2 More Programs Introduced to SPEED Up Broken PA DEP Permitting
How many government programs does it take to fix the broken Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP)? However many have gone before, you can add another two new programs to the list. Yesterday, the DEP announced two new programs that will, this time, really, actually, fix the agency’s chronically slow permitting for simple permits. Pinky swear. (And if you believe that, we have a bridge you may be interesting in buying. It’s located in New York City.)
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Sometimes, we are at a loss to explain the actions of “our side” (the fossil fuel industry). This is one of those times. Penn State University, in recent years, has become hostile to fossil energy and the shale fracking that pervades (and blesses) the state. Yet petrochemical giant Shell, with its $15 billion ethane cracker in Beaver County, PA, is donating $1 million to Penn State to fund (and we quote): “initiatives focused on energy transition, decarbonization, polymer recycling and biodiversity, and the creation of an inclusive and innovative energy workforce.” Translating the gobbledygook: It’s $1 million to fund a way to put Shell and other fossil energy companies out of business. We have to ask, Why would Shell do this?
Yesterday, the “front month” NYMEX natural gas contract for Sept. delivery gained 4.60 cents per million British thermal units (MMBtu), rising 2.15% to $2.1890/MMBtu. Hey! Above $2 for five consecutive trading sessions! How long will the price stay above $2? Zacks.com took a stab at answering that question.
One of the pleasures we’ve had over the years in writing MDN and attending various industry events is meeting the great people who either work in or support the oil and gas industry. One of those people is Alex Epstein, author of the book, “
NATIONAL: We are wasting $2 trillion a year chasing ‘green’ fantasies; O&G reserves were mostly unchanged in 2023; Selection of Walz raises stakes for Harris on energy policy; INTERNATIONAL: Oil soars above $80 amid fears of Iranian reprisal; Wood-burning Drax Power plant highest emitter in UK; Canada’s top natural gas producer acquires rival. 
What had been a regular stream of talk about providing power to data centers and artificial intelligence (AI) has become a torrent. There is a clear connection between data centers and the natural gas industry. This most recent round of quarterly financial updates by the biggest of the big pipeline companies (all of which have a huge presence in the Marcellus/Utica) reveals a new opportunity: building natgas pipelines directly to data centers. Why? Because increasingly those data centers are considering making their own power.
The mighty Shell ethane cracker plant in Monaca (Beaver County), PA, has a new person in charge: Emma Lewis, senior vice president of U.S. chemicals and products at Shell. We told you Lewis had replaced Hilary Mercer back in January (see 
A Washington County, PA, man and his anti-fossil fuel lawyer have won the right to force Chevron executives to testify in court in a case where the man accuses Chevron of using PFAS (“forever chemicals”) in fracking fluids in 2011-2012 near his home. He alleges the chemicals spread to his water well and damaged his health and the health of family members who drank and used the “contaminated” water.
In July, MDN told you about a disappointing (but not surprising) decision from the Democrat leftists on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (see 
The vast majority (up to 99%) of Pennsylvania’s abandoned conventional wells are “orphans,” or wells without an identifiable, documented owner whom the state can hold liable for cleanup. Orphan wells date back to the Civil War in some cases. Even with “newer” wells, the problem has been poor recordkeeping by the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (see 
The Baker Hughes U.S. rig count has gone up three out of the last four weeks, including last week, when it went up by two to 588. However, it’s still down 41 from the 629 it hit earlier this year in March, so we don’t get overly excited about reading that it went up again last week. It’s still below 600, an important psychological level. The Marcellus/Utica stayed even last week with 36 active rigs. However, one rig moved. Pennsylvania gained a rig and now operates 21 active rigs. Ohio lost a rig and now operates 10 active rigs. West Virginia remained the same with five active rigs. The M-U’s primary competitor, the Haynesville, was down two rigs and now operates 32 rigs. The gap between the M-U and Haynesville grows!
MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: Proposed Newton Twp. solar farm draws resident opposition; OTHER U.S. REGIONS: Vermonters still don’t know how much a clean heat standard would cost; Negative natgas prices get more common in Texas; NATIONAL: EIA reveals latest world oil consumption forecast; America must unburden itself from Harris’s climate agenda; INTERNATIONAL: Another LNG tanker seen docking at Russian terminal sanctioned by US; European gas trades near 2024 high, luring imports of LNG.
As I previously emailed to let you know, some major behind-the-scenes changes are taking place for the MDN website. Last week, we changed the web host, which somehow inadvertently affected some people who had issues logging in and staying logged in. Today, we have changed the membership system, so a few of the links at the top will look different. If you are not logged in, you will see a Login button along the top right of the site (for the computer version). If you are logged in, you will see an Account button where you can manage the details of your MDN account.
Ascent Resources, founded as American Energy Partners by gas legend Aubrey McClendon, is a privately held company focusing 100% on the Ohio Utica Shale. Ascent, headquartered in Oklahoma City, OK, is Ohio’s largest natural gas producer and the 8th largest natural gas producer in the U.S. The company issued its second quarter 2024 update on Wednesday. The company posted a 5% increase in net production to 2,190 MMcfe/d (2.19 Bcfe/d) compared to a year ago. Ascent is pivoting to produce more liquids, including oil and NGLs — although the emphasis is on producing more NGLs.