Pennsylvania

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    Shell Begins Hiring for Monaca, PA Ethane Cracker Plant

    Yesterday a sharp MDN reader called our attention to a job posting on LinkedIn. The posting, by Shell, seeks a “Technical Service Team Lead Polyethylene (Pittsburgh, PA).” When you read the job listing (below) it clearly states it the job is for their Monaca, PA ethane cracker plant complex. Now this is a single job posting–so far–although it’s for a very important position. Still, our point is this: You don’t spend millions building a new bridge over a highway as a new entrance to a piece of property (see Shell Begins Building Bridge to PA Cracker Plant Site), you don’t spend $80 million to clean up that site (see Shell Paying $80M to Clean Up PA Site for Ethane Cracker Plant), you don’t spend $69 million to move a water intake site and build a new water treatment site for the local town because the current water intake is on the site where you want to build (see Shell Paying $69M to Move Water Plant for Cracker Project), you don’t spend money to lease land to build two ethane pipelines to that site (see Exclusive: Shell Leasing Land for 2 Pipelines to PA Cracker Plant), and you don’t begin hiring people to work on/at the plant–unless you’re serious about building it…
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    EIA Feb DPR: Utica NatGas Output Continues to Increase

    Earlier this week our favorite government agency, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), issued our favorite monthly report, the Drilling Productivity Report (DPR). The February 2016 report shows what the EIA predicts oil and natural gas production will be in March from the seven largest commercial shale plays in the U.S. What does the report (full copy below) show? Very broadly, it shows that the decline in natural gas production is picking up speed, while the decline in oil slowed (reversed, actually). In January’s report, the EIA said for February the combined output of natgas would decline by 405 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d). In this report, forecasting March production, the EIA says the decline will go down another 451 MMcf/d over the February number. That is, the rate of decline is increasing. There’s only one shale play of the seven with an increase in natgas output from the previous month. Can you guess which one? That’s right–the Utica…
    Read More “EIA Feb DPR: Utica NatGas Output Continues to Increase”

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    PA Rig Count Hits 9-Year Low Last Week

    Two days ago MDN briefed you on the latest rig counts–worldwide, U.S. and for the Marcellus/Utica (see Rig Counts for World, US & Marcellus/Utica Continue to Tumble). What we didn’t note in that article is last week Baker Hughes showed the number of active rigs in Pennsylvania had fallen to 19. Eeeks! That is the lowest number of active rigs working in PA since before the Marcellus Shale revolution got underway in 2007. How much lower will it go?…
    Read More “PA Rig Count Hits 9-Year Low Last Week”

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    Philly Council President Says Green Jobs Plan to Create 10K Jobs

    Philadelphia City Council President Darrell Clarke was one of the chief opponents of a deal that would have sold the city-owned Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW) to Connecticut utility company UIL for $1.86 billion. Clarke, more than anyone, torpedoed the deal (see UIL Makes it Official: $1.86B Deal to Buy Phila. Gas Works is Dead). Clarke is, in our opinion, corrupt and in the pockets of unions and others who benefited from that deal falling through. So it was with some amusement we noticed that Clarke announced on Monday that somehow, somewhere, he’s going to magically put his hands on $1 billion to “invest” in a “green jobs” boondoggle that will, supposedly, create 10,000 jobs over the next 10 years. This would be fall-off-your-seat funny if it weren’t so sad and angering. The city could have had a legitimate infusion of non-taxpayer money–$1.86 billion to be exact–but instead has chosen to continue its corrupt ways of using taxpayer money to line the pockets of political supporters…
    Read More “Philly Council President Says Green Jobs Plan to Create 10K Jobs”

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    PA Republicans Commit Adultery with Severance Tax – Again

    What is it with Republicans in Pennsylvania? They’ve just won a major victory by not putting a bullet in the head of the Marcellus Shale industry, i.e. by not implementing Gov. Tom Wolf’s horrible idea of a severance tax. Major victory. But then they return to a severance tax like a cheating spouse who is serially unfaithful. Some Pennsylvania “Republicans” in the state legislature are once again committing adultery with a Marcellus-killing severance tax plan–the day before Wolf re-introduces such a losing plan for a second year in a row. The PA House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee held an informational meeting yesterday to consider two Republican-backed severance tax bills. One bill is being floated by Rep. Kate Harper, RINO-Montgomery County, the other by Rep. Scott Petri, RINO-Bucks County. Notice both RINOs are from the Philly vicinity, which is where most of the nonsense typically comes from. Even House Majority Leader David Reed, R-Indiana County, seems to be going squishy. His mouthpiece said, “It’s just prudent to kind of go through these bills and see what they do.” We disagree. The chairman of the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, Rep. John Maher, RINO-Allegheny County, is a sellout too, saying: “I think that there are many people who are open to the idea of a properly crafted severance tax.” With “Republicans” like these, who needs Democrats?…
    Read More “PA Republicans Commit Adultery with Severance Tax – Again”

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    Rig Counts for World, US & Marcellus/Utica Continue to Tumble

    Shell Gas Drilling Rig Used in Tioga County, PAThe number of active drilling rigs worldwide, in North America and in the Marcellus/Utica continued to tumble in January. Baker Hughes released their average rig count data for January last Friday. The news, as we expected (but nevertheless hoped wouldn’t be the case) was not good. Worldwide the number of active oil and gas rigs fell by 78. In North America the rig count went down by 28 rigs, but that’s not the full story. Rig counts in the United States fell by a whopping 60 while the rig count in Canada went up by 32. So here at home the story was bloodier than the top level numbers indicate. What about in the Marcellus/Utica? Once again MDN brings you the exclusive chart for Marcellus/Utica rig counts over the past 12 months. Region-wide rigs went down another by seven in the Marcellus/Utica. All three states that we track–PA, OH, WV–had rig count losses in January…
    Read More “Rig Counts for World, US & Marcellus/Utica Continue to Tumble”

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    PA DEP Sec. Quigley Keeps Secret Key Part of New Drilling Regs

    There is still a chance, beyond a lawsuit, that onerous new oil and gas regulations proposed by Pennsylvania Sec. John Quigley will not be adopted as they have been promulgated. We frankly thought it was a done deal–just get them printed in the Pennsylvania Register, wait 45 days and voila–new laws are born, without the involvement of the state legislature. But the state legislature DOES play a role after all. The House and Senate Environmental Resources and Energy committees will both take a look and approve, disapprove or take no action on the new regs that separate existing regulations, referred to as Chapter 78, into two sets of regulations, 78 and 78a (for conventional and unconventional, or shale). However, Gov. Wolf seems to have the last say in the matter and he’ll likely sign off on the new rules regardless of what the people, via their representatives in the legislature, want. That’s how Dems govern–against the will of the people. Dictatorial. Here’s the thing. Sec. Quigley is intentionally withholding 29 new forms that the industry will have to fill out as part of the new regulations. Legislators are asking how, in any sense of the word, it is fair to vote on something when you haven’t seen the full language, including these 29 forms? Quigley’s action is (in our opinion) illegal–disclosure of the forms is required under PA’s Right-to-Know law. This is yet another abuse of power by PennFuture PA DEP Sec. Quigley…
    Read More “PA DEP Sec. Quigley Keeps Secret Key Part of New Drilling Regs”

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    Actor James Cromwell Admits He’s Clueless, Fights Pipeline Anyway

    James Cromwell as Zefram Cochrane
    James Cromwell as Zefram Cochrane

    Hollywood stars are some of the dumbest people on the planet. We’ve seen it again and again. They glom onto a “cause” either to boost their own sagging careers (get their name into the press again), or because they have an otherwise empty and meaningless life, or because–who the heck knows why? They certainly aren’t experts–although they pretend to be. Susan Sarandon and Yoko Ono joined the anti-fracking movement and rode a fossil-fuel-belching bus from New York City up to Susquehanna County, PA two years ago to “tour” the fracking fields of northeastern PA (see Looney Toons Anti-Fracking Celebrities Visit Montrose, PA). Another Hollywood nutjob is James Cromwell, who played Zefram Cochrane (mythical creator of the warp engine) in the 1996 movie Star Trek: First Contact (one of our favs). Cromwell, a New York City resident, owns a home in upstate, in Orange County. A natural gas-fired power plant is scheduled to be built near his summer home and he’s been protesting, to the point of getting himself arrested in December (see Actor James Cromwell Arrested Protesting NY Power Plant Site). Cromwell has been unsuccessful in stopping progress on the power plant. Apparently he’s in a down cycle right now with his career, and he was reading the newspapers and noticed a story we also noticed (and highlighted) last Friday–an anti-drilling family trying to stop a pipeline from clipping a few maple trees on their property (see Maple Syrup Farm in Path of PA Pipeline, Antis Make Most of It). Cromwell decided to take a Friday drive to visit the five acre plot and lend his name to their cause. Thing is, he admitted he’s essentially clueless about the whole thing–but since it’s a natgas pipeline, and he now hates natgas, what the heck. It only took him maybe two hours to drive from his upstate home to Susquehanna County to pay some fellow antis a visit…
    Read More “Actor James Cromwell Admits He’s Clueless, Fights Pipeline Anyway”

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    Insanity: O&G People Donating to Katie McGinty Campaign

    Here’s our definition of insanity: You work for an oil or gas company in the Marcellus/Utica region, and you donate money to the U.S. Senate campaign of Katie McGinty, formerly the chief of staff for PA Gov. Tom Wolf. McGinty once served as Secretary of the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection under then Gov. Ed “fast Eddie” Rendell. She is an anti-driller–a radical environmentalist. So why would you give money you earned in the oil and gas industry to the campaign of someone who wants to destroy your industry? That’s what we call insane. Here’s who has done it…
    Read More “Insanity: O&G People Donating to Katie McGinty Campaign”

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    Exclusive: Shell Leasing Land for 2 Pipelines to PA Cracker Plant

    exclusiveMDN received an exclusive tip from a trusted source (who is also an MDN subscriber) yesterday about the Shell ethane cracker plant in Monaca (Beaver County), PA. Our source, who lives in Beaver County, told us he was approached by a Shell landman about signing a pipeline right-of-way through his property to build a pipeline to the plant. We have an account of our source’s conversation with the landman, and some key information the landman let slip about Shell’s plans for two such pipelines…
    Read More “Exclusive: Shell Leasing Land for 2 Pipelines to PA Cracker Plant”

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    EQT 20-Well Pad on the Way in Washington County, PA? Maybe!

    A recent meeting of the Nottingham Township (Washington County), PA Board of Supervisors proved to be a font of useful information about Marcellus drilling in the town, both past and future. Nottingham currently has three drilling sites, two of which are already active and one future. The two active sites have 11 and 12 wells either drilled or planned to be drilled. According to a local fractivist, the third site, which is planned by EQT, will have 20 wells on it. EQT says the eventual number of wells has not yet been determined (but they didn’t rule out 20 wells). Nottingham shares a border with Peters Township. Peters, you may recall, was one of the seven selfish townships that sued to overturn portions of the Act 13 law dealing with local zoning of oil and gas projects, eventually winning at the PA Supreme Court level (see PA Supreme Court Rules Against State/Drillers in Act 13 Case). Nottingham has active drilling within its borders. Peters has still not allowed any drilling within its borders. Nottingham got $70,000 in impact fee money last year. Peters got $360,000 in impact fee money. What’s up with that?…
    Read More “EQT 20-Well Pad on the Way in Washington County, PA? Maybe!”

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    Maple Syrup Farm in Path of PA Pipeline, Antis Make Most of It

    We’ve often said that pipelines should not be allowed to use eminent domain. But what about when there’s no other choice? What if there are one or two holdout landowners whose land over which a pipeline must travel if it is to get built at all? In those cases, pipeline companies are left with no other choice but to invoke eminent domain. Williams, in planning and now beginning to build the Constitution Pipeline from Susquehanna County, PA into New York to Schoharie County, NY, has bent over backwards, forwards, and sideways to accommodate landowners along the proposed route. In fact Williams has changed more than half of the route in response to requests from landowners. Williams is, today (Feb. 5), beginning to selectively cut down trees along the route–in Pennsylvania for now (New York is next). There’s one small portion of the route Williams wanted to avoid but could not–running through a stand of maple trees. The owners of those trees have aligned themselves with some of the most radical of radical anti-drillers to oppose the pipeline and they are now running a public relations campaign to attempt to try and create a public uproar. We at MDN do NOT sympathize with them–for a number of reasons…
    Read More “Maple Syrup Farm in Path of PA Pipeline, Antis Make Most of It”

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    PA Board Adopts New Drilling Regs, PIOGA Blasts DEP “Deceptive”

    PA DEPYesterday the Pennsylvania Environmental Quality Board (EQB) approved “sweeping” new changes to the regulations governing oil and gas drilling in the state (for a copy of what was passed, see PA DEP Issues “Final” New Drilling Regulations; Industry Pushback). In the end the vote came down 15-4 to pass the onerous new regulations which, according to the Marcellus Shale Coalition, will cost the industry $2 billion per year without any corresponding safety improvements for the general public. The interesting thing is that two advisory boards appointed by Gov. Wolf and Dept. of Environmental Protection PennFuture Secretary John Quigley–the Conventional Oil and Gas Advisory Committee and the Technical Advisory Board (for unconventional)–came out against the new regulations. What does that tell you? A previous version of the new regs was ready to go at the end of 2014 and then Gov. Wolf won election, installed a radical environmentalist to run the DEP (Quigley) and promptly changed the rules to damage to the drilling industry–both conventional and unconventional. These new regs are the result. The Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association (PIOGA) minces no words by saying, “The four-year process of developing these regulations has been an exercise in deception, misinformation and disregard of the law by the Department of Environmental Protection that escalated under Gov. Wolf.” Below is a look at the sausage making behind the new rules, and industry’s response…
    Read More “PA Board Adopts New Drilling Regs, PIOGA Blasts DEP “Deceptive””

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    Ceramic Beads Used to Drill CONSOL’s Monster PA Utica Well

    On Monday MDN told you about CONSOL Energy’s newest Utica Shale well, a gusher with initial production of an eye-popping 61.9 million cubic feet per day per day (see CONSOL 4Q15: All About that Utica, ‘Bout that Utica, No Marcellus). The well, the GH 9, was drilled not in Ohio, but in Greene County, PA. Drillers always wonder what techniques and technologies were used in drilling such a well. How long are the laterals? What kind of choke is used? How much sand per foot? Etc. We have one bit of detail to share. Apparently CONSOL is cool with CARBO Ceramics telling the world that the GH 9 used CARBO ceramic beads in place of sand as the proppant. Here’s the details from CARBO for exactly what was used as the proppant in the GH 9…
    Read More “Ceramic Beads Used to Drill CONSOL’s Monster PA Utica Well”

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    ND vs PA – How Adults Behave When Faced with Budget Crisis

    We’d like to draw a contrast between the way the Republican governor of North Dakota is handling a budget shortfall, and the way the Democrat governor of Pennsylvania is doing so. ND is, in many ways, like PA. It saw a huge ramp-up in economic activity with shale drilling in the Bakken Shale over the past 10 years. In ND the drilling is for oil–in PA it’s largely for natural gas. Both states were favorable to the shale drilling industry during its formative years. Both states had Republican governors (ND still does), until the idiots voters in PA voted Tom Corbett out and the in-over-his-head-and-stubborn-as-a-mule Tom Wolf in. Wolf thinks he’s the candy man, promising to steal money from the drilling industry and redistribute it to teachers unions. With commodity prices for oil and gas approaching 30-year lows, both states are in trouble with their budgets. In ND, Gov. Jack Dalrymple has ordered across the board cuts–forcing the state to live within its means. In PA, Tom Wolf has ordered…tax increases. Wolf and the Democrats NEVER cut anything. They NEVER live within their means. They have a voracious appetite for other people’s money so they can redistribute it in a scheme to hold on to political power. We thought you might like to see how adults, like those in ND, behave when faced with a budget crisis…
    Read More “ND vs PA – How Adults Behave When Faced with Budget Crisis”

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    Range Resources Lays off 55, including 33 in PA

    cutting jobsYesterday Range Resources, the fourth largest driller in the Marcellus, announced the company is laying off 55 people companywide, with 31 of those positions located in Washington County, PA. Another 20 positions will be eliminated in Range’s home office located in Fort Worth, TX. Two of the jobs disappearing will be in Williamsport, PA, and the final two in Oklahoma. Range CEO Ray Walker used the same identical language he’s used twice before (lazy PR department?) in saying, “Low commodity prices have created a harsh reality that everyone in our industry is facing.” Indeed. The oil and gas industry is facing the toughest market it’s had in 30 years…
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