Regulation

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    RINOsaurs Lobby Trump to Enact Socialist “Carbon Tax”

    A group of RINO (Republican in Name Only) dinosaurs (i.e. RINOsaurs) have come out of retirement to lobby President Trump on the insane idea of a so-called “carbon tax.” Two of them were from the Ronald Reagan Administration–George Shultz and James Baker III. (As an aside, when Baker was Chief of Staff for Ronald Reagan, he was an arrogant ass–prancing around the West Wing. We can state this categorically from first-hand experience. MDN editor Jim Willis worked at the White House when Baker was there. Jim can also tell you Baker came from the Bush camp, which today we call the Washington establishment. There was a deep divide in the White House during the Reagan years between the “Bushies” who were establishment types, and true-conservative “Reaganites.” You know which camp Jim belonged to.) A carbon tax is nothing more than a way to slap a regressive tax on every citizen of the country–as if we aren’t already taxed enough. If you live in the great middle class of this country, you already pay close to 50% of your income in various federal, state, local, property, sales and other taxes. Add it up sometime–you’ll see we’re not exaggerating. A group of Republican “elder statesmen” (as fake news source CNN calls them) yesterday met with Team Trump at the White House to push this disastrous plan, calling it (be careful not to vomit), “conservative.” There’s nothing conservative about it…
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    Battle Begins to Get NY DEC to Approve Northern Access Project

    Déjà vu all over again? Last Friday the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved a long-delayed project–National Fuel Gas Company’s 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. Sound familiar? The DEC faced a similar task with the FERC-approved Constitution Pipeline and ultimately, under political pressure from Gov. Andrew Cuomo, made the decision to refuse granting Williams the permits it needs to build the Constitution. Williams sued and sometime this spring NY will almost certainly lose the case (see Bloomberg Predicts Court Will Strip NY’s Right to Stop Constitution). We hope the DEC doesn’t repeat their tragic “Constitution” mistake with the Northern Access project. Last night, and again tonight and tomorrow night, the DEC is holding public hearings on the project in western NY. Interestingly, last night the crowd that turned up was about evenly split between those against the project, and those for it…
    Read More “Battle Begins to Get NY DEC to Approve Northern Access Project”

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    Anti-Pipeliners Meet with PA DEP Sec. McDonnell, Get No Satisfaction

    Acting Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) Secretary Patrick McDonnell held a “hastily arranged” meeting on Monday with several antis who are opposed to Sunoco Logistics Partners’ Mariner East 2 pipeline project. You may recall these same antis predicted the DEP would grant the final permits needed for Mariner East 2 last Friday (see Mariner East 2 Permits May Come Today – Antis Foment Civil Unrest). But as they so often are, they were wrong yet again. The permits did not appear on the appointed day. However, the permits are expected soon, and no doubt McDonnell held the meeting to help prepare them for that eventuality. (Snowflake antis have delicate sensibilities, dontcha know.) The meeting went on for some 70 minutes. The antis tried to get the DEP to further delay the project with another useless public comment period. The DEP has already received over 29,000 public comments–what’s left to be said? At the end of the meeting, the antis got (our words, their sentiment)–“no satisfaction”…
    Read More “Anti-Pipeliners Meet with PA DEP Sec. McDonnell, Get No Satisfaction”

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    PA DEP Seeks Public Comment on Regs for Methane, Compressor Stns

    In December the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) unveiled new regulations to clamp down on methane emissions and other other air pollution that allegedly comes from shale drilling sites (see PA DEP Releases New Regs re Methane & Air Pollution at Drill Sites). The onerous new regulations, not in effect yet (to be published “soon”) were originally prompted by bullying from the federal Environmental Protection Agency. Even though EPA pressure is likely to disappear under President Trump, PA Gov. Wolf still intends to push forward with these regulations. According to the DEP, the proposed General Permit 5A (GP-5A) and the revised General Permit 5 (GP-5), “establish updated Best Available Technology (BAT) requirements for the industry regarding air emission limits, source testing, leak detection and repair, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements for the applicable air pollution sources.” After some final tweaks, the DEP has just released draft versions of the new permits (i.e. regulations), opening them up for public comment over the next 45 days. At the end of that time, we expect it will take a month or so and then the DEP will publish the revised permits and they will become (in essence) the law. Below we have the DEP’s announcement in releasing the draft permits, along with copies of the draft permits and associated documentation…
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    In FERC’s Game of Musical Chairs, NEXUS Pipeline Left Standing

    When reporting on the flurry of Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approvals from last Friday, before Commissioner Norman Bay resigned in a huff over losing the chairmanship of the agency (and leaving the Commission with only two Commissioners, not enough to vote on more projects), we noticed there was one major Marcellus/Utica pipeline project that didn’t receive a final approval: the NEXUS Pipeline project. NEXUS is a $2 billion, 255-mile interstate pipeline that will run from Ohio through Michigan and eventually to the Dawn Hub in Ontario, Canada. It is a critically needed pipeline to move Utica and Marcellus Shale gas from an over-saturated market in the northeast to markets in the Midwest and Canada. It is a joint venture between DTE Energy and Spectra Energy. In December FERC issued a positive final Environmental Impact Statement (see FERC Approves NEXUS Pipeline, Project on Track for 2017). The only thing left is for FERC to issue a certificate of public convenience and necessity, to begin construction. That didn’t happen on Friday, which means the project is now delayed until at least one more FERC Commissioner is nominated and approved by the U.S. Senate so the Commission regains a voting quorum. In a sense, FERC could only rush through so many projects at the last minute, and in a game of musical chairs, the music stopped and NEXUS was left standing–without a chair. Is lack of a FERC decision last week an indicator that the project is in trouble? What happens now?…
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    NARUC President Powelson: Obama’s Energy Mandates are Toast

    Robert Powelson

    Rob Powelson is a member of the Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission (PUC). At one point, under then-Gov. Tom Corbett, Powelson was the PUC Chairman (see PA’s PUC Pro-Drilling Chairman Powelson Leads Mid-Atlantic Group). After Democrat Tom Wolf was elected as governor, he replaced Powelson with Gladys Brown as Chairwoman (see Anti-Drillers Cheer PA Gov Wolf’s New Appointment to Head PUC). However, Powelson remains on the PUC as a member. He’s one of the good guys–someone who supports shale energy. As we reported in November, Rob’s stature and reputation dramatically increased, yet again. He was elected as the next president of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, or NARUC (see PA PUC Commissioner Rob Powelson Elected as President of NARUC). He is serving a one-year term. It is not a full-time gig–he remains a commissioner with the PA PUC. NARUC is about to hold it’s annual winter meeting–the first big meet since Powelson began serving as president. Ahead of that meeting, Powelson was interviewed by the Washington Examiner. His comments are enlightening. Essentially, Powelson says Obama’s climate regulations (including the odious Clean Power Plan) are toast. Here’s what a common sense, shale-supporting intelligent person had to say about the end of Obama’s reign of environmental terror…
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    Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline Gets Final Approval by FERC

    Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline map – click for larger version

    Friday saw a flurry of activity at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)–the federal agency in charge of evaluating and authorizing interstate pipeline projects. Today is FERC-day on MDN, because there was so much news from Friday! Perhaps the most important news coming out of a list of approvals was FERC’s final blessing on Williams’ $3 billion Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline project–a 198-mile pipeline project running through 10 Pennsylvania counties to connect Marcellus Shale natural gas from PA with the Williams’ Transco pipeline in southern Lancaster County. In addition to the pipeline, two new compressor stations will get built, and when the whole thing is done, an extra 1.7 billion cubic feet per day of northeast PA Marcellus Shale gas (from Cabot Oil & Gas and Seneca Resources) will flow south. On Friday, FERC issued a final certificate for the project, allowing Williams to build it. We can’t wait until Williams goes through and knocks down the magic tree house built by environmental wackos in an attempt to stop the project (see PA Antis Build 2nd Magic Tree House to Stop Atlantic Sunrise Pipe). That’ll make for some great headlines when it happens. However, Williams isn’t starting up the bulldozers just yet. Before they can begin, Williams still needs permits from the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. However, permits from PA & the Army Corps is perfunctory. It’s now over. The antis have lost and the good guys have finally scored a victory! Construction will begin on the main portion of the pipeline in mid-2017…
    Read More “Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline Gets Final Approval by FERC”

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    ET Rover Pipeline Gets Final Approval by FERC

    ET Rover Pipeline map – click for larger version

    Perhaps the second most important (some might argue first in importance) pipeline to be approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) last Friday is Energy Transfer’s Rover Pipeline project. Rover is a $3.7 billion, 711-mile Marcellus/Utica natural gas pipeline that will run from PA, WV and eastern OH through OH into Michigan and eventually into Canada. Energy Transfer says with certificate in hand, they will have Phase 1 of the project done by July of this year, and Phase 2 by November of this year. Does that mean the bulldozers are already moving? Not just yet. The first thing to happen is tree clearing, which must be done by March 31 (you can be sure the chainsaws are already going this morning). Then FERC staff will check on things. There is still the outstanding issue that ET knocked down a historic house without permission (see Rover Pipeline in Hot Water Over Demolishing Historic House in OH). FERC is still sore over that one and withholding permission to begin the bulldozers until they decide on just how expensive the punishment will be. But the good news is that FERC has signed off, and the project will now get done–this year. Which drillers reserved capacity on Rover? Antero Resources, Eclipse Resources, EQT, Gulfport Energy, Rice Energy, Range Resources and Southwestern Energy…
    Read More “ET Rover Pipeline Gets Final Approval by FERC”

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    Rayne Xpress Gets FERC Approval to Begin Construction in KY

    Rayne XPress map – click for larger version

    In January, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) voted to approve and issue a certificate to Columbia Pipeine’s Leach XPress and Rayne XPress pipeline projects (see FERC Approves $1.8B Leach & Rayne XPress Pipeline Projects). The two projects work hand in glove to move Marcellus/Utica gas all the way to the Gulf Coast (see Columbia Gas: $1.75B for 2 Projects to Send Marcellus Gas to Gulf). You might think (as we did) that when FERC granted the final certificate, that would be the end of the story. Start the bulldozers, begin building! But no, such is not the way it works in bureaucrat-land. It seems FERC also needed to issue a “Mother May I?” certificate to begin construction, which they did on Friday (amidst a flurry of other certificates issued)…
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    NFG’s Northern Access Pipe in NY/PA Gets FERC Approval

    NFG’s Northern Access 2016 Pipeline map – click for larger version

    National Fuel Gas Company (NFG), the Buffalo-based utility giant with both a drilling subsidiary (Seneca Resources) and a midstream/pipeline subsidiary (Empire Pipeline) filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in March 2015 for a pipeline project they call Northern Access 2016 (later renamed to simply Northern Access Project, dropping the “2016” part). 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 (see NFG’s Marcellus Pipeline from NWPA to NY Hits Resistence). In July 2016, FERC issued a favorable Environmental Assessment, paving the path for full approval (see NFG’s Northern Access Pipeline Gets Favorable FERC Review). NFG had hoped to have the project done and in-service by November of this year. However, due to foot-dragging by FERC, NFG recently announced the project would get delayed (see FERC Delay Pushes Back NFG’s Northern Access Pipeline Project). Perhaps that announcement was premature? On Friday, FERC approved the project and granted NFG their certificate to build it, although NFG is still saying the new/delayed schedule is the schedule they will stick to in building it…
    Read More “NFG’s Northern Access Pipe in NY/PA Gets FERC Approval”

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    TGP Orion Project in NEPA Gets Final Approval by FERC

    TGP Orion Project map – click for larger version

    In October 2015, Kinder Morgan’s Tennessee Gas Pipeline (TGP) filed their official, full application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) seeking approval for their Orion Project (see Tennessee Gas Pipeline Files PA Orion Project with FERC). The project will cost $143 million and construct 13 miles of “looping” pipeline in Pike and Wayne counties, Pennsylvania. The project will boost capacity on the TGP by another 135 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d), allowing TGP to pump more Marcellus Shale gas to Mid-Atlantic and New England states. According to the original plan, the TGP Orion upgrade will be complete and in-service by June 2018. TGP told FERC if they didn’t get an approval by Jan. 31, all bets are off on the timing for building the project (see Kinder Morgan Asks FERC to Approve Orion Pipe Project by Jan 31). It was Feb. 3 and not Jan. 31, but we’re betting the project will now get done on time–because FERC granted the necessary certificate on Friday…
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    FERC Commissioner Norm Bay Targets M-U on Way Out the Door

    Looks to us like Donald Trump’s faith in Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Commissioner Cheryl LaFleur was well-placed. As we previously noted, Trump has put LaFluer in charge of the agency as Chairman, which caused the existing Chairman of FERC, Norm Bay, to resign in a huff (see FERC Commissioner Resigns Threatening Major M-U Pipeline Projects). LaFleur has been a FERC Commissioner since 2010 and was, at one time, the Chairman. Norm Bay was elevated by then-President Obama to become chairman, knocking LaFluer out of that role. Did she quit in a huff? No. She’s an adult. (By the way, both LaFleur and Bay are Democrats, so this isn’t a party thing.) When the shoe was on the other foot, Norm decided to take his marbles and go home, potentially damaging a bevy of important pipeline projects. With only two Commissioners left out of five slots, there isn’t a quorum and votes cannot be taken–until Trump gets new nominees approved. LaFleur has gotten more done in the past week that she’s been in charge than Bay got done over the past year–at least with respect to approving Marcellus/Utica projects (witness five key projects receiving approvals last Thursday/Friday that we’ve written about today). In one of the decisions issued by FERC last Friday, Bay got a final dig in on the Marcellus/Utica region by calling on FERC to exceed its constitutional authority and “analyze the environmental effects of increased regional gas production from the Marcellus and Utica” shale regions. Apparently Bay thinks there may be too many pipelines getting built, and he’s worried about man-made global warming, among other lefty things…
    Read More “FERC Commissioner Norm Bay Targets M-U on Way Out the Door”

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    Mariner East 2 Permits May Come Today – Antis Foment Civil Unrest

    According to rumors floating around the Pennsylvania environmental wacko movement, today is the day the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) will issue the final permits needed by Sunoco Logistic Partners to begin construction of the Mariner East 2 NGL pipeline that will stretch across the entire state. Neither Sunoco nor the DEP would confirm the rumor, but the wackos are agitated and saying their “inside sources” (of which they appear to have many) are telling them it’s today. And what if it happens? According to Maya van Rossum (THE Delaware Riverkeeper), the antis will employ their two favorite tactics: Sue in court, and whip up the more radical folks in the movement into a frenzy so they “rise up in protest.” You know, like the “protesters” (i.e. criminals) did in North Dakota–the ones who fired shots at police officers, burned tires, and engaged in illegal actions to stop work on the Dakota Access Pipeline (see Police Remove Pipeline Protesting THUGS from Private Land in ND). Here’s the latest from the rumor mill about the permits coming possibly today…
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    FERC Approves SC Pipeline to Flow Marcellus Gas to Charleston

    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). The antis will now get their chance to deliver on their big boasts. In what is turning out to be a busy week at FERC, the three remaining Commissioners granted Dominion the certificate to build the Transco to Charleston pipeline. Great news indeed!…
    Read More “FERC Approves SC Pipeline to Flow Marcellus Gas to Charleston”

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    Clean Energy Future Blasts Plan to Re-Regulate OH Powergen

    A few weeks ago MDN highlighted a developing issue in Ohio that potentially impacts Utica/Marcellus shale in the region (see OH Power Cos. Try to Stop Gas-Fired Plants with “Re-Regulation”). Three large utility companies–FirstEnergy, American Electric Power, and Dayton Power and Light–are behind an effort to re-regulate the electric power generation industry in Ohio. The electricity industry is a complicated industry, with some some power producers operating as “regulated” and some operating as “unregulated.” Regulated power producers have their rates, and rate of profit, set by government regulators–which limits profits but also guarantees profits. Unregulated power producers, on the other hand, do not have the safety net of the government forcing ratepayers to pony up–they operate in the free market, taking all of the risks, and reaping the rewards if those risks prove worthwhile. Many (most?) of the new natural gas-fired electric plants getting built, like those we have focused on in Ohio, are of the unregulated kind. If Ohio rolls back the clock 18 years to re-regulate, it would likely spell the end of billions of dollars of investments in unregulated/shale-powered electric plants. A disaster. And that’s just what Bill Siderewicz, president of Clean Energy Future (investing $4.5 billion in five new shale-fired electric plants in Ohio) said on a conference call yesterday…
    Read More “Clean Energy Future Blasts Plan to Re-Regulate OH Powergen”

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    Mass. Senators Ask FERC to Reverse Atlantic Bridge Certification

    Two of the most unfit Senators in the U.S. Senate are Ed Markey and the faux American Indian, Elizabeth Warren. Both radical extremists–both kind of loopy. So it is no surprise that they are calling on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to reverse the decision FERC made just last week to authorize Spectra Energy’s Atlantic Bridge project (see FERC Approves Atlantic Bridge Project for New England/Canada). What makes their request so bizarre is there isn’t a chance in Hates that FERC will reverse that decision–especially with President Donald J. Trump in charge (yes, elections have consequences). So why ask FERC to do it? Ostensibly antis like Markey and Warren are worried about FERC for the same reasons pro-gas supporters are worried. With the huffy departure of Commissioner Norman Bay today (calculated to do maximum damage to the Trump Administration), there won’t be enough Commissioners to make decisions on big pipeline projects (see FERC Commissioner Resigns Threatening Major M-U Pipeline Projects). Our concern is that important projects will get delayed. Markey/Warren’s concern is that already-approved projects, like Atlantic Bridge, won’t get a vote to reconsider for the same reason…
    Read More “Mass. Senators Ask FERC to Reverse Atlantic Bridge Certification”