judge’s directive and refiled the project with the Town of Fenton for a second time. There is a Fenton zoning board hearing at 6 pm on Tuesday, Jan. 23 at the Port Crane Fire Department to consider NG’s refiled request. Residents who are opposed are already gearing up to pressure board members. Pro-gas folks need to show up in large numbers to show the zoning board there is support for this vital project. Let’s not let the other side win this one! Jobs in, indeed the future of, the Southern Tier depend on it…
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    Uh-Oh: Cove Point LNG Exports Possibly Delayed Until April

    We’ve been waiting, with bated breath, for an announcement from Dominion Energy that their $4 billion LNG export terminal is finally (finally!) up and running and shipping out condensed Marcellus/Utica Shale gas as LNG, heading to Japan and India. In April of last year, Dominion said the plant would be up and running, shipping LNG to India beginning this month (see Dominion Cove Point to Begin LNG Exports to India in Jan 2018). Dominion began priming the pump with an initial load of feed gas in early December (see Dominion Cove Point LNG Export – Dress Rehearsal Begins). But by the end of the month, Dominion signaled a full startup at the facility may be delayed, until an unspecified “early next year” (see Dominion Signals Delay in Cove Point Start-up; Contract Related?). In a blockbuster story, NGI’s Daily Gas Price Index is reporting (based on a super secret source who talked to Bloomberg) that commercial startup of the Cove Point facility will now not happen until (gasp), April of this year. Why the delay? NGI spoke to their own experts who have a plausible theory…
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