Trump Army Corps IDs Dozens of M-U Projects for Emergency Review
On President Trump’s very first day in office, he signed an executive order called “Declaring a National Energy Emergency” (see Trump EO Declares National Energy Emergency – “Drill, Baby, Drill!”). Trump’s EO prioritizes completing energy infrastructure projects, like pipelines. It specifically talks about the Clean Water Act’s Sections 403 and 404, which states like New York have used to block new pipelines. The EO contains this sentence: “Agencies are directed to use, to the fullest extent possible and consistent with applicable law, the emergency Army Corps of Engineers permitting provisions to facilitate the Nation’s energy supply.” The Army Corps recently marked for fast-track review more than 600 applications for permits. A number of them (dozens) are for shale wells and pipelines in the Marcellus/Utica region. Read More “Trump Army Corps IDs Dozens of M-U Projects for Emergency Review”
Pennsylvania State Senator Katie Muth (Democrat from Berks, Chester, and Montgomery counties) is clever and dedicated in her mission to halt shale drilling in the Keystone State. We’ve written plenty about Muth over the years (
We’re still coming to grips with understanding how the power generation market works with respect to providing electricity for AI data centers. Data centers can potentially be huge and important new customers for natural gas—especially Marcellus/Utica molecules, as some 25% of all the data centers currently operating in the country are located in northern Virginia, where they use M-U molecules. Ten days ago, we brought you a post to help you better understand the various scenarios for how powergen gets provided to these data centers (see 
At the end of December, Venture Global’s Plaquemines LNG export facility officially shipped its first cargo…to Germany (see 
For years, we’ve warned you about the potential for insanely high natural gas costs and even blackouts in New England. We’ve written post after post after post about Massachusetts then-Attorney General (now Governor) Maura Healey, a radical leftist who has consistently blocked new pipeline projects that would deliver cheap, clean, abundant Marcellus gas to her state (
Two days ago, President Trump signed yet another executive order, this one called “Ensuring Accountability for All Agencies.” We’ve lost count of how many he’s signed! This latest EO is a really, hairy, big deal. This EO gives the president sweeping control over the budgets, policies, and regulations of independent U.S. agencies that oversee the energy sector, financial markets, trade, and transportation. Agencies like the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Predictably, the left is shouting, “Dictator!” They are in full meltdown mode. The right is arguing the 50+ “independent” agencies created by Congress (but nominally under the Executive Branch) are an unelected bureaucracy not accountable to anyone—not to the President, not to Congress, and not to the courts. 
During President Trump’s first term, he tried to change (tweak) the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to strip away some of the governmental red tape that has built up over the years, like plaque in an artery, preventing important infrastructure projects like pipelines, dams, bridges, and roads from getting built (see 
Have you ever considered all the different goods and services required to plug an orphaned well? It’s a surprisingly long and complex list! You might think (as we did), “There’s an old well, pull up with a cement mixer, dump cement down the hole, and voila, it’s done.” Not so! The process begins with locating orphaned/abandoned wells, using drones and other equipment to sniff out leaking old wells, and attempting to ascertain ownership (land records, title searches, etc.). Then, there’s preparing the site (permits required), doing the work, and monitoring after it’s done. It’s a looooong list. 
Newly-confirmed Secretary of Energy, Chris Wright, appeared virtually before the ARC Conference in London yesterday. ARC stands for The Alliance for Responsible Citizenship, an international movement with a vision for a better world where empowered citizens take responsibility and work together to bring flourishing and prosperity to their families, communities, and nations. The ARC organization tilts right. During a Q&A interview, Wright shared some fantastic truths, among them: “Net zero 2050 is a sinister goal, it’s a terrible goal.” He also said that countries that set net zero goals “export your industry.” And net-zero “is not energy transition” but instead “is lunacy.” Three cheers for Chris Wright! 
Never in our wildest dreams did we see this one coming. And we must caution against too much hope. However, we are JAZZED. Last Friday, President Trump signed yet another executive order. This EO creates the National Energy Dominance Council, directing the new council to move quickly to increase domestic oil and gas production (see our companion post today for details). During comments with reporters at the EO signing, Trump vowed to complete the long-dead Pennsylvania Marcellus to New York State Constitution Pipeline! Trump’s own words: “We are going to get this done, and once we start construction, we’re looking at anywhere from nine to 12 months.” Holy smokes!!!! 
President Trump signed an executive order Friday establishing the National Energy Dominance Council. The Council will be chaired by Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum and vice-chaired by Energy Secretary Chris Wright. The other members are essentially all of the cabinet members, the secretaries of the other executive branch agencies, including State, Treasury, Defense, Justice, Agriculture, Commerce, Transportation, EPA, and a litany of others. Among the instructions (duties) of the new Council is this: “Advise the President on how best to exercise his authority to produce more energy to make America energy dominant.” During a confab with reporters, President Trump said, “We have more energy than any other country, and now we’re unleashing it.” The council will advise the president on energy markets, investments, and how to keep the cost of energy down for Americans. 
Last December, MDN told you that the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection could find $600,000 to blow on “environmental justice” nonsense, but the very next day, it cried poverty that there’s not enough money in the budget to fund the Oil and Gas Regulatory Program (see 
Something is going on in the State of Maryland. Last week, we told you that the Democrat leadership in the Maryland state legislature was pushing a bill that would rechristen gas-fired power as “green” and make it easier to build new gas-fired power plants in the state (see 
Yesterday, MDN told you that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved a “fast-track” plan from the country’s largest electric grid, PJM Interconnection (which covers all or parts of 13 states, including PA, OH, and WV) to change how the grid operator decides which new power plants can connect to the system first (see