Natural Gas via Pipeline for Va. Eastern Shore Gets a $6.5M Boost
Accomack County has secured a $6.5 million state grant to expand piped natural gas to the Eastern Shore, a move aimed at stabilizing the local economy. County Administrator Mike Mason announced that the funds are fully in place, allowing the county to solicit utility companies to build and operate a system extending as far south as Perdue Farms in Accomac. This project targets major employers like Perdue, Tyson, and NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility, while potentially reversing employment declines and lowering energy costs. Analysts highlight that natural gas could cost homeowners 57% less than propane and industrial users 75% less than electricity. Read More “Natural Gas via Pipeline for Va. Eastern Shore Gets a $6.5M Boost”
We first told you about a frac sand company called Smart Sand some 13 years ago (see 
Freeport LNG has become something of a punchline for the frequent outages at the facility. Except, it’s no laughing matter. Outages at Freeport have happened so frequently that we’ve lost count. Last Thursday, one of the three LNG trains at the facility was offline again, affecting gas flows to (and from) the facility. According to a Reuters report, the gas restarted flowing to the affected train on Friday. Freeport refused to comment on this latest outage. 
Last week, the Baker Hughes U.S. national rig count gained rigs for the third week in a row. The national count increased by five rigs, rising from 549 to 554. The BH rig count has added rigs in five of the last six weeks. Rigs in the Marcellus/Utica gained a rig! Pennsylvania gained one Marcellus rig, bringing its total to 18. Ohio was the same at 13 rigs. And West Virginia maintained its 7 rigs, which it has operated since May 30 (26 weeks in a row). There were 24 rigs targeting the Marcellus and 14 targeting the Utica, for a combined 38 rigs in the M-U. 
OTHER U.S. REGIONS: Shale rigs idle, layoffs rise as $60 oil tests resilience of Permian; Permian gas wave sparks biggest pipeline buildout since the shale boom; NATIONAL: U.S. natural gas gains as traders focus on weather; New Fortress Energy warns of bankruptcy, shares tumble; New FERC commissioners say connecting data centers is key priority; U.S. associated natural gas production increased 6% in 2024; Top MIT scientist blasts ‘climate hysteria,’ global warming fears are driven by money; Export-Import Bank to spend $100bn to achieve US energy dominance; AI most energy-hungry tech ever invented – data centers, the grid, and black swans; INTERNATIONAL: Oil slides on peace deal pressure; European natural gas plummets to 18-month low; COP30 ends with a whimper; U.N. climate talks fizzle out 10 years after Paris accord; The global warming panic is subsiding; Russian oil offered to India at deep discount. 
Back into the 30s! The number of new permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica last week was 31, after being 24 the week before. Over the past five weeks (including last week), the number of new permits issued has been 37, 39, 37, 24, and 31, respectively. Not bad at all. Pennsylvania issued 14 new permits last week, down from 16 the prior week. Ohio issued 5 new permits, down from 6 the prior week. West Virginia, which issued no new permits two weeks ago, soared, issuing 12 permits last week. 
Overwatch Capital and Japanese company Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd. have formed a strategic partnership to develop high-density, energy-resilient AI data centers across ten U.S. states. This collaboration involves Idemitsu investing in Overwatch and supplying up to 1 gigawatt of natural gas for on-site power generation to support next-generation AI computers. The initiative leverages Overwatch’s SIDE Platform, which integrates generation, battery storage, and advanced cooling, alongside Idemitsu’s global energy expertise. Initial projects are set to begin in 2026 in Dallas-Fort Worth and Columbus, Ohio, to provide reliable infrastructure for hyperscalers and cloud providers. 
Planette, a long-range weather prediction platform that combines cutting-edge AI with decades of Earth system science, says it can predict long-range weather more accurately than others. Planette’s Winter 2025-26 forecast anticipates a highly volatile season driven by a North Pacific dual ocean temperature “blob” and a weakened polar vortex, deeming the current La Niña too weak to be significant. The outlook predicts above-average temperatures interrupted by multiple, predictable, and “significant” cold snaps, with the AI-driven platform offering 30- to 40-day lead times to warn people of their approach. If you’ve been paying attention to MDN’s posts this week, you know how significant weather is in determining the price of natural gas. 
I see ghosts! Or is that dead people? The U.S. electricity grid faces pressure from surging demand, primarily from data centers, sparking debates over reliability and cost allocation. EPSA (Electric Power Supply Association) CEO Todd Snitchler warns that “ghost projects”—projects announced and planned/funded but never built—are artificially inflating load forecasts. He argues that regulated utilities use these overstated numbers to justify expensive rate-based generation, benefiting shareholders while forcing customers to bear the costs of potential overbuilding. Competitive energy markets are demanding accurate, data-driven planning to maintain affordability and reliability without wasting capital on unnecessary infrastructure. Please, no more ghosts. 
Reorg! The Department of Energy (DOE) unveiled a major reorganization under the Trump administration to prioritize fossil fuels, minerals, and nuclear power while diminishing renewable energy programs. Secretary Chris Wright’s plan rebrands the loan program as “Energy Dominance Financing” and consolidates efficiency and clean energy divisions into a new “Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation.” This restructuring, aimed at restoring “common sense” to energy policy, accompanies billions in project cancellations and staff reductions. 
Bloomberg writes that shale energy’s next revolution should worry the thug dictators of OPEC. American shale drillers currently extract 10% to 15% of the oil locked in the shale layer, leaving the rest underground. However, engineers are actively trying to change this through new techniques and technologies. What if we could double the amount of oil and gas extracted? It would, once again, change the oil and gas industry worldwide. Double the production for the same investment? It’s a no-brainer. 
Diversified Energy, which owns significant assets in the Marcellus/Utica region (and other regions, too), issued its third quarter update earlier this month. The company owns approximately 8 million acres of leases with close to 70,000 oil and gas wells, mostly conventional wells (by number of wells). However, the company now produces 41% of its production from shale wells, meaning the blend of assets has changed over time. The company’s business model is to buy already-drilled, lower-producing wells on the cheap and find ways to make them more productive. They do a great job at it. Diversified also owns midstream (pipeline) assets, as well as a well-plugging subsidiary, Next LVL. What does the 3Q25 update show? The company produced 1,127 MMcfe/d (74% natural gas, 13% NGLs, and 13% oil). That’s up a huge 36% increase over 3Q24!