Marcellus Drilling News

Columbia Pipeline Group | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | NiSource | Pipelines

NiSource 2Q14: Progress on Marcellus/Utica Midstream Projects
August 4, 2014August 4, 2014

NiSource, a major gas & electric utility company operating in the northeast and southwest (and parent of Columbia Gas and Columbia Pipeline), is in the midst of investing 3/4 of a billion dollars investment in five Marcellus and Utica Shale projects (see NiSource: 5 Marcellus/Utica Projects, $744M Investment). Last week NiSource issued second quarter 2014 results, including an update on some of those projects. Here’s relevant portions of the update touching on the Marcellus/Utica:
Read More “NiSource 2Q14: Progress on Marcellus/Utica Midstream Projects”
Industrywide Issues | Landfills | Regulation | Statewide WV | West Virginia | Wetzel County

Wetzel County Tries to Derail New Rules for WV Drill Cuttings
August 4, 2014August 4, 2014

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP) is expected to file revisions this week to 33CSR1, the Solid Waste Management Rule, that deal with landfill acceptance of drill cuttings. Until now the state has been operating under “emergency rules” put in place earlier this year. The WVDEP is expected to make those emergency rules permanent as part of of 33CSR1. This issue has been hotly debated in WV since last year when anti-drillers attempted to make a big deal of it (see WV Anti-Drillers Continue to Harp on Drill Cuttings in Landfills). The state legislature, in a special session, passed a bill earlier this year to allow the WVDEP to adopt the emergency rules until final rules are enacted after a process of public hearings (see WV Drill Cuttings in Landfill Bill Passes in Record Time). At the final public hearing in Charleston last week, the Wetzel County Solid Waste Authority submitted two studies they funded on this issue that they say raises troubling questions about the proposed “final” rules…
Read More “Wetzel County Tries to Derail New Rules for WV Drill Cuttings”
Accidents | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PPG Uses Auditor General “Report” to Slam Shale Industry – Again
August 4, 2014August 4, 2014

The increasingly anti-drilling Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (PPG) continues to recycle a DOA crap report issued by the anti-drilling Pennsylvania Auditor General–who took office promising to give the drilling industry a black eye and further his own aspirations to one day be governor (see Anti-Drilling PA Auditor General Criticizes DEP in “Report”). As MDN pointed out, Auditor General Eugene DePasquale produced a report that uses data a) now more than two years old, and b) largely looks at the state Dept. of Environmental Protection as it was under Gov. Ed “Fast Eddie” Rendell (when John Hanger was Secretary of the DEP). Those little facts seem to escape the PPG who have just generated yet another anti-drilling article that supposedly finds drillers didn’t discover or report their own spills half the time (at least through the end of 2012)…
Read More “PPG Uses Auditor General “Report” to Slam Shale Industry – Again”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Maryland | Regulation | Statewide MD

Maryland Gov. O’Malley Spins Delay on Shale Drilling as Positive
August 4, 2014August 5, 2014

Outgoing Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley (Democrat), perhaps the worst governor vis–à–vis leadership that Maryland has had in the past two generations, attended a 6-Dem governor “discussion” at the liberal Aspen Institute in Colorado on Saturday (no doubt on Maryland taxpayers’ dime). The discussion was nominally to yak about education, a topic Dems think they own (unfortunately our kids are getting dumber year after year). Because one of the Dem governors present was John Hickenlooper, governor of Colorado (someone who supports shale drilling), the conversation inevitably turned to the topic of fracking. O’Malley made this hilarious statement:
Read More “Maryland Gov. O’Malley Spins Delay on Shale Drilling as Positive”
Industrywide Issues | Regulation | Taxation

IMF Book Says Counties Should Tax Fossil Fuels Higher
August 4, 2014August 4, 2014

The International Monetary Fund, a liberal quasi-governmental organization released a new book yesterday in which they say countries like the United States don’t tax energy, particularly fossil fuels, enough. For the first time ever the IMF lays out what it says is the appropriate level of taxation on coal, natural gas, diesel fuel and gasoline for 156 countries. Of course global warming nuttery plays a major role in their calculations–got to reduce that darned carbon dioxide, ya know (the stuff you breathe out with every breath). IMF chief Christine Lagarde made up some cockamamie excuse why the IMF is concerned about so-called environmental damage instead of sticking to monetary policy. At a gala event last week in Washington, DC, Lagarde, who arrived from Europe on a fossil fuel jetliner and was chauffeured to the event in a fossil fuel powered limousine, said countries shouldn’t wait for everyone to agree. Just start taxing the #$@! out of their citizens now–to force them to give up those evil, nasty fossil fuels. Oh, and don’t forget to chip in a few billion to the IMF along the way…
Read More “IMF Book Says Counties Should Tax Fossil Fuels Higher”
Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Public Opinion

Some Vermonters Actually Want New Natural Gas Pipeline!
August 4, 2014August 4, 2014

In the “wonders never cease” department, just when you’ve written New England states like Massachusetts and Vermont as being overflowing with wacko lefties who hate fossil fuels, along comes a story like this one. Vermont Business Magazine conducted a survey of its readers. Some 500 of them responded–certainly not a scientifically rigorous survey–but indicative all the same. The magazine asked whether or not respondents support the Addison Rutland Natural Gas Project–a project that would lay new natgas pipelines to homes and businesses in Addison and Rutland counties. The top level survey shows that 80% of those surveyed are in favor…
Read More “Some Vermonters Actually Want New Natural Gas Pipeline!”
Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Mon, Aug 4, 2014
August 4, 2014August 4, 2014

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: Mon, Aug 4, 2014”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Public Opinion | Statewide NY

Siena Poll of Upstate NYers on Fracking Fatally Flawed
August 1, 2014August 1, 2014

Sure looks to MDN like the so-called unbiased, independent pollsters at Siena College have pulled a fast one. They’ve either unintentionally, or perhaps intentionally, cherry-picked polling results in order to report in their latest poll that “51 percent of voters int the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes oppose hydrofracking, compared to 39 percent in support.” Here’s why the poll, and therefore it’s results, are fatally flawed and meaningless…
Read More “Siena Poll of Upstate NYers on Fracking Fatally Flawed”
Belmont County | Energy Companies | Gulfport Energy | Industrywide Issues | Monroe County | Ohio | Pipelines | Rice Energy | Utica Shale

Gulfport Cuts Deal with Competitor Rice Energy to Build Pipeline
August 1, 2014August 1, 2014

An interesting announcement from Gulfport Energy earlier this week. The company issued a “midstream update” and a production numbers for 2Q14 going back one year. What’s interesting is that Gulfport has cut midstream (i.e. pipeline) deals to get its production out of the Utica Shale basin in eastern Ohio. One deal is with Rice Energy, a competitor who also drills in the Utica. Rice will construct and operate gathering pipelines for Gulfport in several townships in Belmont County, OH. (Interesting that Rice is becoming a midstream company as well as a driller.) The second deal is with midstreamer MarkWest Energy to construct pipelines to Gulfport wells in other parts of Belmont County, and in parts of Monroe County, OH…
Read More “Gulfport Cuts Deal with Competitor Rice Energy to Build Pipeline”
Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

New Electric Line Thru PA Anticipates Marcellus-Fired Plants
August 1, 2014August 1, 2014

PPL Electric Utilities Corporation announced yesterday that they plan to build a major new electric power line that will run 725 miles from western and north/central Pennsylvania to New York, New Jersey and Maryland. The exact route for the new 500-kilovolt line has not yet been determined, but if approved, PPL would begin construction in 2017 and complete construction by 2025. PPL says it will create a boatload of new jobs and cost between $4 and $6 billion to complete. Wait. What does this have to do with Marcellus drilling? Glad you asked…
Read More “New Electric Line Thru PA Anticipates Marcellus-Fired Plants”
Doddridge County | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | MarkWest Energy | Processing Plants | West Virginia

FirstEnergy Builds Electric Substation for MarkWest WV Plant
August 1, 2014August 1, 2014

Seems to be “electric day” on MDN. We’re noticing several stories about the electric industry’s tie-in with the Marcellus drilling industry. FirstEnergy Corp. announced Wednesday they are building a new $36 million electric substation in Doddridge County, WV to support the Marcellus Shale industry–specifically the nearby electric needs of the MarkWest Sherwood natural gas processing facility. However, an additional 6,000 residents will also benefit from the substation and power line being built…
Read More “FirstEnergy Builds Electric Substation for MarkWest WV Plant”
Access Midstream Partners | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Processing Plants | Williams

Williams 2Q14 Update: Selected Comments, Slides & Databook
August 1, 2014August 1, 2014

Williams, a major midstream company in the U.S. and one of two major midstream companies in the Marcellus/Utica region (MarkWest Energy being the other) released their second quarter 2014 update on Wednesday. Much of the update deals with the monster deal Williams is in the middle of with acquiring all of Access Midstream, the old Chesapeake Midstream (see Big News: Williams Partners Buying Access Midstream for $6B). We’ll link to the update below if you want to wade through it. However, we found the obligatory analyst call much more informative when it comes to Williams news about the Marcellus and Utica. We’ve scoured the transcript and pulled out those sections where Williams talks about their northeast operations. We’ve also embedded the slide presentation they used and a copy of their latest “databook” (now where did they get that name?!)…
Read More “Williams 2Q14 Update: Selected Comments, Slides & Databook”
Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Kinder Morgan | Pipelines | Tennessee Gas Pipeline

Kinder Signs up New Customers for MA Pipeline, 63% of Capacity
August 1, 2014August 1, 2014

Early this year Kinder Morgan, the country’s largest midstream (pipeline and processing plant) company, announced they will expand their Tennessee Gas Pipeline across the state of Massachusetts to bring abundant, cheap Marcellus Shale gas to New England where the gas is desperately needed (see Reaction to TGP’s Planned Pipeline Across Massachusetts). The project, originally called the Northeast Expansion Project, was recently renamed to be the Northeast Energy Direct Project. Survey work has already begun (see Survey Work Already Begun on Kinder Morgan TGP Expansion Thru MA). Also already begun is the hunt for customers. Kinder Morgan held an open season and now has more than half of the initial capacity of the new pipeline spoken for…
Read More “Kinder Signs up New Customers for MA Pipeline, 63% of Capacity”
Anadarko | Energy Companies | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Southwestern Energy | Statewide PA

Loyalsock Drilling Update: Public Will Have 15 Days to Comment
August 1, 2014August 1, 2014

Last Friday MDN told you about the latest spin job being run by the reliably anti-drilling PBS StateImpact Pennsylvania against the PA Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) over their constitutional requirement to allow drilling in the Loyalsock State Forest (see Save the Loyalsock Coalition Attempts a New Spin Job Against DCNR). PA does not own the mineral rights for 25,000 acres of the forest. Anadarko Petroleum and Southwestern Energy are the owners of those mineral rights and have, for years, been attempting to work out a plan to drill there. DCNR is working with both companies to get a plan in place, which has anti-drillers in a dither. Today we bring you the news that DCNR has issued an announcement about where they stand in the process–to let the public know that when a plan to drill has been worked out, the public (meaning anti-drillers) will have 15 days to gripe and moan before the microphones and via email and letters…
Read More “Loyalsock Drilling Update: Public Will Have 15 Days to Comment”
Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Fri, Aug 1, 2014
August 1, 2014August 1, 2014

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: Fri, Aug 1, 2014”
Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Processing Plants | Regulation | Statewide PA | Sunoco Logistics

Setback for Mariner East NGL Pipe – Judges Say Not Public Utility
July 31, 2014July 31, 2014

Two “independent” administrative law judges for the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission have dealt what could be a major blow to Sunoco Logistics’ request to have the Mariner East NGL (natural gas liquids) pipeline declared a public utility. The two judges–David Salapa and Elizabeth Barnes–handed down a decision yesterday that denies Sunoco’s request to have 18 pump and 17 value stations (in 31 locations) that would need to be built along the 300+ mile pipeline exempt from local zoning ordinances. If the pipeline is considered a public utility it would be exempt from local ordinances. Without that exemption, Sunoco Logistics faces a nearly impossible task of trying to gain permission to build the necessary new stations. Below is a copy of the decision, and MDN’s background on this important pipeline project, along with a “where do we go from here” analysis…
Read More “Setback for Mariner East NGL Pipe – Judges Say Not Public Utility”