Industrywide Issues

Commodity Price | Energy Companies | Exxon Mobil | Industrywide Issues

Boone Pickens Predicts $6 Natgas, Exxon Will Buy Someone – Soon
March 20, 2015March 20, 2015

Oil man T. Boone Pickens is 86 years old. He’s never had a problem with speaking his mind, but the older you get, the more plain-spoken (some would say blunt) you get. And so it is with Boone. He appeared yesterday on CNBC to talk about the outlook for natural gas prices and about “what it will take” for Exxon Mobil to increase its production numbers again. In vintage Boone style, he dropped a couple of bombs. One is that he believes we’ll see $6 natural gas prices once again–in his lifetime (and remember, he’s 86). The other is that Exxon will end up buying a “big independent”…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

FERC Clears the Room at DC HQ After Riff Raff Start Mouthing Off
March 20, 2015March 20, 2015

As MDN recently reported, anti-fossil fuel protesters have a new target–the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Nutjobs and people without day jobs regularly show up at FERC headquarters to cause trouble. One of them has been banned, permanently (see Anti-Driller Banned from FERC Headquarters for Disruptive Behavior). It got to the point that when FERC held open meetings where the public can attend, they were routinely disrupted by ne’re do wells. So FERC, earlier this month, adopted a new rule used by other federal agencies to deal with people who become lawless at their meetings (see NGI’s Daily Gas Price Index, Protests Reined in By New FERC Rule). Yesterday was the first open meeting at FERC headquarters in Washington, DC since the new rule went into effect and true to form, the hooligans were out in force. So FERC Chairwoman Cheryl LaFleur stopped the meeting and under the new rules cleared the room of the riff raff who were bleating about the Cove Point LNG export facility currently being built in Maryland…
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Industrywide Issues | Regulation | Statewide WV | West Virginia

WV Fixes Above Ground Tank Law, Now Less Onerous for O&G Industry
March 20, 2015March 13, 2017

As MDN reported a year ago, WV legislature passed SB373, the “storage tank” bill, in the closing hours of the 2014 legislative session (see Fate of 3 WV Laws that Impact Marcellus/Utica Drilling). That bill was in response to a chemical leak that affected the drinking water for 300,000 WV residents. Even though the leak was not related to oil and gas drilling (it was related to coal mining), the new rules governing above ground storage tanks for chemicals affect a number of industries, including the Marcellus Shale drilling industry (see Impact of WV’s New Chemical Tank Law on Marcellus Drillers). There was a lot of confusion about the new law which requires just about all aboveground tanks (except your toilet) to be registered. WV ended up creating a new website to handle the confusion around the law (see WV DEP Launches New Website to Assist with Storage Tank Law). The writing was on the wall. It was obvious the law, as written, was totally unrealistic and unworkable. The 2015 legislative session recently closed, but before it ended, WV legislators passed a partial repeal of the 2014 law–to fix it so it’s actually now workable…
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Harrison County | Housing | Industrywide Issues | Noble County | Ohio | Utica Shale

Utica Shale Hotels Popping Up Like Dandelions in Spring in Ohio
March 20, 2015March 20, 2015

A brand new 80-room hotel has just opened in Caldwell (Noble County), Ohio, thanks to the Utica Shale. Drill Capital reports the grand opening of a new Wyndham Hotel aimed primarily at workers in the Utica Shale. Drill Capital also reports breaking ground on yet another new hotel–in Cadiz (Harrison County), Ohio…
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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Regulation | Statewide OH

Hall of Shame: Republicans Cancel Fracking Under OH State Parks
March 19, 2015March 19, 2015

Whew–that’s a relief! Ohio state parks are “safe” from that filthy, evil villain “fracking.” It would just be beyond the pale to allow fracking under (not on) state parks which could bring millions of dollars into the coffers of Ohio for RINO Gov. John Kasich to redistribute–say in property tax reductions (like he wants to do with revenue from a super-high severance tax). No no. That goes just too far. We can’t have the state making money from a safe activity like fracking under state parks. And so, once again, Republicans in Ohio have caved. They’ve backed down from a plan that would allow safe drilling under state parks–drilling that towns and cities and numerous municipalities in eastern Ohio allow–because…because they’re spineless? Well, yes! Newly elected House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger, R-Clarksville is one of the spineless wonders. House Energy and Natural Resources Chairman Al Landis, R-Dover, is another. RINO in chief Gov. Kasich was also opposed to safe drilling under state parks, that is, he was for it before he was against it…
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Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Shell | Statewide PA

Shell #2 to Receive Sustainable Shale Development Certification
March 19, 2015March 19, 2015

The Center for Sustainable Shale Development (CSSD) announced yesterday that a second company has achieved the organization’s vaunted seal of approval: Shell. You may recall last September Chevron became the first Marcellus driller to receive CSSD certification (see CSSD Bestows First Certification for Sustainable Drilling: Chevron). Both Chevron and Shell, along with EQT and CONSOL Energy, are founding members of the organization. The CSSD is a partnership between the Marcellus industry and environmental groups to boost the standards–and the image–of shale drilling. It got its start two years (see Important: Drillers & Enviros Form New Group, Launch Cert Program). MDN was initially critical of the organization, with concerns about the expense of a certification for smaller companies–and because CSSD may be setting artificially high requirements that won’t “protect” the environment any more than existing state standards–why spend money and jump through hoops when there’s no real gain in environmental protection? (It also didn’t help that their early attitude was our way or the highway.) However, we’ve spoken to both Andrew Place of EQT, the original acting executive director for the organization, and Susan LeGros, current executive director. In speaking with them, many of our concerns were addressed. We’re not yet full-blown fans, but we’re also not taking pot shots at the organization. Their objective is a worthy one. Will it catch on? That remains to be seen. Here’s the announcement that Shell is now CSSD certified…
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Energy Companies | Indiana County | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania General Energy | Regulation | Wastewater

PA DEP Nixes Previously Permitted Wastewater Injection Well
March 19, 2015March 19, 2015

The PA Dept. of Environmental Protection under Acting Sec. John Quigley (formerly from the anti-drilling organization PennFuture) has reversed a decision made by the DEP just last October to permit a rare/new wastewater injection well in Indiana County. Most Pennsylvania wastewater that gets injected travels out of state–to either Ohio or West Virginia–for disposal in their injection wells. It would be nice if PA handled a little more of its own wastewater. The DEP under previous Gov. Tom Corbett fully vetted a well Pennsylvania General Energy (PGE) planned to use as an injection well in Grant Township. The DEP issued a permit for the well. Now they’ve welshed on their decision and rescinded the permit they issued last October. The only thing that seems to have changed in the past five months is leadership at the top of the DEP. Ergo, Quigley didn’t want this injection well…
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Cattaraugus County | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | New York | Pipelines | Seneca Resources

NFG Building Compressor Station in NY to Pump More PA Marcellus Gas
March 19, 2015March 19, 2015

In an effort to pump more cheap, abundant, clean-burning Marcellus Shale gas from Pennsylvania into frackless (and feckless) New York State, National Fuel Gas Company has announced they’re building a $42.5 million compressor station in Cattaraugus County, NY in the Town of Hinsdale (western part of the state). Amazingly the county wants it! And the county industrial development agency (IDA) has approved it. While construction is going on, some 100 workers will be employed earning close to $7 million…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

Federal Court Tosses Out Lawsuit by Dr. in PA Act 13 Law – Again
March 19, 2015March 19, 2015

The end of a loooong chapter in lawsuits over Pennsylvania’s Act 13 drilling law came earlier this week when a federal appeals court ruled that no, Dr. Alfonso Rodriguez, a nephrologist from Dallas in Luzerne County, PA does NOT have “standing” to claim Act 13 applies some sort of medical “gag rule” that doesn’t allow doctors access to information they need to treat their patients. Dr. Rodriguez, along with seven selfish towns, sued to overturn Act 13. The towns didn’t like being told they couldn’t zone drilling out of existence within their borders, and the doctor didn’t like being told he couldn’t blab drillers’ trade secrets all over the place. So it went to PA’s Supreme Court and they ruled in favor of the towns, but sent parts of the lawsuit back to a lower court, including the doctor’s portion (see Act 13 Goes Back to Lower Court, Disturbing Comments from Judge). The case has now been tossed out no less than three times in federal court. Hopefully this third time is the charm…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Statewide PA | Transco | Williams

Dela. Riverkeeper Leidy Lawsuit Costing Williams $125K per Day
March 19, 2015March 19, 2015

The clock is ticking. As we told you on Monday, THE Delaware Riverkeeper–Maya van Rossum–is using her bags of money from the William Penn Foundation to try and stop the FERC-approved expansion of the Transco pipeline in northeastern Pennsylvania (see Dela. Riverkeeper Halts Transco Pipeline Upgrade with Lawsuit). The project, known as the Leidy Southeast expansion project, would add new pipeline next to existing pipeline–called looping. Williams (owner of the Transco) can only cut trees down along the path it needs to clear until April 1st. After that, they must wait until Nov. 1st to begin cutting again in order to avoid cutting down trees that may (or may not) become roosting spots for the endangered Indiana bat. van Rossum & company have gotten a sympathetic judge in D.C. to halt the tree cutting while he reviews her latest frivolous lawsuit. She’s trying to run the clock down. The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals was supposed to rule earlier this week. They didn’t. Every day they delay is costing Williams $125,000. We sincerely hope Williams sends that bill to van Rossum once the tree cutting begins again…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Regulation | Statewide PA

Chutzpah: Dela. Riverkeeper Takes Credit for Pushing DRBC Around
March 19, 2015March 19, 2015

As part of a story about THE Delaware Riverkeeper’s frivolous lawsuits to stop both the Leidy Southeast pipeline project and the PennEast pipeline project, an article quotes Maya van Rossum, head of Delaware Riverkeeper, claiming that SHE is the reason the Delaware River Basin Commission now puts all pipeline projects under a microscope. That’s real chutzpah. The DRBC quickly denounced van Rossum’s bunkum and said their standards for evaluating pipeline projects haven’t changed…
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Indiana County | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA | Wastewater

Change in PA DEP Tone Toward Marcellus Industry Noticeable
March 19, 2015March 19, 2015

The newly reconstituted Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection has taken on a decidedly more antagonist tone with the Marcellus drilling industry, unfortunately. You can detect this new tone, no doubt fostered by its new Acting Secretary, John Quigley (formerly from the anti-drilling PennFuture), in its press releases. Like the one below. The story is that there is a coal refuse site in Indiana County, PA used to process and store waste from coal mining. Close to that site is a wastewater impoundment where leachate (nasty water coming from the coal refuse site) was collected and stored, creating a somewhat toxic sludge under the impoundment. In addition, some shale drilling wastewater was stored in that same impoundment. It appears that most of the environment hazards come from the coal waste leachate, but notice how shale brine is intertwined, mixed in, subsumed and painted with the same toxic brush as the coal waste leachate–as if brine has the same (or worse) toxicity (which it doesn’t)…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Randolph County | Statewide WV | West Virginia

The Incoherence of WV’s Anti-Pipeline “Movement”
March 19, 2015March 19, 2015

There are perhaps a dozen or less people in West Virginia who show up at meetings to protest against several much-needed pipeline projects in the state. One of them, Lauren Ragland, is a little known protester who started a group called West Virginia Wilderness Lovers, which seems to have changed names recently to WV MATTERS. Ragland sometimes appears at meetings toting around a hula hoop (see Hula Hoops & Tall Tales from WV Anti-Drillers Opposed to Pipeline). The membership of her group has magically grown to “95,000 members” according to the latest communication. Yeah, right. Anywho, Lauren, for whatever reason, includes MDN on her press release distribution list. The latest release is included below with no changes. If someone can please tell us what it’s about, we’d appreciate a heads up. From what we can tell, it’s absolutely incoherent, as is much of the anti-drilling movement…
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Alternative Energy | Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Virginia

Grimm’s Fairy Tale: Big Tobacco + Big Oil Give Birth to….Solar?
March 19, 2015March 19, 2015

Here’s one weird and twisted bedtime story: Once upon a time there was a filthy Big Tobacco company. Big Tobacco hooked up with a wealthy (and equally filthy) Big Oil company and they had a baby. And the baby was…….solar panels?? Yep. Philip Morris, one of the largest cigarette manufacturers in the world has contracted with Dominion, one of the biggest utility/midstream companies in the Marcellus/Utica region, to install 8,000 solar panels at the Philip Morris facility in Chesterfield County, VA so they can make more cigs. It will be the largest solar installation to date in the state of Virginia. The only problem here is that the “bad guys” (Big Tobacco and Big Oil) are the heroes by installing solar instead of using natural gas. This is a real dilemma for the anti-drilling/anti-pipeline gang in the Old Dominion State. It may cause a brain hemorrhage…
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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | North Carolina | Regulation

Triassic Park: North Carolina Becomes 34th State to Frack Shale
March 18, 2015March 18, 2015

Yesterday some 120 new rules that govern oil and gas drilling in North Carolina–including a rule that lifts the moratorium on fracking shale deposits–went into effect. In just a couple of years NC was able to do what so far New York hasn’t been able to do in nearly seven years–it became the 34th state to allow shale drilling. While all shale layers are now open for business, the initial flurry of interest seems to be centered in the center of the state in Lee, Moore and Chatham counties. Popularly its called the Triassic Basin, although technically it’s part of a broader area called the Deep River Basin. Within the Triassic is a sub-basin called the Sanford, and it’s there that two companies are already “aggressively” leasing in the area…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

Investigation: Delaware Riverkeeper Violates Non-Profit Charter
March 18, 2015March 18, 2015

Two days ago MDN brought you the story that two Philadelphia-area so-called non-profit organizations–THE Delaware Riverkeeper and the Clean Air Council–are not only interfering in a town on the opposite side of the state, they’ve caused the residents of that town to pay (so far) over $35,000 in legal fees (see Dela. RiverKeeper, Clean Air Council Cost Middlesex Residents $35K+). Our good friend Tom Shepstone from the always-excellent Natural Gas Now website did some digging and has found Delaware Riverkeeper is violating the terms of their non-profit charter by doing what they’re doing in Middlesex–something the IRS should investigate post haste…
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