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13 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Aug 28 – Sep 3

New shale permits issued for Aug 28 – Sep 3 in the Marcellus/Utica continued to decline. There were 13 new permits issued last week, down from 16 issued two weeks ago, and way down from the 27 issued three weeks ago. Last week’s permit tally included 8 new permits in Pennsylvania, 5 new permits in Ohio, and no new permits in West Virginia (WV has issued no permits in five of the last six weeks). Three drillers tied for the top recipient with a piddly 3 permits each: Chesapeake Energy, Snyder Brothers, and Southwestern Energy.
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KeyState NatGas/CCUS Project in Clinton, PA Now $2B, Extra 2 Yrs

The KeyState Natural Gas Synthesis project in Clinton County, PA, is developing the first carbon capture project in Pennsylvania, which will locally produce hydrogen, ammonia, and urea (see Innovative Clinton County, PA Petchem Plant Gets More Investors). The project includes a closed natural gas extraction and manufacturing system that produces zero emissions and emission-reduced products. The last time we checked, the estimated cost to build the project was $400-$500 million, and it would be up and running by the end of 2026. Strike that! In an update, the project (which is under construction) will take upward of $2 billion (!) to build and won’t be ready until “2027 or 2028.” However, the extra money and extra time are a good sign.
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Bad Guys Win – Builder Cancels $1B Renovo Gas-Fired Power Plant

The same three radicalized environmental groups that have repeatedly attacked the $1.1 billion Renovo Energy Center (REC), a Marcellus gas-fired power plant planned for Clinton County, PA, have finally won. The Clean Air Council, PennFuture, and the Center for Biological Diversity (all completely radicalized fossil fuel bigots) have repeatedly challenged permits for REC. Last week the builder of the project, Bechtel Corp., announced it is pulling out of the project which has been in the planning stages for eight years. The reason for canceling the project is because of “the ongoing appeals from environmental groups.” What a tragedy.
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PA DEP Extends Renovo Gas-Fired Plant Permit, Radicals Appeal

The same three radicalized environmental groups that previously attacked the Renovo Energy Center (REC), a Marcellus gas-fired power plant planned for Clinton County, PA, are at it again. On November 22, the Clean Air Council, PennFuture, and the Center for Biological Diversity (all completely radicalized fossil fuel bigots) announced they had appealed an extension of time for an air pollution permit granted to REC by the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP).
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Nikola Trucks Will Use Hydrogen from KeyState’s PA NatGas Project

Nikola TRE FCEV

The KeyState Natural Gas Synthesis project in Clinton County, PA, is developing the first carbon capture project in Pennsylvania, which will locally produce hydrogen, ammonia, and urea (see Innovative Clinton County, PA Petchem Plant Gets More Investors). The $400-$500 million project will drill for the natural gas, transport and process it, and manufacture the end products–all within a self-contained, closed loop, nearly eliminating emissions by capturing and sequestering the carbon underground in the process. KeyState now has a major customer lined up to use the hydrogen it will produce: Nikola Corporation.
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Renovo Energy Center Signals It Will Comply with Lower Air Permit

Last week MDN told you that three radical environmental groups challenging an air permit issued by the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) for the Renovo Energy Center, a Marcellus-fired power plant in Clinton County, PA, won a partial summary judgment lowering the amount of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) the new plant can emit (see Radicals Win Challenge Against Renovo Energy Center in NCPA). At the time, we asked the question, “Is this a fatal blow for the $1 billion project and the 700 jobs attached to it?” We now have the answer…
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Radicals Win Challenge Against Renovo Energy Center in NCPA

In May 2021, the radicals from PennFuture, the Philadelphia-based Clean Air Council, and the so-called Center for Biological Diversity (better named the Center for Leftwing Conformity) challenged an air permit issued by the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) for the Renovo Energy Center, a Marcellus-fired power plant in Clinton County (northcentral), PA (see PA DEP Approves Renovo Energy Center in Clinton Cnty, Antis Appeal). The state Environmental Hearing Board (EHB), a special court set up to hear challenges of DEP decisions, ruled earlier this week that the radicals are correct and the DEP should not have issued an air permit with “high” levels of sulfur dioxide and VOCs (volatile organic compounds). Is this a fatal blow for the $1 billion project and the 700 jobs attached to it?
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29 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jun 20-26

Last week, for June 20-26, the number of new permits issued to drill in the Marcellus/Utica decreased just a bit to 29 (from 34 the week prior). Pennsylvania issued 15 new permits, all but one in southwestern PA. Five of PA’s permits went to PennEnergy Resources in Butler County, four to Range Resources in Washington County, and three to Apex Energy in Westmoreland County. Ohio issued 10 new permits with five going to Encino Energy (EAP) in Carroll County and three going to Ascent Resources in Belmont County. Finally, West Virginia issued four new permits, all of them to Tug Hill Operating. In each case the permits were for multiple wells on single well pads.
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OGCI Invests in PA KeyState Natural Gas/CCUS Project

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Earlier this week the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI) Climate Investments fund announced it is investing in the KeyState Natural Gas Synthesis project in Clinton County, PA. KeyState is developing the first carbon capture project in Pennsylvania, which will locally produce hydrogen, ammonia and urea. The $400-$500 million project will drill for the natural gas, transport and process it, and manufacture the end products–all within a self-contained, closed loop, nearly eliminating emissions by capturing and sequestering the carbon underground in the process.
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Clinton County Renovo Gas-Fired Plant On Hold Due to Air Permit

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In 2020, MDN told you about the Marcellus-fired power plant planned for Clinton County, PA called the Renovo Energy Center, a resurrected project come back to life as an even bigger project that will produce 1,240 megawatts of electricity (see Renovo Energy Center Roars Back to Life, Upsized to 1,240 MW). The PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) approved the project in April 2021, including an amended air quality permit (see Update on Renovo Marcellus-Fired Plant in Clinton County, PA). Last night Clinton County commissioners voted unanimously to support the project. But there’s a problem…
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61 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jan 17-23

Holy smokes! What just happened? For months (and months and months) the cumulative number of weekly permits issued to drill new shale wells in the Marcellus/Utica has fluctuated from the low teens to perhaps 30 total on the upper end. Last week, from Jan. 17-23, an amazing 61 permits were issued to drill new shale wells. Double the usual. Wow! Pennsylvania issued 24 new permits, Ohio issued 9, and blow-the-doors-off-we’ve-never-seen-so-many-permits-issued-in-one-week for West Virginia, the Mountain State issued 28 new shale permits.
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16 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Nov 1-7

Three weeks ago the total number of permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica was 22. Two weeks ago it fell to 9. Last week the numbers picked up somewhat, with 16 new permits issued, breaking down as: 12 permits issued in Pennsylvania, 2 permits issued in Ohio, and 2 permits issued in West Virginia.
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Update on Renovo Marcellus-Fired Plant in Clinton County, PA

Artist rendering for Renovo power plant (click for larger version)

Good news about the Marcellus-fired power plant planned for Clinton County, PA called the Renovo Energy Center. According to the CEO of the Clinton County Economic Partnership, Mike Flanagan, the Renovo project “continues with plans to locate a power plant at the former Renovo Industrial Park.” According to reports, demolition and construction will likely begin later this year on the $850 million project.
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Antis Stoke Opposition to Renovo Gas-Fired Plant in Clinton Cnty, PA

Rally against Renovo Energy Center (credit: Clinton County Record)

Last fall MDN told you that a Marcellus-fired power plant planned for Clinton County, PA called the Renovo Energy Center, had come back to life as an even bigger project that will produce 1,240 megawatts of electricity when it gets built (see Renovo Energy Center Roars Back to Life, Upsized to 1,240 MW). The PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) approved the project in April, including an amended air quality permit. Anti-fossil groups, including PennFuture, the Philadelphia-based Clean Air Council, and the so-called Center for Biological Diversity (better named the Center for Leftwing Conformity) sued to overturn the DEP-issued permit for the plant (see PA DEP Approves Renovo Energy Center in Clinton Cnty, Antis Appeal). The antis are stoking irrational fear among local residents against the project.
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PA DEP Approves Renovo Energy Center in Clinton Cnty, Antis Appeal

Last fall MDN told you that a Marcellus-fired power plant planned for Clinton County, PA called the Renovo Energy Center, had come back to life as an even bigger project that will produce 1,240 megawatts of electricity when it gets built (see Renovo Energy Center Roars Back to Life, Upsized to 1,240 MW). We’ve just discovered that on April 29, the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) approved the project, including an amended air quality permit. Anti-fossil groups, including PennFuture, the Philadelphia-based Clean Air Council, and the so-called Center for Biological Diversity (better named the Center for Leftwing Conformity) have sued to overturn the DEP-issued permit for the plant.
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Alta Resources Shopping 547K Marcellus Acres, Asking $3B

We don’t write much about Alta Resources, a shale drilling company co-founded by the inventor of shale fracking, George Mitchell. But that doesn’t mean Alta doesn’t drill in the Marcellus. The company owns some 547,000 gross (239,000 net) acres producing natural gas from approximately 900 wells in the Marcellus Shale across Bradford, Wyoming, Sullivan, Lycoming, Clinton, and Centre counties in northeast Pennsylvania. Alta is shopping all of their considerable Marcellus assets, looking for a buyer.
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