Ethane

Economic Impact | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Processing Plants | Statewide WV | West Virginia

I’m Hooked on an (Ethane) Feeling, High on (Cracker) Believing
October 16, 2013October 16, 2013

Will the northeast ever get an ethane cracker plant to handle the massive amount of ethane being produced in wet gas areas of western PA, eastern OH and the panhandle of WV? Some people think so (MDN among them), although each year that goes by without a cracker it seems less likely because of new ethane and NGL pipelines being built to haul ethane out of the northeast. Still, people “in the know” say they have a feeling. Kind of reminds us of the old BJ Thomas song, “Hooked on a Feeling.”

Yesterday at the Wheeling (WV) Economic Outlook Conference, Don Rigby, executive director of the Wheeling-based Regional Economic Development Partnership, was the latest “in the know” person to say he’s hooked a cracker feeling…
Read More “I’m Hooked on an (Ethane) Feeling, High on (Cracker) Believing”
Economic Impact | Ethane | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Research

Tipping Point: More NatGas Now Produced by Shale than Conventional
October 14, 2013October 14, 2013

According to energy consulting firm PIRA Energy Group, the United States has reached a tipping point: We now produce more natural gas from shale deposits and “tight gas” formations (i.e. “unconventional sources”) than we do from traditional, conventional sources.

In a wide ranging article (below), PIRA and others quoted talk about the tremendous drop in prices for natural gas and gas liquids, the startling turnaround in chemical manufacturing in this country (because of the abundance of cheap natural gas and feedstocks like ethane), and the importance of the Marcellus/Utica in this whole equation. Hint: Nearly 1/3 of the natural gas being produced from shale comes from the Marcellus/Utica…
Read More “Tipping Point: More NatGas Now Produced by Shale than Conventional”
Ethane | Industrywide Issues | NGLs

NGLs in OH & PA: Roughly 30/70 Propane/Ethane
October 9, 2013October 9, 2013

How much of what compound makes up what are called natural gas liquids? We read about NGLs constantly. The “wet gas” area of southwestern PA and eastern OH is said to have a lot of wet gas, or NGLs, which makes those areas more profitable for drillers. What’s in NGLs? In January 2012 we wrote a post to help readers understand the compounds found in NGLs–which ones are there, and what they are used for (see Just What are Natural Gas Liquids Anyway?).

However, MDN friend and intrepid reporter Bob Downing, from the Akron Beacon Journal, recently picked up on another piece of the puzzle. Bob found a reference as to how much of what makes up the typical barrel of NGLs–at least in the Marcellus/Utica region…
Read More “NGLs in OH & PA: Roughly 30/70 Propane/Ethane”
Beaver County | Economic Impact | Energy Companies | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Pennsylvania | Processing Plants | Shell | Statewide PA

Dow Disingenously Tells Shell to Forget About a PA Cracker Plant
October 8, 2013October 8, 2013

Manufacturing and labor leaders held a confab yesterday in Pittsburgh to discuss jobs, the economy, and how the Marcellus is lifting both in southwestern Pennsylvania (see our companion story today). One of the speakers at yesterday’s meeting was Peter Molinaro, vice president and senior advisor on government affairs for The Dow Chemical Co. One of Dow Chemical’s chief rivals and competitors is Shell Chemical. Shell, as MDN readers are well aware, is currently conducting a multi-year evaluation of whether or not to build a regional ethane cracker plant in Beaver County, PA, outside Pittsburgh about 30 miles.

It probably won’t surprise you that Dow’s Molinaro said at yesterday’s meeting that PA probably doesn’t need a cracker plant after all. Are Molinaro’s comments about a PA cracker wise and measured counsel from an industry participant who has a feel for the economics of U.S. manufacturing and what it truly needs? Or are his comments trash-talking a competitor in hopes of scuttling a deal and eliminating competition so more ethane will be pipelined to the Gulf–where Dow’s cracker plants are located? You decide…
Read More “Dow Disingenously Tells Shell to Forget About a PA Cracker Plant”
Economic Impact | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Processing Plants | Statewide WV | West Virginia

WV Gov Going to Europe to Find Him a Cracker
October 2, 2013October 2, 2013

West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin is nothing if not persistent. For several years, the governor and his trusty Commerce Secretary Keith Burdette have been talking about landing an ethane cracker plant for WV (see WV Gov. Tomblin Beats the Ethane Cracker Drum Once Again). MDN is pulling for them! We have been for a long time. And it seems every few months we see a story along the lines of, “Just hold on, it’s a comin'”. But it never seems to.

So if a cracker investment is not coming to WV, Gov. Tomblin is going out to find it! He’s heading off to Spain, France, Germany, Switzerland and Italy on a European ~~vacation~~ trade mission in October to thank those countries for investing in WV, and to invite them to invest more. In particular, he’d like someone to invest in a cracker plant…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Medina County | NGLs | Ohio | Pipelines | Sunoco Logistics

Handful of Medina, OH Anti-Drillers Oppose Ethane Pipeline
September 30, 2013September 30, 2013

A handful of residents in Medina, OH are opposing an update to a pumping station that sits on the Mariner West pipeline. Sunoco Logistics owns and operates the pipeline which they are converting to handle ethane, a natural gas liquid. The plan is to pipe ethane from the Marcellus and Utica Shale region all the way to Sarnia (Ontario), Canada to an ethane cracker plant located there.

Local anti-drillers in Medina don’t like fracking (even though it’s perfectly safe) so they’ve decided to focus on stopping the pipeline as a deterrent to more fracking…
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Energy Companies | Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Range Resources Corp | Sunoco Logistics

Sunoco Says Mariner West Opening Soon, but Range Already Using??
September 4, 2013September 4, 2013

Although not publicly announced by Sunoco Logistics Partners, MDN told you back at the end of July that we spotted an admission from Range Resources that the first batch of ethane had been piped from the Marcellus Shale in western PA to Sarnia, Ontario (Canada) via the Mariner West pipeline (see Big News: Marcellus Ethane Now Exporting to Canada Cracker Plant). Was Range lying? We don’t think so–but today we noticed a small article published by Bloomberg (known to fudge the truth) that says the Mariner West pipeline will begin service in late September or early October. Huh?…
Read More “Sunoco Says Mariner West Opening Soon, but Range Already Using??”
Economic Impact | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Processing Plants | West Virginia | Wood County

Wood County, WV “Still in the Running” for a Cracker Plant
August 30, 2013August 30, 2013

West Virginia continues to make noise about an ethane cracker plant for the state, even though Shell is looking to build one in Pennsylvania. Earlier this week WV Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin was once again talking up a cracker for WV (see WV Gov. Tomblin Beats the Ethane Cracker Drum Once Again).

Now, another WV voice has joined the cracker chorus. Wood County, WV says they have a site under serious consideration by an unnamed company as a possible location for a $3 billion ethane cracker plant. According to a Wood official, they’re “definitely still in the running”…
Read More “Wood County, WV “Still in the Running” for a Cracker Plant”
Economic Impact | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Processing Plants | Statewide WV | West Virginia

WV Gov. Tomblin Beats the Ethane Cracker Drum Once Again
August 29, 2013August 29, 2013

At a business summit yesterday at the Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia, Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin once again voiced his opinion that WV will have an ethane cracker plant of its own in the near future and that such a plant is needed to keep jobs in WV. He went a bit further than we’ve heard before and said WV has the right to expect a partnership between drillers and manufacturers to process WV ethane and other natural gas liquids (NGLs) in WV. According to Tomblin, his administration is burning the midnight oil to make a WV ethane cracker a reality…
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Beaver County | Economic Impact | Energy Companies | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Processing Plants | Shell

Shell Announces “Open Season” for Potential PA Ethane Cracker
August 28, 2013August 28, 2013

Time for Shell to get serious about whether or not they plan to build a $2 billion ethane cracker plant in Monaca, PA. Shell announced yesterday they will have something akin to a pipeline open season, a period of time when drillers can bid on capacity to send the plant (should it be built) their locally-produced ethane supplies. The bidding period will run from August 27 through October 4 and will give Shell a good idea of just how much ethane will be available for them to “crack” at the plant.

Shell reports they already have commitments from CONSOL Energy, Noble Energy, Seneca Resources and Hilcorp Energy should they decide to build the cracker. Shell is still about a year away from a final final final final decision (see our June 2012 story – Shell: Final Decision on Cracker Plant Still 18-24 Mo. Away). The next few months are likely to be crucial to that decision…
Read More “Shell Announces “Open Season” for Potential PA Ethane Cracker”
Energy Companies | Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | MarkWest Energy | Ohio | Processing Plants | Shell | Statewide OH

OH Still in the Running for an Ethane Cracker? Maybe
August 22, 2013August 22, 2013

Ohio’s dream to be the future host of an ethane cracker plant is still very much alive, according to U.S. Sen. Rob Portman from Ohio. Portman, along with Greg Sullivan, area manager for MarkWest Energy, spoke at the Ohio Mid-Eastern Governments Association meeting yesterday. According to Sullivan, a source to ship the ethane produced by their plant to when it separates the ethane from the natural gas liquid stream is “our big challenge.” MarkWest’s only current option is to ship it to Canada via the Mariner West Sunoco pipeline (see Big News: Marcellus Ethane Now Exporting to Canada Cracker Plant). Starting next year and the year after, two more pipelines will come online to ship it to the Gulf Coast (the ATEX Express and the Bluegrass).

According to MarkWest, there is a “desperate need for a local ethane cracker.” Sen. Portman is hoping Ohio can supply that need, especially since Shell continues to “evaluate” its project to build a cracker plant in PA with no firm commitment or timeline to build it…
Read More “OH Still in the Running for an Ethane Cracker? Maybe”
Energy Companies | Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | MarkWest Energy | NGLs | Pipelines | Processing Plants | Range Resources Corp | Sunoco Logistics

Big News: Marcellus Ethane Now Exporting to Canada Cracker Plant
July 25, 2013July 25, 2013

Every now and again you come across a big, fat gold nugget of news in a press release. That happened for MDN today when we read yesterday’s press release from Range Resources, innocently announcing their second quarter 2013 results (see today’s story about Range). The gold nugget? Range reports that on July 21st their first deliveries of ethane via the Mariner West pipeline were made to Sarnia, Ontario, Canada. This is the first time ethane has made it to a processing (cracker) plant.

The little nugget of gold from Range, the only Marcellus driller (so far) to sell ethane…
Read More “Big News: Marcellus Ethane Now Exporting to Canada Cracker Plant”
Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | MarkWest Energy | NGLs | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Processing Plants | Statewide OH | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

MarkWest: $2.2B in Marcellus/Utica, Bring on the Cracker Plants!
July 15, 2013July 15, 2013

MarkWest Energy, a major Marcellus and Utica midstream company, is investing $2.2 billion in the Marcellus/Utica region in pipelines, processing and fractionation plants. According to MarkWest, they have enough work in the northeast to keep them expanding for the next five years. One of the main services offered by MarkWest is removing ethane from raw natural gas. Their plan is to ship the ethane to either Canada or the Gulf Coast via pipelines. However, they’d love it if the region had “several cracker plants.” Here we go again with more cracker talk!

A good overview of MarkWest’s several billion dollar investment in the northeast, and their belief that the region needs its own cracker plant:
Read More “MarkWest: $2.2B in Marcellus/Utica, Bring on the Cracker Plants!”
Beaver County | Energy Companies | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Processing Plants | Shell | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Do More Wet Gas Pipelines to Gulf Coast = No NE Cracker Plants?
June 17, 2013June 17, 2013

With new wet gas pipelines being built from the Marcellus/Utica to the Gulf Coast, and with new cracker plants being built along the Gulf Coast, will any ethane cracker plants ever get built in the Marcellus/Utica? It’s a serious question that more and more people are asking.

Aside from West Virginia Secretary of Commerce Keith Burdette’s eternal optimism that WV will get a commitment for an ethane cracker plant any day now (see WV “Very Much in the Game” to Get a Cracker Plant), and aside from Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett’s changing timeline on when Shell will make a final final final final final decision on building a cracker in Pennsylvania, MDN made the following observation more than a month ago:
Read More “Do More Wet Gas Pipelines to Gulf Coast = No NE Cracker Plants?”
Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Processing Plants | Statewide WV | West Virginia | Wood County

WV “Very Much in the Game” to Get a Cracker Plant
June 11, 2013June 11, 2013

Signs of spring: Cherry blossoms in Washington, D.C. Blossoms on the scrub apple tree in my back yard. Persnickety dandelions–everywhere!

Another sign of spring: West Virginia Secretary of Commerce Keith Burdette talking about his state getting an ethane cracker plant. Hope springs eternal for Mr. Burdette…
Read More “WV “Very Much in the Game” to Get a Cracker Plant”
Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Processing Plants | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Gov Tomblin Comments on WV Prospects for a Cracker Plant
May 30, 2013May 30, 2013

At a ceremony to launch the new Appalachian Petroleum Technology Training Center yesterday in Fairmont, WV, Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin was asked the perennial question by reporters: Hey, what about an ethane cracker plant? To which he responded, “I am confident we will eventually get one.” His response seems to indicate, disappointingly, a cracker plant in WV won’t happen any time soon. Of course even if an agreement were announced today, it would take several years to build even a small cracker plant.

A quick update on the status (or rather non-status) of a cracker plant in West Virginia:
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