Exporting

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    Dominion 1Q17 – Updates on Cove Point, Atlantic Coast Pipe & More

    Yesterday midstream and utility giant Dominion issued its first quarter 2017 update. Along with the update Dominion held an earnings call. On that call we learned new information about both the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) project, Dominion’s Cove Point LNG export project, and a plethora of other projects, including natgas-fired power plants and more pipelines in the works. Dominion CEO Tom Farrell shared the exciting news that Cove Point is now 89% complete and will be “in service” later this year. As for Atlantic Coast Pipeline, Dominion has now purchased 80% of the materials they will need to build it. Farrell said the pipeline will be online in the second half of 2019. Another six pipeline projects are underway (at a cost of $700 million)–with five of the six due to be done THIS YEAR. Dominion is a happening company. Below are extracts from the earnings call, the 1Q17 update (with financials), and the newest PowerPoint slide deck used during the earnings call…
    Read More “Dominion 1Q17 – Updates on Cove Point, Atlantic Coast Pipe & More”

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    Big Chemical Selfishly Wants to Block NatGas Exports

    Big Chemical–companies like Dow Corning, BASF, Eastman Chemical and others, via their trade association, have launched a war to try and block American-made natural gas from getting exported to other countries. The reason? They want the natural gas they buy (in very large quantities) to be as cheap as possible. They recently sent a letter (copy below) to Secretary of Energy Rick Perry asking Perry to create barriers to exports of natural gas, ’cause you know, it’s “America First” now baby, and we want that gas all to ourselves. Strumming the patriotic heartstrings, the the Industrial Energy Consumers of America (IECA) says keeping all the gas here will grow more American jobs–and The Donald loves jobs for Americans. These are the same companies that, at the drop of a hat, left our shores and built plants in other countries. To play the patriotic “keep it all home” card is disgustingly hypocritical…
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    India Complete’s World’s Biggest Cracker; M-U Gas to Feed It

    Dahej petrochemical complex in Gujarat

    India’s largest private sector company, Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), said yesterday the company has just commissioned the world’s largest and most complex ethane cracker plant, in India. And they did built it in record time–less than three years. MDN has covered RIL in the past–the company invests in Marcellus drilling (see our RIL stories here). The reason that RIL’s brand new cracker in India is news here in the Marcellus/Utica is because it will import ethane from the U.S. Gulf Coast. At least some of the ethane getting liquefied and loaded onto ships in the Houston Ship Channel comes from the Marcellus/Utica via the ATEX (Appalachia to Texas) ethane pipeline (see Marcellus/Utica Ethane Heads to India via Texas on Samsung Ships). While we have not read that any of the ethane exported from the Marcus Hook facility near Philadelphia has gone to India, we think it’s a pretty safe bet that at some point, it will…
    Read More “India Complete’s World’s Biggest Cracker; M-U Gas to Feed It”

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    Williams Responds to Tired Old Claim Atlantic Sunrise Exports Gas

    Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline map – click for larger version

    One of the arguments anti-pipeline advocates are attempting to use to slow down the Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline project in Pennsylvania is to argue there aren’t enough Federal Energy Regulatory (FERC) Commissioners to listen to them complain. When FERC Chairman Norman “cry baby” Bay left in a huff on Feb. 3, FERC was left with just two (out of five) active Commissoners (see FERC Commissioner Norm Bay Targets M-U on Way Out the Door). On Bay’s last day on the job, he and the other two active Commissioners voted to approve the Atlantic Sunrise project (see Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline Gets Final Approval by FERC). When a project is authorized, the very first tactic in the anti playbook is to challenge it. But unfortunately (for the antis), nobody’s home to hear them. That is, there aren’t enough Commissioners to hear their protest and make a decision to reverse their previous decision. Thing is, if they did hear the complaining of antis and decided their original decision was just fine, the antis then move on to filing an appeal in court. But antis can’t “pass go and collect $200” (i.e. go to court) until/unless FERC first refuses to “re-hear” their decision. Antis in Lebanon County have filed with FERC, hoping there will soon be a quorum to consider their complaint against Williams and Atlantic Sunrise. One of their main arguments is a very old argument–that most of the gas that will head south will be exported. Williams took time to swat that one away, once again…
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    Dominion Cove Point to Begin LNG Exports to India in Jan 2018

    Since early 2013 all of the LNG export capacity at the coming Cove Point LNG facility (on the shore of Maryland) has been spoken for–by India and Japan (see Dominion’s Cove Point LNG Facility Achieves Important Milestones). Cove Point is scheduled to go online late this year, with shipments heading to India beginning in January 2018. GAIL India, the state-owned entity contracted with Dominion/Cove Point for LNG from the plant, has known about the coming date for the past four years. They will need numerous ships to ferry Cove Point LNG to India. So GAIL put out the word several years ago for companies to build nine ships total–to handle LNG exports from both Cove Point and Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass facility, along the Gulf Coast. One of the requirements for the project is that three of the nine has to be built in India–“Made in India”. They got no takers, and so now GAIL is scrambling to try and lease ships for the “short term” (3-4 years) so they can begin shipping on time…
    Read More “Dominion Cove Point to Begin LNG Exports to India in Jan 2018”

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    Marcus Hook Propane Exports Heat Up

    Marcus Hook

    Over the past five years the U.S. has flipped from being a net importer of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG, or propane and butane), to being a net exporter. Why? Yep–shale drilling. Most of the LPG getting exported goes from the Gulf Coast. However, Sunoco Logistics’ Marcus Hook terminal near Philadelphia is now online and has, over the past 12 months, begun to make a big impact on the LPG export market. RBN Energy, with some of the best analysts in the business, recently turned their analytic eye on LPG in the northeast and provided a very interesting update on what’s happening at Marcus Hook. How much LPG is being exported–and where is it going?…
    Read More “Marcus Hook Propane Exports Heat Up”

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    American Shale Gas Selling for Over $7/Mcf to Overseas Buyers

    A Bloomberg article caught our eye. It says natural gas being exported by Cheniere Energy (in southern Louisiana) is being sold to counties like Mexico, Japan and Jordan for over $7 per thousand cubic feet (Mcf). Why is that significant and how is it related to the Marcellus/Utica? It’s significant because gas right now is selling in the U.S. for an average of around $3/Mcf. In some places, like the Marcellus/Utica region, it sells for much less. Yesterday gas sold at the Tennessee Gas Pipeline Zone 4 Marcellus trading hub sold for $2.61/Mcf. If producers can sell their gas overseas at double the price–happy days are here again! How does that relate to the Marcellus/Utica? Some of the gas being sold by Cheniere comes from the Marcellus/Utica. And later this year, Dominion will have finished and will power up their massive LNG export facility in Cove Point, Maryland. When that happens, 100% of the gas exported will go to two countries: Japan and India. And it will likely be sold for prices like Cheniere is seeing–around $7/Mcf. That is really good news for the producers who have signed contracts with Cove Point…
    Read More “American Shale Gas Selling for Over $7/Mcf to Overseas Buyers”

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    Another Review Completed for Canadian Bear Head LNG Project

    For some time we’ve tracked the progress of an LNG export plant planned for the eastern shore of Nova Scotia, the Bear Head LNG project. Of all the Canadian LNG export projects, Bear Head seems to have the most momentum. The project has received most of the necessary permits it needs to proceed. But it’s not been without its bumps along the way (see Bear Head LNG Export Plant: Bad News & Good News). Where will the gas come from to feed the plant? One source is likely to be Marcellus Shale coming via the Maritimes & Northeast pipeline, converted to be bidirectional (see FERC Approves Atlantic Bridge Project for New England/Canada). But LNG Limited, the builder of Bear Head LNG, is not putting all of its eggs in one basket. They don’t want to leave the fate of their plant to the flakes of New England who may end up blocking Spectra Energy’s efforts to move more Marcellus into the region. So LNG Limited is also working on a plan to bring western Canadian gas to Nova Scotia (see Canadian Bear Head LNG’s Long-Shot Plan to Get Gas). One more piece of the larger pie to build the plant just fell into place, earlier today. Transport Canada’s TERMPOL Review Committee has completed a review of the Bear Head project and issued a report. The TERMPOL report is a technical review of marine terminal systems and transshipment sites. Technical stuff, lots of recommendations. The bottom line is that Bear Head said they’ll do what’s in the report and the project continues to be very real and on track…
    Read More “Another Review Completed for Canadian Bear Head LNG Project”

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    EIA: US Will Become Net NatGas Exporter by 2018

    According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and their just-issued Annual Energy Outlook 2017, the United States will become a net exporter of natural gas beginning in 2018. A big reason for the change from being a net importer to net exporter is shale gas (of course). A further big reason why is almost solely due to one company: Cheniere Energy, and their Sabine Pass LNG export facility in southern Louisiana. However, joining Cheniere soon will be the Cove Point, Maryland LNG export facility, now nearing completion. When Cove Point gets rockin’ and rollin’ along with Cheniere, the U.S. will become a net exporter…
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    DOE’s 2016 LNG Year in Review – Sabine Pass Exports 184 Bcf!

    The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy has just released a full report of LNG (liquefied natural gas) imports and exports for all of 2016. The history books will look back at 2016 as the year when the world of LNG changed. Although it seemed like it took forever, in February 2016 Cheniere Energy shipped its first LNG export cargo from its Sabine Pass facility in southern Louisiana (see Cheniere Finally Ships First Sabine Pass LNG Export – to Brazil //marcellusdrilling.com/2016/02/cheniere-finally-ships-first-sabine-pass-lng-export-to-brazil/). From February through the end of December, Sabine Pass, which (we believe) included some Marcellus/Utica gas, exported an astounding 60 cargoes of LNG, moving nearly 184 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of American-made natural gas to other countries. Prices ranged from $3.72 to $6.21 per thousand cubic feet (Mcf). Cheniere (and others) are just getting started! Below is the full report from the DOE Office of Fossil Energy…
    Read More “DOE’s 2016 LNG Year in Review – Sabine Pass Exports 184 Bcf!”

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    Cove Point LNG Progress Report for FERC – Now 84% Complete

    Fossil fuel haters did their best to stop Dominion’s Cove Point LNG export facility in Lusby, Maryland. They sued (see Radicalized Sierra Club Files Cove Point Appeal in DC Court). They protested (see Cove Point Protesters Disrupt Monday Night Football Game on TV). They screamed and hollered and lied (see Cove Point Protester Sentenced to Jail, Lied About Police Assault). But in the end, it didn’t matter. The project has gone forward, and according to Dominion CEO Thomas Farrell, Cove Point is now 84% complete and will go online later this year…
    Read More “Cove Point LNG Progress Report for FERC – Now 84% Complete”

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    Dominion Updates for Cove Point, AC Pipeline, Greensville Power

    Midstream and utility giant Dominion issued their fourth quarter and full year 2016 update yesterday. Just to give you an idea of the depth and breadth of the company, Dominion has ~26,000 megawatts of power generation, 14,400 miles of natural gas transmission, gathering and storage pipeline, and some 6,500 miles of electric-transmission lines. They are “a producer and transporter of energy.” Among the key projects we keep an eye one: the Cove Point, Maryland LNG export facility (under construction), the Greensville Power Station (under construction), and the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (soon to be under construction). The numbers are looking good. Revenue for Dominion in 4Q16 was $457 million, up $100 from 4Q15. Full year revenues were $2.1 billion, up from $1.9 billion in 2015. Below we have yesterday’s update, along with select portions of a conference call by Dominion’s muckety mucks and their comments about projects like Cove Point and Atlantic Coast Pipeline…
    Read More “Dominion Updates for Cove Point, AC Pipeline, Greensville Power”

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    Cove Point LNG Now 78% Complete, On Track to Open This Year

    In October 2014 Dominion announced they had officially broken ground on the Cove Point LNG export plant, a project that will inject between $3.4 and $3.8 billion in Calvert County, Maryland and pump upward of 1.8 billion cubic feet per day of cheap, abundant Marcellus and Utica Shale gas (see Dominion Breaks Ground on Cove Point, MD LNG Export Facility). Anti-drilling zealots have been desperate to stop the facility in a vain attempt to stop “fracked gas.” The Sierra Club, among others, has repeatedly launched frivolous lawsuits. They’ve all failed. Dominion released a video update (below) that shows the facility is now 78% complete and “on track for an in-service date in late 2017.” There are currently 1,800 construction workers on site. All of the concrete has been poured, the sound wall is finished, and more than 50% of the steel has been installed for this project. Some 31 of the 34 barge loads have been received and 68 of the 77 heavy haul deliveries have been transported. It is all systems “go” for this project…
    Read More “Cove Point LNG Now 78% Complete, On Track to Open This Year”

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    EIA Annual Energy Outlook: US is Net Energy Exporter Within 10 Yrs

    The United States is already on the cusp of energy independence, thanks to the shale revolution. What does that mean? It means when you consider how much energy we produce and export, and how much we consume and import, at the end of the day, we are producing as much energy as we consume. But it gets complicated. We still import a lot of oil from the Middle East and elsewhere. We import (and export) oil via pipelines to Canada. We also still import natural gas. But at some point the U.S. will export more than it imports. That is, we won’t only produce as much as we consume, we’ll produce extra energy–and sell it abroad to other countries. We will become a “net exporter.” When will that happen? According our favorite government agency, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), it will happen in the next 10 years–or less. The EIA has just released its “Annual Energy Outlook 2017” (full copy below). In the report the number crunchers at EIA look at multiple scenarios and conclude that under most scenarios we are a net exporter by 2026, and in some of those scenarios, it happens even sooner. That would be the first time since 1953 that our country has exported more energy than it uses. Not surprisingly, LNG (liquefied natural gas) plays a critical role in our country becoming a net exporter. Here’s what the EIA said in releasing the 2017 annual report…
    Read More “EIA Annual Energy Outlook: US is Net Energy Exporter Within 10 Yrs”

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    Canadian Bear Paw Pipeline for LNG Exports Gets Favorable EA

    In March of this year, MDN told you that LNG Limited (from Australia) registered with the Canadian government for an environmental assessment for a pipeline they want to build in Nova Scotia–the Bear Paw Pipeline (see LNGL Applies to Build Pipeline to Bear Head LNG Export Facility). It is the first (and perhaps most important) step in getting a new 39-mile pipeline built that will run from the Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline to LNGL’s proposed Bear Head LNG export facility. LNGL envisions plentiful shale gas coming into the Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline either from the Marcellus region (via Spectra Energy’s Access Northeast Pipeline connecting to M&N) or from a long-shot plan to bring in gas to M&N from western Canada (see Canadian Bear Head LNG’s Long-Shot Plan to Get Gas). The “what gas will it be?” question still lingers. In the meantime, back at the Bear Paw Pipeline ranch–the Canadian government has just received a favorable environmental assessment (EA) for the pipeline project–which means the project has cleared all the major hurdles it needs to clear. The question now is, will LNGL actually build it?…
    Read More “Canadian Bear Paw Pipeline for LNG Exports Gets Favorable EA”

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    Elba Island LNG Update: Non-FTA Exports Approved, Dump Truck City

    Elba Island LNG

    Kinder Morgan’s Elba Island, Georgia (near Savannah) proposed LNG export facility received a green light from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in June (see KM’s Elba Island LNG Export Plant Approved by FERC). Kinder has since started construction at the site. Further good news: the U.S. Dept. of Energy has just granted Elba Island permission to export LNG to non-Free Trade Agreement countries. What does the Georgia’s Elba LNG plant have to do with Marcellus/Utica? The Williams Transco pipeline runs through Georgia. Kinder owns and operates the 200-mile Elba Express pipeline, which connects the LNG facility to the Transco. Currently Elba Island imports LNG, getting it to market via the Transco. However, Williams has been on a mission to send Marcellus gas south–including to Georgia (see Marcellus Gas Heading to Georgia via Transco Pipeline). Marcellus Shale gas will, via the Transco, be at least some of, if not the primary, source for gas exported from the Elba Island facility. After getting FERC approval, Kinder began work on the expansion project last month. Currently some 325 dump trucks come and go every day at the site (7,800 per month!). Below is the news about DOE granting permission for non-FTA exports to Elba, along with an update on the frenetic pace of activity to build the new facility…
    Read More “Elba Island LNG Update: Non-FTA Exports Approved, Dump Truck City”