Pipelines

Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines

MDN Pays Compliment to CORNy Anti Group
April 30, 2015April 30, 2015

You won’t hear or read it often (because it’s rarely deserved), but we’d like to pay a compliment to a group of CORNy anti-drillers. MDN previously told you about CORN–the Coalition to re-Route Nexus (see CORNy Opposition to NEXUS Pipeline in Eastern Ohio). The group is encouraging people to show up at Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) scoping hearings about the NEXUS–to encourage FERC to re-route the pipeline. And therein is the genesis of our compliment. At least officially, CORN leaders don’t outright oppose building the NEXUS. Instead, they are asking for the NEXUS to be re-routed away from the Akron, OH area. There’s probably not a good reason to re-route it, but this is one of the few times (maybe the only time) an anti group has said, in essence, “hey, let’s work together and find a better route for this pipeline.” So kudos to the CORNy folks. We’ll hold you to your word that you DO want to see the pipeline built–just built along a different route…
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Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Regulation | Statewide PA

PA Congressmen Send Letter to Army Corps Over Pipeline Delays
April 29, 2015April 28, 2015

A majority of the Republican Congressman representing the great state of Pennsylvania sent a letter to the Army Corps of Engineers earlier this month encouraging the Corps to get off it’s collective rear-end and begin authorizing midstream/pipeline projects in the Keystone State. Nine of the 13 Republican Congressman from PA, and one of its senators (Republican Pat Toomey) sent a letter on April 8 to Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works), Jo-Ellen Darcy, to complain that the Baltimore District of the Army Corps is dragging its feet (our words) and their actions are putting PA at a competitive disadvantage compared with other states. One of the problems seems to be overreach by the Corps–in redefining projects and project scope. Here’s the letter that no PA partisan Democrat would sign (shame on them)…
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Accidents | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Pipelines | Regulation | West Virginia | Williams

Williams Locates WV Condensate Pipeline Leak, Remediation Begins
April 28, 2015April 28, 2015

Last Friday Williams finally found the break/leak in a 4-inch condensate pipeline that ruptured nearly two weeks ago (see 2 Williams Pipelines Rupture in Marshall County After Heavy Rains). That’s the good news. The bad news is that testing done of a nearby unnamed stream (that empties into Little Grave Creek) four days after the rupture occurred contained evidence of some nasty chemicals: benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene. Fortunately none of those chemicals have turned up in Little Grave Creek. Williams is now cleaning up and telling the neighbors that as they dig and remove soil from the area of the rupture, the neighbors may smell some foul odors. The WV Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) says they “don’t believe” nearby residents are in any danger…
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Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Randolph County | Regulation | West Virginia

USFS Approves Survey for Marcellus Pipeline in Mon Natl Forest
April 28, 2015April 28, 2015

In January MDN told you that the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) was considering a plan to allow surveyors into the Monongahela National Forest (see USFS Seeks Comment on Pipeline Survey in Monongahela Natl Forest). At the time, USFS was seeking public comment on a plan to allow surveyors into the forest to chart a potential route through 17 miles of the Mon National Forest for the Dominion’s Atlantic Coast Pipeline–a 550-mile, $5 billion pipeline that will carry Marcellus and Utica Shale gas from West Virginia through Virginia and into to North Carolina. The section of the forest to be surveyed is located in Randolph and Pocahontas counties in WV. Good news! The USFS has decided to allow the survey to go forward…
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CNG/LNG | Commodity Price | Exporting | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Regulation

Canadian LNG Project Woos Europeans with Promise of Marcellus Gas
April 28, 2015April 28, 2015

You may recall MDN has tracked the issue of potential LNG (liquefied natural gas) exports from Canada that would use, in part, Marcellus Shale gas. There are five such possible LNG projects, four of them based in Nova Scotia (see List of LNG Export Projects for Marcellus/Utica Shale Gas). You may also recall the article we brought you in which Moody’s Investors Service said the vast majority of LNG projects, including the ones in Canada, will not get built (see Moody’s: “Vast Majority” of LNG Export Projects Will be Canceled). Don’t tell that to Pieridae Energy Canada, the company with plans to build the Goldboro LNG project in Goldboro Industrial Park in Guysborough County, Nova Scotia. The US$8.6 billion (C$10 billion) project is 5-6 years away from beginning operation according to a presentation by Pieridae’s CEO Alfred Sorensen to a delegation of economic counsellors from the European Union in Halifax on Monday. One of the keys to the project giving it a “high probability of success” will be Marcellus gas delivered via the Maritimes & Northeast pipeline, according to Sorensen…
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Commodity Price | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Kinder Morgan | Pipelines | Tennessee Gas Pipeline

Richard Kinder: Northeast Energy Direct to Proceed Later This Yr
April 24, 2015April 24, 2015

Richard Kinger, CEO of the country’s largest midstream company, Kinder Morgan, went on CNBC on Wednesday to chat about the price of oil and its “sweet spot” and other things. It was Kinder’s Kinder’s comments on his company’s future plans for the Marcellus/Utica region that most interested MDN. Topic A was Kinder’s plans to run an extension of the Tennessee Gas Pipeline into New England, the Northeast Energy Direct project (NED). Kinder said that project is very close to critical mass and should launch later this year, provided FERC approves it…
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Accidents | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Pipelines | Regulation | West Virginia | Williams

Williams Still Can’t Find Leak in 4-inch WV Condensate Pipeline
April 23, 2015April 23, 2015

Ten days ago heavy rains in West Virginia led to two Williams pipelines rupturing within hours of each other–both in Marshall County (see 2 Williams Pipelines Rupture in Marshall County After Heavy Rains). One pipeline was a 12-inch gathering line for natural gas. The other was a 4-inch condensate pipeline that ended up spilling around 132 barrels of condensate that ended up in nearby Little Grave Creek (see WV DEP to Fine Williams for Condensate Pipeline Leak in WV). Although the WV DEP has rushed to assess a fine because of the condensate spill, they may be putting the cart before the horse. Williams hasn’t yet located where the leak occurred in the 4-inch condensate pipeline…
Read More “Williams Still Can’t Find Leak in 4-inch WV Condensate Pipeline”
Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pipelines | West Virginia | Wetzel County

Why Some WV Landowners Resist MVP Pipeline: Threats & Low $$
April 20, 2015April 20, 2015

Two weeks ago MDN told you that EQT, NextEra US Gas Assets and their Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project have sued 103 West Virginia landowners to force them to allow access to their property so they can survey it for potential paths for the MVP (see Mountain Valley Pipeline Sues 103 WV Landowners for Survey Access). MVP is a 330-mile pipeline that will stretch from Wetzel County, WV to the Transco Pipeline in Pittsylvania County, VA. But landowners in, of all places, WV seem to be turning against the pipeline. There are so many projects underway in WV and other Marcellus/Utica areas, it almost seems as if there is pipeline fatigue setting in. Make no mistake, pipelines like the MVP are desperately needed to move large volumes of Marcellus/Utica gas to markets outside of the immediate region. Without the pipelines, the drilling will stop–which is what anti-drillers want to happen. But sometimes otherwise supportive landowners are not so supportive of a given pipeline project. Let’s get an inside perspective to better understand some of the reasons why…
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Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Kinder Morgan | Luzerne County | Pennsylvania | Pike County | Pipelines | Susquehanna County | Tennessee Gas Pipeline | Wayne County

Kinder Morgan Hops on the Pipeline Payola Bandwagon in NEPA
April 17, 2015April 17, 2015

Look–we’ve written about this before and we’re not going to belabor the point–about pipeline companies using payola to buy support for the pipelines they plan to build through communities. The Constitution Pipeline did it last March in New York (see Constitution Pipeline Payments to Groups – Donations or Payola?). PennEast recently did it this March in southeast Pennsylvania and New Jersey (see PennEast Payola? Buying Support One Community at a Time). Now it’s Kinder Morgan’s turn. KM handed out checks this week in Wayne, Susquehanna, Pike and Luzerne counties in northeastern PA. It’s amazing how much good press, and good will, a $10,000 donation can buy you–especially when you give it to a school…
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Energy Services | Erie County (OH) | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Pipelines | Spectra Energy

Erie County, OH Rolls Out Red Carpet for NEXUS Pipeline
April 17, 2015April 17, 2015

It doesn’t seem to happen often enough, which is why this is noteworthy: The Erie County, OH Board of Commissioners (with three members) sent an official letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to endorse and support the proposed $1.5 billion NEXUS Gas Transmission pipeline from Ohio through Michigan and into Canada (see NEXUS Gas Pipeline Pre-Files with FERC, New Details Come to Light). The NEXUS, like all other proposed pipelines in the northeast, has encountered plenty of opposition (see CORNy Opposition to NEXUS Pipeline in Eastern Ohio). But all three Erie County commissioners want FERC to know their county stands behind the pipeline and welcomes it through their neck of the woods–which means new pipeline trenches would be dug in places where pipelines have not previously been installed. The commissioners are rolling out the red carpet for this “greenfield” project coming through their county. Refreshing!…
Read More “Erie County, OH Rolls Out Red Carpet for NEXUS Pipeline”
Accidents | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Pipelines | Regulation | West Virginia | Williams

WV DEP to Fine Williams for Condensate Pipeline Leak in WV
April 15, 2015April 23, 2015

A follow up to our story from Monday when we told you that Williams experienced two pipeline ruptures in Marshall County, WV following heavy rains (see Williams Pipelines Rupture in Marshall County After Heavy Rains). One of the pipelines that burst was a 4-inch condensate pipeline. West Virginia regulators have signaled they will fine Williams for the condensate pipeline leak because it ended up in the nearby Little Grave Creek–contaminating some six miles of the creek. We now know how much condensate leaked out. According to the WV DEP, 132 barrels of condensate (or roughly 5,500 gallons) leaked out. Cleanup and sampling of the creek is still in progress. But that begs the question, what the heck is condensate?…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Medina County | Ohio | Pipelines

Medina County, OH Anti Group Targets Pipeline with “Bill of Rights”
April 14, 2015April 14, 2015

Wacko fossil-fuel hating anti-drillers know the best way to strangle future drilling is to stop pipelines–so that’s where they now spend their time and effort. A new group of that ilk has sprung up in Medina County, OH. Calling themselves Sustainable Medina County, this small group of people is hoping to hoodwink 4,900 people in the county to sign a petition to get a measure on the ballot in November that would create a new county charter with a so-called bill of rights. It’s all hocus pocus aimed at giving elected county leaders the “right” to refuse pipelines from being built–something not in their Constitutional power to do. If the measure gets on the ballot and passes, county residents can expect their taxes to go up to pay big legal fees to defend such an action…
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Accidents | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Pipelines | West Virginia | Williams

2 Williams Pipelines Rupture in Marshall County After Heavy Rains
April 13, 2015April 23, 2015

Apparently torrential rains in Marshall County, WV last week softened up the earth and led to soil shifting and two Williams pipelines rupturing–within hours of each other. One of the pipelines is a 12-inch gathering line that runs from wells in the area to the nearby Fort Beeler processing plant. The other pipeline is a 4-inch condensate pipeline. Condensate spilled out of a hole and into the nearby Little Grave Creek. Cleanup efforts are ongoing. For a short time, five families who live near the 12-inch gathering line were evacuated as a precautionary measure–but they returned home within a few hours…
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Energy Services | Exporting | Industrywide Issues | Kinder Morgan | New York | Pipelines | Statewide NY | Tennessee Gas Pipeline

AP Takes Swipe at NED Pipeline over Export Issue, MDN Responds
April 13, 2015April 13, 2015

Once again the AP attempts to make a case against Kinder Morgan’s Northeast Energy Direct (NED) pipeline project that would stretch from Pennsylvania through New York (following the Constitution Pipeline’s route) and into Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and back into Massachusetts near Boston. NED is a huge $6 billion project that will provide jobs for thousands (while it’s constructed) and abundant, cheap Marcellus Shale gas for New Englanders, saving them on the order of $1 billion per year on utility bills for decades to come. But irrational hatred of fossil fuels continues to rein in liberal New England, where many oppose the project (see Deerfield, MA Hoping Kinder Morgan Sues Them over Pipeline “Ban”). The AP has taken up the “most of the gas flowing through the pipeline will get exported” argument, in an effort to stop the pipeline (so much for unbiased “reporting”). Exported where and how? Via one of five planned LNG export facilities in Canada, four of them in Nova Scotia. Just one little problem there AP, it looks very doubtful that any of those plants will actually get built (see Moody’s: “Vast Majority” of LNG Export Projects Will be Canceled). That kind of takes the wind out of the “it’ll all get exported” argument, eh? But let’s assume at least one of those LNG export plants does get built…
Read More “AP Takes Swipe at NED Pipeline over Export Issue, MDN Responds”
Columbia Pipeline Group | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pike County | Pipelines | Regulation

Columbia Gas Slapped with $150K Fine for Pipeline Work in 2011-12
April 10, 2015April 10, 2015

Building a pipeline can be expensive in more ways that one. Columbia Gas Transmission has just been fined $150,000 by the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environment Protection for violations of the Clean Streams Law during construction of a pipeline in Pike County–construction that happened in 2011-2012. The DEP made inspections during the construction and observed over 100 violations–“failure to implement, maintain and provide temporary stabilization of disturbed areas, and potential pollution and sediment discharges into waterways.” Why it takes three years to levy and collect a fine we have no idea. Here’s the announcement from the DEP…
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Chesapeake Utilities | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Ohio | Pipelines | Statewide OH

Chesapeake Utilities Completes $59M Purchase of OH Midstream Co.
April 9, 2015April 9, 2015

In February MDN told you about Chesapeake Utilities, a diversified energy company with businesses in natural gas distribution, transmission and marketing, electricity distribution, propane distribution and wholesale marketing (nothing to do with Chesapeake Energy) purchasing a small midstream company in Ohio–Gatherco, Inc (see Chesapeake Utilities Buys OH Midstream Co, Targets Shale Industry). Part of the motivation is to target the Utica Shale industry in Ohio by building gathering pipelines. Last week Chesapeake Utilities announced the deal is now done and Gatherco has been renamed and merged with Chesapeake subsidiary Aspire Energy of Ohio…
Read More “Chesapeake Utilities Completes $59M Purchase of OH Midstream Co.”