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Marcellus Drilling News
  • Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Dauphin County | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA | Taxation

    Dueling Rallies in Harrisburg, PA Over Severance Tax Turn Nasty

    June 24, 2015June 24, 2015

    An interesting contrast in rallies yesterday in Harrisburg, PA. As the July 1 deadline quickly approaches for Pennsylvania to approve a budget, there were two rallies at the state Capitol. The first was held by life’s producers–the people who actually create wealth in this country. It was populated by business leaders and those who work for businesses that support the Marcellus Shale industry. They were there to protest against PA Gov. Wolf’s 17.3% severance tax (often mischaracterized by Wolf and a sycophantic press as a “5% tax” on Marcellus gas). Businesses know that such a tax will effectively kill the industry and the jobs and economic impact that go with it, in the Keystone State. Then there was a second rally that followed the business/anti-tax rally. The second rally was held by the life’s takers–those who suck money from the producers. That is, teachers’ unions and their flacks who bleat and blat that stealing money from businesses “is for the children”–to justify their voracious appetite for other people’s money. The second group was there to protest in favor of a money-sucking, Marcellus-killing severance tax. Guess which crowd behaved like adults, and which crowd behaved like ill-tempered and undisciplined children, shouting down the other rally? No, you don’t really have to guess, do you?…
    Read More “Dueling Rallies in Harrisburg, PA Over Severance Tax Turn Nasty”

  • Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Athens County | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Pipelines

    Radicalized Ohio U Students Vandalize Pipeline Construction Site

    June 24, 2015June 24, 2015

    Here is another story in our ongoing series of how people have become radicalized by the Big Green movement, turning into law-breakers in the name of saving Mother Earth. This latest story comes from a hotbed of radicalization–Athens, Ohio–where a small group of Ohio University students, complete with orange T-shirts with the slogan “OU Green Energy NOW!” on them, shoveled dirt back into a trench dug to lay a natural gas pipeline. They also wrapped construction equipment at the site with caution tape and plastered stickers on building materials at the site with labels saying “Recalled Due to Improper Energy Policy”. Once again we see a bunch of (in this case) mis-educated Ohio University students who grew up watching Captain Planet reruns, listening to liberal college professors, and believing every word of what they saw on Saturday morning cartoons and what they hear in the lecture hall–that mom and dad and Big Oil companies are destroying Mom Earth and the polar bears. That is, they’ve been brainwashed and now radicalized…
    Read More “Radicalized Ohio U Students Vandalize Pipeline Construction Site”

  • Belmont County | Energy Services | Ethane | FirstEnergy | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Processing Plants

    FirstEnergy Confirms Their Site is Future Home of OH Cracker

    June 24, 2015June 24, 2015

    More cracker plant talk. Yesterday we told you that Shell has received the air quality permit they need from the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (see Shell Receives Air Quality Permit from PA DEP for Cracker Plant), moving that ethane cracker plant project significantly closer to reality. We also told you that the president and CEO of Odebrecht, the Brazilian company planning to build a cracker plant in WV, has been arrested in a bribery scandal (see Odebrecht CEO Arrested; What Does it Mean for WV Cracker Plant?), making that ethane cracker project less likely, in our humble opinion. The third major ethane cracker in the Marcellus/Utica is planned for Belmont County, OH. PTT Global Chemical, Thailand’s largest integrated petrochemical and refining company, with financial backing from Marubeni Corporation, a Japan-based company conglomerate, plans to build a cracker plant complex in Ohio (see It’s Official: Belmont County Chosen as POSSIBLE Cracker Plant Site). It has been an “open secret” the site for the plant would be at FirstEnergy Corp’s R.E. Burger power plant site along the banks of the Ohio River. FirstEnergy has, until now, denied they are selling the site. But a FirstEnergy official in a round-about way has just confirmed that yes, IF the cracker plant project gets built, it likely will get built at the R.E. Burger site…
    Read More “FirstEnergy Confirms Their Site is Future Home of OH Cracker”

  • Energy Services | Energy Transfer Partners | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Williams

    Q: Why is ETE Making a Play to Buy Williams? A: Marcellus/Utica

    June 24, 2015June 24, 2015

    On Monday, MDN brought you what has to be the biggest midstream news in the Marcellus/Utica for 2015: a proposed hostile takeover of Williams by Energy Transfer Equity (see Energy Transfer Makes “Indecent Proposal” to Buy Williams for $48B). We’re a bit dubious about the benefits of a proposed takeover/merger because the market loses competition with such mega mergers. But Wall Street loves these kinds of deals. We see jobs lost due to consolidation and price increases due to less competition. Wall Street sees fatter profits from “economies of scale” and other euphemisms they use for lost jobs and less competition. We spotted a Reuters article that evaluates the proposed ETE deal from the perspective of what it means (for ETE) in the Marcellus/Utica. The story says the primary motivator on the part of ETE in pursuing a takeover/merger with Williams is that it would give ETE a “dominant position” in the Marcellus/Utica…
    Read More “Q: Why is ETE Making a Play to Buy Williams? A: Marcellus/Utica”

  • Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Kinder Morgan | Pipelines | Regulation | Transco

    Mass. DPU Rejects Anti Group’s Request to Join Pipeline Hearing

    June 24, 2015June 24, 2015

    ENOUGH of these anti-pipeline, anti-drilling, dump-all-fossil fuels protesters and their strategies to stop pipelines in New England. That’s essentially what the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (DPU) said in refusing to allow the anti-pipeline group Pipeline Awareness Network for the Northeast (PLAN-NE) “full intervenor status” at a series of hearings the DPU will hold today, tomorrow and Friday to consider whether the contracts sought by the local gas distribution companies (local gas utilities) who want to get cheap, abundant and clean-burning Marcellus natural gas from Kinder Morgan’s proposed Northeast Energy Direct pipeline, are in the public interest. The DPU wants to concentrate on the real issues at hand and not be distracted and derailed by the antics of anti-pipeliners, so the DPU turned down PLAN-NE’s request…
    Read More “Mass. DPU Rejects Anti Group’s Request to Join Pipeline Hearing”

  • Commodity Price | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Research

    EIA: Oil & Gas Jobs Plunge 6 Months After Oil Price Plunge

    June 24, 2015June 24, 2015

    Our favorite government agency, the U.S. Energy Information Administration, has authored an excellent article about how jobs in the oil and gas sector lag behind oil price gyrations. That is, once the price of oil drops to a certain level, it takes a while before jobs in the sector start to disappear. Which makes sense. Oil (and gas) prices are cyclical–they go up, they down, they go up again. It’s always been that way. When prices tank, companies don’t immediately layoff people–it take a few months of wait and see to see if prices will recover. If they don’t recover within a few months? That’s when layoffs start to happen, and the statistics show it. A startling statistic included in the EIA story below: on-shore rig counts hit a new low for the week ending June 19–54% below the same point a year ago. It’s the lowest rig count level in nearly six years. While you can’t say “half the rigs, half the number of jobs,” you can say “half the rigs means a whole lotta jobs are now, 12 months later, gone”…
    Read More “EIA: Oil & Gas Jobs Plunge 6 Months After Oil Price Plunge”

  • Economic Impact | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Regulation | Research

    API Study Shows Energy Regulations are Killing Jobs & Economy

    June 24, 2015June 24, 2015

    The American Petroleum Institute (API) released a new study yesterday authored by Wood Mackenzie, a global research firm, which compares government policies that promote the growth of the energy industry with government policies that stifle energy growth. The study, titled “A Comparison of US Oil and Natural Gas Policies: Pro-development Policies vs. Proposed Regulatory Constraints” (full copy embedded below) finds that the study found that unnecessarily restrictive energy and environmental regulations proposed by the Obama administration will lead to 830,000 lost jobs and a decrease of $133 billion per year in the U.S. economy. In other words, Obama is ruining this country with his energy/environmental policies…
    Read More “API Study Shows Energy Regulations are Killing Jobs & Economy”

  • About MDN

    Important MDN Housekeeping Notices

    June 24, 2015June 24, 2015

    important announcementA few, short housekeeping notices for the Marcellus Drilling News service. First, for our paying subscribers, my web host tells me that tonight, Wednesday, June 24, starting around 10 pm and lasting through 2 am the server that MDN is hosted on is getting an upgrade and will be “off the air” at various points. Just a heads up if you read the site late at night.

    Second, as of right now, the MDN Facebook page has exactly 9,999 “likes”. By the time you read this it may be 10,000! If not, perhaps you would consider visiting our Facebook page and “liking” it to push us over the 10K mark? https://www.facebook.com/MarcellusDrilling

    Thanks!
    Jim Willis, Editor

  • Best of the Rest

    Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Wed, Jun 24, 2015

    June 24, 2015June 24, 2015

    The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading:
    Read More “Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Wed, Jun 24, 2015”

  • Energy Companies | Vantage Energy

    Marcellus Driller Vantage Energy Puts Itself Up for Sale

    June 23, 2015June 23, 2015

    for sale signVantage Energy, a driller with operations in the Marcellus (in southwestern Pennsylvania) and in the Texas Barnett Shale, has had a bumpy ride over the past year or so. In 2014 Vantage planned to launch an initial public offering (IPO), hoping to raise $600 million–but later scraped that plan (see Vantage Energy Postpones IPO Citing Unfavorable Market Conditions). In December, the company was assessed a hefty fine by the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (see Vantage Energy Fined $1M for Multiple Errors at Greene County Site). And in February of this year, Vantage had the dubious distinction of being one of the companies on David Fessler’s oil & gas company “death list” of companies with debts four times or higher than earnings (see 19 Oil/Gas Companies on “Death List” – 8 are in Marcellus/Utica). [MDN Note of Apology: The Vantage in David Fessler’s list is Vantage Drilling, NOT Vantage Energy–in no way connected to Vantage Energy. We regret the error!] So it was no surprise for MDN to read that Vantage has put itself up for sale. The company has hired Barclays to help find a suitor to buy them. Among the potential suitors are several Marcellus drillers…
    Read More “Marcellus Driller Vantage Energy Puts Itself Up for Sale”

  • American Energy Partners | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Traverse Midstream

    McClendon’s New Empire Continues to Separate and Leave

    June 23, 2015June 23, 2015

    we're outta hereAubrey McClendon’s new American Energy Partners continues to shed its component parts. Just two weeks ago MDN brought you the news that the largest subsidiary of the company in the Marcellus/Utica region, American Energy Appalachia Holdings, is being spun out into a 100% standalone company, changing its name to Ascent Resources (see Big McClendon News: Sells 35K Utica Acres, Creates New Company). Aubrey himself is still on the board of Ascent, but virtually everything about the new company, we’ve been told, has nothing to do with McClendon. It’s as if they’re running as far and fast as they can away from McClendon. Now, a second large subsidiary of American Energy Partners–the midstream part of the company–is doing the same thing. American Energy – Midstream, LLC announced today it is changing its name to Traverse Midstream Partners LLC (Traverse Midstream). Traverse is transitioning to a 100% standalone company, fully independent of the mother ship American Energy Partners. According to the press release, the spin-off into a new company was “contemplated since the company’s founding in June 2014.” The new company will be totally and completely separated effective July 1, 2015…
    Read More “McClendon’s New Empire Continues to Separate and Leave”

  • Air Quality | Beaver County | Energy Companies | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Processing Plants | Regulation | Shell | Statewide PA

    Shell Receives Air Quality Permit from PA DEP for Cracker Plant

    June 23, 2015June 23, 2015

    Finally, after months and months of waiting, the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) has granted an air quality permit that allows Shell to operate a proposed ethane cracker plant in Monaca (Beaver County), PA. MDN told you the DEP signaled they would approve the air quality permit back in March (see PA DEP Signals Approval for Shell Ethane Cracker Air Quality Plan). Three months later the DEP finally issued the permit–no small miracle given the agency is now run by PennFuture DEP Sec. John Quigley. Shell had stated getting the permit would be a “critical” step in the process to moving forward. Now that they have the permit, what kinds of encouraging words do we have from Shell? The permit “does not mean we have made a final decision to build the project.” Which is the same standard line they’ve delivered since 2011 when this whole process began (see Shell Commits to Building a Billion Dollar Chemical Plant in the Marcellus Region of U.S.). Four years of being teased with this project has led us to think we’ve contracted post traumatic cracker disorder (PTCD)…
    Read More “Shell Receives Air Quality Permit from PA DEP for Cracker Plant”

  • Braskem | Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Odebrecht | Processing Plants | West Virginia | Wood County

    Odebrecht CEO Arrested; What Does it Mean for WV Cracker Plant?

    June 23, 2015June 23, 2015

    Scandal has rocked Odebrecht, the Brazilian company that in November 2013 announced it wants to build a $4 billion ethane cracker plant complex near Parkersburg, WV (see WV Announces Brazilian Company to Build Ethane Cracker Complex). Marcelo Odebrecht, president and CEO of Odebrecht SA–one of the largest construction companies in South America–was recently arrested for being part of a plan that stole “billions of dollars” from Brazil’s state-run Petrobras oil company. His arrest raises legitimate questions about the viability of the proposed Parkersburg ethane cracker project. We can all pretend that the arrest of the CEO of the company proposing to build the plant has little or no effect on the future of the project–but we’re not children. So let’s not pretend. What do you think is occupying Mr. Odebrecht’s attention these days–building a petrochemical plant in far-off West Virginia, or staying out of jail?…
    Read More “Odebrecht CEO Arrested; What Does it Mean for WV Cracker Plant?”

  • Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Odebrecht | Processing Plants | Statewide WV | West Virginia | Wood County

    WV Gov Tomblin Not Ready to Give Up on Odebrecht Ethane Cracker

    June 23, 2015June 23, 2015

    West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, the man who has worked hard to land an ethane cracker plant for his state, is still hopeful that WV will get them a cracker. In a wide-ranging talk at the Wheeling Rotary Club on Monday, Tomblin said Odebrecht, the Brazilian company that announced its interest in building an ethane cracker complex near Parkersburg, WV, continues to move forward with the project–“but at a slower pace.” That certainly is a bit of good news. We’ve not heard anything about Odebrecht advancing the ball on their project since the company announced in April, “the original configuration…needs to be re-evaluated, and a final investment decision on the project will require more diligence.” We took that to mean they’ve hit the pause button (see Odebrect Pushes the Pause Button on WV Ethane Cracker). But Tomblin and his administration don’t view it the same way. Instead of hitting the brakes, Tomblin says Odebrecht has simply reduced pressure on the gas pedal a bit…
    Read More “WV Gov Tomblin Not Ready to Give Up on Odebrecht Ethane Cracker”

  • Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies

    Are the Buyout Sharks Starting to Circle Chesapeake Energy?

    June 23, 2015June 23, 2015

    shark finThe buyout sharks are circling midstream behemoth Williams, as we reported yesterday (see Energy Transfer Makes “Indecent Proposal” to Buy Williams for $48B). For some time, there have been rumors that the upstream sector may also see more buyout activity. Specifically, Chesapeake Energy is a favorite name that keeps reappearing. Are the buyout sharks starting to circle Chesapeake? MDN spotted an open letter to corporate raider Carl Ichan on the Seeking Alpha website. Icahn is the second largest investor in Chesapeake. We think the letter illustrates what’s wrong with capitalism, if we might be so bold as to say so. The letter writer encourages Ichan to make a bid for Chessy since the company’s stock is priced half today what it was a year ago. The letter writer predicts a buyout bid by Ichan would create a bidding war and somebody else would buy the company for big bucks, enriching Ichan and other investors (and no doubt lead to more Chesapeake employees losing their jobs). What if Ichan himself wins the bidding war he starts? No sweat. Just wait 6-12 months, says the letter writer, and then break the company apart into pieces and sell it off piece by piece and make 3-4x your original investment. We think that’s a phenomenally poor idea…
    Read More “Are the Buyout Sharks Starting to Circle Chesapeake Energy?”

  • Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

    More on PIOGA Request to Keep DEP in its Regulatory Box

    June 23, 2015June 23, 2015

    Yesterday MDN brought you the story of the Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association’s (PIOGA) third request to intervene in the Act 13 lawsuit decided by the PA Supreme Court (see PIOGA Asks Supreme Court to Stop DEP Denying Permits Using Act 13). The point of PIOGA’s request is to make the DEP follow PA law when it comes to granting shale drilling permits. Our headline and some of the language we used in that article was not completely accurate–we’d like to admit that right up front (although our inaccuracy was not intentional). The headline states that the DEP has denied permits based on portions of the Act 13 lawsuit tossed out by the PA Supreme Court. In researching the issue and speaking with those knowledgeable about PIOGA’s request to the Supreme Court, we’ve not found a specific instance where the DEP has denied a permit based on the tossed out Section 3215(b)-(e). But while denying permits based on rejected portions of Act 13 is not taking place, something far more subtle and insidious IS going on–with the same result as if the DEP were denying permits based on tossed-out portions of Act 13. Let us explain…
    Read More “More on PIOGA Request to Keep DEP in its Regulatory Box”

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