Appalachian Basin puts US gas production on pace to set record

The seven most productive, unconventional shale plays and basins in the Lower 48 U.S. states are projected to set a natural gas production record from August to September, according to the Energy Information Administration August Drilling Productivity Report. more than half of the production increase will be driven by the Marcellus and Utica shale plays

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EQM stops work on portion of Mountain Valley line

EQM Midstream Partners told the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission via letter last week the company would stop some work on the Mountain Valley natural gas pipeline in West Virginia and Virginia, as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reviews permits. In the letter, EQM said it was voluntarily suspending new work on Mountain Valley in

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ExxonMobil charters Singapore’s 1st LNG-fueled bunker barge

ExxonMobil Asia Pacific has signed a two-year time charter agreement with Singapore-based Sinanju Tankers Holdings Pte. Ltd. to lease Singapore’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG)-powered bunker tanker, Sinanju said, in a statement Friday, Kallanish Energy reports. The 7,990 deadweight tonnage (dwt) new build will be the first LNG bunker tanker for Singapore and Sinanju and

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Annual US refinery runs projected to fall for 1st time in decade

U.S. gross inputs to refineries, aka, refinery runs, have increased each year since 2009, most recently reaching a record high of 17.3 million barrels per day (Mmbpd) in 2018, Kallanish Energy reports. However, based on its monthly refinery run data through May and forecast for the remainder of 2019, the U.S. Energy Information Administration expects

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Natural gas prices keep dropping, despite record demand

Despite U.S. natural gas demand reaching an all-time high, and expected to keep rising, prices are falling, according to Hellenic Shipping News. Last week, U.S. gas futures collapsed to a three-year low, while spot prices were on track to post their weakest summer in over 20 years. Simultaneously, demand is is rising. Incidentally, so is

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Trump administration to ease Endangered Species Act regulations

Earlier this week the Trump administration announced plans to roll back protections for endangered species, according to Seeking Alpha. The move could expand oil and gas drilling and other development in the United States, as the plan includes allowing economic factors to be weighed in before adding an animal to the list. The revisions won’t

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PG&E names industry vet Vesey as utility head

Holding company PG&E Corp., operating under bankruptcy court protection, said the board of its Pacific Gas and Electric Co. unit (also in bankruptcy), has appointed Andrew M. Vesey CEO and president, effective Aug. 19. He will report to PG&E Corp. CEO and president Bill Johnson, Kallanish Energy reports. In his role, Vesey will have responsibility

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Citgo selects Carlos E. Jorda as CEO

Citgo Petroleum’s board has selected Carlos E. Jorda as its chief executive, selecting a veteran refinery expert and native Venezuelan to run a company facing legal attacks and working under U.S. sanctions against its parent, Petroleos de Venezuela (Pdvsa). Citgo severed ties with Pdvsa earlier this year after President Trump levied sanctions on the state-run company and

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Trump visits Pennsylvania Petrochemicals Complex

President Donald Trump visited the soon-to-be-completed Shell Pennsylvania Petrochemicals Complex in Monaca Tuesday, hailing the plant as an example of US energy dominance, according to FOX 40. The petrochemicals plant is located in Monaca, just outside of Pittsburgh. It is scheduled to be finished early next year, and will focus on producing plastic made from

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Researchers look for ways to improve efficiency in Marcellus Shale

The National Energy Technology Laboratory is conducting tests of a Marcellus Shale well in West Virginia that could reveal ways to improve production efficiency and environmental performance in the region, according to Daily Energy Insider. The NETL took a 139-foot core sample from a new experimental well operated by the Marcellus shale Energy and Environmental

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Enbridge works on plan to restore pipeline following Kentucky blast

Enbridge Inc recently announced it is working on a plan to put in service a couple of pipelines adjacent to the Texas Eastern natural gas pipeline in Kentucky that exploded Aug. 1, causing one casualty, according to Reuters. The company did not specify when the two pipelines would return to service. However, it announced earlier

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Southwestern to reduce rig count in Appalachian Basin

Southwestern Energy Co. recently announced it plans to reduce its rig count from six to two in coming weeks as part of a larger initiative to reduce spending and better control costs, according to Natural Gas Intelligence. The company also trimmed its full-year capital budget, saying spending would not eclipse $1.15 billion in 2019 —

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EQT coo Gould abruptly leaves company

Gary Gould has more than three decades of oil and gas industry experience, but his last position lasted just 1% of that timeframe. Gould, who left the employ of oil producer Continental Resources to join EQT Corp., the U.S.’s largest dry gas producer, lasted exactly five months – less than one month in the employ

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Tribal leaders request hearing concerning Dapl

South Dakota tribal leaders are requesting a public hearing in North Dakota about a proposed increase in crude oil carried by the Dakota Access Pipeline (Dapl), Kallanish Energy reports.  Energy Transfer Partners plans to expand the pipeline’s capacity from more than 500,000 barrels per day, to as much as 1.1 million barrels per day (Mmbpd)

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Oil plummets on fears of global slowdown

Crude oil prices fell more than 4.3% Wednesday, to a seven-month low, extending recent heavy losses following a surprise build in U.S. crude stockpiles and fears demand will shrink due to Washington’s growing trade war with Beijing. Brent crude futures dropped 4.4%, to $56.35 a barrel, a seven-month low. Prices have lost more than 20%

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