Facts & Rumors # 592
April 5, 2025
LNG Exports Soar in March. US LNG exports soar in March on ramp up of Plaquemines plant. Reuters. The U.S. exported a record amount of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in March, selling more than 9 million metric tons (MT) of the super chilled gas, according to preliminary data from LSEG. The U.S. is already the world’s largest exporter of LNG and President Donald Trump has promised to unleash American energy by declaring an energy emergency. Growth in LNG exports is part of that strategy. In March the U.S. exported 9.3 MT of LNG, smashing the December 2023 record of 8.6 MT.
Pennsylvania to Host Largest-ever US Gas Plant to Fuel Data Centers. E&E News. The owners of a retired Pennsylvania coal plant are converting it into the nation’s largest gas plant to power data centers. Homer City Redevelopment (HCR) announced Wednesday that the Homer City Generating Station — previously the state’s largest coal plant — would be part of a $10 billion data center campus stretching 3,200 acres. Equipped with seven gas turbines from GE Vernova, the facility is expected to produce up to 4.5 gigawatts of electricity, about a tenth of the state’s overall usage.
AI Wants Faster Energy Permitting. AI advocates tell lawmakers to speed up energy permitting. E&E News. Advocates for artificial intelligence called on House lawmakers Tuesday to deregulate energy use for massive data centers. During an Oversight and Government Reform subcommittee hearing, Republicans cheered some witness’s calls to expedite energy project permitting and construction for data centers. The Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Energy Policy and Regulatory Affairs hearing was the latest this year on energy capacity and AI. The data centers that power the new technology require massive amounts of power and have prompted concerns about grid reliability, as well as environmental impacts.
More Pipelines Coming to WV for AI Data Centers. EQT CEO says more pipelines are coming to West Virginia as data centers expand and coal plants retire. Allegheny Front. EQT chief Toby Rice took part in a presentation by natural gas industry leaders at the West Virginia’s state Capitol last week, briefly joined by Gov. Patrick Morrisey. Morrisey wants to expand microgrids in the state to power data centers and is pushing the legislature to enact House Bill 2014 to do that. It was one of the priorities he laid out in his first State of the State address.
Williams Columbus OH Project. Will-Power’s proposed Socrates North and South projects are advanced power generation facilities in New Albany, Ohio, spanning approximately 20 acres each. The project involves two separate power generation sites, with a combined generating capacity of 400 megawatts, as each site provides 200 megawatts. These projects will help bolster Ohio’s economy, further establishing the Columbus metro area as a growing hub for technology and innovation.
Local Energy Reliability: By providing a reliable behind-the-meter power source, the project supports local workers building Ohio power generation without impacting utility customers.
It is in local community outreach phase, targeted in service is Q3 2026 – they must have pre-ordered all the equipment a while back.
Encino Picked for Leesville Wildlife Area. Thanks, MDN. GREAT news! The Ohio Oil and Gas Land Management Commission (OGLMC) met for about 15 minutes on Friday and voted to award Encino Energy the right to drill under (not on) 62.5 acres of Leesville Wildlife Area located in Carroll County. Encino will pay a $218,715 signing bonus and 18% royalties on any oil and gas produced. Landowners in Carroll County, pay attention: That works out to be a hefty $3,500 per acre for a signing bonus.
How Will the Start-up Timing of the New U.S. LNG Export Facilities Affect our Forecast? EIA. U.S. exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) represent the largest source of natural gas demand growth in our March 2025 Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), with LNG gross exports expected to increase by 19% to 14.2 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2025 and by 15% to 16.4 Bcf/d in 2026. The start-up timing of two new LNG export facilities—Plaquemines LNG Phase 2 (consisting of 18 midscale trains) and Golden Pass LNG—could significantly affect our forecast because these facilities represent 19% of incremental U.S. LNG export capacity in 2025–26.
WhiteHawk Makes Marcellus NatGas Acquisition. WhiteHawk Energy acquires natural gas mineral and royalty interests across 475,000 gross unit acres in core of Marcellus shale. Oil and Gas 360. WhiteHawk Energy, LLC announced today an acquisition which increased its interest in its existing Marcellus Shale minerals and royalties position. This $118 million transaction doubles the Company’s present ownership interest in a portion of its Marcellus Shale royalties position primarily focused in Washington and Greene counties, Pennsylvania. The transaction has an effective date of January 1, 2025. The assets are 95% operated by best-in-class natural gas operators EQT, Range Resources, and CNX Resources, and have continued to perform above expectations since WhiteHawk’s initial acquisition of this position in March 2022.
ConocoPhillips May Be Selling. ConocoPhillips to sell Oklahoma oil and gas assets worth more than $1bn. Offshore Technology. ConocoPhillips is reportedly considering the sale of its oil and gas assets in Oklahoma, US, valued at more than $1bn. These assets were acquired through the $22.5bn takeover of Marathon Oil in November last year. The energy company has enlisted Moelis & Co to manage the sale process, although discussions are in the early stages and a deal is not assured, reported Reuters, citing sources. The assets in question include operations in the Anadarko basin covering approximately 300,000 net acres. These assets produce around 39,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, with roughly half being natural gas.
Chevron to Sell Majority Stake in East Texas Gas Assets for $525 Million. Wall Street Journal. Chevron CVX 0.72%; has agreed to sell 70% interest in its East Texas gas assets for $525 million, as part of the U.S. energy company’s strategy to optimize its portfolio. The stake will be sold to TG Natural Resources, a unit of Tokyo Gas 9531 0.31% and Castleton Commodities International, according to a statement late Monday. Of the deal size, $75 million will be paid in cash and the remaining $450 million will be a capital carry to fund the Haynesville development. TG Natural Resources will add more than 250 gross locations to its existing Haynesville inventory, assuming four wells per section.
Methane Emissions in Texas Continue Decline Amid Near-Record Production. Odessa American. Methane emissions continue to decline in top oil and natural gas producing areas across the state, according to a new analysis released Thursday by Texans for Natural Gas. No where was this more apparent than in the top producing region in Texas and the nation, the Permian Basin, a news release said. “Thanks to constant innovation and improvements in production processes as well as increased use of new technologies such as AI, the oil and natural gas industry is making incredible progress protecting the environment and bolstering our energy security,” Todd Staples, president of the Texas Oil & Gas Association, said in the release. NOTE: World Oil and Texas Border Business also report.
Brookfield to Buy Colonial Pipeline for About $9 billion, Including Debt. Reuters. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners is buying Colonial Pipeline, the largest U.S. fuel transportation system, in a deal valued at about $9 billion, including debt, the company said on Thursday. The deal to acquire all assets of Colonial Enterprises, including Colonial Pipeline, is expected to close in the second half of 2025. Colonial’s pipeline system stretches over 5,500 miles from Houston in Texas to New York’s harbor. It moves 100 million gallons of fuel daily, including gasoline, jet fuel, diesel and heating oil, according to its website. NOTE: NGI also reports.
Permian Oil Growth Slows as U.S. Shale Hits Geological Limits. Pipeline & Gas Journal. U.S. oil producers are grappling with geological limits to production growth as the country’s top oilfield ages and produces more water and gas and less oil – and may be nearing peak output. The Permian basin was the centerpiece of the shale revolution that began nearly two decades ago and spurred the U.S. to become the world’s top oil producer, stealing market share from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other top producers.
Dallas Fed Energy Survey Shows Oil, Gas Sector Activity Increase in 1Q. Rigzone. Activity in the oil and gas sector increased slightly in the first quarter of 2025, according to oil and gas executives responding to the Dallas Fed Energy Survey. That’s what the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas stated last week on a Dallas Fed Energy Survey page on its website, adding that the business activity index remained in positive territory but declined slightly from 6.0 in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 3.8 in the first quarter.
WV Receives $660 Million from O&G Industry. Thanks, MDN. The State of West Virginia’s fiscal year begins on July 1 each year and runs through June 30 of the following year. Looking at the state’s most recent fiscal year of July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2024, the natural gas and oil industry in WV accounted for over $660 million in state revenue via severance and property taxes. That’s according to the Gas and Oil Association of West Virginia (GO-WV). In addition, the O&G sector employed over 15,000 direct jobs and an additional 73,000 indirect jobs, with an average annual salary of more than $97,000. Shale energy has been an economic miracle in the Mountain State!
PA March 34, to April 3, 2025
County Township E&P Companies
1. Greene Wayne Rice
2. Tioga Delmar Seneca
3. Tioga Delmar Seneca
4. Tioga Delmar Seneca
5. Tioga Delmar Seneca
6. Tioga Delmar Seneca
7. Tioga Delmar Seneca
8. Tioga Middlebury Seneca
9. Tioga Middlebury Seneca
10. Tioga Middlebury Seneca
11. Tioga Middlebury Seneca
12. Tioga Middlebury Seneca
13. Tioga Middlebury Seneca
14. Tioga Middlebury Seneca
15. Westmoreland Derry Campbell O&G
OH March 23, to March 29, 2025
County Township E&P Companies
1. Belmont Pultney Ascent
2. Belmont Pultney Ascent
3. Belmont Short Creek Ascent
4. Belmont Short Creek Ascent
WV March 24 to March 28, 2025
1. Ritchie Antero
2. Wetzel EQT
