Pennsylvania

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    Vantage Energy Cuts $30M Deal to Expand Water Plant in Greene Co.

    An interesting story from southwestern Pennsylvania. Vantage Energy has signed a $30 million deal with the Southwestern Pennsylvania Water Authority (SPWA) in Greene County to expand the SPWA’s water plant. The expansion will allow the plant to increase water deliveries from 9.2 million gallons per day to 16.1 million gallons. The expansion will also mean new water pipelines will be run to areas not previously covered by SPWA. Vantage will get access to water for its active drilling program in the county (they own 48,000 net acres in Greene County) along with some revenue from a surcharge that will be levied to other oil and gas drillers who want to purchase water from SPWA. The SPWA will get a major expansion and new pipelines to service residents in the county not currently served–along with a new revenue source in selling more water to drillers. The SPWA gets its water from the Monongahela River. Sounds like a good deal with winners all around–except last month Vantage Energy put itself up for sale (see Marcellus Driller Vantage Energy Puts Itself Up for Sale). So how does spending $30 million square with a company attempting to sell itself?…
    Read More “Vantage Energy Cuts $30M Deal to Expand Water Plant in Greene Co.”

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    Director of Philly’s Emergency Mgmt to Dela. Riverkeeper: Stuff It

    stuff itThe director of Philadelphia’s Office of Emergency Management, Samantha Phillips, has told anti-drilling zealots to (in our words) “stuff it” with respect to their demands to know the city’s emergency plans in case a trainload of oil derails in or near the city. Phillips will not disclose detailed emergency plans–rightly so–for fear that terrorists could potentially use the information should such a disaster ever occur. Of course public safety is the last thing on the minds of anti-drillers like those in THE Delaware Riverkeeper–a group attempting to incite unrest in Philly by sponsoring “scare them to death” rallies. Phillips is holding firm and will not release details to Riverkeeper to sleazily use in furthering their own twisted agenda…
    Read More “Director of Philly’s Emergency Mgmt to Dela. Riverkeeper: Stuff It”

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    PA Drought Watch Lifted – Marcellus Drillers can Restart Withdrawals

    In May MDN brought you the news that drought conditions in Pennsylvania were beginning to take a bite out of Marcellus drilling activities–at least in the northeast part of the state (see PA Drought Conditions Begin to Affect Marcellus Drilling). On May 26, the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) issued a drought watch for 27 counties in the state, including large natgas producers like Susquehanna, Bradford, Tioga and Lackawanna, all counties in northeast PA. On June 17 the DEP expanded the drought watch to 37 counties. However, we have good news. The DEP has just lifted the drought watch for all 37 counties–which means Marcellus drillers previously affected can return to normal operations…
    Read More “PA Drought Watch Lifted – Marcellus Drillers can Restart Withdrawals”

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    ACLU Bullies Threaten Butler County Landowners over Martian Lawsuit

    The most anti-American group on the planet that we know of, aside from ISIS/ISIL/Al-Qaeda, is the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). So we find it truly rich that the ACLU–always on the lookout to squash anything to do with the American way and freedom and apple pie–has now involved itself in what we loving call “the Martian controversy.” A small group of rabidly anti-drilling (and liberal) parents in the Mars School District in Middlesex Township (Butler County), PA want to prevent the legal, legitimate, and now fully permitted right of Rex Energy to drill a few Marcellus Shale wells three-fourths of a mile away from the Mars School. We’ve long chronicled this battle (see MDN’s list of Mars School stories). Four local residents used two non-profits backed by Big Green money and from the opposite side of Pennsylvania–THE Delaware Riverkeeper and the Philadelphia-based Clean Air Council–to file a lawsuit against the little town of Middlesex to stop any kind of drilling, a move that has so far cost local taxpayers over $35,000 in legal defense fees (see Dela. RiverKeeper, Clean Air Council Cost Middlesex Residents $35K+). So a group of 12 Middlesex landowners and a business launched their own lawsuit against the two Big Green groups and the four local residents claiming (rightly) that they are being economically harmed (see Shoe Now on Other Foot: Landowners Sue Martian Anti-Drillers). What do the anti-drilling, liberal, wacko parents and Big Green groups do? They go crying like little girls to the ACLU and now the Big Bully ACLU has ridden into town to tell the 12 landowners and local business they have no right to file a lawsuit! In America!!!…
    Read More “ACLU Bullies Threaten Butler County Landowners over Martian Lawsuit”

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    Rex Energy Drilling 1st Utica Shale Well in Lawrence County, PA

    Exciting news from “the little drilling company that could…and does,” as MDN likes to call Rex Energy. Last week Rex released an operational update with the big news that they will drill their very first dry gas Utica Shale well in Lawrence County, PA (near the Ohio border) in the third quarter of 2015. Rex also brought online another two Marcellus Shale wells in Butler County, PA…
    Read More “Rex Energy Drilling 1st Utica Shale Well in Lawrence County, PA”

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    Williams Announces New Upgrades to Transco Pipeline into NYC

    More yummy Marcellus Shale gas will be flowing to 500,000 additional New York City residents by the 2017/2018 heating season if an application just filed by Williams with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) gets approved. Last week Williams filed an application with FERC for the New York Bay Expansion Project. The $130 million project will expand capacity on the mighty Transco pipeline by installing new compressor station equipment, replacing a quarter mile of pipeline (in New Jersey), and upgrading meter and regulator stations at several locations in NJ, PA and NY. All work will be done in existing rights-of-way and at existing facilities–no new building or greenfield construction necessary. But that won’t stop the crazies from opposing it…
    Read More “Williams Announces New Upgrades to Transco Pipeline into NYC”

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    PA Gov Wolf Packs Pipeline Task Force with His Own Minions

    minionIn May Pennsylvania “in over his head” Gov. Tom Wolf announced the formation of the Pipeline Infrastructure Task Force (PITF)–an effort to “promote unprecedented collaboration of stakeholders to facilitate the development of a world-class pipeline infrastructure system” (see Disaster on the Horizon: PA Gov Wolf Creates Pipeline Task Force). Translation: We need to slow down the rapid construction of all of these gathering pipelines and since there’s no regulations in PA state law to do it, we’ll create a “task force” to slow it down for us. Last week Wolf announced the 48 people who belong to his hand-picked task force. Not surprisingly, 14 of the 48 members (almost one-third) work for Wolf–in state government, drawing their paychecks from the state and working at the pleasure of Wolf who will fire them if they don’t do what he wants. Another nine work for either county, state or federal governments. That’s 23 of 48 (half) who work for the government. How many are from the oil and gas industry? Only 12 representatives from the O&G industry–and of that, only 6 of them are from pipeline companies, the very entities that will get regulated by this unofficial regulating body…
    Read More “PA Gov Wolf Packs Pipeline Task Force with His Own Minions”

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    DEP Approves MarkWest Plan to Expand Bluestone Gas Processing Plant

    We wouldn’t classify it as one of the major miracles, but perhaps as a minor miracle. Something comparable to a picture of the Madonna weeping real tears. The Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP), under the leadership of DEP’s PennFuture Secretary John Quigley, has signed off on a MarkWest Energy request to double the size of the Bluestone natural gas processing facility in Butler County. MarkWest plans to build two new units at the facility (200 million cubic feet per day of capacity for each, or 400 Mmcf/d total). The first of the two will, if all goes as planned, come online by the end of this year…
    Read More “DEP Approves MarkWest Plan to Expand Bluestone Gas Processing Plant”

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    FUD Splatter: PA IFO Says Lower Impact Fee Revenue Coming in 2015

    mud splatterIn the midst of a political debate about whether or not to enact a severance tax comes another masterful one-two punch. First punch: the Democrat-controlled Pennsylvania Independent Fiscal Office (which is manifestly NOT “independent” but indeed is VERY dependent–on the Democrat Party) has issued an analysis that the world is ending for the impact fee assessed on Marcellus drillers. The IFO, spreading FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) says this year the impact fee is on track to raise the least amount of money it has raised since it’s introduction in 2012 (gasp!). How much less? Somewhere between $14 million and $33 million less (between 6-13% less). Why? Because drillers have slowed down and in some cases stopped drilling new wells due to low prices for natural gas. We note the IFO has never before, according to our recollection, issued such a forecast this early in the year. Why is that? Because the Dems need something/anything to try and bludgeon and bully Republicans into accepting the worst idea ever–taxing a single industry to transfer its wealth to another group of people who don’t earn any wealth on their own–teachers’ unions. Big Education only takes–they never give (except to transfer some of their taken money via union dues back the Democrat Party in a quid pro quo). The second punch then arrives right on cue, from a Democrat sycophantic news outlet publishes this breathless “news”…
    Read More “FUD Splatter: PA IFO Says Lower Impact Fee Revenue Coming in 2015”

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    Snapshot of 2015 PA Marcellus Activity So Far – Numbers are Down

    As part of an artful Democrat scheme to try and build support for PA Gov. Tom Wolf’s worst idea ever–a high severance tax on the Marcellus industry–the Pennsylvania “Independent” Fiscal Office (nothing of the sort) issued projections that cast fear, uncertainty and doubt that the state’s annual impact fee, which is really just another form of severance tax, will decrease this year (see our companion story today). In making their scary prediction, the IFO quotes several statistics about PA drilling as it stands so far in 2015 that MDN found enlightening (and we think you will too). Note: We’re not saying the IFO’s stats are wrong, we’re saying their conclusions are (with respect to a severance tax). The IFO-quoted stats tell us how much new well drilling is down (so far) in 2015, how many wells have been drilled but not completed, and how many drilled/completed wells have been turned off (“shut-in”)…
    Read More “Snapshot of 2015 PA Marcellus Activity So Far – Numbers are Down”

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    Fracsandphobia for Some Who Live Near Keystone Sanitary Landfill

    People are phobic (fearful) of the darnedest things. Some people are afraid of germs (germophobia). Some are afraid of spiders (arachnophobia). Some are even afraid of furry little kitty cats (ailurophobia). Seems that all of us have one phobia or another. Some folks who live near the Keystone Sanitary Landfill outside of Scranton, PA have a phobia over sand that may be hauled to the facility (an irrational fear of sand is eremikophobia). Because Keystone accepts drill cuttings and has, in the past, also been permitted to accept frac sand waste from drilling operations, some people who live in the area are afraid. Of what? That the sand may contain nasty fracking chemical residue and that residue will leach out of the ground and enter their bodies–ahhhhhh! Never mind that the residue in frac sand waste, chemicals like hydrochloric acid, is in such minuscule quantities it’s the equivalent of the amount of hydrochloric acid found in eye drops (yes, eye drops). But facts never get in the way of a good phobia–or a good lie spun by the likes of anti-drilling groups like Food & Water Watch that exist to stop legal, legitimate and safe businesses in the United States from operating…
    Read More “Fracsandphobia for Some Who Live Near Keystone Sanitary Landfill”

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    Primoris Scores $10M Pipeline Contract in Susquehanna County, PA

    Primoris Services Corporation, a pipeline building company based in Dallas, TX, announced today they’ve landed a contract to build 6.8 miles of 16” diameter natural gas pipeline in Susquehanna County, PA. They’ll pick up a tidy $10 million for their efforts. Although Primoris doesn’t name the “midstream customer” in the announcement, it’s almost certainly Williams. While there are several smaller players in Susquehanna County when it comes to midstream and pipelines, Williams is pretty much the dominant force in that area and the only midstreamer we’re aware of that’s building anything right now…
    Read More “Primoris Scores $10M Pipeline Contract in Susquehanna County, PA”

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    Anti-Drilling PennFuture Gets New President to Replace Cindy Dunn

    Since most of the staff from one of Pennsylvania’s biggest anti-drilling groups, PennFuture, has moved to Harrisburg to work in the Gov. Tom Wolf administration (often referred to as the PennFuture administration around the halls of the Capitol), it’s time to appoint a new anti-driller to head the remaining husk of the organization left behind. John Quigley, now Secretary of the Dept. of Environmental Protection used to work for PennFuture. So did John Hanger, Wolf’s Secretary of Planning and Policy. Cindy Dunn, the current Secretary of the Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources was, until she moved to DCNR, the head of PennFuture. Her departure left a hole that has now been filled by another trusted anti-driller, Larry Schweiger, someone with enviro street cred who worked for the National Wildlife Organization, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, and the partisan environmental committee of the Pennsylvania General Assembly. He’s also good with a Kodak camera–snapping pictures of the BP oil spill in the Gulf (before all of the oil disappeared three weeks after the leak was fixed)…
    Read More “Anti-Drilling PennFuture Gets New President to Replace Cindy Dunn”

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    3rd SRBC Report: Marcellus Drilling Doesn’t Affect Water Quality

    The Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC), charged with protecting and managing the water resources in the Susquehanna River Basin, continues to perform its duty with distinction (unlike another commission with a similar name nearby that fails miserably to perform its duties). In 2010 the SRBC began collecting the data through a state-of-the-art Remote Water Quality Monitoring Network (RWQMN). Part of the remit in that effort is to determine whether or not Marcellus Shale drilling is having an effect on the quality of water in rivers and streams in the SRBC region. Two prior reports issued by the SRBC had shown no impact on the water quality of rivers and streams from drilling. Last week the SRBC delivered its third such report (full copy below). It is the most comprehensive study to date, covering data collected from 2010-2013. And guess what? The new report shows that Marcellus Shale drilling has not impacted local rivers and streams. Period. End of story. So now we have both the federal government, via the EPA, saying fracking doesn’t harm water supplies, and the SRBC saying the same thing. And the politicians in New York State ban fracking because of “maybes” and “mights” and “possibles”–all while real data from real drilling shows shale drilling does not harm the environment–not in the way claimed by NY political charlatans. Here’s what the SRBC said in releasing their latest report on water quality in the Marcellus region…
    Read More “3rd SRBC Report: Marcellus Drilling Doesn’t Affect Water Quality”

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    Chesapeake Energy’s Theft of PA Landowner’s Royalties

    It’s no wonder Pennsylvania landowners are up in arms over their treatment by Chesapeake Energy. Two weeks ago MDN told you about a new bill, HB 1391, that will ensure Pennsylvania landowners receive a minimum 12.5% in royalties for any gas or oil taken from their land (see New Bill HB 1391 Will Guarantee PA Landowners 12.5% Royalties). The reason such a bill is necessary is because landowners are being robbed by some (not all) drillers who are deducting certain “post production” expenses from royalty checks–essentially stealing money that belongs to landowners. Here is a perfect example from Bradford County, PA–the most drilled Marcellus county in the state…
    Read More “Chesapeake Energy’s Theft of PA Landowner’s Royalties”

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    “Researchers” Take to the Sky to Locate Marcellus Methane Leaks

    Tower: “Global Warming Nutjob One–you’re cleared for takeoff on runway three.” GWNO: “Roger. Global Warming Nutjob One is taxiing and will takeoff from runway three. Have a nice, carbon-free day Tower.” Tower: “Er, thanks, we think.” As the Twin Otter airplane takes off into the sunrise, it burns copious amounts of fossil fuels and belches carbon like a dragon as it heads off to monitor whether a teeny tiny amount of methane (natural gas) is leaking from Marcellus Shale drilling sites. Anyone else see the irony here? The Philadelphia Inquirer has written an (article? propaganda piece? promotional advertisement?) about a “research” project under way between Penn State, University of Colorado and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to fly over Marcellus Shale drill sites in Pennsylvania to see if they can catch drillers in the act of leaking methane…
    Read More ““Researchers” Take to the Sky to Locate Marcellus Methane Leaks”