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    Despite Opposition, NEXUS Pipe Will be Done & Running This Year

    NEXUS route – click for larger version

    NEXUS Pipeline, a $2 billion, 255-mile interstate pipeline currently under construction running from Ohio through Michigan–eventually with a connection to the Dawn Hub in Ontario, Canada. NEXUS got final approval for the project from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) last August, the first major pipeline to get approved following a newly restored quorum at FERC (see New FERC Quorum Votes Final Approval for NEXUS Pipeline). However, radical environmental groups have fought the project tooth and nail. CORN (Coalition to ReRoute Nexus, folks we call CORNballs), and the far-left Sierra Club, launched lawsuits and regulatory actions against the pipeline. The City of Green, OH initially blocked construction, but later cut a deal to allow the pipeline through the area ($7.5 million talks, see Antis of Green, OH Finally Face Reality – Will Allow NEXUS Pipe). While a few Green antis are attempting to force a referendum to reverse the deal struck by the city, pretty much all of the other opposition has thrown in the towel. We haven’t read/heard from the CORNballs (or Sierra Club) in months. And now, antis in Michigan are admitting defeat–they admit that NEXUS will get built and become operational this year…
    Read More “Despite Opposition, NEXUS Pipe Will be Done & Running This Year”

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    China Threatens U.S. Shale Oil & Gas with Prospect of Tariffs

    We don’t know how many times we have to say it (have said it for years, continue to say it): The Chinese are not America’s friends. They are our enemies. We tend to forget it because we love our iPhones and other electronics built by Chinese children. We’ve become far too cozy, too comfortable, in trusting that China will not do anything to harm America for fear of ending their gravy train. When President Trump wisely slapped tariffs on China in retaliation for their THEFT of our companies’ intellectual property and knock-off goods, China felt the need to respond. Part of that response is proposed tariffs on liquefied petroleum gas (i.e propane), and petrochemical products. The not-so-subtle threat is that they may add oil and LNG to the list. Since China imports more U.S. LNG than any other country, a tariff would definitely hurt. Ditto for oil. We currently export 435,000 barrels a day of oil to China. If that oil flow were suddenly shut down, it would have a dramatic impact on the price of oil here at home (sending West Texas Intermediate into the basement again). Meanwhile, West Virginia’s Secretary of Commerce, Woody Thrasher, says he “hopes” all this trade war stuff won’t affect China’s announced $83.7 billion investment in WV, an investment in shale and petrochemicals. The trade situation with China is high stakes stuff. We’re just glad the guy who wrote The Art of the Deal is the one playing a necessary game of chicken with China…
    Read More “China Threatens U.S. Shale Oil & Gas with Prospect of Tariffs”

  • Other Energy Stories of Interest: Mon, Apr 9, 2018

    The “best of the rest”–stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading: Pittsburgh lawyer co-founds software co aimed at Marcellus; EQT interim CEO making $850,000/yr; court approves PES bankruptcy plan; climate lawsuit suffers another blow in federal court; CO2 emissions from power plants at lowest levels since 1988–thx to shale; corp raiders forcing smaller shale players to consider M&A; 7% of all fossil fuels never burned; Kinder Morgan threatens to scrap Trans Mountain pipe project in Canada; and more!
    Read More “Other Energy Stories of Interest: Mon, Apr 9, 2018”

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    Criminal Antis Vandalize Sunoco ME2 Pipe Construction Equipment

    It’s OK to be a blithering idiot and oppose important pipeline infrastructure projects like the Mariner East 2 Pipeline because you believe in the fairy tale of man-made global warming. It’s OK to march and protest and write and name-call, and yes, it’s even OK to launch frivolous lawsuit after frivolous lawsuit. Knock yourselves out. It’s your right as a citizen in the greatest country on Mom Earth, a country we call America. What is NOT OK is to vandalize construction equipment used to build the pipeline, causing thousands of dollars in damage, simply because you’re demented and delude yourself that you are somehow saving “the environment” with your criminal action. That is precisely what Sunoco is alleging after someone(s) damaged the engines, fuel systems and hydraulic lines of two pieces of heavy equipment on April 2 & 3 in Chester County, PA (near Philadelphia). Sunoco is offering $10,000 for information leading to an arrest. We certainly hope that happens…
    Read More “Criminal Antis Vandalize Sunoco ME2 Pipe Construction Equipment”

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    PA House Bill Would Neuter SRBC, DRBC Regulation of Ground Water

    Here’s one we didn’t see coming–a potential way to fix the ongoing disaster that is the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) and their illegal attempt to regulate hydraulic fracturing within the Delaware River Basin under the claim they have the right to regulate anything that impacts groundwater. A Pennsylvania House of Representatives member, Dan Moul (Republican from Gettysburg), is about to introduce a bill that would replace the DRBC’s authority to regulate groundwater by vesting that authority solely in the hands of the state Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP). The problem is, the bill appears to be targeted more at the Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC) than DRBC. The bill will affect both organizations. Last time we checked, the SRBC does a fine job of regulating water withdrawals for fracking AND makes no attempt to regulate fracking, which the DRBC is attempting to do. But then, we don’t think this bill has the DRBC’s frack ban, nor fracking at all, in mind. It likely has more to do with farming and other water uses and some perceived shortcomings at the SRBC…
    Read More “PA House Bill Would Neuter SRBC, DRBC Regulation of Ground Water”

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    More of the Same at Final DEP Hearing for Shell Ethane Pipeline

    Click map for larger version

    For three nights in a row this week the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) conducted hearings for Shell’s proposed Falcon ethane pipeline–a 97-mile pipeline system with two “legs” that will feed Shell’s mighty ethane cracker plant now under construction in Monaca, PA. We brought you a report from the first session, an eyewitness account from MDN friend Charlie Schliebs (see Shell Ethane Pipeline Hearing Draws Few Supporters, Many Antis). That session was predominantly populated with antis attempting to paint nightmare scenarios if the pipeline (and cracker) gets built. Last night was the third and final session–in Sewickley. Once again we have an eyewitness account, this time from MDN friend Katie Klaber, former president of the Marcellus Shale Coalition and currently managing partner at The Klaber Group and a board member of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland (Pittsburgh branch). Katie is a consummate environmental professional–someone with a lifelong career in environment compliance and someone who served on the Air Quality Technical Advisory Committee of the DEP for more than a decade. She knows a thing or two about projects like the Falcon because she’s seen a thing or two (to borrow from the Farmers Insurance commercials). When the audience realized that Katie was supporting the project (the only one of the first 18 speakers to do so), the hissing started. She and the next few speakers who supported the project were hissed by bad-behaving antis in the crowd, with some Mother F…ers thrown in by an especially outspoken attendee. Nice people, those antis…
    Read More “More of the Same at Final DEP Hearing for Shell Ethane Pipeline”

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    US Forest Service Gets Tough on Illegal MVP Pole Sitting Protester

    polecat

    The kooky antis who are trying to stop the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) in the Jefferson National Forest are a gift that keeps on giving. On Monday MDN told you that some of the antis (movement people, from other states/areas) had erected a pole in the middle of a gravel road in the Forest–a road MVP construction equipment uses–and that an anti had scampered up to the top of the 50-foot pole (suspended with ropes) and is living in a platform at the top of the pole (see One MVP Radical Protester Arrested, Another Goes Up a Pole). Other antis, some movement people, some local, are sitting nearby in magic tree houses in a couple of trees. Unfortunately a judge refuses to allow law enforcement to forcibly remove those in the magic tree houses (see WV Judge Refuses to Eject Tree Sitters Blocking Pipeline Work). The tree (and pole) sitters are getting on the nerves of the U.S. Forest Service. According to a Facebook page maintained by the radicals, the Forest Service has blocked volunteers from sending food and water up the illegal pole to the person at the top. They’re also shining bright lights on the top of the pole 24/7. There’s more than one way to make them leave! We also have updated comments from one of the tree sitters–Grandma Red, a 61 year-old woman who recently climbed up to one of the magic tree houses–who says she’s “swinging in the wind.” You got that right, Grandma…
    Read More “US Forest Service Gets Tough on Illegal MVP Pole Sitting Protester”

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    Monroeville Continues to Block Seismic Testing to Prevent Drilling

    Monroeville, PA (Allegheny County, suburb of Pittsburgh) is hostile toward the shale industry. In September, Monroeville Council voted to enact a super-restrictive seismic testing ordinance (see Monroeville, PA Passes Restrictive Seismic Testing Ordinance). The ordinance is meant to hassle Huntley & Huntley (H&H), which wants to conduct seismic testing in two rural areas of the municipality (for potential drilling in a neighboring municipality). In October, the contractor hired to do the seismic work for H&H, Geokinetics, took Monroeville Council to court over their punitive seismic ordinance (see Monroeville Seismic Testing Ordinance Challenged in Court). Both sides compromised and in November settled the case, which Monroeville Council voted to accept in December (see Monroeville Council Approves Seismic Testing Court Settlement). That should be the end of the story, right? Wrong. Monroeville has continued their harassment by asking a court to immediately suspend the testing because (they claim) Geokinetics did not give proper notification to residents that the testing was happening. This is nothing more than a transparent attempt to prevent future drilling by slowing, or stopping, H&H’s ability to get an accurate picture of the best places are to drill a Marcellus well. Fortunately Geokinetics just finished the testing, so Monroeville’s pathetic attempt to stop it is now moot…
    Read More “Monroeville Continues to Block Seismic Testing to Prevent Drilling”

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    ME1 Pipeline Shutdown in M-U Causing Propane Prices in TX to Drop

    Propane is one of the NGLs (natural gas liquids) that come out of the ground along with natural gas and oil–especially in “wet gas” areas like southwestern PA, eastern OH, and the northern panhandle area of WV. Ethane and propane have been flowing through the converted Mariner East 1 (ME1) pipeline for more than year–hauling propane (and ethane) from southwest PA all the way to the Marcus Hook refinery near Philadelphia. At Marcus Hook, the propane is loaded onto ships and sent around the world. The world is an important market for our propane. However, ME1 was suddenly switched off on March 3 by order of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) after a sinkhole opened up under the pipeline, exposing some of the bare steel to the open air (see PA PUC Shuts Down Mariner 1 Pipeline Due to Mariner 2 Sinkhole). Sunoco Logistics Partners, the owner of ME1, is building a new set of pipelines called Mariner East 2 (ME2) close to the existing ME1. ME2 will also haul ethane and propane to Marcus Hook, greatly expanding capacity. As part of their construction work in Chester County, several sinkholes developed leading to the shutdown of ME1. You might think if the supply of propane suddenly stops, prices would go up. But that’s not what happened. Because the propane ME1 was hauling to Marcus Hook was exported, that supply is now staying here at home. The effect has been to drive DOWN the cost of propane–in Texas!…
    Read More “ME1 Pipeline Shutdown in M-U Causing Propane Prices in TX to Drop”

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    2nd Commissioning Cargo Now Being Loaded at Cove Point LNG

    Gemmata returns to Cove Point

    Yesterday our favorite government agency, the U.S. Energy Information Administration, issued its weekly Natural Gas Update report. In one of the short bullet point notes we learned important new information about the Cove Point LNG export facility. We learned that the next ship to arrive and load up at the facility will NOT be the Patris, as we were led to believe (see Cove Point LNG Gets Ready to Ship First Marcellus Molecules in Apr). Instead, the first ship that loaded molecules at the facility, the Gemmata, has returned and is (as you read this) loading a “second commissioning cargo.” Which takes some explanation. The first commissioning cargo was gas brought to the facility by an LNG tanker and unloaded, regasified, and then put through liquefaction again–in order to test the facility. That first cargo was natural gas from Nigeria, brought in by Shell. And Shell shipped out the first commissioning cargo on the Gemmata on March 1 (see Cove Point Ships First LNG Cargo – But Not M-U Gas). This is the second commissioning cargo–so apparently the ship that brought in the original Nigerian gas was bigger than the Gemmata. The Gemmata unloaded its shipment of Nigerian gas in the UK, turned around and came back, docking at the facility on Tuesday of this week. Yes, the Patris is still on the way to Cove Point and will dock on April 9, next Monday, and will begin loading the first batch of Marcellus molecules…
    Read More “2nd Commissioning Cargo Now Being Loaded at Cove Point LNG”

  • Other Energy Stories of Interest: Fri, Apr 6, 2018

    The “best of the rest”–stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading: Ace Pipeline sues EQT for breach of contract in pipeline construction; OH Utica well permits rebound in March; study finds natgas is NOT the reason for coal decline; PUC pushes CHP technology; 3,600 megawatts of electric generating retiring in 2018 in PJM; Sunoco to meet with Chester County officials re pipeline plan; New England desperate to stop 1,600 megawatts of gas-fired electric generation from retiring; Permian’s looming natgas bottleneck; former Chesapeake co-founder Tom Ward buys assets from Chesapeake; Steve Forbes writes on lefty mayors suing oil/gas companies; and more!
    Read More “Other Energy Stories of Interest: Fri, Apr 6, 2018”

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    DRBC: We’ll Make You Guess When We’re Going to Adopt Frack Ban

    In September, MDN told you that the obsequious members of the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) had slavishly obeyed their radical environmental masters by voting to move forward with a permanent ban on fracking in the Delaware River Basin (see DRBC Votes Tomorrow on Permanent Frack Ban Resolution). The final ban language/regulation was dropped like a bomb by DRBC staff on Nov. 30 (see DRBC Drops Permanent Frack Ban Bomb – Public Hearings in January). The DRBC announced they would allow public comment through Feb. 28, later extended to Mar. 30 (see DRBC Schedules More Freak Shows on Proposed Frack Ban Regulation). The DRBC received 8,687 comments online and 227 oral comments at the hearings. So what happens now? According to an update issued yesterday, the DRBC said, “There is no set schedule for a vote by the Commissioners to adopt final rules. As always, the Commission may adopt final rules only at a duly-noticed public meeting.” All of the DRBC’s public meetings are ” duly noticed”–meaning the DRBC provides public notice ahead of time. The next public meeting to be held is May 16. Could the DRBC simply vote at that meeting to adopt these illegal ban regulations? Sure. And then again, maybe they won’t. You just don’t know. Apparently the DRBC wants to keep everyone guessing…
    Read More “DRBC: We’ll Make You Guess When We’re Going to Adopt Frack Ban”

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    MarkWest Building 6 New Processing Plants, 3 Fractionators in 2018

    Attendees at yesterday’s Utica Midstream conference at Walsh University in North Canton, Ohio got an earful about pipelines and processing plants. Perhaps the biggest news coming from the event (for us, anyway), is that MarkWest Energy, now part of Marathon Petroleum, plans to build another six natural gas processing plants and another three fractionation plants in the Marcellus/Utica THIS YEAR. MarkWest plans to spend a whopping $2 billion in the region this year! That’s in addition to building two new processing plants and three fractionation plants last year. A processing plant accepts raw hydrocarbons coming out of shale wells and separates out the methane from everything else–“cleaning up” the methane so it’s pipeline-ready. Fractionation takes what’s left after the methane is removed and separates those other hydrocarbons into their discrete molecules–ethane, propane, pentane, butane, etc. According to MarkWest, M-U moving butane to new markets will be a major focus this year. We also learn that MarkWest’s Sherwood facility (in WV) is now the fourth largest gas processing plant in the U.S.–and by the end of this year, it will be #1! In addition to MarkWest, there were a number of other top notch speakers at yesterday’s event, including Rick Simmers from the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources. Rick mentioned in passing there’s a shale well pad in southeast Ohio with a whopping 28 wells on it. Below is a summary of what was said at yesterday’s event…
    Read More “MarkWest Building 6 New Processing Plants, 3 Fractionators in 2018”

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    Just What is Cabot Looking for in Ohio – NatGas, Oil or NGLs?

    Two days ago MDN revealed which rock layers Cabot Oil & Gas is targeting with new test wells in central Ohio (see New Details Emerge on Cabot’s Shale Plans in Central Ohio). Today we answer the question, What does Cabot hope to find? Cabot representative Brittany Ramos told an area newspaper that the company is looking for, “a hydrocarbon, an oil, natural gas, natural gas liquid, something, in the layers below the Utica Shale, but the only way to find that out is to actually drill a well and test.” In other words, they don’t know. They know *something* is down there, but they aren’t sure what. We suspect they’re hoping it’s either oil or NGLs. Cabot, long known for their prolific natural gas production in Susquehanna County, PA, had a previous dalliance with oil drilling in the Texas Eagle Ford shale play–assets they ended up selling in December 2017 (see Cabot O&G Sells Texas Eagle Ford Assets for $765M, Focus on Marc.). Does the company have a renewed interest in finding oil? Perhaps. If not oil, certainly NGLs. We seriously doubt they’re looking for yet another dry gas zone. Below is yet another update on Cabot’s foray into central OH. It is one of the more fair and balanced articles we’ve read. Yes, the reporter interviewed a representative from the faux “landowner group” called the Tri-County Landowners Coalition–in reality an anti-fossil fuel group controlled by elements of the Big Green movement (see Fake Ohio Landowner Groups Launch Misinformation Campaign). In this article the reporter actually asks Cabot to respond to the wild claims made by the Tri-County rep, point for point. Cabot obliterates the anti’s arguments…
    Read More “Just What is Cabot Looking for in Ohio – NatGas, Oil or NGLs?”

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    Rex Energy Defaults on IOUs, Can’t File Annual Report on Time

    Rex Energy filed two regulatory filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission earlier this week that don’t bode well for the company. In a Form 8-K filing (a form used to notify investors of events that may be important to investors), Rex let it be known they could not make an interest payment due on senior notes, a semi-annual payment due on April 2nd. Rex said in the filing that the noteholders to whom payment is due (Angelo, Gordon & Co.) have signed a temporary “forbearance” agreement that gives Rex a little breathing room–precious little. The forbearance agreement gives Rex until April 16 to pay up. Angelo, Gordon & Co. have promised not to take any action until that date. The second filing, a Form 12b-25, says that Rex will not be able to file its annual 2017 report on time. In February we reported that it looked like, at that time, that Rex was getting ready to file for bankruptcy (see Rex Energy Preparing to File for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy?). They still haven’t filed for bankruptcy, but surely a missed interest payment and pressure from a major debtholder is not a good sign…
    Read More “Rex Energy Defaults on IOUs, Can’t File Annual Report on Time”