Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Energy Services | Equitrans/EQT Midstream | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pipelines
Sierra Club Files Another Lawsuit to Block MVP’s FWS Permit
The Sierra Club, backed with money from Russia (see Anti-American Sierra Club, NRDC Get Funding from Russia), has filed yet another lawsuit attempting to block construction of the final 8% of Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) by asking the courts to overturn the latest permit issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS).
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Last week we were jazzed when noticed the price of natural gas at the NYMEX Henry Hub had soared, up over $0.30 to $3.30/Mcf (see 
Here’s something we didn’t know (to further depress us): It’s not against the law for American-based nonprofits to accept big contributions from foreign entities. It should be against the law, but it’s not. We previously told you that the Sierra Club and National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) are funded, in part, by Russia (see 
During the Williams third-quarter 2020 update yesterday, CEO Alan Armstrong shared some very interesting, and relevant (to the Marcellus/Utica) comments. Armstrong said that two important pipeline projects to carry M-U gas to other markets, the Southeastern Trail expansion project and the Leidy South project, are both in the midst of coming online–ahead of schedule.
Equitrans Midstream, the lead partner and builder of the 303-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project, announced yesterday it has (once again) pushed back the in-service date for the pipeline, from 1Q21 to the second half of 2021 (meaning by December), and pushed up the cost of the project, from $5.4 billion to as high as $6 billion. You can thank the jobs-and-economy-destroying Sierra Club for the delays and increase in cost.
We’ve 
In July, when Dominion Energy announced it had decided to exit the natural gas pipeline business by selling it to Warren Buffett and cancel the much-needed Atlantic Coast Pipeline project, the company said it would retain a 50% ownership in its Cove Point LNG export facility and sell a 25% interest to Buffett’s company (see 
Southwestern Energy Company released its third-quarter 2020 update last Friday. The company previously announced it is buying out and merging in Marcellus/Utica driller Montage Resources. During the 3Q conference call, CEO Bill Way said the company expects to close on the deal immediately after Montage Resources shareholders vote on the deal November 12. Also from the 3Q update: Southwestern managed to reduce the cost of drilling for one of their PA Marcellus wells down to $491 per lateral foot!
In August Pennsylvania hiked its permit fee to drill a new shale well to be the most expensive of any state in the country, from $5,000 to $12,500 (see 
“It’s dangerous! It’s a killer! It will flow evil, nasty fracked gas! It’ll explode and kill everyone within a mile, and if it doesn’t explode, emissions from the plant will poison everyone around it anyway!” Those are the faux arguments used by radicals in Weymouth, Massachusetts to smear a compressor station built by Enbridge. All of those arguments have just magically disappeared. The price tag to make it happen? Enbridge will pay $10 million now, and $28 million later, for a grand total of $38 million.
The New Jersey Highlands Water Protection and Planning Council (“Highlands Council”) is a regional planning agency that works in partnership with municipalities and counties in the Highlands Region to help them implement the state’s 2004 Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act (the Highlands Act). The Highlands Council has just given its blessing for a Tennesee Gas Pipeline (TGP) compressor station in Passaic County, NJ, near the border with Westchester, NY.
While Gulfport Energy (big Ohio Utica driller) hasn’t officially filed for bankruptcy, it’s certainly a possibility (see 
The bad blood between Energy Transfer (ET) and the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) continues. ET’s Sunoco Pipeline subsidiary is desperately trying to complete the Mariner East 2X pipeline from eastern Ohio through to Marcus Hook near Philadelphia. A recent drilling mud spill in Marsh Creek State Park prompted the DEP to demand Sunoco change the route for ME2X (which was less than 60 days from being done) to a new route around the State Park (see 
It’s all starting to come undone for FirstEnergy Corporation. Last week two of Ohio’s three largest cities sued to block annual $150 million payments to FirstEnergy’s Energy Harbor subsidiary on the basis those payments are ill-gotten gain, the result of FirstEnergy bribing government officials to pass House Bill 6 (HB 6) and keep it passed (see 
Last week EQT Corporation announced a deal to buy Chevron’s considerable Marcellus/Utica assets (land and wells) for the lowball price of $735 million (see