INTERNATIONAL: Deutsche Bank cutting emissions from loans to oil and gas; Even green zealots fear the cold more than the evils of natural gas; Putin’s energy war and America’s obligation to remain a reliable supplier; Potential of peak shale puts oil market on edge; Germany leaves its natural gas in the ground.
Read More “Other Stories of Interest: Mon, Oct 24, 2022”
The second-largest LNG export terminal in the U.S., Freeport LNG, located near Galveston, Texas, experienced an explosion and fire in early June (see Explosion Rocks Freeport LNG Export Plant – Offline for 3 Weeks). Freeport, when it’s online and running, liquefies and exports roughly 2 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of natural gas–some of it from the Marcellus/Utica. In August, Freeport LNG Development, the operator, said the plant is expected to be back online in November (see Freeport LNG Restart Timeline Slips from October to November). It appears we are now very close to the restart of the facility.
Read More “Freeport LNG Gets Ready to Restart Exports, Tanker Docked Nearby”
According to law firm Houston Harbaugh, P.C., deducting fuel costs from landowner royalties continues to be an ongoing and widespread practice. Some leases allow the use of a portion of the raw gas recovered at a well to “fuel” well-pad operations (processing of the gas). Not only are landowners denied a royalty on the fuel gas volume, they also have that same “cost” deducted from their production royalty! According to Houston Harbaugh, this practice of deducting fuel costs must be closely monitored by all landowners.
Read More “Developing Issue – Drillers Deduct Fuel Costs from Royalties”
Republicans in the Pennsylvania Senate have, since April 2021, refused to appoint new members to the five-member Public Utility Commission (PUC) in response to Democrat Gov. Tom Wolf’s unilateral push to force the state to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) carbon tax scheme (see Ultimatum to PA Gov: Withdraw RGGI Carbon Tax or No New PUC Appts). With the upcoming election and political “horse trading,” Republicans caved. On Oct. 19, the full Senate approved reappointing one sitting Republican and appointed two new Democrat members–both swamp-dwelling political insiders–to fill three open seats on the PUC.
Read More “2 Swamp-Dwelling Dems Join PA PUC – Republicans Cave to Wolf”
As near as we can tell, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Chairman Richard “Dick” Glick has not voted in favor an ANY brand new natural gas pipeline project in the past five years–until now. Glick, whose five-year term has ended at the agency, and who wants another cushy five-year appointment (he’s out on Dec. 31 if he doesn’t get a Senate vote), is falling all over himself to approve new gas pipelines. Before, he voted against every darned project citing man-made global warming concerns. Now he can’t approve gas-related projects fast enough. What a putz.
Read More “Fearing He Won’t Get Reappointed, FERC’s Glick Approves Gas Pipes”
Excuse our rather blunt headline that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is about to get an anal exam, but that’s about the best way we can describe what is coming to this completely out-of-control federal agency. According to an article appearing on the left-leaning E&E News (owned by POLITICO), if Republicans regain control of the House and the Senate, what awaits the EPA is, “Senior political appointees facing multiple, hourslong hearings. Piles of letters demanding documents from every corner of the agency. And perhaps even subpoenas for text messages.” It’s not pleasant, but somebody needs to muck about in the sewer that is called Joe Biden’s EPA, and bring it to account for its shady actions.
Read More “If Republicans Win Congress, EPA Will Get a Thorough (Anal) Exam”
CNN is a well-known fake news purveyor. We don’t trust a thing CNN “reports” as news. So we were a bit conflicted to see what appears to be a pretty fair and balanced story that calls out Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, who is running for the U.S. Senate, for his openly contradictory statements on whether or not he supports fracking. CNN appears to somehow have swerved into reporting the truth–some real, honest-to-God journalism. Call it a random act of journalism on the part of CNN to publish an article that quotes Fetterman’s openly contradictory statements.
Read More “CNN Calls Out PA’s John Fetterman for Lies re Support of Fracking”
Following his sellout of the country by voting for Joe Biden’s so-called Inflation Reduction Act (a new name for the Build Back Better/New Green Deal), U.S. Senator Joe Manchin’s popularity in his home of West Virginia state has sunk into the sewer. A majority of voters are not happy with the job Manchin is doing, and if the election for Manchin were held today, he would lose to any Republican running against him. Joe Manchin’s political career is over–deservedly so.
Read More “WV Sen. Joe Manchin 3rd Most Unpopular U.S. Senator in the Country”
Permits issued for new shale wells last week got a bit better from their pathetically low numbers. From Oct. 10-16 there were eight new permits issued in Pennsylvania, and four each issued in Ohio and West Virginia. All of the PA permits were issued in northeastern PA, with four going to BKV Operating (i.e. Banpu) in Wyoming County, two to Chesapeake in Bradford County, and two to Beech Resources in Lycoming County. Encino Energy scored all four permits for Ohio, all of them in Harrison County. In WV, Tug Hill (soon to be EQT) received three permits, and Southwestern Energy received one permit, all four in Marshall County.
Read More “16 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Oct 10-16”
MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: EQT blames government for higher natural gas prices; NATIONAL: USA oil groups react to Biden measures; U.S. FERC says winter natgas prices will be up from recent years; U.S. natgas languishes near 7-month low after big storage build; Did President Biden find religion on permitting reform? Not so fast.; Will 2023 bring $150-a-barrel oil?; INTERNATIONAL: Standard Chartered looks at IEA, EIA, OPEC reports; No, Politico Europe, Vladimir Putin is not making Europe “green”; U.N. Secretary’s remarks reveal fossil fuel contradictions.
Read More “Other Stories of Interest: Fri, Oct 21, 2022”
In September, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled that the state senators who represent Pennsylvania landowners living in the Delaware River Basin, primarily in Wayne and Pike counties in the northeastern corner of Pennsylvania, don’t have “standing” to sue the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) to overturn its ban on fracking (see 3rd Circuit Buys Anti Argument, Blocks PA from Suing DRBC). The DRBC has proposed a permanent ban but has never actually conducted a final vote to permanently ban fracking in the Basin (see Governors from PA-NY-DE Vote to Ban Fracking in Dela. River Basin). The left, sensing it may lose either the Pennsylvania or New York governorships (or both), is pushing DRBC members to take a final vote to permanently ban fracking in the basin–before it loses power.
Read More “Radicals Demand DRBC Vote to Institute Full, Permanent Frack Ban”
Yesterday the Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association (PIOGA) held its annual Marcellus to Market conference at Hollywood Casino at The Meadows in Washington, PA. The event explored efforts to promote manufacturing in Pennsylvania, natural gas as a transportation fuel, the future of the long-rumored Appalachian Storage Hub, and the latest regarding pipelines and other means of delivering natural gas to market. A key focus for the event and topic for a panel discussion in the morning was workforce recruiting, development, and retention. MDN friend Charlie Schliebs, Chairman of the Energy Innovation Center Institute and Managing Director of Stone Pier Capital Advisors, moderated this lively panel.
Read More “Recruiting, Retaining Talent Key Issue at Marcellus to Market Conf”
In early August, a coalition of 19 state attorneys general fired a warning shot across the bow of BlackRock (largest investment firm with $10 trillion in assets under management), telling the company its pressure on investors to divest from fossil energy companies based on so-called ESG (environmental, social, governance) criteria may, in fact, be illegal (see 19 State AGs Turn Up the Heat on Anti-Fossil Fuel BlackRock). That same coalition of 19 AGs is now turning their attention to six Big Banks, sending what is, in essence, a subpoena to the banks demanding information about their involvement and collusion with the United Nations’ Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA).
Read More “19 State AGs Subpoenas Six Big Banks Over ESG Collusion with UN”
We pointed out last week that the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), the agency charged with overseeing the safety of some 3.3 million miles of pipelines across the country, is currently leaderless (see Agency Taking Over Regulation of Gathering Pipes…is Leaderless). However, being leaderless (at the top) doesn’t mean the bureaucrats in the bowels of the organization are not still active and making trouble. Far from it. PHMSA is considering a new welding performance standard that would be a “significant upgrade” over the current standard, and that likely will require additional investment from industry.
Read More “Leaderless PHMSA “Sneaks” New Pipeline Welding Standards into Rule”
The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution says: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” New Jersey is attempting to abridge the freedom of speech for Exxon Mobil, Shell Oil, Chevron, BP, ConocoPhillips, and the American Petroleum Institute (API). NJ has sued those entities claiming they knew that the products they manufacture and promote (oil and gas) have caused global warming and that these entities have lied, and continue to lie, about knowing. NJ wants to muzzle the right of the API and Exxon, et al., to freely defend themselves and stick up for fossil energy, claiming to do so endangers the public and harms the residents of NJ. It’s the most outlandish thing you’ve ever heard.
Read More “New Jersey Sues Big Oil in Attempt to Shut Down Free Speech”
For some time, we’ve been sounding the alarm about a coming change at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that will force publicly traded companies to disclose mythical greenhouse gas emissions data (see SEC Votes to Force Public Companies to Disclose Mythical GHG Risks). The end result of the Biden SEC’s proposed new ESG (environmental, social, governance) regulations would be to “kneecap” oil and gas companies (see SEC Reg Requiring Disclosure of Climate Change Risk “Kneecaps” O&G). And that’s the purpose. The Bidenistas and the left are looking to close down fossil fuel companies by using regulatory agencies like the SEC.
Read More “The Biggest Threat to Fossil Energy is SEC Climate Rule”