Greg Floerke In late 2015, MPLX (i.e., Marathon Petroleum) bought out and merged with the Utica Shale’s premier midstream company, MarkWest Energy, for $15 billion (see MarkWest Energy Investors/Unitholders Approve Merger with Marathon). The “new” MarkWest, aka MPLX, plays on a much larger stage now, including ownership and operation of major assets in the Permian…
Read More...Permitting in Pennsylvania overseen by the Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) has been a hot mess for years. A Chapter 102 Erosion and Sedimentation permit sometimes takes two, three, or even six months for approval — instead of the policy-mandated 14 days. According to a DEP press release from yesterday, that’s all behind us now….
Read More...Dominion Energy plans to build four small “peaker” electric generating plants in Chesterfield County, VA, near Richmond (see Dominion Plans to Build 1,000-MW Gas Peaker Plant Near Richmond, VA). The Chesterfield Energy Reliability Center (CERC) calls for building four 250-megawatt gas-fired power plants (1,000 MW total) that can jump into action during the coldest and…
Read More...In December 2022, Rice Acquisition Corp II, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) started by the Rice brothers (Danny, Toby, and Derek), announced a deal to acquire NET Power — an electric power developer with revolutionary new technology to capture every last molecule of carbon dioxide from natural gas-fired power plants (see Dan Rice Buys…
Read More...Some interesting research coming from Penn State (and Binghamton University). A paper recently published in the Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists found that companies contributing the greatest pollution and emissions were more committed to reducing pollution because they faced greater public scrutiny and risked being labeled as “greenwashers” — entities that…
Read More...The European Union’s idiotic methane regulations will soon come into full force, prompting European oil, gas, and coal companies to monitor, measure and report their emissions. The same restrictions will also apply to energy imports coming from other countries, including the U.S. (see Europeans Presume to Impose Their Regulations on American Gas). The arrogant Europeans…
Read More...Venture Global has some nerve. In August, we told you that most of Venture Global’s contracted customers for LNG from the company’s Calcasieu Pass LNG export facility in southwestern Louisiana’s Cameron Parish had filed for arbitration over Venture Global’s refusal to sell them cargoes under contract (see Shell, Edison, BP File for Arbitration Against Venture…
Read More...One month ago, Pennsylvania’s rig count dropped to just 12 rigs, the lowest that state has operated in the last 17 years (see PA Drops Another Rig to 17-Year Low; National Rig Count Even @ 585). Since then, PA has re-added one rig per week for three weeks in a row, and as of last…
Read More...Chris Wright Pinch us! Did we die and go to heaven? Are we dreaming? The hits just keep rolling in with President-elect Trump and his cabinet picks. On Friday, Trump picked North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum as the next Secretary of the Department of Interior (Burgum is a huge fracking supporter). Then, on Saturday, President…
Read More...EIA price-picking dart board The U.S. Energy Information issued its latest monthly Short-Term Energy Outlook last week, the agency’s monthly best guess about where energy prices and production will go in the next 12 months. In October, the EIA predicted the average spot price for natural gas will be $3.10/MMBtu in 2025 (see Oct. STEO…
Read More...Louisville Gas and Electric Company (LG&E) and Kentucky Utilities Company (KU), subsidiaries of PPL Corporation, celebrated a significant milestone last week with the groundbreaking of Mill Creek 5, a state-of-the-art 640-megawatt (MW) natural gas combined-cycle generating unit in Jefferson County, Kentucky. This new facility is set to begin powering homes and businesses in 2027. While…
Read More...Environmental wackos have made building a new natural gas pipeline anywhere in the northeast (or southeast) such a heinously nasty experience with multiple and repeated regulatory challenges and a blizzard of lawsuits that nobody has ventured to propose a new “greenfield” (brand new from scratch) pipeline since Mountain Valley Pipeline, which took a decade to…
Read More...MDN first reported on a lawsuit by a group of Wyoming County, PA, landowners back in January 2019 (see Fed Court Allows PA Royalty Lawsuit Against Chesapeake to Proceed). The lawsuit was originally filed in February 2018 by landowners against Chesapeake Energy and Equinor, claiming post-production deductions were made from royalty checks that should not…
Read More...We’re a sucker for a railroad story. There’s something magical about railroads, dontcha think? We spotted a railroad story that ties in with the Marcellus/Utica. Yesterday morning, the Ohio Rail Development Commission (ORDC) voted to approve a project (and back it with a grant) in Youngstown, Ohio. It is a significant, large-scale project by the…
Read More...Yesterday, the East Kentucky Power Cooperative (EKPC), a nonprofit power generation and transmission electric utility with headquarters in Winchester, Kentucky, announced plans to build two new natural gas-fired power plants and convert its two existing coal-fired power plants to burn natural gas. That’s four new gas-fired power plants coming to two different counties, one county…
Read More...