Statewide OH

Electrical Generation | Energy Services | FirstEnergy | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Ohio | Statewide OH

FirstEnergy Fires CEO, OH Cities Sue to Block Nuke Bailout Pymts
November 2, 2020November 2, 2020

It’s all starting to come undone for FirstEnergy Corporation. Last week two of Ohio’s three largest cities sued to block annual $150 million payments to FirstEnergy’s Energy Harbor subsidiary on the basis those payments are ill-gotten gain, the result of FirstEnergy bribing government officials to pass House Bill 6 (HB 6) and keep it passed (see FirstEnergy Involved in Bribery Scheme to Pass $1B Nuke Bailout Law). Also happening last week: FirstEnergy’s board of directors fired its CEO and two other senior managers in light of the mushrooming scandal.
Read More “FirstEnergy Fires CEO, OH Cities Sue to Block Nuke Bailout Pymts”
Crime | Electrical Generation | Energy Services | FirstEnergy | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH

2 Defendants Plead Guilty in $60M FirstEnergy Nuclear Bribery Case
October 30, 2020October 30, 2020

In July, now-former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and four of his associates were indicted for felonies related to an alleged $60 million bribery scandal in passing the hugely unpopular House Bill 6 (see FirstEnergy Involved in Bribery Scheme to Pass $1B Nuke Bailout Law). HB 6 gives Energy Harbor, a FirstEnergy subsidiary, $150 million per year for seven years ($1.1 billion) in ratepayer funds to prop up the company’s uneconomic nuclear power plants.
Read More “2 Defendants Plead Guilty in $60M FirstEnergy Nuclear Bribery Case”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Statewide OH | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

PA, OH, WV: Watch Biden in His Own Words on Fracking, Fossil Fuels
October 13, 2020October 13, 2020

Donald Trump is NOT lying about Joe Biden and the words Biden has used about his desire to ban fracking *and* eliminate the use of fossil fuels. We have the video (below) showing clips from various Biden events where he unequivocally states he will ban fracking, and (in time) eliminate the use of all fossil fuels. This is Biden in his own words. So was Biden lying then? Or is he lying now?
Read More “PA, OH, WV: Watch Biden in His Own Words on Fracking, Fossil Fuels”
Crime | Electrical Generation | Energy Services | FirstEnergy | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Regulation | Statewide OH

Judge Refuses to Block New FirstEnergy Bribes to Ohio Politicians
October 5, 2020October 5, 2020

This is extremely frustrating. FirstEnergy subsidiary Energy Harbor is accused of bribing former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and several of his associates to pass (and stay passed) a $1.1 billion bailout bill that funnels electric ratepayer (i.e. taxpayer) money into the hands of FirstEnergy, to prop up two uneconomic and failing nuclear power plants (see FirstEnergy Involved in Bribery Scheme to Pass $1B Nuke Bailout Law). It’s happening all over again.
Read More “Judge Refuses to Block New FirstEnergy Bribes to Ohio Politicians”
Ohio | Statewide OH

Utica Shale Operators Look Forward to a Better 2021
September 30, 2020September 30, 2020

Last Thursday our friend Joe Barone from Shale Directories hosted the 2020 version of the annual Utica Midstream Conference in Canton, OH. Unfortunately, we could not attend. However, Joe has written up a great summary of what was said. The overriding theme of the day? Optimism for 2021.
Read More “Utica Shale Operators Look Forward to a Better 2021”
Electrical Generation | Energy Services | FirstEnergy | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH

Ohio AG Files Charges Against FirstEnergy in Nuke Bribery Case
September 28, 2020September 28, 2020

Last week Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost filed a racketeering lawsuit against FirstEnergy, former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder, and four of Householder’s associates, all related to an alleged $60 million bribery scandal in passing the hugely unpopular House Bill 6 (see FirstEnergy Involved in Bribery Scheme to Pass $1B Nuke Bailout Law). HB 6 gives Energy Harbor, a FirstEnergy subsidiary, $150 million per year for seven years ($1.1 billion) in ratepayer funds to prop up the company’s uneconomic nuclear power plants.
Read More “Ohio AG Files Charges Against FirstEnergy in Nuke Bribery Case”
Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Research | Statewide OH | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

PA & OH Natural Gas Production Nosedived Last Week, Down 2 Bcf/d
September 25, 2020September 25, 2020

Two days ago MDN brought you news that natural gas prices in the Marcellus/Utica region are about to get really ugly, at least for the next couple of months (see Ugly Gas Prices Coming to M-U – Demand Falls More than Production). We now have the other side of the coin to share. M-U producers are shutting-in gas production like crazy. Last week M-U gas flows went down a huge 2 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d)–from 32 to 30 Bcf/d.
Read More “PA & OH Natural Gas Production Nosedived Last Week, Down 2 Bcf/d”
Economic Impact | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH

Sec. of Energy Dan Brouillette Touts Ohio Fossil & Petchem Energy
September 21, 2020September 21, 2020

DOE Secretary Dan Brouillette

U.S. Dept. of Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette published an op-ed in the Warren, OH Tribune Chronicle to tout Ohio’s place as the fifth-largest natural gas producer in the country, and the Trump Administration’s support for and hope that it continues. Brouillette says Ohio has “only scratched the surface” of its energy and economic potential, thanks to the Utica Shale.
Read More “Sec. of Energy Dan Brouillette Touts Ohio Fossil & Petchem Energy”
Electrical Generation | Energy Services | FirstEnergy | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Regulation | Statewide OH

Ohio Lawmakers Make Case to Repeal HB 6 Nuke Bailout Law
September 17, 2020September 17, 2020

There are at least a few honest politicians in Columbus, Ohio. Last week several Ohio state legislators made the case to overturn House Bill (HB) 6. Last year FirstEnergy Solutions (now called Energy Harbor) allegedly paid $60 million in bribes to (now former) Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and four of his associates to gain their assistance in passing the hugely unpopular HB 6 (see FirstEnergy Involved in Bribery Scheme to Pass $1B Nuke Bailout Law). HB 6 gives Energy Harbor $150 million per year for seven years ($1.1 billion) in ratepayer funds to prop up the company’s uneconomic nuclear power plants (disadvantaging other energy sources, like gas-fired power plants).
Read More “Ohio Lawmakers Make Case to Repeal HB 6 Nuke Bailout Law”
Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | NEXUS Pipeline | Ohio | Pipelines | Regulation | Statewide OH

FERC Says NEXUS Approval in Public Interest re Exports to Canada
September 9, 2020September 9, 2020

In late 2018 a fringe environmental group called the Coalition to Reroute NEXUS (CORN), along with the City of Oberlin, Ohio, filed yet another lawsuit (with the D.C. Court of Appeals) to nullify the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) original decision to approve the NEXUS Pipeline project that runs through Ohio (see CORNballs Return, Ask DC Court to Shut Down NEXUS Pipe). Their argument is that if any of the gas flowing through a pipeline gets exported (to Canada, in this case), the project is not in the (American) public interest and therefore it should not get approved.
Read More “FERC Says NEXUS Approval in Public Interest re Exports to Canada”
Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Research | Statewide OH

Ohio Utica Shale Production Falls in 2Q20, Down 2nd Qtr in Row
September 3, 2020September 3, 2020

Each quarter the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) issues an update on Utica (and Marcellus) oil and natural gas production. Apparently ODNR no longer issues a summary press release as they once did. They have, however, published a detailed spreadsheet of all active wells showing oil and gas production by well, which we have below. We do our own summary to show you the top 25 shale gas wells and top 25 shale oil wells for the quarter. We also have a summary of the overall results from the experts at S&P Global Platts.
Read More “Ohio Utica Shale Production Falls in 2Q20, Down 2nd Qtr in Row”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH

Ohio Grange: Fatal Blow for OH Farmers if Biden Bans Fracking
September 3, 2020September 3, 2020

Although Joe Biden is protesting (the lefty doth protest too much, methinks) that he would not ban “all” fracking if he’s elected president, his own words and the words of his pick for VP (Kamala Harris) say otherwise. Biden has endorsed most of the Green New Deal platform pushed by crazy Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Occasional-Cortex (AOC). So yes, if Biden is elected, fracking is pretty much done. Over. Fini. If fracking is banned, according to the Ohio State Grange it will be a catastrophe for farmers in the Buckeye State. Some farmers (many) will simply go out of business.
Read More “Ohio Grange: Fatal Blow for OH Farmers if Biden Bans Fracking”
Energy Services | FirstEnergy | Ohio | Statewide OH

How Many More OH Legislators Guilty of Bribes in FirstEnergy Case?
August 28, 2020August 28, 2020

We’ll ask the question no one else dares to ask publicly: How many more Ohio legislators are in the back pocket of FirstEnergy (i.e. Energy Harbor), guilty of taking part in an alleged $60 million bribery scandal that paid politicians to ensure Energy Harbor would get $1.1 billion of ratepayers’ money to prop up their economically failing nuclear power plants? It sure seems like there may be other Ohio legislators who have been paid off too, given their unwillingness to support the effort to overturn House Bill (HB) 6 and end the gravy train for Energy Harbor.
Read More “How Many More OH Legislators Guilty of Bribes in FirstEnergy Case?”
Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Monroe County | Mountaineer NGL Storage | NGLs | Ohio | Statewide OH

Colluding Big Green Groups Sue to Stop Ohio NGL Storage Hub
August 25, 2020August 25, 2020

A group of far-left, so-called environmental groups, including, Earthjustice, Buckeye Environmental Network, Concerned Ohio River Residents, Freshwater Accountability Project, Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition and the Sierra Club, are suing the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) in an attempt to overturn permits issued by ODNR to build an underground NGL storage hub in Monroe County, Ohio.
Read More “Colluding Big Green Groups Sue to Stop Ohio NGL Storage Hub”
Electrical Generation | Energy Services | FirstEnergy | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH

Big Ad Campaign Starts in Ohio to Repeal HB 6 Nuke Bailout Law
August 25, 2020August 25, 2020

FirstEnergy Solutions (now called Energy Harbor) allegedly paid $60 million in bribes to (now former) Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and four of his associates to gain their assistance in passing the hugely unpopular House Bill 6 (see FirstEnergy Involved in Bribery Scheme to Pass $1B Nuke Bailout Law). HB 6, which became law, gives Energy Harbor $150 million per year for seven years ($1.1 billion) in ratepayer funds to prop up the company’s uneconomic nuclear power plants (disadvantaging other energy sources, like gas-fired power plants). A new ad campaign intends to hold Ohio legislators’ feet to the fire in an effort to completely repeal HB 6.
Read More “Big Ad Campaign Starts in Ohio to Repeal HB 6 Nuke Bailout Law”
Electrical Generation | Energy Services | FirstEnergy | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Ohio | Statewide OH

Ohio AG Asks Court to Stop Payments to FirstEnergy Nuke Plants
August 20, 2020August 20, 2020

FirstEnergy Solutions (now called Energy Harbor) allegedly paid $60 million in bribes to (now former) Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and four of his associates to gain their assistance in passing the hugely unpopular House Bill 6 (see FirstEnergy Involved in Bribery Scheme to Pass $1B Nuke Bailout Law). HB 6, which became law, gives Energy Harbor $1.1 billion in ratepayer funds over seven years to prop up the company’s uneconomic nuclear power plants (disadvantaging other energy sources, like gas-fired power plants). Ohio’s Attorney General is asking a bankruptcy court to stop those annual $150 million payments.
Read More “Ohio AG Asks Court to Stop Payments to FirstEnergy Nuke Plants”