Natural gas prices are at $1.58/MMBtu, prices we haven’t seen since COVID. One month ago they were at about $3.00, and the crash has been pretty consistent. If prices stay this low for long, watch for somebody to start shutting in wells. Storage is at 2,535 Bcf, well above the five year average. Drilling rigs are at 621, one more than last month.

A local news outlet, WVNews in Clarksburg, has published an article that discusses the potential benefits that a natural gas power plant located here in West Virginia would have.

Libya has re-opened the Al Sharara field, the one that was closed down a couple weeks ago by protesters. That’s 300,000 barrels of oil per day back on the market. That will probably bump the price of gas at the pump down a bit.

West Virginia does not have enough well inspectors or enough money to plug abandoned wells.

The Biden Administration has paused approvals of new LNG export facilities.

West Virginia property taxes on oil and gas production are, once again, in the news for bad reasons. Somebody miscalculated the amount of tax that was supposed to be collected, and eight WV counties are short millions of dollars. Tyler County is particularly hard hit, being short almost $16 million. Nobody at the State level seems to have a solution.

The largest cruise ship ever just set sail from Miami, FL, under the power of LNG. Of course, environmentalists say it could actually be worse for the environment, even though it’s far better than the previous technology. Some people just can’t be happy.

OPEC+ intends to keep oil production at its current level in order to keep the price up.

Another protester locked themselves to some equipment to delay construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

So, there is a little rumbling about a West Virginia Senate Bill (SB 358) that would prohibit State employees from enforcing federal EPA regulations. While it’s a good idea, it’s unlikely to be effective, as the Feds have a unique tool that gives them a lot of leverage–money. West Virginia gets a lot of money from the federal government, and most of it is earmarked in such a way that the State has to use it in specific ways, and conform to federal regulations, in order to get the money. When States start feeling uppity, the Feds just start playing around with the requirements for this money. This law is unlikely to go anywhere.

One of Freeport LNG’s liquefaction trains is offline for about a month. That will not help the current oversupply situation.

How the G-7’s price cap on Russian oil is affecting things.

A gas pipeline in Oklahoma exploded, causing damage to some property, but not causing any injuries or deaths.

The PA cracker plant isn’t fully up and running. I probably knew this at one point. What I didn’t know is that Shell doesn’t expect it to be fully operational until 2025 or even 2026. You’ll have to search Shell’s earnings call transcript to find these nuggets.

The legal challenge against West Virginia’s forced pooling law is still ongoing, having been bounced around the Federal court system. The 4th Circuit has decided that the Federal circuit should make a ruling instead of moving the case to State court. So now we’ll wait while Judge Bailey decides whether the plaintiffs have standing.

West Virginia is being hurt by the Biden Administration’s LNG pause. Apparently, pretty much everybody agrees.

TC Energy is building a new building in Charleston, WV. Charleston could really use a nice, new building.

Harvard scientists are studying how cracks form and propagate. This will be useful in fracking and seismology.

A bill that would result in plugging orphaned oil and gas wells, and would keep new wells from ending up orphaned, has been in the legislature for six years, and doesn’t show signs of getting addressed any time soon.

Some folks in Virginia are saying that MVP construction is muddying the waters of their springs.

A company named Tenaska is working to sequester CO2 in the Marcellus shale region. They’ll be working in Hancock County, WV, as well as Ohio and PA. They will be asking for “leases” on the rock. This may not go to mineral rights owners, and the mineral rights owners only own the oil and gas, not the vacant space between rocks. This will probably go to surface owners.

Gas prices are $3.11/MMBtu, down from a high of $3.31 last Friday, but up from a low of $2.45 a few weeks ago. Drilling rigs are at 619, down a little from 623 last month, but numbers have been pretty flat since the end of October ’23. Gas storage is at 3,336 Bcf, down of course, but above the five-year average.

CNX is pulling out of participation in the ARCH 2 hydrogen hub because of uncertainty around the implementation of a tax break CNX thought it would be able to take advantage of, and because they haven’t been able to come to reasonable terms with the company that would have been buying natural gas from them. Most articles make it sound like the tax break is the deciding factor, however.

If you’ve been happy about the lower prices for gas for your car, part of the reason is that U.S. fracking companies have been increasing oil output enough to counter the cutbacks made by OPEC+. Here’s another article saying pretty much the same thing.

Democrats in the House of Representatives have opened up an investigation into Diversified Energy, focusing on how Diversified contributes to environmental problems. Diversified does more to take care of or plug old wells than the people and companies it buys them from. This feels like political grandstanding. Also note that Diversified’s stock fell a ton after this news broke. Care to make a wild guess as to who shorted Diversified? Wasn’t you and me.

FERC has approved a rate increase for the MVP, and extended time to build the Southgate Extension portion of the MVP.

If you’d like to know a little more about how NGLs are brought to market, RBNEnergy has a good post for you.

‘Tis the Season! The season of predictions for the upcoming energy year. The usual caveat applies: all predictions are bunk, it’s the analysis that’s useful.

Oilprice thinks that U.S. production will continue to grow in 2024, setting new record highs.

RBNEnergy does a look back at it’s 2023 predictions, along with a new set of predictions for 2024.

If what I’m reading is correct, and it seems like it is, the ARCH2 hydrogen hub is in serious jeopardy. The Biden Administration has proposed a new IRS rule, 45V, which will make it so that the hydrogen hubs will only be able to get the tax credit they were promised if they use green hydrogen. The ARCH2 hub was going to use blue hydrogen, or hydrogen which is sourced from natural gas, so it wouldn’t get the tax credit. Without the tax credit, the economics of the hub just don’t work.

Diversified Energy has sold some of its Appalachian assets, retaining a 20% ownership, while continuing on as the producer. It’s an interesting financial move, but unlikely to affect anyone whose well is operated by Diversified.

The TVA has added some more natural gas fired power plants. Tennessee can have them, why can’t West Virginia? Oh, right; politics.

Hope Gas is acquiring about 460 customers in Lewis County, WV by acquiring Standard Gas and Bazzle Gas. Slowly but surely, Hope Gas is growing.

The shale industry has become more efficient, laying down rigs and increasing production.

Toby Rice spoke with CNBC about the natural gas market. The video is about four minutes long and worth the time.

Unrest in Libya has shut down an oil field there, once again. It will take about 300,000 barrels of oil per day off the market. That should push the price of oil (and gas at the pump) up just a little.

Here’s the EIA’s oil and gas prediction. The EIA, being a government agency, usually has conservative forecasts.

Chesapeake and SWN are merging! I expect there are some papers to work and some regulations to hurdle, but this sounds like a deal that is likely to go through; I’ve been seeing headlines suggesting this could happen for several weeks already. For our clients who own minerals that are currently produced by SWN, little should change. The checks will keep coming, just with a new name.

RBN Energy has a good article about the differences between gathering lines and transmission lines.

EQT will provide a Texas company with gas for LNG.

Gas prices are at $2.49/MMBtu, down from a high of $2.96, but up from a recent low of $2.31. The drop was due to warmer winter weather, of course. Drilling rigs are at 623, up by five from last month, having hit a high of 626 last week. We may be bottoming out for the time being. Gas storage is at 3.557 Bcf, which is very close to the five year average and more than this time last year which was 3.337 Bcf.

An employee of the Mountain Valley Pipeline was injured by a falling rock.

Argentina’s new president intends to privatize the country’s energy sector, and shares in YPF (the national energy company) are going up. Argentina could become a big factor in oil and gas prices.

RBNEnergy has an article about LNG production and transportation that could be interesting to some of you.

Saudi Arabia would like OPEC+ to cut production of oil.

Royal Caribbean is accepting its first cruise ship that can be run on LNG.

Annual natural gas production dropped in PA in 2022. That’s the first time annual production has been down since the shale boom first started. Looking at the graph of wells drilled, it’s clear that the drop in production is a result of less drilling from 2020-2022 than from 2016-2019.

The only frac-out I’m aware of in our area happened last year in Greene County, PA. EQT has entered into an agreement with the PA DEP that allows them to continue drilling and producing from the pad with additional safety measures in place.

Equitrans, the company that built, or rather is finishing, the Mountain Valley Pipeline, is floating the idea of selling itself.

Hope Gas is growing again, acquiring Southern Public.

Brasil is hoping to join OPEC+.

The Supreme Court has ruled against the eminent domain case that was brought against the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

One of the news outlets in my little town of Buckhannon has posted an article about Hope Gas’ proposed pipeline up in Monongahela and Marion counties. I’m not sure why, as it won’t come close to us down here, but when a local news outlet does an article about my area of interest, I have to link to it. A news outlet a little closer to the pipeline location is trying to get detailed maps of the pipeline route through a FOIA request, and Hope Gas is fighting it.

Natural gas prices are at $3.19/MMBtu, a healthy price. The high this month was $3.58 and the low was $2.90. Drilling rigs are at 618, down four from 622 last month, but the decrease seems to be leveling out. Gas storage is at 3,833 Bcf, which is a little closer to the five year average than last month.

Three more protesters were arrested for blocking work on the MVP.

Follansbee, WV will have a hydrogen node, part of the hydrogen hub that’s coming to West Virginia.

Chesapeake is thinking about buying SWN.

Landowners challenging the MVP’s right to use eminent domain have filed an injunction in the D.C. Circuit court, which is the only court allowed to hear challenges to the MVP. UPDATE: the injunction has been denied. The MVP is suing the protesters.

This article over at Oilprice.com argues that the next phase in shale drilling is going to be mergers and acquisitions.

The MVP is going to cost somewhere around $7.2 billion, and won’t be finished until early 2024.

Some Pennsylvanians have filed a lawsuit alleging mining and fracking activities have polluted Dunkard Creek, which has it’s headwaters in West Virginia.

There’s an 8-inch pipeline project in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia that’s been the subject of litigation for years. The 4th Circuit has finally ruled in favor of allowing the project to use eminent domain. It will be interesting to see if environmentalist opposition continues to litigate this the same way they did the MVP.

Seeking Alpha posted Antero’s 3Q Earnings Call transcript.

Previously, Hope Gas and WATT Fuel Cell announced they would be distributing 500 natural gas fuel cells to West Virginians. They’ve added 5,300 to that number. The technology is interesting, and you can read about it in the link.

Here’s more material about the hydrogen hub.

Clean Fuel Services will build a hydrogen depot in Fairmont, WV. Hydrogen isn’t natural gas, but it will be produced using natural gas to run the hydrogen plants, so the development of hydrogen services directly affects natural gas production in our state.

Shale drilling has been producing more oil this year, apparently against expectations. This article states that it’s because producers are getting more efficient and drilling longer laterals. This article states that oil prices are being torn between war fear and a slowing global economy. Oil isn’t natural gas, but the two markets affect each other.

Here’s the transcript of SWN’s 3Q Earnings Call.

Here’s an inforgraphic of all the current and future North American LNG projects. Notice there are no proposals on the eastern seaboard. That’s because it will be impossible to get a new pipeline permitted on the east coast for at least ten years after MVP is finished. Opposition is too well organized and funded. Maybe the next round of pipelines will be built by companies that actually work with landowners rather than over, through, and around them. Then opposition wouldn’t have enough time to get organized and funded. The pipeline could get built on time and on budget if they’d treat landowners with respect.

The EIA has published its natural gas predictions. As usual, take predictions, even from the EIA, with a grain of salt or so.

The Freeport LNG plant is operating at reduced capacity again.

Gas prices are at $3.11, with a low of $2.61 and a high of $3.38. Drilling rigs are at 622 after hitting a low of 619, but still seem to be on a downward trajectory. Gas storage is at 3,529 Bcf, a little higher than the five year average, but closer to the five year average than last month.

RBNEnergy has published an excellent article showing why natural gas prices are where they are. It’s well worth the read if you don’t follow energy news.

DeSmog published a lengthy article about the water treatment plant in Doddridge County and the company that built it, Veolia. Antero has sued Veolia and won, and it may behoove Doddridge and Ritchie County residents to take a close look at the filings and judgments in that case to see if they’re at risk of environmental contamination. It seems that the plant never worked right, and that makes me wonder if it could have released unhealthy amounts of chemicals or radiation in the area.

One characteristic of the oil and gas industry is that there is always someone predicting that we’ve reached peak oil–the point at which the amount of oil we are able to pull out of the ground irreversibly decreases. This discussion with an oil executive shows why peak oil is so hard to predict with any degree accuracy.

Did you know that natural gas could be turned into diesel? I didn’t. That’s what they’re doing in Arkansas.

Wondering why oil prices are going up? OPEC+, of course. We’re producing a lot of oil here in the U.S., but not enough to swing prices around the way that OPEC+ can.

Exxon is trying to get federal subsidies for making hydrogen from natural gas.

This is odd. The company that bought the West Virginia land for a cracker plant back in 2015 just barely filed the deed. Apparently, there has been some interest in the property in the past year, which could be driving the filing of the deed, finally. Now speculation will begin as to who is interested and for what. Hydrogen hub property, maybe?

Mountain State Spotlight wrote a pretty good overview article about hydrogen and hydrogen hubs. However, they look at hydrogen as a power source. It’s not. It’s power storage, the same way a battery is, or refined fuels of any type are. When you think of it that way, it makes more sense.

Hope Gas will be building about ten miles of new pipeline in Monongalia County. This will connect with about 15 miles of existing pipeline. They’ll be taking gas from the Wadestown area down to the Harmony Grove area just west of Morgantown, then up to a facility they have in Osage. The line will curve south and apparently go into Marion County for about five miles. I hope to be able to help people negotiate their agreements with Hope Gas for this pipeline. Along with more money, we can make sure the pipeline location won’t change, the right of way will terminate when it’s no longer used, and do other things to protect the property.

The rise in oil prices usually brings about a corresponding rise in oil production in the U.S. Not so this time around. That’s because E&Ps are forecasting a reduction in the price of drilling supplies in the next 12 months, and since they’ve begun focusing on turning a profit for investors and shareholders, they’re all waiting for those prices to come down.

Something a lot of people don’t know is that gas can be sold in different places for different prices. The Henry Hub is the price most people look at, but the Eastern Gas South hub is where a lot of gas from the Marcellus Shale gets sold. That price is almost always less than the Henry Hub price, and has been below a dollar for a while.

Hart Energy did an analysis of how much longer the Marcellus and Utica shales will produce gas at current gas prices. I won’t spoil it, click through and read the article and examine the graphs. Keep in mind that recoverable reserves is always a function of the price of gas and the price of drilling supplies.

WACO Oil and Gas is paying an $825,000 fine and doing some cleanup work to restore wetlands and streams in Braxton County.

Hope Gas has finished it’s acquisition of People’s Gas.

It’s just a startup, so who knows whether this will become reality, but a company is trying to build tractor-trailer sized methanol plants that could be hauled out to an oil well that has produced gas and use that gas to make methanol.

The Mountain Valley Pipeline has agreed to inspect any pipe that is not already buried and undertake treatment for any corrosion.

Demand for gas is increasing, and unconventional wells (horizontally fracked) are needed to fill the gap.

RBNEnergy does it again! I’ve had clients ask how completion of the Mountain Valley Pipeline will affect the value of their mineral rights, and this article details all the considerations.

Two more protesters have halted work on the MVP. One was named Mickey. The other was named Ben.

So, it seems there was still one more T to cross in the EQT/Tug Hill merger. The FTC required a couple of changes to the deal, and those changes required a public comment period, and that period just expired, so the FTC signed off on the deal and the deal is finally done.

The amount that West Virginian’s will pay for their natural gas will go down this year.

The hydrogen hub called ARCH 2 which will work in an area including West Virginia, Ohio, and PA, will receive federal funding.

Exxon has bought Pioneer for $60 billion. Pioneer doesn’t operate in West Virginia, but they are a pure shale operator and the dollar amount is staggering.

Natural gas prices are at $2.64/MMBtu, having gotten as low as $2.50 and as high as $2.80 in the last month. Gas storage is at 3,205 Bcf, which is a little closer to the five year average than it was last month. Rig counts are at 641, down one from last month, but up from the low of 631 a couple weeks ago. Perhaps we’ve hit bottom on the rig count?

PHMSA, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, has ordered MVP to inspect all the pipe that’s already in the ground and all the pipe that’s going to be installed. It’s also ordered that all surface locations be inspected for ground movement.

I’d like to see the MVP get built. I’d also like to see a case challenging MVP’s ability to use eminent domain go in favor of the landowner; I’m not a fan of where eminent domain law has gone. The case may still go forward in the D.C. circuit, but it hasn’t been ruled on yet.

The likelihood that West Virginia will benefit from the hydrogen hub grants being reviewed by the federal government has gone up. Another company has announced its intention to build a hydrogen powered data center in West Virginia.

EQT has completed its acquisition of Tug Hill. This shouldn’t change much of anything for royalty owners, but if it does, rest assured that EQT will not be easy to deal with. In spite of their recent changes, they’re still the bad boys on the block.

WV-GO published an article that states that West Virginia is the country’s fourth largest natural gas producing state and produces 10% of the country’s gas supply.

Work on the MVP re-started back on August 4th.

PHMSA has issued a new set of regulations for gas pipelines.

The Biden Administration has blocked six million acres of undersea oil and gas from inclusion in a federal lease. This will probably drive oil and gas prices up a little. This kind of development is very long-term, so short-term prices will not probably jump a lot.

There is a lot of talk in certain circles in West Virginia about hydrogen as an energy source and about carbon capture. The linked article does a pretty good job of addressing both subjects.

A coal fired power plant here in West Virginia has been brought back to life in order to provide hydrogen, among other things.

Someone used Molotov Cocktails on two pieces of heavy equipment that were being used to build the MVP.

Antero has donated $4 million to WVU’s College of Engineering and Mineral Resources. This comes at a time when WVU has announced that it is cutting a lot of staff and eliminating a number of degrees.

Reuters has a pretty good article about worldwide oil and natural gas production and prices. It’s definitely worth at least a skim.

Two more protesters have been arrested for locking themselves to heavy equipment used to build the MVP.

OPEC+ has extended its supply cut for another three months.

In Gulfport’s quarterly report, they note that their newest wells will produce an EUR (estimated ultimate recovery) of 2.5 Bcfe per 1,000 feet of lateral. That’s up from an average of 1.5 Bcfe per 1,000 of lateral.

Protesters stopped work on the MVP in Talcott, WV.

The power plant up in Pleasants County that started back up is going to need a little more land in order to convert over to running on hydrogen.

MVP is suing the protesters who have been stopping work on the pipeline.

MVP is requesting a rate increase to cover the additional cost of building the pipeline.

Freeport LNG just can’t catch a break. They’ve shut down, indicated by zero inflow of gas to the facility. There’s no news as to why.

The U.S. exported more natural gas than any other country in the first half of 2023.

Natural gas prices are at $2.66/MMBtu, having bounced around quite a bit from $2.48 to $2.96 this month. Drilling rigs are at 654, down another 21 from last month. Gas storage is at 3,030 Bcf, right between the five year average and the five year high.

Joe Manchin has filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court in support of the Mountain Valley Pipeline. So have the Republican representatives and senator. Chief Justice John Roberts is expected to decide the case on his own, but he could put it to the whole court.

The Appalachian Regional Commission is working on a project that will hopefully make the area more interesting as an energy storage hub.

Wondering whether we’ll run out of oil and gas to use? RBNEnergy analyzes the reported reserves we have in the ground.

TC Energy operates a lot of pipelines in the Marcellus Shale region, and quite a few of them are in West Virginia. They’re selling a 40% interest in the pipelines to Global Infrastructure Partners.

A 26-inch natural gas pipeline exploded in Shenandoah County, VA. The video and pictures were shocking. Subsequent investigation suggests that environmental cracking is the culprit.

Saudi Arabia is expected to keep its 1 million barrel per day production cut in place until September.

EQT claims to have drilled a world record 18,200 foot well in 48 hours.

The Supreme Court has vacated the stay imposed by the 4th Circuit. Construction on the Mountain Valley Pipeline will probably start very soon.

The White House is creating a cabinet-level position to fight methane gas emissions.

A company called Zefiro has joined the Gas & Oil Association of West Virginia (GO-WV). Zefiro is a company that plugs old oil and gas wells in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It might seem strange for them to join GO-WV, but it will help them get to know the players in the industry.

This is a comprehensive article about West Virginia’s property tax law as it relates to oil and gas. The law is still difficult to understand and implement, and it’s made a lot of West Virginia oil and gas owners very angry and frustrated.

The Mountain Valley Pipeline is expected to be in service by the end of this year. It should give royalty owners a slight, short-term bump up in royalty checks when it comes online.

West Virginia’s severance tax collections for July went down dramatically. Low natural gas prices are to blame.

An article over at Reuters goes into detail about how fewer drilling rigs has resulted in less natural gas production. That relationship seems obvious on its face, but details are almost always useful for analysis and decision making.

Cunningham Energy has been acquired by Houston Natural Resources and the merged company will be known as Cunningham Natural Resources Corp. Cunningham Energy was active here in West Virginia in horizontal fracking of shallow formations in the search of oil. It’s apparently more challenging that one would think, as Cunningham is the only company I’ve heard of that’s doing that. That fact continues to surprise me.

Some protesters have locked themselves to equipment that’s being used to build the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

A South Dakota Sioux tribe has said it wants to buy ammonia from a West Virginia plant that will produce ammonia using natural gas.

Opponents of the Mountain Valley Pipeline filed challenges to its permits, but the 4th Circuit dismissed them, stating that there is no live controversy to adjudicate now that Congress and the Supreme Court have weighed in on the subject.

Natural gas prices are at $2.54/MMBtu, with the low of the month hitting $2.49 and the high hitting $2.80. Those aren’t good prices, but they’re better than they were. Drilling rigs are down from 687 on June 16th to 675 on July 14. The decrease may be flattening, but it’s a little early to be sure. Gas storage is at 2,930 Bcf, up from last month but just a smidgen closer to the five year average. Hot weather is driving that number.

A company called Capstone Green Energy will be supplying turbines that generate electrical power to an unnamed Marcellus/Utica producer. These turbines will be installed on natural gas pipelines at wellpads which do not have easy access to electrical power from the grid. In other words, the pressure from the reservoir, pushing the natural gas out of the ground, will spin these turbines and produce electricity on site. This is unlikely to directly affect the royalties that mineral owners are paid unless the turbines significantly affect the amount of pressure of the gas. Then the producer may have to use additional energy to run compressors on site, which could be powered by natural gas from the well, and producers try not to pay royalties on gas that they use on site. This is yet another thing to keep an eye on.

CNX is selling some non-operated producing assets in the Marcellus/Utica basin for $125 million dollars. There are no other pertinent details available. These will be wells that CNX does not operate, but has some ownership in (kind of like they’re the silent partner). They may be in West Virginia, but are probably spread around the basin.

Here’s some analysis of oil production on the African continent.

The Mountain Valley Pipeline has secured its final federal permit. There’s also a lot of old pipe that’s been sitting around in the sun, rain, heat, and cold for years. The company doesn’t want to build a pipe that will fail, but we all know that people will cut corners to get something done. Let’s hope MVP does this right.

Hope Gas, a company that has been operating in West Virginia in some way or other, and under various names, since 1898 (not a typo), has moved its headquarters to Morgantown, WV, from Illinois.

Opponents of the MVP are complaining that Congress overstepped its authority when it passed a law making it so that the permits for the MVP had to be approved. What the opponents don’t mention is that it was Congress that created the laws that created the permits and the permitting process in the first place. This isn’t Congress getting around the law, this is Congress changing the law, which is exactly what Congress’ job is. You might disagree with the law, and that’s OK. But you can’t say that Congress has overstepped its authority.

Apparently there is hydrogen in the ground, exactly the same way there’s oil and natural gas. There are also people who are drilling and exploring for it, just not in large numbers. We don’t have infrastructure for it, so that makes sense. What’s wild is the amount of hydrogen there is, and that people think it’s regenerating itself, so it would never run out.

The MVP has received FERC approval. Construction should re-commence shortly.

Shale drillers have matured, according to this article. In other words, they used to be focused on how much product they could pull out of the ground, ignoring the future consequences. Now they are more focused on turning a profit, which gives them a more predictable future.

RBNEnergy analyzes the effect that no new pipelines (except MVP) in the Northeast region will have on gas production and gas prices in the area. The short analysis is that producers have started to choke back wells during the summer and open them wide during the winter.

Fitch Ratings stress tested a number of oil and gas companies and determined that they are financially more sound than they were pre-COVID. EQT, Antero, CNX, and SWN were included in the testing.

The other argument that opponents of the Mountain Valley Pipeline have is that Congress violated the separation of powers doctrine. It’s a little complex, and this article does an OK job of getting into it, so click through if you’d like to read more.

Here’s some analysis of why oil prices are still relatively low in spite of OPEC+ reducing production. Short story, U.S. shale.

The State of West Virginia ended 2023 with a $1.8 billion surplus, of which a large portion was a direct result of oil and gas development. If they’d take my advice, they’d sock most of that money into the rainy day fund (which they’ve already done with some of it) and use some of that money to increase teachers’ pay so we can keep good teachers here.

The 4th Circuit has issued a stay in building the Mountain Valley Pipeline, which has Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito up in arms. The MVP itself takes the position that the court should dismiss the case because it no longer has jurisdiction. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out.

The federal government is handing money out to plug old oil and gas wells. This is a necessary and good thing. It’s really unfortunate that the federal government is doing this, as it really is the responsibility of the companies that drilled and made money off the wells, but if it doesn’t get done this way it simply won’t get done.

RBNEnergy discusses oil and gas exports.

This kind of thing doesn’t happen very often. Somebody working at a well pad in Ohio struck a wellhead and broke it. Gas leaked, people were evacuated and repairs are being made. A day later, and the well is under control, but hasn’t been fully repaired.

RBNEnergy has a pretty good article about the legal wranglings around the MVP.

A company called WATT Fuel Cells is providing fuel cell generators to 500 West Virginians. These are not hydrogen fuel cells, these are propane or LNG fuel cells, and if the information on the web site is correct, it looks like one could be hooked up to a typical home natural gas system. The nice thing about these fuel cells is that they emit far fewer noxious gasses (less exhaust to worry about) and seem to do it at higher efficiency levels than current internal combustion generators. I’ll be keeping an eye on this.

MVP has petitioned the Supreme Court to vacate the stays imposed by the 4th Circuit.

Natural gas prices are at $2.53/MMbtu, with a high of $2.59 and a low of $2.16. Most of the time, the price was around $2.25 to $2.35. Drilling rigs are down to 695, a steep drop from 731 last month. Storage is at 2,634 Bcf, still higher than the five year average, but not above the five year high. Weather is still the main driving factor, and the overall temperatures for this summer have been pretty average so far.

The U.S. Forest Service has issued a new Record of Decision, approving the Mountain Valley Pipeline’s crossing of the Jefferson National Forest.

The EIA predicts that natural gas prices will return to more healthy levels before the end of the year. As usual with predictions, it’s the analysis that’s most important.

Oil prices are expected to drop, based mainly on the Chinese economy growing a little less than predicted.

The American Petroleum Institute released numbers showing how much the oil and gas industry contributes annually to the West Virginia economy.

The Institute for Energy Research is suggesting that the Biden Administration only wants permitting reform for green energy projects, and will try to keep other projects (MVP) from benefitting from the new permitting regulations everyone is working on.

WVU Energy Institute is getting a new director, Sam Taylor. His background is in clean and renewable energy, and the Institute is going to be moving in that direction. They’re even changing the name to the WVU Institute for Sustainability and Energy Research. I don’t mind an emphasis on renewables, but shifting a West Virginia institution’s focus from natural gas to renewables doesn’t seem like a great idea.

One investor analyzes the price of natural gas, noting the variables that could affect whether price will go up or down. It’s pretty comprehensive analysis, even including a short discussion of the European variable, which is becoming more important as we export more LNG.

Drillers are auctioning off rigs at fire sale prices.

Joe Manchin published a press release stating that the recent approvals by the Biden Administration regarding the Mountain Valley Pipeline show that the President realizes the MVP is vital for our nation.

Energy Secretary Granholm came out in support of the MVP again.

The Bureau of Land Management has issued a new Record of Decision approving the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

The PA cracker plant will be shut down for a few more weeks, it looks like. I hope they get their issues ironed out. I wouldn’t want to be one of their neighbors right now.

Large swaths of the U.S. could experience blackouts if summer weather hits extremes. If you’d like to read the actual report, it’s here (.pdf warning).

West Virginia’s U.S. House of Representatives member Carol Miller has introduced a new bill that would approve everything needed for the MVP to be built. It’s focused solely on the MVP, and wouldn’t affect any other permitting legislation, or be affected by it. It’s an interesting take.

Everyone who is anyone in West Virginia politics is against the EPA’s new power plant emissions regulations.

The PA cracker plant will pay a $10 million fine for exceeding pollution limits. About $6.2 million of that will go to the local neighborhood in various ways.

SCOTUS reigned in the WOTUS regulations. Essentially, the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) are any navigable waters and waters connected to them. Previously, it was any waters with a nexus to navigable waters. The previous definition was very broad and, I would argue, overly broad. Our waters need protecting, but when you can define waters of the United States in such a way that drainage ditches count, you’re over-regulating.

The Fourth Circuit has remanded FERC’s MVP permit, stating that the FERC had not properly explained its decision to not prepare a supplemental environmental impact statement.

RBNEnergy analyzes the natural gas market trends for the next few months.

It looks like Joe Manchin got permitting language into the debt ceiling bill. Here’s some analysis of the political reasons why it will probably survive and get passed.

Our oil supply is high, so prices are going lower. Haven’t seen this play out at my local gas station yet, but stay tuned.

The MVP will be completed. The debt ceiling bill which includes the MVP permitting language passed the Senate. It’s expected to be completed by the end of 2023.

Saudi Arabia is going to unilaterally (without it’s OPEC+ partners) cut production by 1 million barrels per day in July. They really want to keep the price of oil up.

Exxon thinks that new methods of fracking will increase the amount of oil they capture from any given acre of ground. This isn’t necessarily news, as oil and gas producers are constantly looking for new ways to increase production, but they mention two specific methods, and you don’t usually hear specifically what a company is looking at improving.

RBNEnergy analyzes the MVP permitting language of the debt ceiling legislation. While the MVP is not out of the woods yet, there is some light showing through the trees ahead.

A brine treatment plant (think fracking wastewater) in Fairmont, WV, had an explosion and fire.

Hope Gas is acquiring another asset, about 900 miles worth of pipelines here in West Virginia.

A new natural gas fired power plant has opened in Guernsey County, Ohio. West Virginia needs these.

Saudi Arabia’s unilateral cut in oil production has not increased prices. Traders see weak demand in the near future, so prices are staying down. I’m not complaining.

MVP opponents are already planning a march on D.C. to protest the presumed permitting of the MVP.

Interesting. A company called Clean-Seas has announced that it will build a new facility in West Virginia. This facility will take waste plastics and turn them into fuel, including hydrogen. This will probably help West Virginia get a hydrogen hub.

Oil demand is growing, and oil supply is growing, but not as much as demand.

While the MVP is in the news, other pipelines have been built and often have created problems for landowners. We don’t oppose pipelines, but we definitely make sure to negotiate for protections for our clients who deal with pipelines on their property.

Emboldened by their success in overcoming the MVP’s regulatory hurdles, Senator’s Capito and Manchin have targeted the EPA’s new power plant regulations. Capito has introduced legislation to block them, and Manchin has proposed extending the public comment period by 60 days and doing a public hearing in West Virginia.

Here’s a prediction that we’re going to see an energy crisis of sorts this fall. As usual, predictions aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on, but the analysis can be useful.

MVP has put the 4th Circuit on notice in a court filing that when West Virginia issues a water permit, it will begin construction. And just like that, the permit has been issued.

Encino Energy has suddenly produced an enormous amount of oil from the Utica formation up in Ohio, just north of the northern panhandle of West Virginia. This may be the beginning of a new drilling boom. The technology they used may or may not translate to the Utica in West Virginia. This is something to keep an eye on, though.

Natural gas prices are at $2.38/MMBtu, with a low of $2.10 and a high of $2.41. Gas storage is at 2,141 Bcfs, above the five year average. The rig count has fallen off a cliff, down to 731 from a high of 755 two weeks ago. The rig count number is a little hard to explain, as it’s so sudden. I would have expected it to go down, but rather more gradually.

The PA cracker plant smells bad. It’s not supposed to. Neighbors are not happy. I suspect this cracker plant was not ready to be opened when they opened it. Granted, I haven’t tried to construct a multi-billion dollar network of pipes and furnaces, but it seems like this hasn’t been done properly. It also seems like the plant’s public affairs office isn’t doing a good job of working with the neighbors. Par for the course with oil and gas companies, sadly.

Joe Manchin is going to re-introduce the permitting bill that died last session. Here is the news that the bill has been introduced, along with some bullet points from the legislation.

Wal-Mart is adding natural gas powered trucks to its fleet.

A company named Chemours (previously spun off from DuPont) and TC Energy are working together to build a plant that will use natural gas to run the electrolysis system for producing hydrogen at a plant near Parkersburg, West Virginia. This could help bring a hydrogen hub to West Virginia.

Did you know that American agriculture makes up 15% of the demand for natural gas? I didn’t. This article will bring you (and me) up to speed.

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm is in favor of the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

A methanol plant that was begun in 2017 has officially been opened in Institute, West Virginia. A lot of West Virginia politicians were in attendance. This is the kind of thing we need here in WV. Pipelines are great and all, but turning our raw materials into finished products, or even just adding value before shipping it out of state, is what we really need.

We used less gas from storage this last winter than we have in the last seven years. That’s the main reason that natural gas prices are so low right now.

Natural gas production is expected to increase in May.

During Antero’s quarterly earnings call, they boasted that they now hold the world record for lateral feet drilled in 24 hours at 12,340. That’s about 8.5 inches per minute. Also, that’s longer than many horizontal sections of existing wells, so that gives you an idea how quickly the drilling portion of well development can happen.

If you’d like to read EQT’s quarterly earnings call transcript, you can find it here.

If you’d like to read SWN’s quarterly earnings call transcript, you can find it here.

If you’d like to read CNX’s quarterly earnings call transcript, you can find it here.

NNE is doing something unusual. They’re drilling a deep geothermal and carbon capture data well. It’s not for “production”, it’s for “science”. In other words, they’re collecting data. Sometimes wells are for both production and science. Shoot, in oil and gas if you’re not doing some kind of science on every well you drill you’re going to get left behind. This one’s primarily for the science, though, as both deep geothermal and carbon capture are such new technologies.

Equitrans, the midstream company that’s building the MVP, published it’s first quarter report. I haven’t read the whole thing, but it does discuss the MVP, stating it believes permitting will be successful, but also that there’s a lot of uncertainty around the project.

Senator Shelley Moore Capito from West Virginia has introduced a permitting reform bill to Congress. That makes three bills on permitting, all from West Virginia representatives. This is important for West Virginia’s lawmakers.

Natural gas production and demand both continue to grow.

Oh, great. I get to vote for either Joe Manchin, Jim Justice, or Alex Mooney for U.S. Senate this next time around. Fabulous choices, just…..fabulous. In spite of his vote for the IRA in exchange for, well, nothing, I’ll probably still vote for Joe Manchin because he seems to be more independent-thinking than the others.

The Commissioners of the FERC told the Senate that there is an electric power emergency coming. With the shut-down of coal and natural gas fired power plants, the lack of new power generation capacity, and the lack of natural gas (current low prices are temporary), and subsidized renewable power generation that can sell power far cheaper than other sources (driving them into unprofitability and consequently early shutdowns), we’re simply not going to be able to generate enough electricity for the nation. No dates, or even estimates, seem to have been provided, so I assume this is in the coming years, not months.

OPEC+ can cut back a lot of production still, and is signaling that it will as needed. That means the price you pay at the pump this summer is not going to be less than it is now, and will probably go up since summer is the high-demand season for gasoline.

The EIA is predicting record natural gas production this year and next.

The White House is now on record backing Joe Manchin’s permitting reform bill.

Joe Manchin is going to oppose all nominees to the EPA in protest of a recent EPA proposal that will regulate carbon pollution from fossil fuel power plants.

The Clean Air Council has filed a lawsuit in an attempt to shut down the PA cracker plant.