In preparation for its special en banc hearing next month to examine jurisdictional issues related to Marcellus Shale development, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) on Friday issued additional guidance including a list of the invited speakers and a list of questions to be addressed.

First announced earlier this month (see Daily GPI, March 12), the April 22 hearing was scheduled by the commission to address Marcellus Shale natural gas development, which “creates numerous issues and unanswered questions, many of which impact the commission’s core functions, the PUC said. The commission noted that hearing is to examine these questions sooner rather than later so that the it can fully protect the public while not stifling economic growth. The PUC reiterated that the hearing will not examine issues outside of the commission’s jurisdiction such as water quality or other environmental issues.

Representatives have been invited from:

The PUC released more than a dozen questions that will be discussed at the hearing. The questions focus on everything from Marcellus pipeline jurisdictional issues, to the new production’s impact on gas distribution companies’ least cost fuel procurement policy, to the impact of increased truck traffic on Pennsylvania municipalities. The complete list of questions is available on the PUC web site.

Commission Vice Chairman Tyrone J. Christy and Commissioner Robert F. Powelson said earlier this month that Marcellus development will unleash billions of dollars of natural gas production, and will have untold impacts on the state’s economy. They added that no one is quite sure just how much gas is contained in the Marcellus Shale. In 2002 the U.S. Geological Survey estimated the shale contained 1.9 Tcf of natural gas, which was revised in 2008 to 50 Tcf, the commissioners said. “To put that in perspective, some estimate that the Marcellus Shale contains enough natural gas to meet this country’s energy demand for over 20 years, and Pennsylvania’s energy demand for well over 100 years,” they said.

For interested parties who were not invited to testify, the PUC said it will accept written comments filed by 4 p.m. on April 16. The hearing will be held at 1 p.m. EDT on April 22 in Hearing Room 1 of the Commonwealth Keystone Building. A tentative agenda is scheduled to be issued April 8.

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