LNG Vessels Transiting Panama Canal Must Use Auction for Time Slots
Three weeks ago, MDN warned you about delays with LPG (propane) and LNG ships transiting the Panama Canal (see Drought Along Panama Canal Causing Delays in Propane, LNG Exports). According to the Panama Canal Authority (APC), water levels at Gatún Lake are the lowest since at least 1995 due to an extended dry season and lower-than-normal precipitation on the Panama Canal. Gatún Lake is the artificial lake that vessels pass through to transit between the Atlantic and Pacific locks, and it holds the water supply needed to operate the lock systems of the canal. The situation has grown even more dire in just the last three weeks…
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Have you ever noticed how the wacko leftists of the so-called environmental movement behave (and talk) as if they are members of a religion? They use religious language all the time to describe their holy mission of cleansing the earth of evil and sinful fossil energy. Check this out. Environuts say an Indiana utility company is “backsliding” on its clean energy goals with its plan to build a gas-fired peaker plant — a plant that makes unreliable renewables (like solar and wind) possible.
Nearly 14 years after the Gasland fake documentary was released, dozens of studies have contradicted its claims about fracking. Gasland’s dire predictions didn’t come to pass. The 2010 documentary, which was written and directed by Josh Fox, portrayed fracking operations as poisoning groundwater, killing wildlife, and making people sick while corrupt oil companies profited. Remember the famous scene where a Colorado man lights his tap water on fire? It turns out it was natural methane in his water, not methane from fracking. Just one of the lies exposed about the film.
MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: Democrat’s national dark money machine dominates PA elections; NATIONAL: Shale M&A to gather pace in hunt for inventory; Natural gas prices accumulate 10% loss over three days; The alt-energy bloodbath in 10 charts; INTERNATIONAL: Russia will fight to protect its key weapon in the global energy race.
Stupified and dumbfounded. Those are the words that come to mind when reading of a so-called climate pact agreed to by Joe Biden with Chinese dictator Xi Jinping in California last week. And then we got really, really angry. Biden is consciously (or perhaps unconsciously?) choosing to sentence our country to energy dependence on our #1 enemy in the world by forcing our country away from using fossil energy in favor of unreliable, so-called renewable energy. China is also pledging to scale down fossil energy. Of course, China is lying. We have proof.
A lawsuit of interest for all landowners is playing out in West Virginia between a class of landowners and EQT Corporation, the largest natural gas producer in the country. We searched our extensive archives high and low and found no mention of this lawsuit! Somehow, it has escaped our attention — until now. As these cases often are, this one is long and complicated. However, the nub of the case, the essence of the dispute, is whether or not EQT can pay royalties to landowners based on the “raw” gas that comes out of the borehole (methane plus NGLs) or whether, as the plaintiffs argue, EQT should pay royalties based on the post-processed gas and NGLs (presumably at a much higher rate).
In August 2022, Columbia Gas Transmission (a subsidiary of TC Energy) filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to build the Virginia Reliability Project (VRP), which includes two new compressor units and the replacement of existing pipeline (see 
Last week, the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County (MAWC) issued a water conservation warning asking more than 56,000 MAWC customers to conserve water due to the lack of rainfall and the low level of the Beaver Run Reservoir. MAWC provides water to more than 122,000 customers in Westmoreland, Allegheny, Armstrong, Fayette, and Indiana counties. When full, Beaver Run Reservoir holds about 11.4 billion gallons. Over the last several years, dry conditions have steadily reduced the reservoir’s volume. As of last Friday, the reservoir only had about 5.5 billion gallons in it. Two of the customers who sometimes use water from the reservoir (for fracking and drilling) are Olympus Energy and CNX Resources. Both companies are currently (temporarily) suspended from using water from the reservoir.
In December, Murrysville (PA) Council members will make a decision about leasing land for shale drilling under Duff Park (234 acres) and Murrysville Community Park (305 acres). Murrysville is located in Westmoreland County in the southwestern part of the state. Olympus Energy is interested and has pitched proposals to lease under both parks, using their adjacent leased acreage (on private land) to set up rigs to drill under the parks. However, Murrysville recently sought proposals from other drillers to avoid any appearance of insider deals (see 
Dominion Energy, a huge utility company headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, recently revived a plan to build four small “peaker” electric generating plants in Chesterfield County, VA, a Richmond suburb (see 
Another dead cat bounce in the rig count (i.e., the slight bounce a dead cat makes when it hits the ground). The “dead” rig count hit a new low two weeks ago (see 
An undetermined amount of fracking wastewater spilled at the Eureka Resources wastewater recycling facility in Williamsport (Lycoming County), PA, at about 9:10 a.m. yesterday. The incident prompted a response by city firefighters and police. The water came from a valve on a tank inside the facility, where oil, chemicals and other substances are removed from fracking wastewater. Contrary to initial reports, nobody (no employees nor first responders) was injured or became ill from the spill.
In December 2017, MDN told you about a second proposed natural gas-fired power plant planned by CME Energy for Oregon (Lucas County), Ohio (see 
Grab the popcorn! It’s fun to sit back and watch the other side eat its own for a change. We’re talking about the civil war that has erupted on the Democrat Left over Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s “bold” agreement signed with CNX Resources to “move the ball forward” on “environmental progress” in PA (see