PA RGGI Carbon Tax Gets Court Date of May 4
Yesterday MDN brought you the news that the Pennsylvania State Senate failed to override a veto of Gov. Tom Wolf of a resolution that would have stopped PA from entering the so-called Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), an obscene carbon tax scheme (see PA Senate Fails to Override Wolf Veto of RGGI Carbon Tax Bill). The only thing that now remains to block the disastrous RGGI from taking effect is a lawsuit filed by PA Senate Republicans. We have a fast-approaching date of May 4, a court hearing on the lawsuit to consider whether or not the court should keep RGGI paused until the full lawsuit against it can be heard.
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Last week Pennsylvania issued 14 new shale well permits, with EQT Corp. grabbing eight (seven of them on a single pad in Fayette County), and Coterra Energy (formerly Cabot Oil & Gas) receiving three (all on the same pad in Susquehanna County). Ohio issued ten new permits last week, with three going to a relative newcomer, Utica Resource Operating (same pad in Guernsey Count) and three for Encino Energy (same pad in Harrison County). West Virginia got skunked and shows no new shale permits issued last week. Pity.
Yesterday the Pennsylvania State Senate failed to override a veto of Gov. Tom Wolf of a resolution that would have stopped PA from entering the so-called Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), an obscene carbon tax scheme. The override failed by a single vote. Wolf’s patsy, Dept. of Environmental Protection Secretary Pat McDonnell, gushed that he was “pleased” with the failure of the override. What happens now? A lawsuit lingers that can still block RGGI, but if that doesn’t work, PA residents will begin paying MUCH higher rates (a new tax) for their electricity beginning July 1st.
Two weeks ago MDN brought you the news that New Fortress Energy has withdrawn a request to extend a previously-issued permit required to build an onshore LNG liquefaction plant in Wyalusing (Bradford County), PA (see 
The Pennsylvania Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) is highly respected by all of PA state government. IFO’s mission is to review state budgetary policy and render expert, nonpartisan opinion. The IFO, at the request of the Republicans in the state legislature, recently reviewed Gov. Wolf’s Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) modeling, presenting its findings to a joint hearing of the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee and the Community Economic and Recreational Development Committee on Tuesday. The IFO report finds that the money PA will spend on emissions credits at RGGI auctions will result in most PA electric rates quadrupling. You read that right–get ready to pay 4X for electricity if RGGI goes into effect and you live in the Keystone State.
On Wednesday, Pennsylvania House Bill (HB) 637, which would block the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) authority to limit carbon dioxide emissions (thereby blocking PA’s entrance into the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, or RGGI) passed by a vote of 126 to 72. Some 10 Democrats crossed the aisle to vote in favor of the bill. HB 637 now goes to the PA Senate for a vote. What then?
Two northeastern Pennsylvania State Senators, Gene Yaw and Lisa Baker, along with members of the PA Senate Republican Caucus (27 Senators in all, filed a lawsuit in January 2021 against the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) over its illegal ban on fracking (see PA 
Democrats are SO predictable. They use the same playbook they’ve used for the past 50+ years. The minute they can’t defend their indefensible, nonsensical ideologies, they resort to calling their opponents bigots and sexists. It happened again Tuesday when northeastern Pennsylvania State Senator John Yukichak, an Independent who used to be a Democrat (but couldn’t stomach the extremism in the party anymore), called out PA Democrats and their environmental “hysteria” for defeating both the PennEast Pipeline project and the New Fortress Energy LNG export plant (both located in northeastern PA). Two PA Senators who happen to be women from the Philadelphia area trotted out the “he’s attacking the girls, he’s a misogynist and sexist” false claim. Typical.
It’s about to get a lot harder to drill a well or build any kind of pipeline in Pennsylvania, if the swamp dwellers at the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) get their way. The DEP recently released a draft Environmental Justice Policy set of regulations that will empower the radical left to block new drilling and new pipelines by using claims of racism.
Epsilon Energy concentrates most of its effort on the Marcellus Shale in Susquehanna County, PA. Epsilon doesn’t typically do its own drilling. The company joint venture partners with (gives money to) other companies, like Chesapeake Energy, and the other company typically does the drilling. Epsilon issued its fourth quarter and full-year 2021 update last week. The company’s Marcellus net gas production was 2.6 Bcf (billion cubic feet) in 4Q21. The company generated revenues of $13.8 million during 4Q21, compared to $5.9 million for 4Q20. Realized natural gas prices averaged $3.65/Mcf including hedges, and $4.36/Mcf excluding hedges.
Amtrak has a project underway to renovate and update its 30th Street Station in Philadelphia, PA. Amtrak cut a deal with Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW), the largest municipal-owned natural gas utility in the country, to switch and use onsite gas boilers at the renovated station for some (not all) of the heat. Anti-fossil fuel fanatics are predictably having a cow over the plan. The Philly-based Clean Air Council (CAC), funded with money from Big Green groups, is gearing up to fight the use of natural gas boilers.
Last Thursday 