shale gas news
Bill desRosiers
External Affairs Coordinator, Coterra Energy
Host, Shale Gas News

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The Shale Gas News, heard every Saturday at 10 AM on 94.3 FM, 1510 AM, 1600 AM, 104.1 FM and Sundays on YesFM, talked about crude oil prices, Renovo, PennEast Pipeline and much more last week.

The Shale Gas News has grown again to the Williamsport area on stations WEJS 1600 AM & 104.1 FM. The Shale Gas News is now broadcasting in Bradford, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Lebanon, Luzerne, Lycoming, Pike, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Tioga and Wayne Counties, as well as in greater central PA and now the Williamsport area. The Shale Gas News is aired on Saturday or Sunday depending on the station.

Every Saturday Rusty Fender, Matt Henderson and I host a morning radio show to discuss all things shale gas. We played a hearing from earlier in the week presenting testimony on why more energy is needed by consumers from Christina Maloney Hover, interim advocate of The Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate; Ray Cantor, VP of Government Affairs for the New Jersey Business and Industry Association;  and Mike Butler, Director of the Consumer Energy Alliance.

The Shale Gas News, typically, is broadcast live. On the October 16th show (click above), we covered the following new natural gas territory (see news excerpts below):

• High prices, winter shortages delay arrival of post-fossil-fuel world. The question “Do you think it is going to be a cold winter?” has a double-edged meaning this year. Whether the temperature is above or below freezing, it looks increasingly likely that our ability to keep our homes and workplaces warm will be more limited. Adjusting the thermostat may not be enough. There could be actual shortages of fuel, as well as high prices.  We are talking “likely,” rather than “certainly.” But with crude oil ending higher in price on Tuesday than it has since November 2014 — just short of $80 per barrel — everyone is on edge.
• Electric fracturing is catching on, but environmentalists are not impressed. Low-carbon hydraulic fracturing is gaining traction across the U.S. But since it still extracts the very oil and gas that fossil-fuel critics want the world to stop consuming altogether, not everyone’s convinced.  The process of fracturing shale rock formations under high pressure by blasting water, sand and chemicals deep underground is an inherently dirty business. Once a typical shale well is drilled, a frack fleet descends on the site, hooking up a series of giant diesel pumps that can run uninterrupted overnight.
• NEPA Driller Rockdale Marcellus Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy. A sad exclusive to share with you today. Yesterday northeast Pennsylvania driller Rockdale Marcellus filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. The company, which owns and operates 66 producing wells on 42,897 net acres in three northeast PA counties (regional headquarters in Pittsburgh) plans to auction off all of its assets according to paperwork filed with the court.
• Update on Renovo Marcellus-Fired Plant in Clinton County, PA. Good news about the Marcellus-fired power plant planned for Clinton County, PA called the Renovo Energy Center. According to the CEO of the Clinton County Economic Partnership, Mike Flanagan, the Renovo project “continues with plans to locate a power plant at the former Renovo Industrial Park.” According to reports, demolition and construction will likely begin later this year on the $850 million project.
• PennEast Pipeline Throws in the Towel – Project Won’t Get Built. Score another victory for the forces of evil, by which we mean leftwing, wackadoodle anti-fossil fuel extremists. Just a short time ago MDN received the statement below from PennEast Pipeline that states, in our words, they’ve given up. Throwing in the towel. Dead. PennEast will not get built. You can’t say we didn’t warn you this may happen.
• Big News: OH Utica Driller Gulfport Energy Looking to Sell Itself. Gulfport Energy, the third-largest driller in the Ohio Utica Shale (by the number of wells drilled), emerged from bankruptcy in May with a new board and new top management. According to Reuters, Gulfport is shopping itself, looking for a buyer. We’ve never known Reuters to be wrong about these kinds of insider scoops.
• Citi Predicts $6 Gas in U.S. 4Q; Could Spike to $100/MMBtu. While natural gas prices have always floated up and down, lately we’ve seen a rapid run-up in the NYMEX futures price that hit a seven-year high last week. Since then the price has come down a fair bit. There has been chatter that the NYMEX price might hit $10/MMBtu this winter if we have a particularly long and cold winter. An investment advisory note from Citigroup now says if we get a bitter cold snap, prices at the NYMEX may hit $100/MMBtu!

The Shale Gas News sponsored by Linde Corporation