Just coming to light for us now, on April 18 Texas Eastern Transmission Company (TETCO), a massive 9,071-mile natural gas pipeline stretching from the Gulf Coast to New York City, filed a request with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to replace and upgrade two compressor units at its Bernville Compressor Station located in Berks County, PA.
Read More “TETCO Files FERC Request to Upgrade 2 SEPA Compressor Units”
Yesterday Sempra Energy’s Cameron LNG project in Lake Charles, La. began to liquefy and export natural gas–some of it coming from the Marcellus/Utica region. Nearly a month ago the facility asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for permission to begin full-blown operation (see Cameron LNG Export Plant Ready to Begin Operation This Week). FERC issued that permission shortly thereafter. We’re guessing there was some sort of technical issue that caused a delay until now. The good news is that the facility is now up and running…with our gas.
Read More “Gulf Coast Cameron LNG Exporting Begins Service…with M-U Gas”
Kinder Morgan, the largest pipeline company in the U.S., has left a string of broken promises about the date for which the first Elba Island LNG export plant “mini-train” would begin producing and shipping LNG. We’ve chronicled the journey extensively. According to an official update from KM in July, Elba was “in advanced stages of the commissioning and start up process, including LNG production” (see KM Says Elba Island in “Advanced Stage” of Commissioning/Startup). Very quietly, on Friday, Aug. 9, KM sought permission from FERC to begin operations on the first mini-train, asking to start no later than Friday, Aug. 16. Did it happen?
Read More “KM’s Elba Island Train #1 Now Producing LNG for Export?”
Our friends at RBN Energy are beginning a new mini-series of blog posts delving into Marcellus/Utica gas processing and fractionation in the wet gas region–meaning southwest PA, eastern OH, and the northern panhandle of WV. Cryogenic gas processing plants separate methane (CH4) from the other carbon compounds in the stream, namely from NGLs (natural gas liquids). Fractionation further separates the NGLs into “purity products”–things like ethane, propane, normal butane, iso-butane and natural gasoline.
Read More “Overview of Gas Processing & Fractionation in M-U Wet Gas Region”
Our favorite government agency, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), published a post yesterday looking at natural gas deliveries to U.S. LNG export facilities. The post finds that in July gas flows to LNG export facilities hit a new record high of 6.0 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d). That’s an incredible 7% of all the natural gas produced in the U.S.
Read More “Gas Flowing to U.S. LNG Export Plants Hits Record High – 6 Bcf/d”
Last Thursday morning at 6:30 am Blue Racer Midstream’s Natrium (Marshall County, WV) natural gas processing plant received a phoned-in bomb threat. Plant personnel immediately contacted law enforcement (local, state and federal) who swept the plant with bomb-sniffing dogs. Nothing was found.
Read More “Bomb Threat at Blue Racer’s WV Natrium Plant – Nothing Found”
For years MDN has observed that Cabot Oil & Gas is one of the few Marcellus/Utica drilling companies that can “spin straw into gold”–meaning it makes money on selling natural gas even when the price of that gas is in the basement (see Marcellus Driller Cabot Oil & Gas: Wall Street’s NatGas “Unicorn”). The new management at EQT aim to turn their company in a spinning-straw-into-gold company too. In a recent interview with the Pittsburgh Business Times, EQT CEO Toby Rice said his strategy for making $500 million in “free cash flow” within two years anticipates the price of natgas to be $2 per thousand cubic feet (Mcf).
Read More “EQT Plans to Make Money with $2/Mcf NatGas Price”
Some 77 miles of PennEast Pipeline’s $1 billion, 120-mile primarily 36-inch underground pipeline is slated to run through Pennsylvania. The rest runs through New Jersey. In February of this year the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) published draft versions of Erosion and Sediment Control Permits for the project. Just one teeny tiny problem: The DEP screwed up the application number in their official posting in the PA Bulletin. So the DEP has just republished their intent to issue the permits–very soon–in the latest PA Bulletin.
Read More “PA DEP Close to Issuing Final Permits for PennEast Pipe”
On August 1, Enbridge’s Texas Eastern Pipeline Company (TETCO) pipeline exploded in Lincoln County, Kentucky–killing one and sending six to the hospital (see TETCO Pipe Explodes in Kentucky Killing 1; Southbound M-U Gas Stops). Actually TETCO operates three pipelines in that area, all located next to each other and collectively called TETCO. Line 15 is where the explosion occurred, but Lines 10 and 25 (located next to Line 15) remain offline until further notice (see 3 TETCO Pipelines in KY Closed Indefinitely, Feds Order Repairs). TETCO is hoping to return one of the three lines to service later this week.
Read More “Enbridge Wants to Bring TETCO Pipe in KY Back Online Aug 24-26”
There is currently no construction happening along the 600-mile Dominion Energy Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) project due to several lawsuits brought by disgusting Big Green groups that have blocked the path of the pipeline (see Dominion 2Q Update: The Battle to Build Atlantic Coast Pipe). Even though there is no current construction happening, a federal agency has just sent a “warning letter” to the builders citing violations of certain “unsafe construction practices at work sites”–related to work done last December.
Read More “PHMSA Issues Warning to Atlantic Coast Pipeline – 7 Months Late”
Last November Encino Acquisition Partners (i.e. Encino Energy) completed its purchase of all of Chesapeake Energy’s Ohio Utica Shale assets for $2 billion (see Stop Press: Chesapeake Sells ALL of its Ohio Utica Assets for $2B). The deal included all of Chesapeake’s 933,000 Ohio acres–with 320,000 net Utica acres–and 920 operated and non-operated Ohio Utica wells.
Read More “U.S. Senator from Ohio Visits Encino Well Pad to Promote Jobs”
There’s an issue that has been building up steam for the past year or two. We’ve commented on it peripherally on a number of occasions. There’s no mistaking the newest “in thing” for young (and old) liberals is to trash the production of plastic. Plastic straws are killing little fishies in the deep blue sea. Plastic bags are filling up our landfills and endangering Mom Earth. California (land of the strange) now has its sights set on banning all plastic bottles. Radical environmentalists are now advocating that we ban the production and manufacture of all plastic products!
Read More “The Latest Irrational Anti Rant: Plastic is Evil & Must End”
In 2017 a group of Ohio landowners did what others had previously done in Pennsylvania, Texas and elsewhere–they filed a proposed class action lawsuit against Chesapeake Energy claiming Chessy had screwed them and about 1,000 other Ohio landowners out of a collective $30 million in royalty payments (see OH Landowners File Royalty Class Action Lawsuit Against Chesapeake).
Read More “Fed Court OKs OH Class Action Royalty Lawsuit Against Cheseapeake”
Equitrans, builder of the 303-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline project, has voluntarily stopped construction on certain portions of the 85% completed project. According to an MVP spokesperson, “The voluntary suspension pertains to areas along the route that may potentially have an impact related to the Endangered Species Act; however, MVP expects to continue with construction, where permitted, in other areas along the route.”
Read More “Mountain Valley Pipe Voluntarily Pauses Some Construction”
Williams’ Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Co. (Transco) filed a request yesterday with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to start up the final pieces of its Rivervale South to Market Project in New Jersey. We first told you about the Rivervale project in 2017 when Williams filed an application with FERC (see New Project Seeks to “Uprate” Transco Pipeline in Northern NJ).
Read More “Williams Asks FERC for OK to Startup Transco Pipe Expansion in NJ”
THE Delaware Riverkeeper has lost yet another frivolous lawsuit that attempted to overturn Williams’ now long-completed Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline project. We’ve lost count of how many lawsuits Riverkeeper (and other anti groups) have lost against Atlantic Sunrise. Yesterday the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit upheld the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection’s decision to issue a federal Clean Water Act “Section 401” water permit for the project.
Read More “Fed Court Shoots Down Riverkeeper’s Atlantic Sunrise Pipe Case”