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Philadelphia Refinery Delays Firing 1,020 Workers Another 6 Weeks
In late June, MDN brought you the sad news that Philadelphia Energy Solutions (PES), which operates the East Coast’s largest refinery on the banks of the Delaware River, has decided to close, throwing 1,020 people out of work following a recent fire (see Philly Refinery to Close Following Massive Fire – 1,020 Jobs Lost). Later this week, July 12, was to be the last day for those employees. However PES recently announced they are extending the “last day” date, from July 12 to August 25, an extra six weeks. Why?
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MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: Westmoreland municipalities count on windfall from natural gas impact fee; Utilities commission announces revenue; They’ve drilled a well on my property, but never finished it. Why?; OTHER U.S. REGIONS: Port of Virginia becomes first U.S. port to join SEA\LNG; TVA’s IRP foresees natural gas growth climbing 2-17 GW over next 20 years; Why build an ethane steam cracker in a time of low ethylene margins?; Wisconsin utility regulators decline to consider climate impact of proposed natural gas plant; NATIONAL: How the US shale revolution changed the face of geopolitics; The U.S. is overflowing with natural gas. Not everyone can get it.; Senators to review global LNG export landscape; 2020 Democrats want to turn our energy independence into submission; INTERNATIONAL: Biased attack on natural gas leaves out key facts.
Events related (or of interest) to the Marcellus, Utica and other Appalachian shales happening in the next 90 or so days. Send your calendar items (listed for free!) to: jim (at) marcellusdrilling.com.
Exactly three years ago, TransCanada Corporation (now renamed TC Energy) completed a deal to buy out and merge in Columbia Pipeline Group for $10 billion (see 
Global warming fundamentalists certainly are a persistent lot. They can’t win elections, and they can’t force state or federal legislatures to pass laws banning pipelines (and shale drilling), so they do the next best thing. They twist our own court system against us in an attempt to block pipelines. Which has worked to some degree, at least in the northeast. The aim is to block all pipelines everywhere, eventually. Even in Texas. One of the ways antis attack the ability to build pipelines is by challenging what they pejoratively call “quick take” eminent domain–the right for a pipeline company to access and build a pipeline on property ahead of actually settling how much money the landowner will receive (in the case of landowners who refuse to negotiate).
In May the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a draft report titled “Study of Oil and Gas Extraction Wastewater Management Under the Clean Water Act” (see 
Two weeks ago at the Northeast Petrochemical Conference in Pittsburgh, a panel of speakers from West Virginia, including former Commerce Secretary Keith Burdette, addressed the topic of Advanced Manufacturing and Petrochemicals related to the shale industry. At the end of the prepared talks, the session was opened to questions from the audience. MDN asked the first question, which was this: “The $83.7 billion question is, what’s going on with the proposed investment in shale and petchem promised by China?”
PennEnergy Resources, a Pittsburgh based independent oil and gas company focused on the Marcellus/Utica Shale, is getting ready to drill new wells on a pad in Economy (Beaver County), PA. The plan is facing stiff opposition from local residents because it’s located near a housing development in a residential (albeit rural) area, and will use a local road for access.
Another day, another round of press releases from both EQT and the Rice brothers over the future of the company. The two sides are locked in a proxy battle to nominate a majority of board members, who in turn will appoint (or keep) top management for the company. Yesterday’s round of letters was, in essence, a recap of news that broke late last week: One major shareholder advisory firm, Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), supports the Rice brothers’ attempt to take over the company, while a second major advisory firm, Glass Lewis & Co., believes existing management is the right answer for EQT’s future.
Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP), a $7 billion, 600-mile pipeline that will stretch from West Virginia into North Carolina, is facing an existential threat by leftist environmentalists. The project is stalled waiting on an appeal before the U.S. Supreme Court, filed last week (see