Marcellus Drilling News

Accidents | Berks County | Energy Services | Energy Transfer Partners | Industrywide Issues | NGLs | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Regulation | Sunoco Logistics

Sunoco Fined $225K for Small Leak on ME1 Pipeline in 2017
December 14, 2018December 14, 2018

The Mariner East 1 pipeline sprung a small leak and spilled 20 barrels (~840 gallons) of ethane and propane in Berks County, near Philadelphia, on April 1 (see Mariner East 1 Sprang a Small NGL Leak Near Philly, on Apr 1). Sunoco Logistics Partners (i.e. Energy Transfer), builder and maintainer of the pipeline, shut it down and fixed it over the next several days. The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC), which oversees regulation of the pipeline, has just (a year and a half later) “requested” Sunoco pay $225,000 for violating various state and federal regulations. It was an $11,250 per barrel spill.
Read More “Sunoco Fined $225K for Small Leak on ME1 Pipeline in 2017”
Air Quality | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

Pa. DEP Jumps the Gun with Proposed New Emissions Regs
December 14, 2018December 14, 2018

We told you that yesterday the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) was meeting to unveil proposed new regulations to cut down on so-called fugitive methane emissions from existing well pads and pipelines (see Proposed New O&G Emissions Regs Will Disadvantage PA Drillers). They met and released a draft of onerous new regulations that focus more on reducing volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions than they do fugitive methane–but the result is still the same: Force drillers and pipeline companies to spend bazillions of dollars to produce a teeny tiny improvement in emissions. The Marcellus Shale Coalition said, “Rather than creating more regulatory uncertainty [with these new regs at this time], it would be prudent for DEP to delay any regulatory proposals until federal rules are finalized,” pointing out the fact that federal rules are not yet finalized. In other words, Wolf’s DEP is jumping the gun.
Read More “Pa. DEP Jumps the Gun with Proposed New Emissions Regs”
Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pipelines

Illinois Court Grants St. Louis M-U Pipeline Eminent Domain Power
December 14, 2018December 14, 2018

Spire STL Pipeline route (click for larger version)

In February 2016, MDN told you about an exciting new market for Marcellus and Utica Shale gas that may open up one day in the Midwest (see New Midwest Pipeline to Tap REX’s Marcellus/Utica Gas). Laclede Group, a St. Louis-based natural gas utility, said they want to build a ~65-mile pipeline from St. Louis through southwest Illinois and connect to the Rockies Express (REX) and Panhandle Eastern Pipeline. The new pipeline would bring low-cost Marcellus and Utica Shale gas from REX to the utility–not only for resale to gas customers, but also potentially for new natgas-powered electric plants planned to replace retiring coal-fired plants.
Read More “Illinois Court Grants St. Louis M-U Pipeline Eminent Domain Power”
Best of the Rest

Energy Stories of Interest: Fri, Dec 14, 2018
December 14, 2018December 14, 2018

The “best of the rest”–stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading: Berks partnerships conserve 77 acres for migratory birds; PA clean vehicles video; Rising forecasts for 2019 U.S. natural gas production keep prices low; U.S. shale likes but doesn’t need OPEC cuts to keep on growing; The world should follow the U.S. energy model; Oil trading ‘God’ Andy Hall says shale has experts groping in dark; FTS International’s worries are not over yet; McNamee sworn in as FERC commissioner; Fluctuating natural gas prices are not a threat to the power grid; Poland’s PGNiG gets another US spot LNG cargo; Lithuania boosting ties with US LNG suppliers; Emerson buys Belgian valve company; Major LNG buyers’ uncontracted demand to quadruple by 2030.
Read More “Energy Stories of Interest: Fri, Dec 14, 2018”
Ohio | Pennsylvania | Statewide OH | Statewide PA

New Shale Permits Down in PA & OH as Winter Begins
December 13, 2018December 13, 2018

An analysis by Argus Media shows the number of new permits issued to drill in the Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale was down 42% in November 2018 over the same time a year ago. Drilling in Ohio’s Utica Shale was down 26% in November vs. a year ago. Yet one overpowering fact remains: Production in both states is UP over a year ago! How do you explain it? Each year drillers get better at what they do–they get more gas from drilling fewer wells. Longer laterals, more sand, improved fracking techniques–it all adds up to more production with less drilling. Our region is also still working down our DUC (drilled but uncompleted) wells inventory, which means less drilling. And winter cold has set in, early. Yeah, less drilling means fewer jobs and fewer opportunities to sell goods and services to drilling companies. But watch for the permit numbers to start going up again (our prediction). Why? Because with pipelines which recently went online and new pipes due to go online, the price our gas is fetching has dramatically increased–and that means the willingness of M-U drillers to drill new wells will increase too.
Read More “New Shale Permits Down in PA & OH as Winter Begins”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Statewide VA | Virginia

Dominion Slaps Sierra Club, SELC for False Statements re ACP
December 13, 2018December 13, 2018

It’s about we fight back against radical, insane people like those at the Sierra Club and the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC). They are so far outside of the mainstream, and they are such pathological liars, it’s time to take the gloves off and fight back. Dominion Energy is doing exactly that! Dominion released a statement yesterday that directly and strongly (with fighting language) refutes recent false statements (i.e. lies) made by the Sierra Club and SELC about Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP). We’re standing up and cheering!
Read More “Dominion Slaps Sierra Club, SELC for False Statements re ACP”
Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Lycoming County | Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania General Energy | Pipelines

Meeting Reveals Details re PGE’s Loyalsock Creek Pipe Project
December 13, 2018December 13, 2018

Pennsylvania General Energy drills in several PA counties, including Lycoming County in the north central of the state. According to the Marcellus & Utica Shale Upstream Almanac 2018, PA General Energy is the fourth-largest driller in Lycoming County, with 103 producing wells and 42.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas production in 2017. PA General Energy wants to drill more wells in Lycoming. Those wells will need a gathering pipeline connected to them, and a water pipeline to provide water for drilling and fracking. Even though a water pipeline would save an estimated 126,000 truck trips on local roads, some residents are opposed (see Lycoming County Residents Oppose Loyalsock Creek Gathering Pipe). Last night residents got to hear more details about the project at a meeting organized by PA State Rep. Garth Everett.
Read More “Meeting Reveals Details re PGE’s Loyalsock Creek Pipe Project”
Enbridge | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pipelines | Spectra Energy

Battle Over Weymouth, MA Compressor Stn Continues in Fed Court
December 13, 2018December 13, 2018

Credit: YouTube

In January 2017 the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) granted final approval for the $452 million Atlantic Bridge expansion project (see FERC Approves Atlantic Bridge Project for New England/Canada). The Spectra Energy/Enbridge project beefs up capacity along the Algonquin Pipeline, along with more capacity for Spectra Energy’s Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline, to carry more Marcellus/Utica gas into New England and (eventually) all the way to Nova Scotia, Canada. Most of the project is now done–except in Massachusetts where a critical compressor station planned for Weymouth is stalled.
Read More “Battle Over Weymouth, MA Compressor Stn Continues in Fed Court”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Energy Services | Equitrans/EQT Midstream | Industrywide Issues | North Carolina | Pipelines | Regulation | Statewide VA | Virginia

Colluding Big Green Groups File FERC Motion to Block MVP Southgate
December 13, 2018December 13, 2018

Every square inch of every new (even every repurposed/existing) pipeline will be opposed in court. You can bet your life on it. Radical environmentalists have made pipelines the new evil incarnate in the modern world. Never mind without pipelines we’d all live in the Stone Age again. The point, on the part of Big Green, is not to actually stop these projects–but make them pay big money. And make them a poster child for fundraising campaigns. Even though some of the 300-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) is on hold due to court delays over stream crossing permits (see 4th Circuit Court Cancels Mountain Valley Pipe Nationwide Permit), some work does continue on the project. And although the project is far from built, EQT Midstream, the builder, has filed plans with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to extend the pipeline another 70 miles south into North Carolina, called the MVP Southgate project (see EQT Makes it Official, Files with FERC to Extend MVP into NC). On Monday, a group of six Big Green groups filed with FERC to “intervene” and stop the MVP Southgate project.
Read More “Colluding Big Green Groups File FERC Motion to Block MVP Southgate”
Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

Proposed New O&G Emissions Regs Will Disadvantage PA Drillers
December 13, 2018December 13, 2018

The liberal PA Gov. Tom Wolf administration continues to tinker with (i.e. destroy) the Marcellus miracle in the Keystone State. In August the Wolf Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) finally, after years of work, implemented onerous new regulations to cut down on so-called fugitive methane emissions from new drilling and pipelines (see PA Harms Drillers, Pipelines with Over-Strict Methane Rules). Existing well pads and pipelines are now in Wolf’s crosshairs. The DEP has, for some time, considered requiring new regulations to further reduce volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions at existing oil and gas sites. The DEP recently released a draft of those regs, and is meeting TODAY to discuss the new proposed regulations (see PA DEP Releasing Expensive New O&G Emissions Reg). The question is, since the federal EPA is “relaxing” the standards on which these onerous new PA standards are based, will PA, by adopting these new standards, make itself uncompetitive against other shale drilling states? PA DEP Sec. Pat McDonnell seems to think so.
Read More “Proposed New O&G Emissions Regs Will Disadvantage PA Drillers”
Allegheny County | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Research

Pitt Researchers Discover Cheaper Way to Convert NGLs to Plastics
December 13, 2018December 13, 2018

Pitt research appears on cover of journal

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh may have just discovered a way to turn “light alkanes” (i.e. propane, butane) into raw plastics that is cheaper than cracking ethane. At least, that’s what we think they’ve discovered. It’s hard to tell. In a research paper recently published titled, “Structure–Activity Relationships in Alkane Dehydrogenation on ?-Al2O3: Site-Dependent Reactions,” Pitt researchers say they’ve discovered a way to produce olefins using “the nonoxidative dehydrogenation of alkanes on metal oxides, taking advantage of the Lewis acid?base surface functionalities of the oxides.” Er, right. What we do know is that the Pitt researchers are excited about their discovery, and say, “We now have a better tool to develop active catalysts for alkane-olefin conversion, which could be a game-changer in the petrochemical and polymer industries.” Below is a write-up from Pitt about the new research, in lay language, along with an abstract from the paper.
Read More “Pitt Researchers Discover Cheaper Way to Convert NGLs to Plastics”
Best of the Rest

Energy Stories of Interest: Thu, Dec 13, 2018
December 13, 2018December 13, 2018

The “best of the rest”–stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading: 13 well permits approved in Ohio’s Utica; Westmoreland natural gas plant nears opening date; Barrett questions gas safety consultant’s ties to industry; Going green with natural gas vehicles; WV Sen. Joe Manchin becomes Ranking Member of Energy Ctte; Could U.S. natural gas stocks catch up this winter?; Growing dependent on Russia: the gas routes in Europe; US lawmakers officially condemn Russia’s natural gas pipeline into Germany.
Read More “Energy Stories of Interest: Thu, Dec 13, 2018”
Berks County | DTE Energy | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Regulation

FERC Approves Birdsboro Pipe Near Philly to Begin Service
December 12, 2018December 12, 2018

Birdsboro Pipeline route (click for larger version)

That was fast! Construction began on a new 14-mile pipeline from the Texas Eastern Transmission (Tetco) mainline in Rockland Township, to a natural gas-fired power plant under construction in Birdsboro in Berks County, near Philadelphia, in June (see Construction Begins for 14-Mile Pipe to Feed Berks Gas-Fired Plant). DTE Midstream is building the pipeline to feed Marcellus gas to the new, under-construction gas-fired Birdsboro Power plant being built by EmberClear. The pipeline itself was done in November and DTE asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for permission to start it up on Nov. 19. That permission was finally granted on Monday, Dec. 10. But wait! The power plant won’t be done and online until the middle of 2019…so why start up the pipeline now?
Read More “FERC Approves Birdsboro Pipe Near Philly to Begin Service”
Monroe County | Ohio

Fed Gov’t Gives $20M Grant to Monroe, OH Shale-to-Rail Project
December 12, 2018December 12, 2018

Long Ridge Energy Terminal (click for larger version)

We suppose if the money we pay in taxes to the federal government is going to be used for corporate welfare, this is the kind of welfare we’d like to see. Mind you, we don’t endorse nor like corporate welfare of any kind (whether it’s money for so-called renewable projects, or money for fossil fuel projects). But corporate welfare is a fact in our screwed up world, so let’s put it to good use by throwing what amounts to a rounding error in our federal budget, $20 million, to the Long Ridge Energy Terminal in Monroe County, OH for “rail and pipeline infrastructure improvements” to move more shale gas, oil and NGLs to market. The Long Ridge Energy Terminal, which used to be called the Center Port Transload Facility, completed an upgrade in July that allows more “unit trains” to be loaded/unloaded at the same time (see Former Ormet Site in OH Handles 3 Frac Sand Unit Trains at a Time). The new grant money will add a pipeline-to-rail transloading facility to the terminal.
Read More “Fed Gov’t Gives $20M Grant to Monroe, OH Shale-to-Rail Project”
Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Statewide PA | Sunoco Logistics

Big Loss for Big Green – PUC Judge Won’t Shut Down ME1 & 2 Pipes
December 12, 2018December 12, 2018

Big Green forces who pinned their hopes of stopping the Mariner East 1 and 2 pipelines on a rogue PA Public Utility Commission (PUC) administrative law judge had those hopes dashed yesterday. In May of this year, Elizabeth Barnes, PUC administration law judge, unilaterally ordered Sunoco Logistics Partners to “cease and desist all current operation, construction, including drilling activities on the Mariner East 1, 2 and Mariner East 2X pipeline” in West Whiteland Township in Chester County, PA (see Antis Get Lib Judge to Shut Down All Mariner East Pipes, Dems Rejoice). The judge also shut down all operations of the currently operating Mariner East 1 across the entire state. Barnes’ closure of ME1 and ME2 was later overturned by the full PUC (see PA PUC Overrules Lib Judge – Mariner East 1 Returns to Service and PA PUC Allows ME2 Pipeline Work to Restart Near Philly). In early December, a ginned up “emergency relief petition” was aired before Barnes. Same deal. Antis want to shut down ALL of the Mariner East projects–permanently. Barnes was the judge hearing the “testimony” of the antis, along with a vigorous defense by Sunoco. Apparently she learned her lesson. Yesterday Barnes rejected the emergency petition.
Read More “Big Loss for Big Green – PUC Judge Won’t Shut Down ME1 & 2 Pipes”
Industrywide Issues | Regulation

EPA Proposes Revised, Common Sense “Waters of the U.S.” Rule
December 12, 2018December 12, 2018

The days of radical, wild overregulation on the part of the federal Environmental Protection Agency are, thankfully, over. At least while Donald Trump is in office. One of the worst examples of regulatory abuse under the Obama Administration was the EPA’s redefinition of what is called Waters of the United States (WOTUS). The Obamadroids redefined WOTUS to mean everything down to mud puddles–and no, we’re not exaggerating (see EPA Power Grab: Redefines Waters of the U.S. to Include Everything). When Trump took office, his EPA tried to rescind the Obama WOTUS damage, but liberal judges in various courts have done their best to protect the swamp (see Fed Judge Revives Obama Waters of US Tragedy in 26 States). We now, finally, have a replacement for WOTUS–a replacement which the courts will have a much harder time blocking. Another brilliant move by Team Trump. Best of all, the new definition is common sense. It still protects the environment without micromanaging every farmer’s mud puddle, and without regulating every square foot of every drill pad.
Read More “EPA Proposes Revised, Common Sense “Waters of the U.S.” Rule”