Danger: New Bill Threatens LNG Exports by Expanding Jones Act
Just at the time U.S. exports of LNG are once again ramping up, along comes a “bipartisan” group of legislators proposing a bill to require some LNG exports (as well as some petroleum exports) to be transported from our shores on U.S.-built and U.S.-flagged LNG carriers. The problem is, none currently exist! This is yet another massive screwup coming from some who mean well, and some who don’t. Some of the people backing the bill, like hapless Sen. Bob Casey (from Pennsylvania) likely don’t know this bill will destroy exports of Marcellus/Utica molecules. He’s just too dull to comprehend it. But others, we suspect, know exactly what this bill would do.
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All three M-U states received permits to drill new shale wells last week. Pennsylvania received 18 new permits for three drillers, all of them in the western part of the state. Ohio received 5 new permits for two different drillers. And West Virginia received 5 new permits, all for the same company in the same county on the same well pad.
NATIONAL: Recent completions of natural gas pipeline projects increase transportation capacity; Shale producers find themselves in unusual position; Natural gas in storage set to decrease by about 30% of five-year average.
Gulfport Energy continues to try and wiggle out of legally-signed and binding long-term contracts with multiple pipeline companies, including deals that move Marcellus/Utica gas through the Rover and Rockies Express (REX) pipelines. Last year the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) told Gulfport a very loud NO in breaking those contracts (see 
Nuverra Environmental Solutions (formerly Heckmann) is one of the largest companies in the United States that handles transportation and disposal of shale drilling wastewater and leftover rock and dirt from drilling. The company has major operations in the Marcellus/Utica region. In November, the company reported less-than-rosy results for the third quarter, because of the coronavirus and producers slowing down their drilling programs (see 
Pennsylvania State Senator Gene Yaw is on fire! His verbal barbs concerning energy production keep coming–and they’re aimed at the right people for the right reasons. Last week the Senate committee Yaw chairs, the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, held hearings to consider the new 2021/22 budget request from the PA Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR). As we told you last week, Yaw asked some pointed questions of DCNR Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn (see 
The push is on to make the Marcellus/Utica the country’s second petrochemical hub. The U.S. Gulf Coast is the country’s first and primary petchem hub, but in light of multiple hurricanes and even snowstorms this past year (with multiple disruptions), it’s obvious to everyone that the M-U region can and should become a second petchem hub. An entire conference to discuss how to make that happen will be held next week in Wheeling, WV. The 2nd annual 
Last August the North Carolina Dept. of Environmental Quality (DEQ) rejected a water permit for Equitrans’ proposed Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) Southgate project (see 
The good news for Equitrans’ 303-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) is that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit last week overruled North Carolina’s Dept. of Environmental Quality in rejecting a water permit for the project (see today’s lead story). However, MVP wasn’t letting last year’s DEQ action slow it down. In January MVP reluctantly filed eminent domain lawsuits against 100 landowners who refuse to reasonably negotiate an easement for the pipeline.
Ohio’s House Bill (HB) 6 is a law granting billions (plural) of dollars to FirstEnergy in an attempt to prop up the company’s economically failing nuclear power plants. FirstEnergy is accused of bribing state legislators to pass, and keep passed, HB 6 by paying out $61 million (see 
Last week MDN brought you news of a new forced pooling bill under consideration in this year’s West Virginia legislative session (see 
Last Saturday Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf’s office published, via the Pennsylvania Bulletin, a list of agency-by-agency regulations currently in development with an estimated schedule for future actions. In the list is the all-important (to the oil and gas industry) Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP). It’s been our observation when the government in general, and DEP in particular, changes a regulation, it typically makes it more onerous (and expensive) to comply with. Some of the upcoming changes to DEP regulations happening this year we’ve already warned you about. Others are new to us.