Regulation

Industrywide Issues | Regulation

Horray! Trump Budget Fires 20% of EPA Staff, Trims 31% of Budget
March 17, 2017March 17, 2017

Yesterday President Trump released a detailed budget proposal which includes reducing the way-overbloated (and insidiously bureaucratic) Environmental Protection Agency budget by 31%. The budget would also ax some 3,200 EPA employees–about 21% of the 15,000 employed at the agency. It is sheer brilliance and long overdue. The EPA, under Barack Obama, sought to enforce national regulation of the oil and gas industry–something not permitted under the Constitution. It’s about time the agency was right-sized and its mission reigned in. Of course the reaction by the left has been predictable–from apoplexy to terror (snowflakes always melt so quickly). Here’s how the EPA budget news is being spun by mainstream media…
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Industrywide Issues | Regulation

EPA Administrator Pruitt Questions CO2 as Source of Global Warming
March 17, 2017March 17, 2017

Scott Pruitt

MDN is not a blog/news site about debunking global warming flummery. However, we do mention it from time to time because a religious belief (against any objective proof) that mankind is causing Mom Earth to toast is at the center, the core, of so-called environmentalists who oppose fracking, pipelines and anything to do with burning fossil fuels. In an interview on March 9th with CNBC, new EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt said he does not agree that carbon dioxide (CO2) is the primary contributor to “the global warming we see.” He said measuring human activity’s impact on climate change is challenging to do. He is on solid scientific ground–and honest scientists, who happen to believe in man-made global warming, agree with his statements…
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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

DRBC Secretly Deliberating on Rules to Lift Shale Drilling Ban
March 16, 2017March 16, 2017

The Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) held a regularly scheduled business meeting yesterday in Washington Crossing, PA. As predicted, a number of anti-fossil fuel zealots turned up to make noise about the PennEast Pipeline project–and about the prospect of the DRBC allowing shale drilling. As we disclosed yesterday, the zealots all read from the same document prepared by Her Eminence, THE Delaware Riverkeeper, Maya van Rossum (see THE Dela. Riverkeeper Issues Final Orders to Minions re DRBC Mtg). It’s tiresome reporting on the same, predictable behavior by children in adult bodies who never learned manners from their parents. So we’re not going to comment on the circus freak show that was the public comment period yesterday. However, there was an interesting development to report. Lt. Col. Michael Bliss of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the Army Corps is one of the standing members of the DRBC Commission) read a statement about the history and possible future of DRBC regulations that may allow shale drilling in the basin. You read that right. According to Bliss, since 2010 the staff of the DRBC has actively been engaged in private (i.e. secret) discussions with various state agencies (we’re assuming the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection) in an effort to, at some point, release regulations that will allow shale drilling in the Delaware River Basin. He said those discussions are ongoing and that before any kind of regs are released, there will be plenty of notice and public hearings…
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Empire Pipeline | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

NY Fights Back Against NFG’s Request to Bypass DEC Pipe Approval
March 16, 2017March 16, 2017

On Feb. 3, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved a long-delayed project–National Fuel Gas Company’s (NFG) Northern Access 2016 pipeline project (see NFG’s Northern Access Pipe in NY/PA Gets FERC Approval). The $455 million project includes building 97 miles of new pipeline along a power line corridor from northwestern Pennsylvania up to Erie County, NY. The project also calls for 3 miles of new pipeline further up, in Niagara County, along with a new compressor station in the Town of Pendleton. Although FERC has now given permission to build it, the State of New York, specifically the state’s Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC), must issue stream crossing permits. We’ve seen this movie before. The corrupt DEC fiddle faddles around in an effort to stall and delay. NFG is in no mood to screw around with the Cuomo DEC, so they filed a motion asking FERC for a “reconsideration and clarification” on the role of the DEC in reviewing the project (see Gutsy: NFG Asks FERC to Cut NY DEC Out of Pipeline Approval). Specifically, NFG wants FERC to rule that the DEC has NO role in reviewing the Northern Access 2016 project. The corrupt DEC doesn’t like being challenged and last week filed its own motion with FERC claiming NFG is out of line. The peeing match has begun…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Regulation

SC Antis File FERC Challenge to Stop Marcellus Pipe to Charleston
March 16, 2017March 16, 2017

Transco to Charleston Project – click for larger version

In March 2016, Dominion filed an official application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for a 55-mile pipeline project called the Transco to Charleston Project (see Dominion Files Application to Move Marcellus Gas to Charleston, SC). As the name implies, it will be a short pipeline to connect the Transco pipeline, which is in the process of reversing flows to bring Marcellus and Utica Shale gas south. This new pipeline will grab Transco’s Marcellus/Utica gas and send it to the Charleston, SC area. The projected in-service date is November of this year. However, this project, like every square inch of every pipeline project in the Eastern U.S., faces opposition from nutty anti-drilling radicals who vow to try and stop it even if it gets FERC approval (see SC Antis Fuss Over Pipeline to Carry Marcellus Gas to Charleston). In February, just prior to Commissioner Norman Bay resigning and leaving FERC without a quorum, the three FERC Commissioners voted to grant Dominion the certificate to build the Transco to Charleston pipeline (see FERC Approves SC Pipeline to Flow Marcellus Gas to Charleston). So the nutters have flown into action by filing a request for a rehearing of the Commission’s decision, and filing a motion to stop any construction in the meantime…
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CNG/LNG | Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Regulation

Dominion CEO Asks Senators to Fix Broken Permitting Process
March 16, 2017March 16, 2017

Dominion CEO Diane Leopold

On Tuesday, just as winter storm Stella was beginning to hit along the East Coast, a group of executives testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources. The session was billed as a “Hearing to receive testimony on opportunities to improve American energy infrastructure.” One of the speakers to address the Senators was Dominion CEO Diane Leopold. The thrust of her lengthy testimony was to encourage (implore?) the Senators to (in our words) fix the very broken process of permitting important infrastructure projects in this country. Leopold shared Dominion’s experience in applying for permits to build the $4 billion Cove Point LNG export project in Maryland. As bad as it was with 55 federal, state and local permits and reviews required, Leopold said Cove Point was a relative walk in the park compared to what they’re now going through with the $5.5 billion Atlantic Coast Pipeline project. Something has got to change if anything is going to get built in this country…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | PennEast Pipeline | Pipelines | Regulation

THE Dela. Riverkeeper Issues Final Orders to Minions re DRBC Mtg
March 15, 2017March 15, 2017

Today is the day that (some of) Maya’s minions will show up at a meeting of the Delaware River Basin Commission to attempt to bully DRBC staff during the public comments period. As we’ve been reporting (from a well-placed mole on the DRBC email list) Maya has been issuing orders to her minions–people who apparently aren’t bright enough to form their own thoughts about matters like the PennEast Pipeline (see Mind-Numbed Antis Need Maya’s Instructions re DRBC Mar 15 Mtg). Maya has written out a treatise of objections to PennEast, to be read WORD FOR WORD by the minions–or else. We now have the script that Maya’s mind-numbed robots will read from (see it below). We also have her last-minute instructions to the dolts doing the reading…
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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pike County | Regulation | Statewide PA | Wayne County

DRBC has No Power to Stop Shale Drilling in Delaware River Basin
March 15, 2017March 15, 2017

You’ve heard the phrase, “The Emperor has no clothes.” A lawsuit against the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) by a Wayne County, PA landowner over the DRBC’s ongoing moratorium of shale gas drilling, is exposing the DRBC as having “no clothes” when it comes to their authority over shale drilling (see Wayne County, PA Landowner Sues DRBC Over Fracking Ban). In fact, the DRBC has no authority to stop shale drilling, as they are now being forced to admit in response to the lawsuit. That fact has the DRBC, and radical environmentalists like THE Delaware Riverkeeper, petrified. MDN friend Tom Shepstone, author of the always-excellent Natural Gas Now website, writes about the DRBC’s lack of authority and the need for Pennsylvania to immediately defund the DRBC–until the agency stops their sham pretense of blocking shale drilling…
Read More “DRBC has No Power to Stop Shale Drilling in Delaware River Basin”
Industrywide Issues | Regulation | Statewide WV | West Virginia

WV Bill to Exempt O&G from Storage Tank Law Gets Gutted
March 15, 2017March 15, 2017

On Monday, MDN wrote about a new bill introduced in the West Virginia legislature that would exempt storage tanks used by the oil and gas industry from a 2014 law passed following a coal industry storage tank failure that temporarily polluted the drinking water for 300,000 WV residents (see WV Bill Would Exempt O&G Industry from Storage Tank Law). House Bill (HB) 2811 would exempt ~27,000 tanks owned and operated by the oil and gas industry from West Virginia’s Aboveground Storage Tank Act. The bill didn’t get far. On Monday, the WV House Judiciary Committee gutted their version of the bill. The new/gutted version will exempt about ~2,300 oil and gas storage tanks–those very small and very far away from drinking water sources…
Read More “WV Bill to Exempt O&G from Storage Tank Law Gets Gutted”
Forced Pooling | Industrywide Issues | Regulation | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Analysis of New WV Bill SB 576 re Co-Tenancy & Joint Development
March 15, 2017March 15, 2017

Yesterday MDN reported on a new West Virginia bill (Senate Bill 576) that aims to bring both the drilling industry and rights owners together to support co-tenancy and joint development–which are stripped down pieces of previous forced pooling bills that failed in the past (see WV Sen. Charles Trump Introduces New Co-Tenancy, Joint Dev Bill). As we previously reported, Senate Bill 244 was introduced in February to address co-tenancy and joint development (see WV Senate Bill 244 Introduced for Co-Tenancy & Joint Development). That bill went nowhere due to strong opposition from rights owners, including the West Virginia Royalty Owner’s Association (WVROA). SB 576 was meant to meet rights owners in the middle, to address their concerns. But as we mentioned yesterday, WVROA is not supporting the new SB 576 either. Although we included a copy of the bill in yesterday’s post, we did not have a detailed analysis of SB 576 vs SB 244. We now have some expert analysis from the legal beagles at top energy law firm Babst Calland…
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Industrywide Issues | Regulation

Bumble Bee May Yet Sting O&G Industry with “Endangered” Listing
March 15, 2017March 15, 2017

Rusty patched bumble bee

As MDN has previously chronicled, on September 22, 2016 the rogue U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) published a proposed rule to list the rusty patched bumble bee (Bombus affinis) as “endangered” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The rusty patched bumble bee is found in the Midwest and eastern parts of the U.S. If it gets listed, it will have SIGNIFICANT impacts on drillers and midstreamers (see “Endangered” Bumble Bee May Slow/Stop O&G Projects in Northeast). With just a few days left in Obama’s reign of terror, the Obama-influenced USFWS pulled the trigger and listed it (see USFWS Pulls the Trigger and Lists Bumble Bee as Endangered). But then a white knight rode in to town to (temporarily) save the day. The Trump Administration signed an order delaying the listing until March 21 (see Trump Administration Delays Listing Bumble Bee as Endangered). The clock is ticking and drillers/midstreamers are worried. The oil and gas industry, along with farmers and others negatively affected by the listing, have asked newly-minted Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to delay the listing until next year, to give everyone time to figure how they’re going to comply with this newest inanity from USFWS…
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Forced Pooling | Industrywide Issues | Regulation | Statewide WV | West Virginia

WV Sen. Charles Trump Introduces New Co-Tenancy, Joint Dev Bill
March 14, 2017March 14, 2017

As MDN previously reported, perhaps the biggest energy-related issue for this year’s session of the West Virginia 60-day legislative session will not be a bill on forced pooling. Instead, the West Virginia Oil and Natural Gas Association (WVONGA) is pushing a legislation on co-tenancy and joint development (see WV Won’t Push Forced Pooling, Will Push Joint Dev. & Co-Tenancy). Senate Bill (SB) 244 was introduced in February to cover both co-tenancy and joint development (see WV Senate Bill 244 Introduced for Co-Tenancy & Joint Development). For an explanation of what co-tenancy and joint development means, read this post. WVONGA is supporting SB 244, but rights owners, including the West Virginia Royalty Owner’s Association (WVROA) is not. In an effort to get the two sides together and hammer out something that both could support, WV State Senator Charles Trump convened a meeting with both sides. He then drafted up new legislation to replace SB 244 (which was going nowhere fast). Last Friday, Trump introduced SB 576 (full copy below). Did Trump succeed in crafting something both sides can support?…
Read More “WV Sen. Charles Trump Introduces New Co-Tenancy, Joint Dev Bill”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

Trump Spanks Radicalized Kids re “Climate Change” Lawsuit
March 14, 2017March 14, 2017

In August 2015, MDN told you about a lawsuit brought by a group of left coast radicalized children who want to force the federal government to become communist and “force action” on mythical climate change (see Group of Kids Sues U.S. Govt to Force Action on “Climate Change”). In January 2016 we brought you an update, telling you that radicalized, fringe Catholic groups had joined the cause with the ignorant children (see Climate Change Lawsuit by Radicalized Children Gets Interesting). In November 2016, a lefty judge cleared the lawsuit to move to trial. And in January 2017, the radicalized kiddies (actually, the laywers abusing them) got to depose the incoming Secretary of State and former ExxonMobil CEO, Rex Tillerson (see Radicalized Kids Suing Over Global Warming to Depose Tillerson). The Trump Administration is not amused by the antics of these children and the adults manipulating them. Last week the Trump Administration filed a motion to overturn the November ruling that allows the lawsuit to go to trial. It’s time these children got a good (legal) spanking…
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Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Regulation

4 Things to Know re Trump’s Energy Orders/Repeals
March 14, 2017March 14, 2017

President Trump has issued a number of Executive Orders to overturn some of the egregious over-regulation that popped up during the reign of terror known as the Obama Administration. Some of the orders encourage new pipeline development (Keystone XL and Dakota Access). Some “require” American-made pipelines to be used when building new pipeline projects. Some roll back truly onerous regulations like Waters of the United States (WOTUS)–which puts all bodies of water down to the size of mud puddles under EPA authority. Trump has been going great guns. But, those orders may not be a slam dunk, given our court system populated with Obamadroids. Here’s four things to consider, to be aware of, when it comes to Trump’s Executive Orders and directives aimed at the energy industry…
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Industrywide Issues | Regulation | Statewide WV | West Virginia

WV Bill Would Exempt O&G Industry from Storage Tank Law
March 13, 2017March 13, 2017

Three years ago in the closing hours of the 2014 legislative session, WV legislature passed SB373, the “storage tank” bill (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 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. During the closing hours of the 2015 legislative session, WV legislators passed a partial repeal of the 2014 law, to fix it so it’s more workable (see WV Fixes Above Ground Tank Law, Now Less Onerous for O&G Industry). The industry still isn’t happy and is lobbying for a total exemption from the law. House Bill (HB) 2811, introduced last week, would do just that…
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Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | NEXUS Pipeline | Pipelines | Regulation

Has the Clock Run Out for NEXUS Pipeline?
March 13, 2017March 13, 2017

Is there still a market need for the NEXUS Pipeline project? That is the $2 billion question. Last December, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued a positive final Environmental Impact Statement (see FERC Approves NEXUS Pipeline, Project on Track for 2017). The remaining obstacle for NEXUS is to obtain a certificate of public convenience and necessity from FERC, to begin construction. NEXUS had hoped to have that approval in hand on Feb. 3rd, when FERC issued a flurry of such certificates. However, NEXUS didn’t get one (see In FERC’s Game of Musical Chairs, NEXUS Pipeline Left Standing). Here’s the facts. The main competitor to NEXUS, Energy Transfer’s Rover Pipeline, DID get a certificate from FERC and is now under construction (see FERC Green Lights Rover Pipeline Construction). In addition, TransCanada is trying, hard, to entice western Canadian drillers to ship their gas east to Ontario in order to undercut both Rover and (if it gets built) NEXUS (see TransCanada Revives Plan to Lowball M-U Gas Using Canada Pipeline). While Rover’s pipeline capacity is 95% sold, only 59% of the NEXUS project is sold. So when a full FERC quorum is once again in place and willing to consider NEXUS, the question becomes, is the need still there?…
Read More “Has the Clock Run Out for NEXUS Pipeline?”