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    Orange County, NY Electric Plant to Start Up in June

    As the Competitive Power Ventures (CPV) Valley Energy Center natural gas-fired electric generating plant in Orange County, NY gets ready to begin service, some of the neighbors are not happy with noises coming from the plant. They hope local town officials can meet with Gov. Andrew Cuomo and convince him to lean on the Dept. of Environmental Conservation to revoke permits for the plant that CPV just spent almost a billion dollars to build. We told you a month ago the only sliver of a hope antis have to prevent the plant from starting up is to convince the DEC to block it (see Big Green Begs NY DEC to Revoke Orange Co. Power Plant Permits). It’s not beyond the realm of possibility, but also not likely that the DEC will step in now. At a Wawayanda Town Board meeting last Thursday residents and town leaders discussed the noise issue and what to do about it, which is the focus of the article below. However, one tiny reference in the article is what caught our attention. The plant is waiting for a pipeline “lateral” from the Millennium Pipeline to be completed to flow natgas to the plant, which is what will fire the plant. You may recall the DEC tried to block that pipeline and was overruled by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The DEC took FERC to court and the DEC lost (see Court Rejects NY DEC Attempt to Stop Short Power Plant Pipeline). The short 7.8-mile “Valley Lateral” pipeline is now almost complete. According to the article below (and the thing that caught our attention) is that CPV expects the pipeline to be done and flowing natural gas to the plant in June. When it does, the plant will start up…
    Read More “Orange County, NY Electric Plant to Start Up in June”

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    Univ of Cincinnati Utica Groundwater Study Finally Published!

    From January 2012 to February 2015, researchers from the University of Cincinnati collected 180 groundwater samples in Eastern Ohio, from water wells located close to Utica Shale drilling activity. In early 2016, the lead researcher shared some high level results from the study. The preliminary results showed that fracking in areas where there are water wells doesn’t affect those wells (see Antis Not Happy with Results of OH Fracking Study They Funded). Two anti-drilling groups were the primary funders of the study–Deer Creek Foundation in St. Louis and the Alice Weston foundation from Cincinnati. The two groups immediately cut their funding when they heard results they believe they didn’t pay for (see Anti Groups Abruptly Cut Funding for OH Fracking Study). Since that time, no more of the study’s results have been released, for over two years! That is, until now. The full peer-reviewed study, titled “Monitoring concentration and isotopic composition of methane in groundwater in the Utica Shale hydraulic fracturing region of Ohio,” was published last week in the scientific journal Environmental Monitoring and Assessment. Summing up the results of the full study in the words of the researchers themselves: “We found no relationship between CH4 [methane] concentration or source in groundwater and proximity to active gas well sites.” And, “…our data do not indicate any intrusion of high conductivity fracking fluids as the number of fracking wells increased in the region.” Finally! An honest study using Big Green money, that Big Green tried to cover up and silence, is now available for the whole world to see…
    Read More “Univ of Cincinnati Utica Groundwater Study Finally Published!”

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    Mountain Valley Pipe Continues to Get FERC Approval for Construction

    Despite all of the media attention on a handful of protesters who sit in the tops of trees or on top of a poll in order to block construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP), the pipeline nonetheless continues to receive regular new permissions from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to construct the actual pipeline and (yes), even to cut trees past the March 31 deadline. The good news is that MVP is on track to be completely built and flowing Marcellus/Utica gas by the end of THIS YEAR! Despite the best efforts of radical protesters and multiple lawsuits by Big Green groups. Recent FERC permissions for MVP include: (1) allow MVP to cut trees in Jefferson National Forest past the March 31 deadline; (2) build parts of the pipeline in Roanoke and Franklin Counties, VA; (3) work 24/7 on building a compressor station in Wetzel County, WV; and (4) build pipeline in Jefferson National Forest, on both the VA and WV sides…
    Read More “Mountain Valley Pipe Continues to Get FERC Approval for Construction”

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    The Different Ways Range and CNX Dealt with ME1 Pipeline Outage

    Now that the Mariner East 1 (ME1) NGL (natural gas liquid) pipeline is back up and running, Marcellus/Utica producers are breathing a sigh of relief–at least, Range Resources, the primary customer for the pipeline, is. Following sinkholes that developed while Sunoco Logistics Partners was drilling for the Mariner East 2 (ME2) project, a portion of ME1 was exposed to open air in Chester County, PA, which prompted the state Public Utility Commission to shut down ME1 in early March (see PA PUC Shuts Down Mariner 1 Pipeline Due to Mariner 2 Sinkhole). Range sends 20,000 barrels a day of ethane and propane through ME1. The closure sent them scrambling for alternatives (see Range, CNX Look for Alternatives to ME1 Pipe Following Shutdown). CNX Resources is also a customer using ME1, but much less so than Range. It took two months, but the PUC finally allowed ME1 to restart last week (see Sunoco’s ME1 Pipe Restarts, ME2 Pipe Pays Another $355K in Fines). Range and CNX coped with the ME1 closure in very different ways…
    Read More “The Different Ways Range and CNX Dealt with ME1 Pipeline Outage”

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    Anti Group Stirs Up Pittsburghers Against Fracking, (Ab)Uses Kids

    We always find it deeply disturbing when a group of anti-fossil fueulers, like the innocent-sounding (but very radical) Moms Clean Air Force, pushes little kids in front of the cameras, getting them to hold protest signs in a sleazy attempt to play on people’s sympathy. That’s what happened yesterday in the Pittsburgh suburb of Indiana Township (Allegheny County). Hey, knock yourself out if you want to show up and protest and make some noise. But don’t bring the kids along. Don’t put your guilt trip on the kids, making them protest something they frankly don’t even understand. Don’t implant them with your irrational fears. We find it disgusting…
    Read More “Anti Group Stirs Up Pittsburghers Against Fracking, (Ab)Uses Kids”

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    Unease Over PA Rule of Capture Case Spreads Nationwide

    This much is clear: The “Briggs” court decision in Pennsylvania cannot stand as it is without threatening to end the shale miracle, certainly in Pennsylvania, and perhaps across the country. Some believe we’re making too much of the Briggs decision recently handed down by two judges sitting on PA’s Superior Court (see PA Superior Court Overturns “Rule of Capture” for Marcellus Well and PA “Rule of Capture” Case has Power to Limit Marcellus Drilling). The issue, in brief, is that the Superior Court decision disallows using an age-old principle called the “rule of capture” when it comes to shale drilling and fracking. It opens the door to a myriad of frivolous lawsuits claiming that a fracture, a crack created during fracking, is draining gas from a neighbor’s property without justly compensating the neighbor for the gas. Southwestern successfully argued in a lower court that the odd crack here and there that may slip under a neighbor’s property is permissible. The landowner appealed to Superior Court and three judges heard the case. Two of them voted to overturn the lower court decision in favor of Southwestern and sent the case back to a lower court where the landowners (the Briggs) now have to prove Southwestern trespassed and work out how much gas they believe was “taken.” Southwestern has asked the full Superior Court–all 20 judges–to hear the case again. No word yet on whether that will happen. We have, from the beginning, considered the Briggs decision to be an existential threat to the Marcellus industry in PA. In a recent Bloomberg article, some experts believe the threat has the potential to spread beyond PA. Below we explain how might happen, and provide some historical perspective on the rule of capture…
    Read More “Unease Over PA Rule of Capture Case Spreads Nationwide”

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    EPA Launches Study to Dispose Frack Wastewater in Lakes, Rivers

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last week announced it has launched a study into the possibility of treating oil and gas wastewater and (gasp) releasing the cleaned-up wastewater into lakes and rivers, instead of injecting it back down holes in the ground. The EPA is seeking “input” from everyone–the industry and Big Green–to help guide their research efforts. The truth is wastewater from oil and gas wells is far less toxic than the stuff leaching out of landfills and the waste from chemical plants. But you never hear that said out loud by Big Green supporters. We’ve personally spoken with people at several companies that recycle and clean shale wastewater who say such cleanup is easy compared to cleaning up other types of wastewater. Why shouldn’t the EPA look to at least study it–and perhaps even encourage it?…
    Read More “EPA Launches Study to Dispose Frack Wastewater in Lakes, Rivers”

  • Other Energy Stories of Interest: Wed, May 9, 2018

    The “best of the rest”–stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading: As NEXUS gets close to Bowling Green, residents express concerns; Grandma Red turns up at radical anti-pipeline rally in Charlottesville; new name for Fairmount Santrol is Covia; proposed gas-fired electric plant in Palatka, FL gets key approval; Exxon loses a high profile enemy; what Trump’s Iran nuke deal pullout means for oil; we don’t need wind and solar to save the climate, which is a good thing; and more!
    Read More “Other Energy Stories of Interest: Wed, May 9, 2018”

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    Anti-Fossil Fuel NY Attorney General Eric Schneiderman Resigns!

    Former NY AG Eric Schneiderman

    One of the plagues we’ve had to endure in the Empire State is a totally out-of-control, mad drunk with an abuse of legal power, Attorney General Eric Schniederman. There isn’t a shale pipeline or drilling project in New York that Schneiderman hasn’t harassed. Apparently the oil and gas industry isn’t the only thing he harasses. Following a bombshell story in the ultra liberal The New Yorker magazine that accuses Schneiderman of rough sex and slapping woman around, he abruptly resigned as of today. Schneiderman’s resignation has nothing to do with the Marcellus/Utica, but his departure is cause for celebration in New York. Schneiderman was one of the ring leaders in a cabal attempting to shake down Exxon Mobil and other oil companies for billions of dollars, accusing them of “knowing” that oil causes mythical man-made global warming and is harming the environment. The fossil fuel projects in NY that Schneiderman opposed are legion–too many to count. No one in the industry will shed any tears over his departure now that Schnedierman has now been “exposed” (pun intended), hoist with his own petard. One example from the bombshell story: An ex-girlfriend (originally from Sri Lanka) told the New Yorker that Schneiderman, that paragon of ultra-liberal values, called her his “brown slave” and ordered him to call him “Master.” And if she didn’t? He slapped her, hard, until she did…
    Read More “Anti-Fossil Fuel NY Attorney General Eric Schneiderman Resigns!”

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    PA Ethics Commission Persecutes Wolf Aide Favorable to NatGas

    Yesenia Bane

    You know we’re not fans of PA Gov. Wolf and his administration. We think he’s been a disaster for the state, in many ways. However, a member of his administration, Yesenia Bane (deputy chief of staff), has been unfairly targeted simply because her husband worked for a firm that did business with the Marcellus industry, and because she herself (with abundant knowledge of the industry) assisted Wolf by attending industry-sponsored events. Bane had the nerve to represent Wolf to the industry, attending events to act as liaison, learning about industry concerns, and conveying Wolf’s thoughts to the industry. And for that she’s accused of crossing an ethical line–accused by a radical Big Green supporter from the Philly area by the name of Caroline Hughes–a woman whose connections to Big Green should be investigated. Hughes filed a complaint with the Pennsylvania State Ethics Commission against Bane late last year (see Antis Target PA Gov Wolf Aide as Payback, Husband Works for EQT). The complaint is a ginned up allegation that Bane “was regularly involved in meetings and travel related to her husband’s natural gas industry clients.” The so-called evidence comes from a copy of Bane’s travel schedule in 2016, obtained by Big Green mouthpiece StateImpact Pennsylvania. The new news is that the Ethics Commission has launched a full-blown investigation–we call it a persecution–of Bane, for simply doing her job…
    Read More “PA Ethics Commission Persecutes Wolf Aide Favorable to NatGas”

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    M-U Region Adding 43% of All New Gas-Fired Electric in 2018

    Yesterday the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) issued a report saying it predicts 32 gigawatts (GW) of new electric generating capacity to come online this year, in 2018. Of that 32 GW, 21 GW (or 66%) will come from new natural gas-fired plants. And of that 21 GW of new gas-fired generation, Pennsylvania alone will generate 5.2 GW, and Maryland and Virginia will each generate 1.9 GW. Put another way, 9 GW out of 21 GW (or 43%) of all new demand for natural gas for power plants is happening right here in the Marcellus/Utica region. As we have observed on many occasions, power generation is a very important source of new demand for abundant and cheap Marcellus/Utica gas…
    Read More “M-U Region Adding 43% of All New Gas-Fired Electric in 2018”

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    Rex Energy Gets 4th Extension to Delay Paying Defaulted IOU

    In early April, Rex Energy, a driller focused solely on the Marcellus/Utica driller, defaulted on payments it owes to debtholders (see Rex Energy Defaults on IOUs, Can’t File Annual Report on Time). Rex told the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) the company could not make a semi-annual interest payment due on senior notes on April 2. Rex said in the filing that the noteholders to whom payment is due (Angelo, Gordon & Co.) signed a temporary “forbearance” agreement that gives Rex a little breathing room, until April 16. The April 16 payment didn’t happen. Rex and Angelo signed a second forebearance agreement giving Rex another extension–until April 23–to either pay or agree to a new deal (see Rex Energy Gets 1 Extra Wk to Pay Defaulted IOU, Files Annual Report). April 23 came and went with no deal, and once again Rex and Angelo signed an agreement, the third such forbearance agreement, which gave the company until May 2 (see Rex Energy Gets 3rd Extension to Pay Defaulted IOU). May 2 came and went and (you guessed it), Rex has now signed a fourth forebearance agreement, giving the company another week–until May 9…
    Read More “Rex Energy Gets 4th Extension to Delay Paying Defaulted IOU”

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    FERC Rejects Rehearing Request from Antis re MVP, ACP Projects

    Last September a group of 57 gentry landowners in Virginia and West Virginia, backed by an out-of-state Big Green group, sued the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in an attempt to gut the 80-year old Natural Gas Act that gives FERC the right to grant eminent domain for pipeline projects (see VA, WV Landowners Sue FERC re Pipelines, Seek to Gut Natural Gas Act). Specifically, the colluding landowners oppose Dominion’s $5 billion, 594-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) that will stretch from West Virginia through Virginia and into North Carolina, and EQT’s $3.5 billion Mountain Valley Pipeline project, a 303-mile pipeline that will run from Wetzel County, WV to the Transco Pipeline in Pittsylvania County, VA. The frivolous lawsuit, titled BOLD ALLIANCE, et al. v. FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, et al., was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, which was the wrong court. Only FERC has jurisdiction over the projects and decisions about whether or not they can get built. If a supposedly aggrieved party disagrees with FERC’s decisions, they must first file for a rehearing, and if FERC still refuses, THEN the supposedly aggrieved party can file a lawsuit ONLY with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. The suers, Big Green group Bold Alliance, filed for a rehearing with FERC. Bold Alliance tried to sidestep the law by moving forward with a lawsuit prematurely. However, the really big no-no is that they filed in U.S. District Court for DC, NOT the Court of Appeals for DC. Big difference. Here’s “the rest of the story”…last Friday FERC rejected Bold Alliance’s request for a rehearing for both MVP and ACP. So we expect the next step is that Bold Alliance will now file an appeal with the correct court, the DC Court of Appeals…
    Read More “FERC Rejects Rehearing Request from Antis re MVP, ACP Projects”

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    TransCanada Asks FERC to Expand Capacity on New England Pipe

    TransCanada is attempting to do what so far, no one else has been able to accomplish: Increase flows of Marcellus/Utica (and perhaps other basin) gas into New England. The way they’re doing it is via the Portland Natural Gas Transmission System (PNGTS), a 295-mile pipeline that spans New England from the Canadian border to pipeline connections in New Hampshire, Maine and Massachusetts. No, TransCanada is not proposing to build any new pipeline as part of their plan. In fact there is no construction of any kind for phases I and II in what TransCanada is calling its Portland XPress Project (PXP). Phase I, which TransCanada filed on April 20, asked FERC for permission to begin flowing an extra 39.8 million cubic feet (MMcf) of natural gas from Pittsburg, NH, to Westbrook, ME, and to increase the flow from and to Canada. In Phase II, which was filed yesterday, TransCanada asked FERC for permission to flow an extra 11.3 MMcf from Westbrook, ME, to Dracut, MA. When the filing for Phase III comes along, they will ask to build a new compressor station, among other bits and bobs. New England and Atlantic Canada desperately need the gas, so there’s no reason why FERC would deny these reasonable requests. Perhaps TransCanada can succeed where Kinder Morgan’s TGP Northeast Energy Direct and Spectra Energy’s Access Northeast projects failed, and boldly go where no pipeline has gone before…
    Read More “TransCanada Asks FERC to Expand Capacity on New England Pipe”

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    Snap: Va. Dems Total Crack with Reality – Call Pipelines “Death Rattle”

    A rather juvenile, kindergartenish attitude appears to be taking root in the Democrat Party–at least in the Old Dominion. Dems there have decided that wind and solar, which provide something like 2.9% of all electric generation in the country, should just take over now and that we should stop building any/all pipelines that flow evil, nasty, “yesterday’s energy” called fossil fuels. And on that self-deluding basis, a group of Dems from Roanoke and across the state signed a (blithering idiot) letter to Democrat Gov. Ralph Northam demanding that he just stop both the Mountain Valley Pipeline and Atlantic Coast Pipeline projects in Virginia–federal projects. Of course the Dems are not really THAT stupid. This is a sleazy political calculation–playing to the nutjob base that elects them. States don’t have the right to overrule the federal government. The last time Virginia tried to overrule the federal government was in 1860, and you know how that turned out…
    Read More “Snap: Va. Dems Total Crack with Reality – Call Pipelines “Death Rattle””

  • Other Energy Stories of Interest: Tue, May 8, 2018

    The “best of the rest”–stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading: Northeast shale takeaway gets boost from new pipes; to Shell and back – the cracker journey over the last 6 years; crucial components for Shell cracker recently delivered; PA DEP head talks water contamination, fracking & funding; Bakken Shale comes roaring back with higher oil prices; the drive to ban oil trains in NJ will threaten public safety; shale drillers face new test as price tops $70/barrel; natgas injection season finally arrives; pipeline investments dogged by regs, tariffs, protesters and redundancy; and more!
    Read More “Other Energy Stories of Interest: Tue, May 8, 2018”