The Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) issued fourth-quarter 2019 numbers for Utica shale oil and gas production last Friday. The numbers show new state record highs for quarterly oil and natural gas production, the most ever since quarterly reporting began in 2013. Utica oil production was up 17% over 4Q18, and Utica natural gas production was up 3.2% over 4Q18.
Read More “Ohio Utica O&G Production Hits New Record High in 4Q19”
Tri-State Environmental has filed for permits to build two new brine (i.e. shale wastewater) injection wells in Kirkwood Township, Belmont County, Ohio. Meanwhile, another new injection well planned for Belmont (Omni Energy), which we told you about last summer (see Belmont County Injection Well Plan Stirs Opposition from Coal Co.), continues to make progress.
Read More “Company Asks to Build 2 New Injection Wells in Belmont County, OH”
Last week MDN told you that PTT Global Chemical’s CEO signalled that a final investment decision (FID) on whether (or not) to build a multi-billion dollar ethane cracker in Belmont County, OH is coming by “mid-year 2020” (see PTT CEO Sends Loud & Clear Signal of Positive FID on OH Cracker). Here we are a few days later and the company has issued a statement to say activity at the site to push dirt around will soon slow down, perhaps even stop. But don’t worry, that’s NOT a sign (says the company) that they’ve lost interest in the project.
Read More “PTT Says Work at Future Cracker Site to Temporarily Slow/Stop”
A “locally organized industrial development company”–called Orin Holdings–says it will build two state-of-the-art gas-to-liquids plants on a 500-acre parcel in Saline Township in Jefferson County, OH. Orin says (in so many words) this isn’t your father’s old refining complex. This is something brand new and better. “It will operate more cleanly and efficiently than any plant of its kind, utilizing state-of-the-art instrumentation and controls technology to fully comply with today’s stringent environmental and safety requirements.” The plants will be fed by Marcellus and Utica ethane.
Read More “2 New Gas-to-Liquids Plants Coming to Jefferson County, OH”
It was April 2015 when PTT Global Chemical, a huge petrochemical company based in Thailand, first announced they would consider building an ethane cracker plant in Ohio (see It’s Official: Belmont County Chosen as POSSIBLE Cracker Plant Site). Since that time PTT has purchased land for the plant and has even been seen moving dirt around at the site (see Dirt Being Moved at PTT Ohio Ethane Cracker Site – Still no FID). We’ve been somewhat critical of PTT over the years, chiding them because they’ve teased a “final investment decision” (FID) is just around the corner. The alluded to dates came and went–and still no FID. (Why do you build me up, buttercup, baby just to let me down, and mess me around?) Here we go again. PTT’s CEO has just announced the company is “on track” to make an FID on the Ohio cracker project “by mid-2020.”
Read More “PTT CEO Sends Loud & Clear Signal of Positive FID on OH Cracker”
Ascent Resources, originally founded as American Energy Partners by gas legend Aubrey McClendon, is a privately-held company that focuses 100% on the Ohio Utica Shale. The company recently issued its full-year 2019 update with a look at what it plans for 2020. Ascent is Ohio’s largest natural gas producer, and 2019 was a VERY good year for the company’s production. Average daily production zoomed up 45% from 2018, to 1.97 billion cubic feet equivalent per day (Bcfe/d). Of that number, some 1.8 Bcf/d was natural gas, and oil production was 13,000 barrels/d. Most importantly, Ascent made a profit of $466 million in 2019, compared to losing $4 million in 2018. Way to go!
Read More “Ascent Resources: Prod. Up 45% in ’19, Spending Down 42% in ’20”
Bills aimed at clamping down on illegal pipeline protests (which pretending to be free speech but aren’t) have been introduced in both the Ohio and West Virginia legislatures. In WV, House Bill (HB) 4615 passed the House last week and is now under active consideration in the WV Senate. In Ohio, Senate Bill (SB) 133 was passed last May. The bill was recently reported out of a House committee and likely to see a full House vote soon. It’s obvious that regular folks are tired of radicals and their illegal attempts to block pipeline projects.
Read More “Proposed OH, WV Laws Clamp Down on Illegal Pipeline Protests”
The Ohio Supreme Court ruled yesterday that the Ohio tax commissioner correctly charged Tallgrass Energy’s Rockie Express (REX) pipeline $2 million in excise tax (based on $699 million of income), for gas transported from and to (within) Ohio. REX claimed it did not owe the tax because the same law that exempts gas transported out of state applies to gas sales in-state. But the tax commission, and now the Supremes, say that the portion of gas transported through REX that stays in Ohio is not exempt and can be taxed. So pay up.
Read More “OH Supreme Court Rules REX Pipe Owes $2M in Excise Tax”
It amazes us that we now have to defend perhaps the greatest advancement to the longevity of not only humankind but all species on planet earth. That advancement is PLASTICS. Yes, plastics. The invention of plastic and its uses on Mom Earth has made our lives better. Plastics, contrary to the current popular mythology, have extended human and animal life. And yet, even the companies that build giant cracker plants to create raw plastic pellets (for further use in thousands of plastic products) must now bow down before environmental crackpots to declare their concern (even dislike) of the very thing they produce: plastic. It’s bizarre.
Read More “PTT Voices Concerns re Plastics; Still No Decision to Build OH Cracker”
We’re now a couple of months shy of the fifth anniversary for when PTT first announced they would consider building an ethane cracker plant in Ohio (see It’s Official: Belmont County Chosen as POSSIBLE Cracker Plant Site). Since that time, PTT has purchased land for the plant, and last fall was seen moving dirt around at the property (see Dirt Being Moved at PTT Ohio Ethane Cracker Site – Still no FID). Even without a final investment decision (FID) to build, the State of Ohio continues to invest money in the project–another $20 million last week.
Read More “Ohio Invests Another $20M in PTT Cracker Site, $70M Total So Far”
Montage Resources provided a sneak preview yesterday for what to expect in 2020. You may recall Montage is the name of the company that resulted after the merger of Eclipse Resources with Blue Ridge Mountain Resources 11 months ago (see Blue Ridge Merges with Eclipse, Renamed to Montage Resources). Montage says it will drill 65% of its 2020 wells in the Ohio Marcellus. You read that right–the Marcellus play in Ohio!
Read More “Montage Resources 2020 Sneak Preview: More OH Marcellus Drilling”
The Ohio Supreme Court, on Christmas Eve, threw a lifeline to an effort to overturn an Ohio law that provides corporate welfare in the form of $1 billion of ratepayer (taxpayer) money to FirstEnergy, which recently changed its name to Energy Harbor (see OH Supreme Court Keeps Door Open to Reverse $1B Nuke Bailout). Last week the Supremes snatched the lifeline away and the current effort to block the $1 billion bailout is officially dead.
Read More “Legal Effort to Overturn FirstEnergy $1B Ohio Nuke Bailout Dead”
Last May the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) finally, after a months-long delay, issued a favorable environmental assessment (EA) for the Buckeye XPress (BXP) pipeline project (see Buckeye XPress Pipe Project in OH, WV Gets Favorable FERC Review). In October, Columbia (i.e. TC Energy) tried to goose FERC into issuing a final approval to build the project. Last Thursday FERC finally granted that approval–once again after a months-long delay.
Read More “TC Energy/Columbia Finally Get FERC Approval for Buckeye XPress”
Yesterday the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it has reached a settlement with Gulfport Energy over alleged air emissions violations found at 17 well pad locations Gulfport operates in the Ohio Utica. The violations happened in 2015. The settlement includes Gulfport paying $1.7 million in fines and spending another $2 million in “improvements” to cut down on volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions at the 17 well pads.
Read More “EPA Fines Gulfport $1.7M for Clean Air Violations in Ohio Utica”
The $4.2 billion, 713-mile Rover Pipeline system that flows Marcellus/Utica natural gas from western PA and eastern OH all the way to Canada, placed the final two pieces of the system online in November 2018 (see FERC OKs Final 2 Rover Pipeline Laterals – Now 100% Online). The mainline Rover pipeline flows 3.25 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d). Rover wants to expand that capacity without any new equipment and without any additional cost. How do they plan to pull that rabbit out of their hat?
Read More “Rover Pipe Wants to Flow Extra 175 MMcf/d – No Extra Cost/Equipment”
In a phenomenally complex court case decided last July by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, Columbia Gas (TC Energy) won the right to continue storing natural gas in an underground storage field near Medina, Ohio. The landowners, who claim Columbia owes them (more) money for using the land under their property, appealed the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. The Supremes turned it down yesterday, meaning the Sixth Circuit ruling stands.
Read More “Fed Court Rules Columbia has Right to Use OH Gas Storage Field”