West Virginia

Economic Impact | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

The AP Calculates 2011 Shale Gas Revenue for PA & WV
May 7, 2012May 7, 2012

The Associated Press (AP) did an analysis of how much natural gas was produced in Pennsylvania and West Virginia during 2011 and have run some basic calculations based on an assumed average price (last year) of $3.50 per thousand BTUs (or mBtus). The results of those calculations should put to bed any claims that shale gas drilling does not have a profound economic impact that touches every resident in a shale gas producing state.

According to the AP analysis:

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Antero Resources | Brooke County | Chesapeake Energy | Doddridge County | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Harrison County | Industrywide Issues | MarkWest Energy | Marshall County | Ohio County | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Processing Plants | Washington County | West Virginia

MarkWest Inks Major New Deals with Chesapeake & Antero
May 4, 2012May 4, 2012

MarkWest announced today two major new agreements to provide expanded natural gas processing and pipeline capacity for Chesapeake Energy and Antero Resouces in the Marcellus Shale. The deal with Chesapeake covers Brooke, Ohio and Marshall counties in WV, and Washington County, PA. The deal with Antero covers Doddridge and Harrison counties in WV. The new agreements, which include processing natural gas liquids, mean MarkWest will build new gathering pipelines and add compressor stations to their existing operations.

From the MarkWest press release:

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Aither Chemicals | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Kanawha County | Processing Plants | West Virginia

New Movement on the Aither Chemicals Cracker Plant in WV?
May 3, 2012May 3, 2012

A month and a half ago it seemed imminent that Aither Chemicals would announce they would build a new ethane cracker plant at the Bayer CropScience plant site at Institute Industrial Park, located in Kanawha County, near Charleston, WV (see this MDN story). Bayer CropScience, owner of the site, and MarkWest Energy, a huge pipeline company, were named as potential partners in the deal. But the expected announcement never came, and all has been silent since.

An article in the Charleston Daily Mail caught MDN’s eye, an article that says the local city of Nitro, WV have filed a petition with Kanawha County to annex 44 properties surrounding the Bayer CropScience plant. The properties in that area of the county are unincorporated—no official town or city municipal government control—and if Nitro annexes the property surrounding the plant, it prevents any other communities from trying to annex the plant itself at some future date.

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Brooke County | Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Lease & Royalty Payments | West Virginia

Brooke County School District Signs Lease with Chesapeake
May 2, 2012May 2, 2012

The Brooke County, WV Board of Education on Monday approved a lease deal with Chesapeake Energy that will allow natural gas drilling beneath school-owned property. The deal allows Chesapeake to drill under any of the school’s collective 189 acres, which is scattered throughout the county at different locations. The signing bonus is $3,500 per acre for each acre drilled, plus 18 percent royalties.

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Dominion Energy | Economic Impact | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Pipelines | Processing Plants | West Virginia

Property Values Up in Marshall, WV; Dominion Invests $1.2B
March 23, 2012March 23, 2012

Dominion Transmission is investing nearly $1.2 billion in Marshall County, WV. Almost half of that—$500 million—will be spent on a new gas processing facility near Natrium (see this MDN story). Earlier this week, Dominion officials updated Marshall County commissioners on the progress of the new facility and other projects underway.

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Aither Chemicals | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Kanawha County | MarkWest Energy | Processing Plants | West Virginia

Aither Chemicals to Announce WV Ethane Cracker Plant
March 20, 2012March 19, 2012

One of the companies that has been sniffing around the concept of building an ethane cracker plant in the Marcellus/Utica region is Aither Chemicals. MDN wrote about Aither’s interest in building a cracker plant in West Virginia back in January (see this MDN story). Aither retained a Pittsburgh investment firm to help them secure funding for the project.

It appears Aither has found a couple of partners and will make an announcement on Wednesday about their plan to build an ethane cracker plant in Institute Industrial Park, located near Charleston, WV. One of the partners is the current owner of the site: Bayer CropScience. The other partner is pipeline giant MarkWest Energy.

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Caiman Energy | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Processing Plants | Statewide OH | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia | Williams

Williams Buys Caiman Eastern Midstream for $2.5 Billion
March 20, 2012March 19, 2012

Williams announced yesterday that it will buy Caiman Energy subsidiary Caiman Eastern Midstream for $2.5 billion. Caiman Midstream has a major presence in the wet gas area of the Marcellus and Utica Shale play. The acquisition will give Williams a major pipeline gathering network in northern West Virginia, southwestern Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio, along with two processing facilities and a fractionator. Williams says by 2020 the Caiman system will be gathering more than 2 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas along with 300,000 barrels per day of natural gas liquids and condensate.

In addition to the acquisition, the Caiman Energy parent company will partner with Williams in a new joint venture to further develop new midstream infrastructure in the Utica Shale. From the Williams press release:

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Industrywide Issues | Processing Plants | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Second Company Interested in Building Cracker Plant IDed
March 19, 2012March 19, 2012

There’s no doubt that last week’s announcement by Shell that it intends to build a cracker plant in Pennsylvania sent political shockwaves through West Virginia, a state that heavily courted Shell (see this MDN story). West Virginia’s Democrat governor, Earl Ray Tomblin, is doing damage control by leaking information to favored reporters that Shell was not the only game in town, and in fact was a longshot:

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Economic Impact | Industrywide Issues | Processing Plants | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Let’s “just pull our pants down to get a cracker”
March 14, 2012March 14, 2012

In all of the seriousness surrounding the issue of shale gas drilling, sometimes you just need to smile and chuckle. This is one of those times. The headline of this post is a direct quote from Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Maloney from West Virginia. Here is the full quote in context as uttered by Maloney on the statewide radio show Metro News Talkline on Tuesday:

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Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Hancock County | West Virginia

Chesapeake Set to Drill First Shale Well in Hancock County, WV
March 13, 2012March 13, 2012

If plans hold, Chesapeake Energy will drill the first shale gas well in Hancock County, WV within the next few months. Hancock is the northern-most county in WV.

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Bluescape Resources Co | Energy Companies | Nicholas County | West Virginia

Prolonged Well Flaring in Nicholas County, WV to End May 31
March 8, 2012March 8, 2012

Three gas wells drilled in Nicholas County, WV last year began flaring gas, or burning it at the wellhead, on August 28, 2011. They’re still flaring and those who live close enough to see the orange glow at night have had enough. WV state law limits gas flaring to 30 days per year for each well, but the driller, Bluescape Resources Co. (BRC), says with no pipelines in the area it has been necessary to continue the flaring. They also say the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) knew about their flaring plans and told BRC no special permits would be needed for extended flaring. The DEP has given BRC until May 31st to end the flaring. The DEP has also assessed a $50,000 fine.

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Antero Resources | Crestwood Midstream | Doddridge County | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Harrison County | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | West Virginia

Antero Sells WV Midstream Operation to Crestwood for $375M
February 29, 2012February 29, 2012

Antero Resources announced yesterday that they have sold their Marcellus Shale midstream gathering system in Harrison and Doddridge counties, WV to Crestwood Holdings for $375 million with a sweetener of an extra $40 million if certain production targets are met in 2012 and 2013.

From the Crestwood/Antero press release:

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Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Statewide WV | West Virginia

WV Residents to Get Free Pipefitter Training for Gas Jobs
February 28, 2012February 28, 2012

Yet more drilling-related jobs on the way, this time in northern West Virginia. The West Virginia Northern Community College is teaming up with Dominion Natrium to train up to 100 local residents to be pipefitters to work at the Natrium processing plant.

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Energy Companies | Gastar Exploration | Industrywide Issues | Lease & Royalty Payments | Marshall County | Processing Plants | West Virginia | Wetzel County

Potential Cracker Plant Site in WV Leased for Drilling
February 15, 2012February 15, 2012

One of the possible locations for a new ethane cracker plant in West Virginia is a 1400-acre parcel of land owned by Bayer Corp. located on the border of Marshall and Wetzel counties. Ahead of an announcement on a cracker plant, Bayer has decided to move forward with leasing the New Martinsville plant for shale gas drilling to Gastar Exploration in a deal expected to net Bayer $30 million over 30 years.

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Barbour County | Crestwood Midstream | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Mountaineer Keystone | Pipelines | Preston County | Taylor County | West Virginia

Mum’s the Word on New Tygart Valley Pipeline in WV
February 14, 2012February 14, 2012

In December, MDN reported that Houston-based Crestwood Midstream will construct a new 16” inch Marcellus gathering pipeline that will run 42 miles through Preston, Taylor and Barbour counties in northeast West Virginia, connecting to Columbia Gas Transmission’s WB Pipeline in Randolph County, WV, delivering Marcellus gas to the Washington, DC and Baltimore markets (see this MDN story).

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Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Processing Plants | Shell | Statewide OH | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Waiting Game: Cracker Plants Talk to Property Owners
February 3, 2012February 3, 2012

West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio are all in the hunt to land an ethane cracker plant in their respective states (see the long list of MDN stories on a potential cracker plant in the Marcellus/Utica Shale region). According to WV Commerce Secretary Keith Burdette, Shell and another unnamed company are now in talks with private property owners. That is, the deals are now being negotiated, and it’s a waiting game to see the outcome.

All three states have offered huge tax incentives to land the plant. Shell originally set January for an announcement, but changed it a few weeks ago to be February.

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