Japanese Company Building NatGas Power Plant in (Yes) New York
Somehow, someway, a new natural gas-fired electric plant is in the process of getting built–in anti-fracking New York State (see Orange County, NY Marcellus-Fired Electric Plant OK’d by Judge). Unfortunately it seems that part of the reason it slipped through and got an approval involved a corrupt (and very close) aide to NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo (see NY NatGas-Fired Electric Plant an Inside Job for Corrupt Cuomo Aide). We have news: a second natgas-fired electric plant is now planned in neighboring Dutchess County, NY. The 1,100 megawatt plant is majority owned by JERA Co., Inc., a Japanese company. We have the details below…
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Range Resources released details on their proved reserves last Friday. The company reports proved reserves are 12.1 trillion cubic feet equivalent (Tcfe), a 22% jump from 9.9 Tcfe at the end of 2015. Excluding acquisitions and divestitures, Range’s proved reserves were actually up 11%. Range CEO Jeff Ventura said the company replaced 292% of production from its drilling activities in 2016. They have driven down development costs to 34 cents per thousand cubic feet. If it costs an average of 87 cents to gather and get the gas to market (PA IFO estimate), that means it costs Range $1.21 to find, extract and get the gas to market. Range’s announcement was pretty amped-up on their newest purchase of acreage in Louisiana. However, in 2016, almost all of the added proved reserves came in the Marcellus–1,315 out of 1,394 billion cubic feet (or 94%)…
Oilfield services company Baker Hughes, with major operations in the Marcellus/Utica, posted its fourth quarter and annual 2016 results last week. Financially speaking the numbers were a river of red. BH lost $2.7 billion in 2016 vs. losing $1.9 billion in 2015. However, when you look at the later half of the year, and the fourth quarter in particular, the numbers started to improve. BH lost $417 million in 4Q16 vs. losing $1 billion in 4Q15. The bleeding slowed. BH CEO Martin Craighead, in responding to a question about the company’s North American shale business, said, “So equipment goes where it’s loved the most, and not every basin in North America is created equal right now in terms of pricing.” Hmmm. We wonder if the Marcellus/Utica is loved? Below is the update…
As we inch closer to a final investment decision (FID) on the PTT Global Chemical ethane cracker in Belmont County, OH, and with President Trump’s emphasis on using steel manufactured here at home for pipeline projects like Keystone XL, some are asking whether the PTT project (if it gets approved) will use American steel–or cheap, imported steel. It’s a good question…
If we had a nickle for every time we’ve heard, read or written the sentiment, “If antis don’t want to extract ‘fracked gas’ anymore, why don’t they show us how it’s done”–we’d be rich! The point: without oil and gas, our modern way of life would cease. Stop. Kaput. No more. We are totally dependent on fossil fuels for our existence. Since New York Gov. Cuomo doesn’t seem to want nasty “fracked gas” coming into his state from Pennsylvania (witness his block of the Constitution Pipeline), perhaps PA and all other states sending natural gas to NY should shut the spigots off for a while. It’s fun to muse, what would happen if?… Well, we don’t have to wonder what would happen. We have a great example. In Central New York in January 1977 residents of Syracuse faced a blizzard and a shortage of natural gas. It got so bad factories, schools and other entities that use natural gas had to shut down. Here’s how it looked forty years ago in Syracuse…
The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading. In today’s lineup: Shale Crescent bringing jobs back to USA; technicians with welding/pipefitting skills in high demand; Atlantic Coast Pipe good for Virginia; 5 gas stats that will blow you away; who will be the next natgas utility to be taken out following WGI; natgas price surges 4%; the link between natgas and electricity; natgas exports to Mexico may be at risk; and more!
Hart Energy’s Marcellus-Utica Midstream Conference and Exhibition was held this week in Pittsburgh. Although MDN could not be there in person, there are plenty of reports about what was said. Perhaps the most interesting we’ve read are comments by keynoter Alan Armstrong, CEO of Williams. Among the startling remarks Armstrong made: He expects natural gas production in the Marcellus/Utica to grow by 65% over the next five years–from 23 to 38 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d). Yikes! He also said there are currently 60 rigs operating in the M-U, which is “not nearly enough.” In order to meet growing demand, Armstrong says some 100 rigs are needed. Double yikes! Here’s some more pickings from what was said at the conference…
Can you smell it? We sure can. It’s called hope. Not even a full week in the new Trump Administration, hope can be found everywhere. Liberal Democrats still aren’t sure what hit them. Let us help. It’s competence. It’s someone who gives a damn about the average American. It’s someone who believes the country, as it was founded, is the best country in the world. Donald J. Trump. He’s blown into Washington, DC like a hurricane and things are changing so fast most of us can’t keep up. Case in point: On Tuesday, Trump’s second full day on the job (last Friday and the weekend don’t count), Trump signed an Executive Order “Expediting Environmental Reviews and Approvals For High Priority Infrastructure Projects.” What are ‘high priority infrastructure projects’? A document has leaked, originally compiled by Trump’s transition team, of 50 ‘Emergency & National Security Projects’ that are infrastructure projects–projects the Trump Administration believes should be worked on immediately. Project #20 in the list is Dominion’s Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP), a $5 billion, 594-mile natural gas pipeline that will stretch from West Virginia through Virginia and into North Carolina. Number 20! How cool is that? No, this doesn’t mean Trump can simply order it approved like some sovereign or tinpot dictator. Our rules and laws must be followed. What it does mean is that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) will now receive enormous pressure to quit dragging its feet and to “fast track” the review for ACP. It means hope on now on the horizon…
Pennsylvania hired research firm IHSMarkit to study the Marcellus and Utica and how many ethane cracker plants the region can comfortably support. Denise Brinley, a special assistant to the Secretary of the state Department of Community and Economic Development, offered a preview of that report at this week’s Hart Energy Marcellus Utica Midstream conference in Pittsburgh. Although the report is due to be published “in the next few weeks,” Brinley spilled the beans on what it concludes: The PA Marcellus can support another two cracker plants, and the Utica can support two crackers. That’s another four cracker plants, theoretically, that our region can support, in addition to Shell’s ethane cracker. However, the study will also show we need more infrastructure (i.e. pipelines) in order to support such projects. Here’s a glimpse into some very exciting news…
The organization that represents county governments in Pennsylvania, the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP), has a message for Gov. Wolf and state legislators: Even if you pass a severance tax, keep the impact fee in place. It has, over the past five years, become critically important for all counties across the state–not just counties where drilling takes place (those “impacted”). Not only do counties want to maintain the impact fee in general, they specifically want to keep it as it is currently structured–how much drillers are taxed and how the revenue is split. The message loud and clear coming from CCAP: don’t screw with the impact fee, even if you want to (boneheadedly) add a severance tax…
Labor unions, typically big Democrat supporters, are increasingly in love with Donald J. Trump. Why? Because Trump (unlike Barack Obama) is actually pushing ahead with major infrastructure project improvements. He has a list of 50 such high-priority projects (see Hope: Atlantic Coast Pipe on Trump List of High Priority Projects). As we previously reported, Trump signed executive orders earlier this week to restart the momentum on two important pipeline projects: Keystone XL and Dakota Access Pipeline (see 
The issue of “setbacks” has always been a contentious issue when it comes to oil and gas drilling. A setback is the distance from a well to nearby structures–like water wells, homes, schools, whatever. In Pennsylvania the state law requires a minimum of 500 feet between a well and nearby structures. But here’s the thing: Do you measure the distance (as drillers maintain) from the bore hole drilled into the ground? Or from the edge of the well pad? A pad is typically 3-5 acres, and if you measure from the edge of the pad, the “actual” distance from the well to a nearby structure may be 1,000 feet instead of 500 feet. Some argue that measuring from the edge of the pad makes more sense–to protect nearby residents from noise, lights, air emissions, etc. But drillers in some locations are hamstrung, especially if the the location where they drill is on a slope or other tough terrain. Measuring from the edge of the pad may mean not drilling at all. It is that very issue now being debated in Murrysville, in Westmoreland County, PA (near Pittsburgh). It is a wisdom of Solomon kind of issue…
In May 2015 Obama’s rogue Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) along with the Obama U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) released a finalized rule clarifying what “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) means vis a vis what can be regulated under the federal Clean Water Act (see 
Rabidly anti-drilling organizations like the Philadelphia-based Clean Air Council (CAC) have been using the deep pockets of their contributors to stir up dissent against Sunoco’s Mariner East 2 NGL pipeline, particularly in towns in the Philly orbit (see 
Many of the large integrated oil and gas companies produce an annual report that looks out over the next 20 years. Their best researchers peer into their crystal balls and make predictions about what will happen–and why. BP is one such company. Earlier this week BP released their annual “Energy Outlook – 2017 edition” (full copy below). The big news in the outlook, for us, is finding out that BP predicts LNG (liquefied natural gas) sales will grow seven times faster over the next 20 years than gas sold via pipelines. Making LNG a VERY important part of our future…
Earlier this week BDO USA released its annual 2017 Energy Outlook Survey. The report indicates favorable signs that we are finally on our way to recovery in the oil and gas industry. Following the “particularly volatile 2016, during which oil prices plummeted to their lowest point in over a decade,” energy CFOs say prices will likely increase this year. Which, among other factors, gives them hope. Some of the findings: mergers and acquisitions will accelerate early this year, then level off; changes in regulations are the top concern; and changes in the way partnerships are taxed have the money guys on edge. Here’s the lowdown…