The Marcellus and Utica Shale region extends beneath Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia and New York, and companies are currently fracking and pumping natural gas from both regions at an unprecedented rate. This level of production has the potential to boost the nation’s economy and lessen foreign dependence on energy sources if energy companies can work out the complications that have cropped up in the processes of getting the products from the ground to the consumer.

On the production end, companies are creating new technologies that will only bring an increase in the supply. Production is only one piece of the puzzle when it comes to natural gas. The natural gas being pumped from the shale regions is not a single element but a mix of compounds that also include propane and ethane, two liquid fuels that have their place in the market. Processing the compounds and separating them so that they can be sent to their respective marketplaces is a “problem” that energy suppliers must resolve by building processing plants and staffing them.

Because of this massive influx of natural gas and natural gas liquids, energy transportation companies are also having difficulties finding ways to get all of these products to the point of sale. Some are currently using freight trains, barges and tractor-trailers for transportation in the absence of other options.

Demand for natural gas has gone up because of the high prices of oil and diesel fuel, because companies such as manufacturing businesses and electric companies that need major supplies of energy are trying to figure out how to use gas-based energy instead of oil. Similarly, energy suppliers are looking at options for transforming oil transportation and storage facilities so that they can be used for natural gas.

Many oil pipelines and storage facilities have been shut down due to the high prices of oil. The repurposing of oil pipelines for natural gas transportation is one approach that suppliers are using in an attempt to meet the demands of production. This is still not an overnight solution and the transformation of these pipelines and facilities will still require a good deal of construction and labor, but it will speed the process some and help suppliers to widen the bottleneck created by ever-increasing production in the Marcellus and Utica Shale region.

Not everyone is looking at ways to ship the natural gas west. Prices for natural gas in the U.S. have dropped due to the successes of oil and gas industry in the Marcellus and Utica Shale region. Ethane and propane prices have gone down, as well. This is causing some energy companies to consider options for transporting these natural gas liquids east toward foreign markets, instead. Underwater oil pipelines have potential in this arena, and suppliers who proceed in that direction may create an edge for themselves as production of natural gas and its byproducts continues to increase.

The success of new technology in extracting natural gas and natural gas liquids from the Marcellus and Utica Shale region has enormous potential for many industries. As companies work to realize this potential, it will extend to the rest of the country in the form of lower energy costs, lower dependence on foreign energy sources, and a better economy.

Joseph Barone
President
ShaleDirectories.com
610.764.1232

www.shaledirectories.com