Elected Reps Continue to Trash Talk Weymouth Compressor Station
Why are anti-fossil fuelers always so angry? Have you ever noticed that? A case in point is Congressman Stephen Lynch (liberal Democrat from Massachusetts) who is demanding Enbridge shut down a multi-million dollar compressor station in Weymouth, Mass. that is now, as of this week, in the process of coming online (see Weymouth, MA Compressor Station Starts Up on Friday, Dec. 4).
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Natural gas-fired electric generation has increased in most U.S. regions since 2015, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Annual electricity generation from natural gas power plants in the U.S. increased by 31% in the Northeast region, by 20% in the Central region, and by 17% in the South region between 2015 and 2019.
MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: State Environmental Agency Assn., led by DEP Sec. McDonnell, meets with Biden EPA transition team; NATIONAL: Shale executives see little chance of significant growth; U.S. natural gas beats Covid-19; Peak oil demand, really? Some lessons from the debate over peak supply; Energy majors, utilities back Biden’s call to enact bipartisan climate legislation; INTERNATIONAL: Denmark to end oil and gas era in 2050; US calls for ‘moratorium’ on Nord Stream 2 pipeline; How OPEC sees the oil market in 2021.
Earlier this week the NYMEX natural gas futures contract for December rolled off and the January contract became the “front contract” being traded. The latest storage numbers–how much gas has *not* been withdrawn from storage–combined with weather forecasts and computerized trading to hammer prices. Natgas was down 10 cents on Wednesday, and down another 27 cents yesterday, for a combined 37 cent loss over the past two days. Yuck. But it’s not all bad news, at least here in the Marcellus/Utica.
The first of 10 LNG (liquefied natural gas) mini-trains at Kinder Morgan’s Elba Island, Georgia export facility went online in December of last year (see 
The clown judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (one of whom quotes from children’s books in her opinions) have signaled they will overturn, again (for the second or third time) a permit issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that allows the 92% completed Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) from finishing its work by installing pipe under or through creeks and rivers. We have the Sierra Club to thank for the lawsuit, and colluding liberal Democrat judges to thank for continued obstruction of this legally-permitted project from finishing.
The Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) is in major butt-covering mode with the state’s conventional (non-shale) oil and gas industry. During an industry-led advisory committee meeting held yesterday, members of PA’s conventional oil and gas industry delivered some rather blunt comments to DEP Deputy Secretary for Oil and Gas Management Scott Perry, accusing the DEP of “ramming the most punitive set of regulations on this industry to date.”
Mob rule now prevails in New York City under Mayor Bill de Blasio. In February we told you about a mob of anti-fossil fuelers attempting to block the final few feet of construction for a 6.8-mile natural gas pipeline stretching from Brownsville to North Brooklyn (see 
The Enverus U.S. rig count continues to rise. Two weeks ago the nationwide count was 382. As of Wednesday, the count stood at 396, up 14. Over the past week, the Marcellus shale play in northeastern PA lost a rig. The combined M-U rig count is now 32.
Yesterday CNX CEO Nick Deluliis was one of the keynote speakers at the annual DUG (Developing Unconventional Gas) East event, held virtually this year. Normally DUG is held at the Convention Center in Pittsburgh. Deluliis’ talk was wide-ranging, but much of it concentrated on mergers and acquisitions, particularly M&A in the Marcellus/Utica. Deluliis is not much interested in horizontal M&A for CNX, but he is intrigued by vertical M&A.
In June 2019 the Cambridge (Massachusetts) Retirement System sued EQT claiming EQT’s executives had made false and misleading statements about their 2017 purchase of Rice Energy–claims about cost efficiencies that never materialized, and claims about the location of Rice leases that were not as close to EQT’s acreage as claimed (see 
Two years ago the Maryland Board of Public Works (BPW), which has three members (two leftwing Democrats and RINO Gov. Larry Hogan), rejected an 8-inch, 3.5-mile pipeline (tiny!) that would travel under the Potomac River, even though 12 other pipelines have previously been built under the Potomac in the same general vicinity (see 
Yesterday Hart Energy held its annual (always excellent) DUG (Developing Unconventional Gas) East event. Normally the event is held at the Convention Center in Pittsburgh. This year it was an all-virtual event. Among the speakers were CNX CEO Nick Deluliis, PennEnergy Resources CEO Rich Weber, and Ascent Resources CEO Jeff Fisher. While it’s not all blue skies and sunshine ahead, all three CEOs painted a picture of 2021 that’s better than 2020.