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    Milestone: Construction Begins on Shell Cracker Plant Buildings

    A major milestone has been reached in the mighty Shell $6 billion ethane cracker facility project. Over the past year or so site preparation has been vigorous. Work at the site in Monaca (Beaver County), PA has included building bridges, relocating a state highway, improving existing interchanges, repositioning a rail line, and preparing foundations for the new complex. The prep work is now largely done–and this week begins construction of the buildings that will house four processing units–the ethane cracker itself and three polyethylene units. Also part of this next (final) phase of construction: a 900-foot long cooling tower, rail and truck loading facilities, a water treatment plant, an office building and a laboratory. Oh! And let’s not forget that Shell will also build a 250 megawatt electric generating plant that will provide all of the electricity needed at the facility–powered by Marcellus Shale gas, of course! Here’s an update from Shell, with a picture of the site as it is now…
    Read More “Milestone: Construction Begins on Shell Cracker Plant Buildings”

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    Energy Transfer 3Q17: ME2 Startup Slips, Rover Complete in 1Q18

    Energy Transfer’s top brass delivered some bad news and some good news on yesterday’s analyst phone call to discuss third quarter 2017 performance. Two projects vital to the Marcellus/Utica are being built by ET–Mariner East 2 (ME2) and Rover Pipeline. The bad news is that ME2, a natural gas liquids (NGL) pipeline project that stretches from eastern Ohio across the state of PA to the Marcus Hook refinery near Philadelphia, will be delayed an extra nine months. ME2 has a new in-service target date of “second quarter 2018.” Progress on ME2 is not as fast as it could be primarily due to an ongoing onslaught of lawsuits by Big Green organizations, coupled with delays from the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection. The good news for ME2 is that by Dec. 31st, 99% of the pipeline will be in the ground and buried. The news for Rover is all good. Rover is a $3.7 billion, 711-mile natural gas pipeline that will run from PA, WV and eastern OH through OH into Michigan and eventually into Canada. Rover had been dogged by problems with horizontal directional drilling (HDD), but those problems are now behind it. Yes, head of the Ohio EPA, Craig Butler, continues his Captain Ahab routine to try and stop the project (see OH EPA Director Manipulates Atty General to Sue Rover Pipeline). So far he’s been unsuccessful. At any rate, construction in Ohio and elsewhere is full speed ahead. On yesterday’s call ET CFO Tom Long said Rover Phase 1 (both A and B) will be done by Dec. 31st. That’s very good. Long said the company is “very confident” Phase 2 of Rover will be online no later than March 31, 2018. Also very good. Below we’ve grabbed excerpts of yesterday’s analyst call to share, covering both ME2 and Rover…
    Read More “Energy Transfer 3Q17: ME2 Startup Slips, Rover Complete in 1Q18”

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    4 Antis in Chester County, PA Win Election Using Big Green $

    Four local candidates in two townships in Chester County, PA (near Philadelphia) won seats on the town boards of Uwchlan and West Goshen in Tuesday’s election. They ran on a platform of using town resources to agitate and try to prevent the construction of the Mariner East 2 pipeline through their towns. All four candidates are the pocket of Big Green group Food & Water Watch, which contributed to their campaigns. Yes, Big Green has just bought themselves (another) four politicians in the Philly area. What’s new? The four will now embark on actions that will threaten their respective towns with potentially bankrupting lawsuits, should they follow through with their threats. We hope the residents in those towns will appreciate their taxes doubling or tripling to cover legal fees. The four “winners” were: Mayme Baumann and Bill Miller in Uwchlan, and Mary LaSota and Robin Stuntebeck in West Goshen (all Democrats). The losers were all the residents living in those two towns…
    Read More “4 Antis in Chester County, PA Win Election Using Big Green $”

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    Arkansas Frac Sand Getting Barged to Ohio for Marc/Utica Fracking

    Click for larger version

    Here’s something you don’t read about every day: frac sand being mined in Arkansas. Usually you read about sand being mined in Wisconsin or Illinois, or maybe in Oklahoma or even Texas. But we’ve never read about sand coming from Arkansas. Here’s something else you don’t read about every day: Sand from Arkansas is about to be barged up the Mississippi River, onto the Ohio River, and unloaded at a dock somewhere in Ohio. The sand, which will come from Select Sands, will be used for fracking Utica and Marcellus Shale wells. How cool is that?! Select Sands is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada), but operates what appears to be their only mining operation (at least the only one we could find) in Arkansas. According to a company announcement, this is the first time the company has used a barge to transport frac sand. Judging from a recent slide deck on the company’s website, it appears to us this may be their very first order from the Marcellus/Utica region…
    Read More “Arkansas Frac Sand Getting Barged to Ohio for Marc/Utica Fracking”

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    Anti-NEXUS Referendum in Bowling Green, OH Defeated by Huge Margin

    When we notice municipal referendums and ballot measures related to blocking shale drilling and pipelines, we always highlight them. Such a ballot measure appeared on the ballot in Bowling Green (Wood County), OH on Tuesday. We honestly were not aware of it prior to reading an article in the Toledo Blade. The ballot measure called for a ban on pipelines that flow natural gas and other fossil fuels over city-owned property. It’s aim is to prevent NEXUS Pipeline from building nearby. Antis got enough signatures for this glittering jewel to appear on the November ballot. And how did the good people of Bowling Green vote? They saw right through this one–voting it DOWN by a huge margin: 61%-39%. That’s a blowout, politically. But you know antis. Nothing, including the truth, will ever change their minds. The Bowling Green ballot measure was the work of out-of-towners–the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF)–about whom we’ve written plenty (see our CELDF stories here). CELDF, based in Pennsylvania, targets towns with sufficiently large pockets of nutters who will sign on to their garbage. As they usually have to do, the CELDF needed to ramrod the Bowling Green ballot measure through a lengthy legal process, eventually getting permission from the Ohio Supreme Court before it could appear on the November ballot. How did the nutters take such a humiliating defeat? CELDF-hired lawyer Terry Lodge (from Toledo), pledged to bring the ballot measure back again and again in future, wasting taxpayers’ money…
    Read More “Anti-NEXUS Referendum in Bowling Green, OH Defeated by Huge Margin”

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    St. Louis Pipeline to Flow M-U Gas Gets Favorable FERC Review

    In February 2016, MDN told you about Laclede Group, a St. Louis-based natural gas utility, with plans to build a ~60-mile pipeline from St. Louis through southwest Illinois and connect to the Rockies Express (REX) and Panhandle Eastern Pipeline (see New Midwest Pipeline to Tap REX’s Marcellus/Utica Gas). The new pipeline would bring low-cost Marcellus and Utica Shale gas from REX (now-reversed) to the utility–not only for resale to gas customers, but also potentially for new natgas-powered electric plants planned to replace retiring coal-fired plants. A year later Laclede renamed itself Spire, and the company filed an official application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to build the Spire STL Pipeline (see Spire Files Plan with FERC to Flow Marcellus/Utica Gas to St. Louis). In September FERC issued a favorable environmental assessment (EA) for the project (see a copy below). Although the project has been around for the past year and a half, radical anti-fossil fuelers are just now marshaling their efforts to try and block it. Here’s an update on FERC’s approval, and the efforts under way to try and stop the project…
    Read More “St. Louis Pipeline to Flow M-U Gas Gets Favorable FERC Review”

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    Massachusetts Backdoor Pipeline Ban Sailing Thru Legislature

    One of the way pipeline companies afford to invest billions of dollars to build pipelines is via long-term contracts from would-be users of that pipeline. In Massachusetts, Spectra Energy (now a part of Enbridge) brokered deals with utility companies to provide them with cheap, clean-burning Marcellus/Utica natural gas. In order for those utilities to afford it, they would need to pass along some of the cost of building the pipeline to reach them. Wait, what? Electric customers would have to pay for a natural gas pipeline? Well, yes! Because the new, cheaper gas would produce electricity at a lower cost, thereby lowering their monthly electric bills. They benefit, directly, from such a pipeline. However, radical leftists took that arrangement to court and in August 2016 the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled utilities could not pass along costs for pipelines to electric customers (see MA Supreme Court Ruling Endangers New England Gas Pipelines). For a variety of reasons, with that decision being one of the biggest, Spectra/Enbridge later decided to mothball plans for their pipeline project, in June of this year (see Enbridge Withdraws $3B Access Northeast Pipeline Application). The Massachusetts legislature is full of lefties, and they don’t want to leave anything to chance–that maybe in the future such a deal will come around again. So a pair of bills are now sailing through the legislature will make it permanently illegal for utilities to pass along the cost of pipelines to electricity customers. In essence, it’s a backdoor move to ban any more pipelines from getting built in the Bay State…
    Read More “Massachusetts Backdoor Pipeline Ban Sailing Thru Legislature”

  • Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Thu, Nov 9, 2017

    The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading. In today’s lineup: 39 First responder organizations get $2,500 each from Chevron; oil and gas can fuel growth in Stark County, OH; Rettew opens second office in OH for shale work; Alaska gets China backing for natgas project; Shell tapped to power LNG cruise ships; Europe tightens rules on natgas pipes; Total buying Engie’s LNG business for whopping $2B; and more!
    Read More “Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Thu, Nov 9, 2017”

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    Sierra Club Pipeline Lawsuit Throws 2,500 in PA Out of Work

    Just before the holidays, thousands of workers who were working on the Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline project have been escorted to the unemployment office–courtesy the odious Sierra Club. Yesterday we brought you the sad news that the Sierra Club’s lawsuit has stopped work on the $3 billion pipeline project (see DC Court Forces “Emergency Stop” of Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline Work). Companies building closely-vetted and highly regulated projects like Atlantic Sunrise project are jobs creators. The Sierra Club is a jobs destroyer. We asked Williams how many workers have been idled because of the work stoppage from the “temporary” order from the court. Williams spokesman Chris Stockton replied: “The exact number is 2,500.” He also said this: “It is costing about $8 million per day in idle construction costs.” The Clubbers’ frivolous lawsuit is causing real pain and real suffering for thousands of workers…and their families…and their children. Williams issued a press release yesterday to say they have filed a “Motion for Clarification” to determine what the emergency stop work order affects–just construction work in PA? Or the work they’ve already done (and are doing) outside of PA, which would stop new quantities of Marcellus gas already flowing south? Williams says they expect the court will conduct their review “expeditiously” and end this charade (our word) very soon. Antis rejoiced in the news of the stop work order, including one of the “leaders” of the airheaded opposition, who sounded like an 80s Valley Girl when she said: “I can’t believe it, like, does this mean they can’t continue with construction? Like, seriously?” Meanwhile, like some 2,500 people are like tragically out of work–including like 370 in Schuylkill County alone. Merry Christmas from the Sierra Club and from a small group of radicals called Lancaster Against Pipelines…
    Read More “Sierra Club Pipeline Lawsuit Throws 2,500 in PA Out of Work”

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    DRBC Attorney Faints in Federal Court During Questioning

    Some true courtroom drama from yesterday to report regarding a lawsuit brought by Wayne Land and Mineral Group against the Delaware River Basin Commission’s (DRBC) arbitrary and illegal frack ban. Yesterday we told you Wayne landowners would finally get their day in federal court (see Landowner Fight to Overturn DRBC Frack Ban Goes to Fed Court Today). And so they did. Or at least, began to. The attorney for the Wayne landowner (plaintiff) was questioned by the 3rd Circuit judges about their case. However, when the lead attorney for the DRBC (defendant) took his turn at the podium to be questioned, at one point during what was intense question, the attorney, Kenneth Warren, fainted! In the only account reporting on the incident we could find, Warren was attended to by medics and quickly revived–however both sides agreed to postpone the rest of the session in light of the episode. There was no word on why Warren fainted–his office did not respond to requests from a reporter for an explanation. Perhaps he’s been ill? Perhaps the pressure was too much? We simply don’t know. So here we are again in limbo–with PA landowners having been shafted by the DRBC for 10+ years, now shafted again until the lawyers and the judges can agree on a new date for the rest of oral arguments…
    Read More “DRBC Attorney Faints in Federal Court During Questioning”

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    Yet Another Update on Stalled Mountaineer NGL Storage Proj in OH

    Over the past six months we’ve run a steady string of stories about Mountaineer NGL Storage and its proposed underground NGL (mostly ethane) storage facility in Monroe County, Ohio, near Clarington, along the Ohio River (see our Mountaineer NGL Storage stories here). We’ve learned that the Colorado company behind the project plans to spend up to $500 million to build it, that 20 drillers have expressed interest in contracting with the facility to store ethane, and that both the nearby potential PTT Global cracker plant and the under-construction Shell cracker plant are both interested in connections to the facility. We’ve also learned there is a holdup with some of the necessary permits for the project before construction can begin–a situation that has delayed construction until mid-next year. This morning we ran across yet another update. This one goes into more detail about the permit situation, explaining where the holdup is happening (with the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources’ chief Rick Simmers). The update also introduces us to a new spokesman for the project, a local who will be the project’s feet on the street, meaning we’ll likely hear a lot more about the project in the coming weeks and months…
    Read More “Yet Another Update on Stalled Mountaineer NGL Storage Proj in OH”

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    Plum, PA Officials Hold Hearing on New Restrictions for Fracking

    Nearly a month ago, local officials in Plum, PA (Allegheny County) approved a plan by Huntley & Huntley (H&H) to drill a series of Marcellus wells in their municipality (see Plum, PA Gives Huntley & Huntley Green Light for Shale Drilling). At that time, we told you about H&H plans to begin constructing a well pad in Plum in November (see Huntley & Huntley Starts Shale Drilling in Plum, PA Next Month). Plum’s leaders faced stiff opposition from some residents over their decision to conditionally approve H&H’s request. In Plum, fracking is allowed in any zone if a conditional use is granted. That’s what happened last month–the Plum Council issued a conditional use exception for H&H to drill on 92 acres near Coxcomb Hill Road in Plum. Fearing more requests will come from H&H, Plum officials have floated a proposed change to zoning ordinances (ordinances which haven’t been updated since 1993). The new change would only allow fracking in rural residential and industrial zones. H&H says the change is too restrictive. Some antis think it doesn’t go far enough. Last night Plum held a hearing about the proposed changes, with some 100 people showing up. According to press accounts, the crowd was about evenly split, for and against the proposed zoning changes. Here’s how it went down…
    Read More “Plum, PA Officials Hold Hearing on New Restrictions for Fracking”

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    Baker Hughes Oct Rig Count – US Slides by 18, PA Drops 1 Rig

    The International (non-U.S.) Baker Hughes rig count for October 2017 was 951, up 20 from the 931 counted in September 2017, and up 31 from the 920 counted in October 2016. The U.S. rig count for October 2017 was 922, down 18 from the 940 counted in September 2017, but up 378 from the 544 counted in October 2016. Notice that we have almost as many rigs operating in the U.S. as the entire rest of the world (minus Canada). Canada’s rig count has improved a lot since earlier this year. However, Canada’s October rig count drooped a bit–204 in October (down 4 from September) but up 48 from October 2016. What about rig counts in the Marcellus/Utica? Pennsylvania lost one rig and ran an average of 32 rigs during October, versus Ohio running 29 rigs and West Virginia running 15 rigs, the same as September…
    Read More “Baker Hughes Oct Rig Count – US Slides by 18, PA Drops 1 Rig”

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    Shell Taps Brit to Run the $6B Ethane Cracker Project in Monaca

    Shell’s $6 billion ethane cracker plant facility in Monaca (Beaver County), PA is about to ramp up construction of the numerous buildings that will house the equipment. Since 2014, Ate Visser, vice president of Appalachia petrochemicals at Shell Chemical, has been the guy in charge of the project (see Shell Exec Shares Inside Story of Why They Chose PA for Cracker). However, beginning now, Hilary Mercer, a native of Manchester, England (has worked at Shell for the past 30 years) is now the woman in charge of the project. Mercer is the new vice president of the cracker plant project. She has an interesting, globe-trotting history. Mercer says she likes to build “big projects.” Prior to landing in her role in PA, Mercer was in South Korea overseeing construction of the largest floating structure ever built. But building the huge cracker facility isn’t the only thing that jazzes Mercer about the project. She’s pumped at the prospect of building the commercial side–building a business from the ground up. Finding customers, branding, everything that comes with creating demand for the output from the mighty cracker facility. Here’s a look at the new leader of the Shell cracker plant project…
    Read More “Shell Taps Brit to Run the $6B Ethane Cracker Project in Monaca”

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    Siemens Providing Turbines, $$ for 1 GW Hickory Run Power Plant

    The picture shows the assembly of the SGT5-8000H at the gas turbine plant in Berlin.

    In February 2013 MDN first told you about a plan to build the Hickory Run Energy Center–a $750 million electric generating plant at a former manufacturing site along the Mahoning River in Lawrence County, PA (see NW PA Town Approves Site for Marcellus-powered Electric Plant). The initial design called for a 900 megawatt facility, powered by Marcellus gas. More recent plans indicate the facility will be 1,000 megawatts (or 1 gigawatt)–enough electricity to power 1 million homes! In August we shared the exciting news that one publication was reporting ground has been broken for the facility (see Ground Broken for Lawrence County, PA NatGas-Fired Electric Plant?). Whether bulldozers are pushing dirt or not, activity around the project continues at a brisk pace. German engineering giant Siemens announced on Monday that they have been awarded a contract to provide the guts for the plant–two H-class gas turbines, one steam turbine and three generators–along with a long-term service contract. Siemens also revealed they’ve made an unspecified (large) investment in the project and will own 20% of it. Here’s the good news that the Hickory Run Energy Center will get some Siemens love…
    Read More “Siemens Providing Turbines, $$ for 1 GW Hickory Run Power Plant”

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    Tiny Houses: Answer to Affordable Housing in Active M-U Area?

    We have to confess this story is purely for amusement purposes–ours and yours. In our daily trawl of the news related to “Marcellus Shale” we spotted this headline: “Group hopes to add tiny houses to Wheeling Island.” We thought, What in the world do tiny houses on Wheeling Island (Wheeling, WV) have to do with the Marcellus? So we read the article to find out. Anyone watching HGTV has, at one point or another, watched a program about “tiny houses.” There’s even an HGTV show called Tiny House Hunters. “Tiny houses” are actual stick-built homes that are under 500 square feet of living space. Think really-small efficiency apartment. Except it’s a real house–sort of. The average American home is 1,780 square feet of living space. (If you’re not familiar with the tiny house movement, read this Wikipedia entry.) So what do tiny houses in Wheeling, WV have to do with the Marcellus? A group in Wheeling believes tiny houses on Wheeling Island is a viable solution for affordable housing. You see, the Marcellus/Utica has successfully employed a lot of people in the region–and a lot of new people have moved in, sopping up available apartments, homes, and trailers. There’s a bit of a housing shortage due to an abundance of Marcellus workers. The group in Wheeling thinks they have the solution: sell a bunch of tiny houses on Wheeling Island…
    Read More “Tiny Houses: Answer to Affordable Housing in Active M-U Area?”