• | |

    Sad News: FERC’s Rob Powelson (from PA) Resigns Effective August

    FERC Commissioner Rob Powelson

    Robert Powelson, a Republican member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) from the great state of Pennsylvania, appointed by President Trump, announced yesterday he is resigning effective in mid-August. He’s not even been in office a full year. This is devastatingly bad news in our book, for a couple of reasons. Coming from PA and previously serving on the state Public Utility Commission, Powelson has been a champion for natural gas and the pipelines that flow it–especially Marcellus/Utica projects. He’s been a superb FERC commissioner. So why is Powelson leaving? To become president and CEO of the National Association of Water Companies. No offense to that association (which we’d never heard of before), but this is a step down. The speculation whirling around is that Powelson is leaving FERC over differences of opinion with Team Trump and their ill-advised mission to prop up coal and nuclear energy, at the expense of natural gas. Apparently Powelson has had enough and wants out. It’s not only sad he’s leaving, it could be consequential in the near-term. Why? Because the Commission will be split 2-2 Republicans and Democrats, and the Dems have shown they’ve sold out to their radical elements, willing to vote against new pipeline projects in the name of man-made global warming, contrary to policy and stated regulation (see FERC Becomes Political as Seen in Rehearing Vote on NY Project). The politics in the Dem party is toxic and radical, and has now spread to FERC. Powelson’s departure at this time is not good news for our industry. We hope Trump can get a new FERC member appointed to replace Powelson asap–but don’t hold your breath. The swamp resists change at any cost…
    Read More “Sad News: FERC’s Rob Powelson (from PA) Resigns Effective August”

  • | | |

    PA IFO Predicts 2018 Impact Tax Will Raise Record High $224 Million

    The PA Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) does a pretty good job of guesstimating how much impact fee revenue will get generated in the coming year, based on permit and producing wells activity this year. How good? Last year the IFO predicted that impact fee (equivalent of a severance tax) revenue would be $222 million for 2017 (see IFO Predicts PA Impact Fees for 2017 Will Soar, Near Record High). They weren’t too far off. The state Public Utility Commission, charged with collecting the fee, just disbursed impact fee revenue raised in 2017. The grand total was $210 million (see PA Impact Fee/Tax Hauls in $210M in 2017 – Third Highest Ever). There was $6 million “missing” from that number due to a dispute over what is, and what is not, considered a “stripper well.” If you were to include the $6 million (as the IFO does in their estimates), then 2017 revenue would have been $217 million–not far from IFO’s $222 million estimate. The IFO just released an impact fee update (full copy below) with an outlook for 2018. The IFO predicts next year’s impact fee will generate $224 million in revenue. If that estimate bears out, it would be the highest amount of revenue generated by the fee since its beginning in 2011…
    Read More “PA IFO Predicts 2018 Impact Tax Will Raise Record High $224 Million”

  • | | | |

    M-U Production May “Flounder” This Summer from Rover Pipe Delays

    Platts is reporting U.S. natural gas production hit a new, all-time high last week, mainly due to a surge in natgas production in the Texas Permian. Although Marcellus/Utica production “pulled back modestly” this past week, if you look at the entire month of June, we hit new all-time highs for production yet again. However, it wasn’t just the good news of new record production that caught our attention in the Platts update, but this statement: “Looking ahead, it’s possible that Northeast production growth could flounder this summer, thanks to continued in-service /delays on Rover Pipeline’s upstream supply laterals.” Rover is desperately trying to get FERC to grant permission to open the Majorsville and Burgettstown laterals, as we pointed out yesterday (see Rover Pressuring FERC to Approve Final 2 Laterals ASAP). So if those laterals were to go into service immediately, wouldn’t that mean production will spike up right away with no “floundering”? Not necessarily. Here’s why…
    Read More “M-U Production May “Flounder” This Summer from Rover Pipe Delays”

  • |

    Epsilon Energy Becoming “Domesticated” – Moving from Canada to U.S.

    domesticated cattle in the ancient world

    One definition for the word “domestication” means to tame a wild animal, turning it into a farm animal. Another definition means “to bring into use in one’s own country : to bring into domestic use” (Merriam-Webster). It is that later definition Epsilon Energy had in mind when using the term “domestication” to describe a vote by the company’s shareholders to move Epsilon’s base of operations/HQ from Canada to the United States. From time to time we check in Epsilon, both a driller and midstream/pipeline company. Epsilon, largely focused on the Marcellus, had a shareholder rebellion in 2013 and threw out the sitting board of directors (see Shareholder Rebellion at Epsilon Energy – New Board as of Today). Epsilon CEO Michael Raleigh announced at the time that the company had embarked on a turnaround strategy of focusing on the Marcellus Shale–less than a year after saying they would scale back in the Marcellus (see Epsilon Energy Makes “About-Face” on Marcellus Drilling). Epsilon has been and remains a relatively small player in the Marcellus. Last year they bought leases in the Anadarko Basin in Oklahoma (see Epsilon Energy: “Focused” on Marcellus, Buying Land in Anadarko). In a recent vote, shareholders voted 99.99% in favor of moving the company from Canada to Houston, TX. Epsilon, in their own press release, called the move “domestication”–which we found amusing. The wild beast of Canada will be tamed and domiciled in Texas–in order to drill in the Marcellus and Oklahoma. Too bad Pittsburgh couldn’t tame this wild beast. There’s plenty of empty office space in Southpointe…
    Read More “Epsilon Energy Becoming “Domesticated” – Moving from Canada to U.S.”

  • | | |

    Dominion Bid to Buy SCANA in Trouble Following Passage of SC Bill

    In January Dominion Energy announced a deal to buy out and merge in South Carolina-based SCANA Corporation (see Dominion Buys SCANA, Mulls Atlantic Coast Pipe Expansion into SC). SCANA is an energy-based holding company principally engaged, through subsidiaries, in electric and natural gas utility operations and other energy-related businesses. In other words, the local electric and gas company for much of South Carolina. Dominion is a big company with many operations–they are a pipeline company, an electric generating company, and a utility company (like SCANA). The merger makes sense. Dominion gets to grow and add more customers to its utility business. We didn’t think there was any tie-in with the Marcellus/Utica, but turns out there is. We brought you news in early December that Dominion and their partner in the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) project, Duke Energy, are considering expanding the original ACP to more locations in North Carolina, AND expanding the pipeline into South Carolina (see Atlantic Coast Pipeline’s Future Plans: Expand in NC & SC). Dominion openly says that the SCANA purchase makes it more likely they will push to expand ACP into SC–meaning even more Marcellus/Utica gas could be flowing to Dixie. But now there’s a big, fat wrinkle. SCANA is in trouble because they began to build, and later abandoned, a nuclear plant project–costing ratepayers millions of dollars. SC politicians want to rebate some of the money that was paid for the project back to ratepayers. They passed a bill on Wednesday (now on the governor’s desk) that will slash rates for customers by 15%. Dominion reacted strongly, implying they may pull out of the deal if the bill is signed by the governor…
    Read More “Dominion Bid to Buy SCANA in Trouble Following Passage of SC Bill”

  • | | |

    Pipeline Cos. to D.C. – We Need Help to Beat Back Green Groups

    The World Gas Conference, held every three years in different locations around the globe, was held this week in Washington, D.C.–the first time back in the U.S. in 30 years. We’ve reported various stories from that event. Here’s another such story that caught our interest. Pipeline companies, specifically TransCanada and Enbridge (both based in Canada but with huge pipeline networks in the U.S.) told conference attendees that the pipeline industry needs help from Washington–from either the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or Congress, or both to fight back against the increasing efforts of Big Green groups opposed to fossil fuels. Fight back how? By adopting new regulations (FERC) or new laws (Congress) that favor pipeline infrastructure. Our interpretation of what they said: It’s time to stop allowing a small group of wacko radicals block energy progress in this country…
    Read More “Pipeline Cos. to D.C. – We Need Help to Beat Back Green Groups”

  • | | | | |

    Rick Perry Tells Cuomo – You’ll Face “Reckoning” for Blocking NatGas

    Yesterday, Dept. of Energy Secretary Rick Perry leveled a warning to Andrew Cuomo and the leaders of other states blocking natural gas pipelines: You will face a “real reckoning” of high energy costs and vulnerabilities (i.e. blackouts) because of your actions. Perry stopped short of saying Washington and the Trump Administration would use Executive Orders to unblock some of the blocked pipeline projects (which is a disappointment). But Perry alluded to that possibility when he said, “We have to have conversation as a country, is that a national security issue that outweighs the political concerns in Albany, N.Y.?” Cuomo should be concerned. We’re holding out hope that Trump will issue an Executive Order for both the Constitution Pipeline and Northern Access Pipeline projects, overruling Cuomo. It’s refreshing to see our side take the fight to the irrational radicals who oppose fossil fuel energy…
    Read More “Rick Perry Tells Cuomo – You’ll Face “Reckoning” for Blocking NatGas”

  • Energy Stories of Interest: Fri, Jun 29, 2018

    The “best of the rest”–stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading: Report on mineral rights ownership among farm operators across different states; MVP pipeline protester removed from excavator in Va.; update on natgas flaring in North Dakota; the “short cycle” advantage of shale; Rick Perry says American natgas is fueling the world’s future; IGU’s 2018 World LNG report; growing global LNG market needs better pricing system; higher oil prices coming; Europe faces decision re who to buy gas from, Russia or US; and more!
    Read More “Energy Stories of Interest: Fri, Jun 29, 2018”

  • | | | | | | | |

    Rover Pressuring FERC to Approve Final 2 Laterals ASAP

    Click for larger version

    In a respectful, but strongly worded letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Energy Transfer Partners’ Rover Pipeline asks FERC to (our words) get off its rear-end and approve the Burgettstown and Majorsville laterals. The two laterals, or off-shoots of the pipeline system, both reach into western Pennsylvania and are (from what we can tell) the final two pieces of the Rover pipeline that are not yet online. Rover asked FERC to approve the two laterals, along with other portions of the pipeline, by June 1st, in a letter dated May 24th. FERC did approve some items on the list, but not the two laterals (see M-U Gas Now Travels to Dawn Hub in Canada via Rover Pipeline). In a June 21 letter (read it below) Rover then asked FERC to approve the two laterals by June 25, this past Monday. That date came and went with no approvals. Rover said in its letter: “significant volumes of natural gas have been unable to flow on pipeline facilities that have been completed for nearly a month.” You can feel the frustration when reading the letter. So what, exactly, is the holdup anyway?…
    Read More “Rover Pressuring FERC to Approve Final 2 Laterals ASAP”

  • | | | | | | | |

    NY Asks FERC to Hassle AIM Pipeline, Restrict Flows

    Spectra Energy’s Algonquin Incremental Market (AIM) pipeline project is an $876 million expansion of the existing Algonquin pipeline system designed to carry 342 million cubic feet of natural gas per day to New England states that badly need the gas. On March 3, 2015 the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued their final approval for the project, allowing it to go forward. Construction began in 2015 and, following extreme opposition from New York State over a small portion of the project, it finally went online in in 2016. New York’s radical, anti-drilling governor, Andy Cuomo, tried to stop the Algonquin using the flimsy excuse that some of the drilling for the pipeline would happen a half mile from a nuclear power plant–a plant that’s shutting down anyway (see Gov. Cuomo Asks FERC to Halt Algonquin Pipeline Near Nuke Plant). A few weeks after Cuomo requested FERC shut it down, they told him “no”–which was the cue for Big Green groups to file an appeal with the liberal District of Columbia Court of Appeals (see Radical Enviro Groups File Appeal to Stop AIM Pipeline in NY/CT). Didn’t work. New York State’s two radically leftist Democrat Senators, Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, the Senator nobody knows about and nobody cares about, tried to stop it too (see NY’s 2 Radical Senators Call for Halt in Building Algonquin Pipeline). Didn’t work. Now that the pipeline expansion has been up and running safely for more than a year, you’d think they would give up. Nope. Cuomo previously ordered a “safety analysis” of the project, back in 2016. That report was just released (executive summary embedded below) and four state agencies, all under the executive branch umbrella (i.e., under Cuomo’s thumb), jointly wrote a letter to FERC asking FERC to further hassle the AIM project by restricting flows along it and shutting it down when work to decommission the nearby nuke plant begins…
    Read More “NY Asks FERC to Hassle AIM Pipeline, Restrict Flows”

  • | | |

    Handy List of 48 New/Planned Gas-Fired Plants in PA, Courtesy FWW

    The radicals of Food & Water Watch (FWW), a disgusting organization, have done us all a huge favor! FWW is composed of some of the worst of the worst when it comes to anti-fossil fuel nuttery. They oppose everything, including low-carbon natural gas, if it’s called a fossil fuel. FWW issued a new “report” last week taking aim at the growing number of Marcellus gas-fired electric plants sprouting up around the state, replacing dirtier coal-fired plants. Only in the mind of a demented liberal is coal better for the environment than natgas. But we digress. FWW’s report is called “Pernicious Placement of Pennsylvania Power Plants: Natural Gas-Fired Power Plant Boom Reinforces Environmental Injustice.” Those alliterations are just ingenious, aren’t they? As part of the report, FWW published a comprehensive list of 48 planned, under construction, or recently commissioned gas-fired power plant projects in the Keystone State. Wow! What a great list! We’ve extracted the list itself and shared it below (so you don’t have to endure the full report). The focus of the report is the baseless charge FWW (and others) make that new power plant projects are built in poor, black areas–where the downtrodden can’t fight back against the machine that is Big Oil/Gas. FWW includes a map (see it below) that charts where “communities of color” (meaning concentrations of black people) live in the state, along with dots that show where existing and planned gas-fired plants are located. Take a look at the dots for planned plants. Almost none of them are near “communities of color!” Whoops. Some intern wasn’t paying attention when she drafted the report…
    Read More “Handy List of 48 New/Planned Gas-Fired Plants in PA, Courtesy FWW”

  • | | | | | | |

    Enviro Radicals Target MVP in Va. Following WV Court “Win”

    The lawyers that infest the Sierra Club are still celebrating a temporary court victory last week that essentially stops construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) in West Virginia (see Sierra Club Succeeds in Delaying MVP Project in WV via Court Order). Their strategy was/is to bamboozle a court into stopping construction at stream crossings (hundreds of them) by using a technical loophole that MVP can’t complete required work at four of the crossings within the stated 72 hours, therefore the court needs to reassess the umbrella permit issued for all crossings. So the court is doing that, temporarily suspending work at all 591 streams MVP plans to cross in WV. The Sierra Clubbers think that because they won that temporary court victory in WV, maybe they can get lightening to strike twice, convincing the court to pull the permit in Virginia too…
    Read More “Enviro Radicals Target MVP in Va. Following WV Court “Win””

  • | | | | |

    Anti Group Sues WVU to Disclose Details of $83.7B China Deal

    Appalachian Mountain Advocates, a far-left, radical anti-drilling organization that some media outlets refer to as a simple “nonprofit law firm,” has filed a lawsuit against West Virginia University to force the university to hand over privileged and secret communications concerning the deal WV struck with China to invest $83.7 billion in the state, in the shale and petrochemical industries. As you may recall, that deal was announced last November (see China Agrees to Invest Amazing $83.7 BILLION in WV Shale, Petchem). The particulars of the “deal” have never been announced–other than the top line number of $83.7 billion in investments. In fact, the “deal” was called a “memorandum of understanding” (MOU), which we said at the time: “[the deal] signed in China yesterday is a Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU). It’s a handshake–a gentleman’s agreement. And sometimes those agreements disappear. So this is far from a done deal.” In early December, following calls to disclose the deal, WV Gov. Jim Justice said the specifics are confidential (see WV Gov Justice Says China Investment Specifics are “Confidential”). So now, here comes a Big Green group trawling for trash–attempting to use (abuse) anything they can to make trouble for the shale industry. They hope if they can get their hot red hands on emails to and from the Red Chinese, they can fabricate a mountain out of a mole hill…
    Read More “Anti Group Sues WVU to Disclose Details of $83.7B China Deal”

  • | | |

    DOE Publishes Updated NGL Primer for Marcellus/Utica

    Last December the Trump Dept. of Energy published a 45-page report called, “Natural Gas Liquids Primer: With a Focus on the Appalachian Region” (see DOE Publishes NGL Primer for Marcellus/Utica, Pushes NGL Storage). The DOE used its own data along with data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (our favorite government agency) to create an up-to-date picture of Appalachian NGL supply, demand, and infrastructure. It’s only been six months, but the DOE is back with an updated edition of the same report. Hey, things are changing fast in this space, and Team Trump is on top of those changes. What’s different between the last report and this one? The new report includes “even larger projections for ethane production from the Marcellus and Utica shale plays than previously estimated.” There’s a new section identifying R&D opportunities related to natural gas and NGLs production, conversion, and storage. Perhaps most eye-opening is this: NGLs production in the M-U region is projected to increase over 700% from 2013 to 2023. Yikes! Here’s the latest and greatest from one of the few functional government agencies in Washington…
    Read More “DOE Publishes Updated NGL Primer for Marcellus/Utica”

  • |

    BP: NatGas is “Destination” Fuel, Not Just Bridge to Renewables

    We have long thought (and written) that to concede the argument that renewable energy–wind and solar–is some sort of nirvana, a magical destination, that renewables are our inevitable energy future–is a mistake. To box ourselves in by buying into the argument that natural gas is a “bridge” to get us lower carbon emissions until renewable heaven arrives is faulty thinking. And now, none other than the CEO of BP is saying the same thing. Not in quite the same words we’ve used, but certainly the same sentiment. BP still bows to the alter of man-made global warming nonsense. But at least they have the guts to say, out loud, that natural gas itself is good enough–the “destination” as a fuel, and not simply a “bridge” to renewables. BP CEO Bob Dudley said that this week on a panel at the World Gas Conference in Washington, D.C. On the same panel, French oil giant Total CEO, Patrick Pouyanne, said, “This idea of natural gas as a transition fuel to renewables is strange.” Yes! Finally some clear thinkers willing to stand up for fossil fuels! We need more people to stand up and shout, “The renewables Emperor has no clothes!”…
    Read More “BP: NatGas is “Destination” Fuel, Not Just Bridge to Renewables”

  • Energy Stories of Interest: Thu, Jun 28, 2018

    The “best of the rest”–stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading: Decade of study shows PA’s environment, shale drilling can coexist; natgas execs see 100 years of supply; natgas will figure big in pared-down GE’s future; Rick Perry says “stubborn opposition” to fossil fuels keeps billions in poverty; power plant emissions continue to fall thx to natgas; protesters ineffective in stopping pipelines; Panama Canal drops LNG transit restrictions; China trucking LNG to overcome lack of pipelines; natgas costs rising in Canada where fracking is banned; and more!
    Read More “Energy Stories of Interest: Thu, Jun 28, 2018”