Processing Plants

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    Important Shell Ethane Cracker Webinar on Feb 27

    We want to alert you to an upcoming webinar that will be worth your time. On Feb. 27 at 2 pm, NGI (Natural Gas Intelligence) will host a webinar titled, “Cracking the Ethane Code in Appalachia,” all about the Shell ethane cracker. NGI’s ace reporter Jamison Cocklin (MDN editor Jim Willis knows Jamison and has the highest regard for his reporting and writing) will moderate. On the call will be an all-star cast: Don Rush, VP of CONSOL Energy; Jim Cooper, American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers; Denise Brinley, PA Department of Community and Economic Development; and Danielle Sandusky, Level 2 Energy. The webinar will help answer questions about the size and scope of the cracker, whether (and how) the cracker will impact drilling decisions, what about competition from other crackers along the Gulf Coast, and more. Below is more information, and a link to register for this FREE webinar…
    Read More “Important Shell Ethane Cracker Webinar on Feb 27”

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    Petrochemical (i.e. Cracker) Event Returns to Pittsburgh in June

    If you have an interest in the Shell (and PTT, and Braskem and other) ethane cracker plants–listen up. There is a conference coming in Pittsburgh in June you may want to consider attending. Northeast US Petrochemical Construction Conference 2017, organized by Petrochemical Update, returns to Pittsburgh on June 19-20 for a second time. Full disclosure: this event has paid MDN to send an email to our high-quality audience. Further full disclosure: MDN would not promote this event unless we support it. Although we received the announcement below about the upcoming event, we were not paid to run it. We do so because we support this event. With over 50 speakers and 400+ attendees, this is THE downstream event to attend in the Marcellus/Utica. Here’s the details…
    Read More “Petrochemical (i.e. Cracker) Event Returns to Pittsburgh in June”

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    Antero Forms JV with MarkWest to Service Combined 360K WV Acres

    Marathon Petroleum subsidiary MarkWest Energy and Antero Resources’ midstream subsidiary Antero Midstream have announced a 50/50 joint venture focused on gathering and processing natural gas and natural gas liquids in northern West Virginia (Tyler, Wetzel and Richie counties). Antero Midstream will contribute its gathering operations for 195,000 acres in WV, boosting MarkWest’s total WV Marcellus gathering operation to a huge 360,000 acres. In addition, the JV will add three new processing plants to MarkWest’s Sherwood Complex in Doddridge County, WV. And get this: the JV contemplates building another eight (!) processing plants at Sherwood and a new/second location. Antero expects to invest “up to $800 million” through 2020, and has already made an initial $155 million investment. We think it’s no coincidence that on the same day Antero Midstream announced the deal (yesterday), they also announced a new round of units (i.e. shares of stock) they hope to pedal to raise $198 million. Here’s the details on the JV deal between Antero and MarkWest…
    Read More “Antero Forms JV with MarkWest to Service Combined 360K WV Acres”

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    Shell CEO Says PA Cracker Up & Running “Not Anymore This Decade”

    Shell CEO Ben van Beurden

    In June 2016, MDN was one of the first to unearth the announcement by Shell, almost hidden away inside another announcement, that the company had made it’s “final investment decision” (FID) to move forward with building a multi-billion dollar ethane cracker in Beaver County, PA (see Breaking: Shell Pulls the Trigger, PA Ethane Cracker is a Go!). At the time of the announcement, and since then, Shell has been cagey in not pegging any specific date for when they predict the plant will be built and online–although they have said the plant would start to contribute cash to Shell’s bottom line “after 2020.” That’s about all we’ve been able to find about timing for the plant–until now. Shell released their fourth quarter and full year update yesterday, and as part of that update, held a conference call with analysts. On the call, Shell CEO Ben van Beurden said, in response to a question from an analyst, that Shell will begin spending big money to build the plant “by the end of the year [meaning this year], certainly in 2018.” van Beurden also said, “We haven’t announced exactly when it will start up, but expect that to be not anymore this decade.” He’s not a native English speaker, so we’re having a tough time figuring out exactly what he meant. Does he mean the cracker will be running “not anymore *than* this decade” (meaning before 2020), or “not anymore *in* this decade” (meaning it is now pushed out after 2020). You’re guess is as good as ours…
    Read More “Shell CEO Says PA Cracker Up & Running “Not Anymore This Decade””

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    Marcellus/Utica NGLs “Becoming More Lucrative” – 3rd Cracker Coming?!

    Last week we brought you a few pickings from the Hart Energy Marcellus-Utica Midstream Conference and Exhibition held in Pittsburgh. One of those pickings were comments from Williams CEO Alan Armstrong and his prediction that production in the Marcellus/Utica would go up by 65% in the next five years (see Williams CEO Says M-U Production Will Grow 65% in 5 Yrs). Another was comments from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development which is about to release a new study that our region could comfortably host another four giant ethane cracker plants (see PA Report Says Marcellus/Utica Can Support Up to 4 More Crackers). Below are more comments from the event about NGLs (natural gas liquids), including a stray comment by one person in-the-know who said he’s been approached about hosting a new/third cracker plant in the region…
    Read More “Marcellus/Utica NGLs “Becoming More Lucrative” – 3rd Cracker Coming?!”

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    Will PTT Cracker Project in Ohio Use American, or Imported Steel?

    As we inch closer to a final investment decision (FID) on the PTT Global Chemical ethane cracker in Belmont County, OH, and with President Trump’s emphasis on using steel manufactured here at home for pipeline projects like Keystone XL, some are asking whether the PTT project (if it gets approved) will use American steel–or cheap, imported steel. It’s a good question…
    Read More “Will PTT Cracker Project in Ohio Use American, or Imported Steel?”

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    PA Report Says Marcellus/Utica Can Support Up to 4 More Crackers

    Pennsylvania hired research firm IHSMarkit to study the Marcellus and Utica and how many ethane cracker plants the region can comfortably support. Denise Brinley, a special assistant to the Secretary of the state Department of Community and Economic Development, offered a preview of that report at this week’s Hart Energy Marcellus Utica Midstream conference in Pittsburgh. Although the report is due to be published “in the next few weeks,” Brinley spilled the beans on what it concludes: The PA Marcellus can support another two cracker plants, and the Utica can support two crackers. That’s another four cracker plants, theoretically, that our region can support, in addition to Shell’s ethane cracker. However, the study will also show we need more infrastructure (i.e. pipelines) in order to support such projects. Here’s a glimpse into some very exciting news…
    Read More “PA Report Says Marcellus/Utica Can Support Up to 4 More Crackers”

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    Potter Twp (Finally) Approves Permit for Shell Ethane Cracker

    In December the Potter Township Board of Supervisors convened a public hearing on the proposed Shell ethane cracker plant–to be built in Potter Twp–that ended up going on for 10 hours (see Potter Twp Declines to Approve Permits for Shell Cracker, For Now). The intent was to approve Shell’s request for permits to begin construction on the multi-billion dollar ethane cracker plant. That didn’t happen. Instead, the supervisors decided to hold another hearing the following night. They did, and that hearing went for over an hour, in closed-door session. At the conclusion, the supervisors made a couple of requests from Shell, which Shell agreed to. However, the supervisors were still not ready to approve the permits and instead asked for more paperwork to be filed. Potter Township supervisors are certainly no rubber stamp for the cracker project. They are working hard to ensure area residents are protected when (not if) it gets built. But that’s not good enough for radical, anti-fossil fuel nutters who (irrationally) want nothing to do with natural gas. Last week the supervisors held yet another meeting and the antis behaved like they always do–like petulant children, hollering and booing and making a$$es of themselves. One supervisor said he was “appalled” by the conduct of the crowd at last week’s meeting. That’s all in the rearview mirror now. Last night Potter Township held another meeting and yes, they finally voted to grant the cracker project the necessary town permits to proceed. Oh! The crowd last night? While it had a few crazies, it was packed with local residents who support the project. Nice to see the good guys come out in force to counteract the nutters…
    Read More “Potter Twp (Finally) Approves Permit for Shell Ethane Cracker”

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    Potter Twp Inches Closer to Approving Permits for Shell Cracker

    In December the Potter Township Board of Supervisors convened a public hearing on the proposed Shell ethane cracker plant–to be built in Potter Twp–that ended up going on for 10 hours (see Potter Twp Declines to Approve Permits for Shell Cracker, For Now). The intent was to approve Shell’s request for permits to begin construction on the multi-billion dollar ethane cracker plant. That didn’t happen. Instead, the supervisors decided to hold another hearing the following night. They did, and that hearing went for over an hour, in closed-door session. At the conclusion, the supervisors made a couple of requests from Shell, which Shell agreed to. However, the supervisors were still not ready to approve the permits and instead asked for more paperwork to be filed–by both Shell and the radical, anti-fossil fuel Big Green group Clean Air Council (from Philadelphia). The supervisors are certainly no rubber stamp for the cracker project. They are working hard to ensure area residents are protected when (not if) it gets built. But that’s not good enough for radical, anti-fossil fuel nutters who (irrationally) want nothing to do with natural gas. The supervisors held another meeting last night and a small group of antis attended with preprinted signs. One sign said “Deficient = DENY.” The other said, “Disaster Decision.” The first sign was flashed as supervisors tried to conduct their business. When the supervisors finally held a vote to ask the town attorney to draw up an official document to approve the cracker, the antis got mouthy (as they always do) and flashed the other sign. Amidst the shouting by antis, one supervisor asked for order in the room. One horse’s rear-end shouted, “Maybe the public wants disorder.” Here’s how it went last night…
    Read More “Potter Twp Inches Closer to Approving Permits for Shell Cracker”

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    Exterran Completes “Financial Restatement” – Releases Financials for 1Q-3Q

    Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Exterran Corporation (with 5,400 employees) specializes in natural gas compression production equipment and processing facilities. They design, build and operate compressor stations and natural gas processing plants. In 2012 MDN reported on a contract Exterran won to build three natural gas processing plants in West Virginia (see Exterran Wins Contract to Build 3 WV NatGas Processing Plants). The company is also active in other Marcellus/Utica states, including Ohio. In 2013 the company opened a plant to build compressor stations in an industrial park near Youngstown, OH. The state gave the company a $300,000 grant in return for promises to create 103 jobs over a seven year period. Exterran came close for the first couple of years, but then the crash in prices hit and along with it, work dried up. The plant closed in March, and as we recently reported, Ohio now wants “all or part of” the $300,000 grant back (see Ohio Wants to “Clawback” $300K Grant to TX-based Exterran Energy). The company, which is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange, has just issued what is called a “financial restatement”–which means they get to revise their previous quarterly financial statements. The do-over shows less bleeding in 3Q16 than earlier in the year. Exterran lost $93 million in 1Q16, they lost $96 million in 2Q16, and just $13 million in 3Q16. Here is the financial restatement issued by Exterran last week…
    Read More “Exterran Completes “Financial Restatement” – Releases Financials for 1Q-3Q”

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    Shell Cracker Wastewater Discharge Becomes an Issue

    Environmentalists are accusing Shell of using a loophole to discharge wastewater at their future ethane cracker that will exceed state limits for TDS (total dissolved solids). The issue may sound familiar. In 2011 Pennsylvania “requested” that municipal sewage treatment plants without specially outfitted equipment stop accepting and processing Marcellus wastewater (see PA DEP, Marcellus Shale Coalition Admit Drilling Wastewater Likely Contaminating Drinking Water). Almost immediately, it stopped, which was a good thing for the environment. The problem with shale wastewater (i.e. produced water) is its high TDS content, including bromide. When bromide combines with chlorine used in wastewater treatment plants, it combines to produce trihalomethanes, which (in some studies) indicate increased levels of cancer in humans (see MDN In-depth: Marcellus Wastewater Discharges via Municipal Sewage Treatment Plants into PA Waterways). Nasty stuff. While the Shell ethane cracker will not process shale wastewater, it will produce water with TDS as part of its process. Shell plans to use a permit from the plant it is replacing, an old zinc smelting plant, to discharge a certain volume of water with TDS. Environmentalists say the volume they will discharge is too much and if the plant were not using a pre-existing permit (swapping ethane cracking for zinc smelting) the volume of wastewater they want to discharge would not be approved. That is, Shell is leveraging a loophole, a permit grandfathered in, and the volume of wastewater it will discharge may endanger humans downriver. Legit? Not legit?…
    Read More “Shell Cracker Wastewater Discharge Becomes an Issue”

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    Shell Seeks to Horse Trade Air Pollution Credits for Cracker Plant

    In June 2015, a full year ahead of Shell’s final investment decision (FID) to build a multi-billion dollar ethane cracker plant complex in Beaver County, PA, the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection issued the project air quality permits–which was a “critical” requirement for Shell before making their decision (see Shell Receives Air Quality Permit from PA DEP for Cracker Plant). Two months later, two litigious Big Green environmental groups with deep pockets–the Philadelphia-based Clean Air Council and the Washington, DC-based Environmental Integrity Project–tried to scuttle the project by appealing the DEP’s issuance of the air quality permits (see Big Green Groups File to Block Shell Cracker Air Quality Permit). Fortunately the DEP blew off the Big Green appeal. However, the issue of air pollution is not yet totally resolved. In order for Shell to build the plant–a plant that will have a fair amount of emissions–they need to buy pollution credits from other plants. That is, if other plants are installing new air pollution controls, or shutting down, Shell can buy their emissions allotments, and use them for the cracker project. In the end, it’s all about controlling how much of the nasty stuff, like volatile organic compounds (VOCs) gets pumped into the air in a given region. But there’s a problem. Shell can’t find enough VOC credits to buy, so they’re proposing a deal with the DEP to buy a different kind of credit instead–NOx or nitrogen oxides. Will the DEP allow Shell to horse trade NOx for VOCs? That’s the billion dollar question…
    Read More “Shell Seeks to Horse Trade Air Pollution Credits for Cracker Plant”

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    Potter Twp Declines to Approve Permits for Shell Cracker, For Now

    The Potter Township Board of Supervisors convened a public hearing on Tuesday afternoon at 3 pm that ended up going until 1 am Wednesday. The intent was to approve Shell’s request for permits to begin construction on the multi-billion dollar ethane cracker plant. That didn’t happen. Instead, the supervisors decided to hold another hearing Wednesday night. They did, and that hearing went for over an hour, in closed-door session. At the conclusion, the supervisors made a couple of requests from Shell, which Shell agreed to. However, the supervisors are still not ready to approve the permits and instead asked for more paperwork to be filed–by both Shell and the radical, anti-fossil fuel Big Green group Clean Air Council (from Philadelphia). It seems the antis are attempting to stop this project cold–which should have the good citizens of Beaver County (indeed the entire northeast) outraged. At any rate, we’re sure the permits will be forthcoming–but now it won’t happen until sometime in January…
    Read More “Potter Twp Declines to Approve Permits for Shell Cracker, For Now”

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    GTL Vendor Velocys Releases Plan to Jump-Start the Company

    When it comes to gas-to-liquids (GTL), MDN has observed (as we stated in a story yesterday, see Somerset KY Attempting to Land $70M Gas-to-Liquids Plant), that there’s a lot of thunder, a lot of smoke, a lot of sizzle–but no lightening, fire or steak. That is, GTL projects get rumored, even announced–but seem to never get built. With certain exceptions. One of those exceptions is a pilot project built by Velocys in Oklahoma. We’ve written a fair bit about Velocys, a UK-based company, over the past several years (see our stories here). Velocys previously purchased a GTL project planned for Ashtabula, OH, receiving all necessary permits to begin construction, but then put the project on indefinite hold this past August (see Ashtabula, OH GTL Plant on Hold “Indefinitely”). GTL plants convert natural gas, a hydrocarbon, into other hydrocarbons, like diesel fuel, gasoline, solvents and waxes. They are a potential new market for an overabundance of supply in the Marcellus/Utica. Velocys is one of the vendors that builds GTL plants–or at least wants to build them. The company has just released a new strategy plan to turn things around and actually begin building GTL plants. Will it be different this time?…
    Read More “GTL Vendor Velocys Releases Plan to Jump-Start the Company”

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    Somerset KY Attempting to Land $70M Gas-to-Liquids Plant

    Gas-to-Liquids (GTL) plants convert natural gas, a hydrocarbon, into other hydrocarbons, like diesel fuel, gasoline, solvents and waxes. An abundance of cheap natural gas in the Marcellus/Utica is one of the prime motivators for establishing GTL plants in the region. Although we’ve heard plenty of talk about such plants, we’ve only seen a few prototypes get built. There’s lots of talk, lots of smoke–but so far, no fire. Will that soon change? We spotted a story about a GTL plant that may locate in Somerset (Pulaski County), Kentucky. Which we find interesting since Kentucky hates new gas pipelines, yet wants to build a plant that will use gas coming from pipelines (see KY Court Decision Goes Against Pipelines re Eminent Domain). But hey, maybe attitudes will change when they see the economic and environmental benefits from more natural gas, right? The mayor of Somerset is excited and perhaps prematurely announcing his town may (underscore may) get a new $70 million GTL plant. Thing is, the unnamed builder of the plant is also considering a location in Ohio, where there’s plenty of local natgas and pipelines already built. The good mayor may want not want to count his chickens before they hatch…
    Read More “Somerset KY Attempting to Land $70M Gas-to-Liquids Plant”

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    JobsOhio Picks Up the $17M Cost for Prepping OH Cracker Site

    On Monday MDN reported that the future site for an ethane cracker in Belmont County, OH is now cleared and ready for construction to begin (see OH Cracker Final Decision Coming Soon, Site Now Cleared & Ready). Clearing the site, which once hosted the R.E. Burger coal-fired power plant, was no small task. The power plant site, owned and (until 2011) operated by FirstEnergy cost $14 million for demolition, remediation and general cleaning up. An adjacent site (not owned by FirstEnergy) cost another $3 million to tidy up. All told it took $17 million to clean up the site and get it ready to begin construction. FirstEnergy is reported to have said they were “excited” by the opportunity to spend $14 million to clean it up. Wait, what? They wanted to spend the money? Well actually, no, they didn’t. FirstEnergy spent the money to clean up the site because they have been/are being reimbursed for the cost by JobsOhio. So FirstEnergy (and PTT Global, the company that will build the cracker) doesn’t have to spend a dime to get the site ready to go. What is JobsOhio and where does it get all this money? Glad you asked! JobsOhio is a private, non-profit with a board appointed by Ohio Gov. John Kasich, which gets most of its operating revenue from taxes on liquor sales in Ohio. So raise a glass to the cracker, Ohioans. Your imbibing is helping to build it…
    Read More “JobsOhio Picks Up the $17M Cost for Prepping OH Cracker Site”