Homer City Gas-Fired Plant Hits 1,000 Workers on Construction Site
That didn’t take long! Construction has accelerated into overdrive at the former Homer City coal plant site, now transformed into a 3,200-acre energy and data center campus. The project just hit a milestone with 1,000 workers currently on-site. Demolition and grading are complete, allowing vertical construction to begin on a 4.4-gigawatt natural gas power plant slated for 2028. This $10 billion redevelopment, led by Knighthead Capital Management, aims to revitalize Indiana County by replacing aging infrastructure with modern energy solutions and future data centers. The project represents a massive economic shift, providing high-quality regional jobs and securing the community’s role in the future of American energy production. Read More “Homer City Gas-Fired Plant Hits 1,000 Workers on Construction Site”
South Carolina regulators have approved Duke Energy’s proposal to build a 1.4-gigawatt (GW) natural gas-fired power plant in Anderson County, marking the utility’s first new generation project in the state in a decade. Scheduled for construction in 2027 and operational by 2031, the facility aims to address surging energy demands driven by population growth and economic expansion, though critics (falsely) attribute the need primarily to AI-driven data centers. Supported by Governor Henry McMaster under the S.C. Energy Security Act, the project is expected to generate an annual $84 million economic impact while ensuring long-term power reliability for the region. 
Nine Energy Service, a Houston-based provider of onshore completion solutions with operations in a number of shale basins, including major operations in the Marcellus/Utica, received court approval for a prepackaged Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan earlier this month (see 
Last week, we told you that a supposed “group of rural Ohioans” in Adams and Brown counties was seeking a constitutional amendment to ban data centers exceeding 25 megawatts, citing concerns over resource consumption and a lack of local control (see 
Speaking at this week’s CERAWeek event in Houston, industry groups express cautious optimism that permitting reform, specifically the SPEED Act, could pass within a narrow eight-week window. While Senate negotiations recently resumed after disputes over offshore wind, experts warn that looming midterm elections may soon stall progress. Proponents argue that streamlining environmental reviews is vital for infrastructure and energy affordability. However, if a deal isn’t reached before July or during the “lame duck” session, shifting House leadership could deprioritize the reform. The appointment of energy veteran Alan Armstrong to the Senate provides a final push for the legislation. 
NATIONAL: U.S. natural gas futures gain after inventory draw; Occidental’s Hollub, US oil’s most powerful woman, prepares to hand over reins; Private firms spearhead global shale push as US public operators stay home; INTERNATIONAL: Oil climbs as Hormuz disruption deepens; Iran oil revenue soars; Middle East crude oil tanker rates reached a multi-decade high in March; Europe scales back climate goals to ease Iran war energy shock; Gas crisis dwarfs oil shock as LNG supply breaks; Why world is on verge of bigger oil shock than 1973. 
Pennsylvania State Senator Gene Yaw is introducing legislation to modernize Pennsylvania’s 1961 Oil and Gas Conservation Law, which currently relies on standards predating modern horizontal drilling. By aligning the statute with contemporary practices, the bill aims to accelerate permit reviews for Utica wells and treat them consistently with Marcellus shale operations. Yaw argues that updating these outdated rules will reduce resource waste, minimize surface impacts, and prevent natural gas from being left underground. 
Williams is addressing the surging energy needs of data centers by deploying modular natural gas-fired power units. In fact, the company has a 6-gigawatt (GW) project backlog by the early 2030s. Williams executive Jaclyn Presnal highlights that modularization provides essential “speed to power” and extreme reliability through built-in redundancy, outperforming traditional large-scale plants for phased projects. These initiatives incorporate batteries to manage AI-driven loads and leverage pipeline expansions, such as the Transco Power Express (see 
Epsilon Energy, a relatively small company, used to concentrate most of its effort on developing Marcellus Shale wells. However, over the past few years, the company has expanded into other plays and now owns assets in the Anadarko (Oklahoma), the Permian (Texas), the Powder River Basin (Wyoming), and the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin (in Alberta, Canada). In the Marcellus, Epsilon does not do its own drilling. It is a joint venture partner with (gives money to) Expand Energy, and Expand does the drilling in the Marcellus. Epsilon issued its latest quarterly update yesterday, discussing what’s on the docket for 2026. And, what’s on the docket is that Expand plans to drill five new wells this year on Epsilon’s leased acreage in northeast Pennsylvania. 
The Marcellus Shale Coalition writes that Pennsylvania sits at the center of U.S. Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) development, as highlighted by the EU–U.S. LNG Cooperation 2.0 Summit held in February in Pittsburgh. Utilizing the Appalachian Basin’s vast resources, the state has driven the shale revolution, making the U.S. a leading global energy exporter. This production has been vital for European energy security, providing a critical alternative to Russian gas. 
Morningstar DBRS has published an interesting commentary that will be of interest to MDN readers and those with an interest in LNG: “From Risk to Relevance: Middle East Disruption Elevates North American LNG.” The escalating conflict in the Middle East has disrupted global LNG supply, damaged infrastructure in Qatar, and constrained shipping. These developments have heightened buyer concerns around supply security and transit risk, prompting a reassessment of LNG sourcing strategies. As a result, North American LNG has gained strategic relevance (preference), supported by jurisdictional stability and expanding export capacity. 
In December, representatives from Chesapeake Utilities and BHE GT&S, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, presented a proposal to the Port Canaveral Authority to construct a new LNG liquefaction facility in Brevard County, FL (see 
Last week, MDN told you about one landowner in Luzerne County, PA, who became an overnight millionaire after selling his small farm to a company planning to build a data center on the land (see 
Some more high finance stuff to share—but hang tight, there is a point. EQT Corporation announced the pricing and accepted amounts for the buyback of up to $1.4 billion in eight series of outstanding senior notes (IOUs) maturing between 2027 and 2031. The primary motivation for this action is debt reduction and balance sheet management. EQT is getting financially healthier and stronger by getting rid of debt. That’s the point.