Last Wednesday MDN brought you the news that CNX Resources had laid off some 50 employees, with rumors circulating that more layoffs were coming (see CNX Resources Lays Off 10% of Total Workforce – More Cuts Coming?). Looks like the rumors were right. The company let go another 20 people late last week, making the new total 70 out of work–some 14% of the CNX workforce.
Read More “CNX Resources Lays Off Another 20 Workers – 14% Now Gone”
Can it be possible that the shale industry and anti-shale environmentalists (those who irrationally espouse the end of using all fossil fuels) can actually agree on something? Turns out, we can! The something we agree on is opposition to PA Gov. Tom Wolf’s plan to tax a single industry, shale drilling, $4.5 billion in order to use that money for Big Government programs.
Read More “Wolf’s PA Severance Tax Now Much Less Likely – Enviros Oppose”
In October 2017, officials in Plum, PA (Allegheny County) approved a plan by Huntley & Huntley (H&H) to drill a series of Marcellus wells on a single well pad in their municipality (see Plum, PA Gives Huntley & Huntley Green Light for Shale Drilling). H&H ended up drilling a single well on the pad, but now they’re back and have plans to drill another four wells on that same pad.
Read More “H&H Adding Another 4 Shale Wells to Pad in Plum Township”
How dumb must you be to not understand that if there’s not enough gas supply, you can’t hook up new customers to the distribution grid? Yet some New York City legislators, 17 of them, are vilifying National Grid, one of NYC’s two main natural gas utilities, because National Grid continues to deny new customers who want gas service to be hooked up. It’s clearly Andrew Cuomo’s fault–he denied permission to build a pipeline to bring new supplies of gas to the region. Yet the legislators close ranks for this putz and blame the company that can’t get those new supplies. Some of these same legislators OPPOSE the pipeline! Yet they want more natgas. What kind of mental gymnastics does that require?
Read More “NYC Dems Blame National Grid Instead of Cuomo for Gas Mortatorium”
Here’s some exciting news. A Canadian-based company, Ainsworth Energy, is planning to build a C$1.9 billion (US$1.4 billion) gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant in Sarnia, Ontario. The plant will convert natgas into methanol, then convert the methanol into gasoline. Since Marcellus/Utica molecules flow all the way to Sarnia via the NEXUS and Rover pipelines, we think there’s a good chance our gas will help feed this plant.
Read More “Will New GTL Plant in Sarnia, Canada Use M-U Molecules?”
MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: Shell Pipeline completes big segment of Falcon Pipeline; Stick with an energy solution that’s already working; NATIONAL: Mysterious group behind climate crusades dinged for allegedly skirting financial regulations; ‘Sustainably fracked’ shale producers seek a green label for their natural gas; Bernie Sanders’ green energy dystopian fantasy; Oil companies persuade states to make pipeline protests a felony; Drillinginfo announces name change to Enverus.
Read More “Shale Energy Stories of Interest: Mon, Aug 26, 2019”
Events related (or of interest) to the Marcellus, Utica and other Appalachian shales happening from now through the end of this year.
Send your calendar items (listed for free!) to: jim (at) marcellusdrilling.com.
Read More “Calendar of Marcellus/Utica Events Now Thru Dec 31”
Yesterday the PA Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) released their latest quarterly Natural Gas Production Report for April through June 2019 (full copy below). It shows natgas production rose 14.5% compared to the same period last year–to yet another new all-time high of 1,667 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of natural gas. Put another way, that’s 1.7 TRILLION cubic feet of gas produced over a three-month period. There has now been an unbroken chain of quarter-over-quarter increases in horizontal shale gas production in PA for twelve consecutive quarters (three years running).
Read More “IFO: PA Natural Gas Production Hits New All-Time High in 2Q19”
In May, Columbia Gas Transmission was forced to haul the State of Maryland into court over the state’s refusal to grant an easement to drill a tiny 3.5-mile pipeline under the Potomac River (see Columbia Gas Sues Maryland to Allow Pipeline Under Potomac). In June, Maryland’s anti-fossil fuel Attorney General, Brian Frosh, asked a federal court to dismiss the lawsuit (see Maryland Asks Fed Court to Dismiss Lawsuit Questioning Pipe Rejection). Yesterday a liberal judge with the U.S. District Court in Baltimore sided with Frosh, sadly.
Read More “Fed Judge Upholds Maryland Decision to Block Pipe Under Potomac”
Last September MDN brought you news that six men had been charged with conspiring to illegally alter emission systems on 30+ trucks with heavy-duty diesel engines used to haul water and wastewater to and from Marcellus Shale wells (see 6 Charged with Bypassing Emissions Controls on Marcellus Trucks). The sixth and final man charged plead guilty yesterday in U.S. Middle District Court in Pennsylvania.
Read More “Man Pleads Guilty to Bypassing Emissions Controls on Marc. Trucks”
We should have seen this one coming (but didn’t). Yesterday MDN told you that the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) had revoked the right of the Beaver County Conservation District (BCCD) to issue and monitor permits for erosion and sediment control, two permits used in building both pipelines and drill pads (see PA DEP Revokes Beaver County Right to Issue Pipe, Drilling Permits). Antis are now screaming for the DEP to suspend all pipeline work in the county for six months in order to review previously issued permits by BCCD.
Read More “Antis Want Pipeline Work in Beaver County Stopped for 6 Months”
Two weeks ago MDN told you about an incident near Philadelphia in which the flare stack at a Mariner East 2 (ME2) pipeline pump station ignited causing a loud noise, which we likened to flatulence (see PA Antis Trying to Turn ME2 Pipeline Fart into an “Explosion”). We caught he!! on social media for using that reference (hit a real nerve). Here’s the conclusion of that little episode of pipeline flatulence…
Read More “PA PUC Closes Investigation of ME2 Pipeline Fart Near Philly”
In 2006 the Pennsylvania State Legislature passed a bill (signed into law) that protects certain information about pipelines from being divulged via open records requests. It’s all too easy for terrorists (foreign or domestic) to use that information to inflict pain and suffering, even death–or to stop the flows along those pipelines. Good law, good call. But now several PA House members from the Philadelphia area want to pass a new law that would repeal the 2006 law–all in the name of pipeline “transparency.”
Read More “PA PUC Cautions Lawmakers Against Sharing Too Much Pipe Info”
Everyone knows that shale drilling is a house of cards, right? Just look at shale gas drillers in the northeast. Company stock prices down 90% over the past 5-10 years. Yuck. And don’t even get us started talking about shale oil companies (filthy monsters). Their balance sheets and share prices are even *worse* than shale gas drilling companies! They NEVER make any money. EVER! Shale oil companies just keep getting new investors to invest so they can pay off old investors, like a Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme. Except–what if the media narrative pounded into your head day in and day out isn’t true? What if shale companies are actually (gasp) making money?
Read More “US Shale Companies Turn Cash Flow Positive in 2Q19”
MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: Not enough students to fill positions in northeast PA; OTHER U.S. REGIONS: Commonwealth LNG files for FERC permit application; Longmeadow approves zoning change to block natural gas infrastructure; Carbon taxes have failed globally, but the left-leaning Denver city council will vote to impose one locally; NATIONAL: Challenging times for U.S. shale: The industry has seen it all before; INTERNATIONAL: Legal tussle prevents $2.5 billion gas pipeline to Mexico from opening.
Read More “Shale Energy Stories of Interest: Thu, Aug 22, 2019”
MDN is taking a rare vacation day today, Friday, August 23. We will be back on Monday to catch you up on all the latest news. In the meantime, we’ve updated our Calendar of Events (next post).