Necessary

Cheniere Energy Partners LP’s Sabine Pass Liquefaction LLC has engaged 17 financial institutions for credit facilities to fund the remaining debt necessary to develop and place into service the first four trains of the Sabine Pass liquefaction project. “We will amend and upsize the existing term loan A credit facility that was entered into last year for the financing of the first two trains [see Daily GPI, April 17, 2012], extending the available capacity to accommodate four liquefaction trains,” Cheniere said. Obtaining debt financing is one of the last steps to complete before proceeding with construction of trains 3 and 4.

What once was Rockies producers’ hotshot ride to higher netbacks is to be remade as the “expressway to the markets” from the Marcellus and Utica shales. The Rockies Express Pipeline LLC (REX) is embarking on a “great reversal” with the aim of sparing Appalachia producers the pricing pain felt so deeply out west half a decade ago.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has extended the deadline from April 30 until Nov. 15 for the public to submit data and scientific literature as part of the agency’s study of the potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) on drinking water sources.

Physical gas prices were mostly down Tuesday except for in the Northeast, where traders dug in and bought necessary volumes to see them through late-season cold and a series of storms.

Despite the threat of legal action from Gov. John Hickenlooper, the city council of Fort Collins, CO, has adopted a resolution banning hydraulic fracturing (fracking) within city limits.

Intangible drilling costs (IDC) are “an ordinary and necessary business expense of the oil and gas industry,” and should only be modified as part of a broader tax reform package — and in combination with a lower, globally competitive corporate tax rate — according to Industrial Energy Consumers of America (IECA).

Intangible drilling costs (IDC) are “an ordinary and necessary business expense of the oil and gas industry,” and should only be modified as part of a broader tax reform package — and in combination with a lower, globally competitive corporate tax rate — according to Industrial Energy Consumers of America (IECA).

The effort to put a natural gas severance tax hike before Arkansas voters has been suspended as backers came up short on the number of signatures necessary to put the issue on the November ballot (see Shale Daily, July 10; June 29). Tax hike proponent Sheffield Nelson told local news media he would make a final decision on whether to abandon the effort within a week. The campaign is short about 40,000 signatures after many were disqualifed. The campaign would need to make up the shortfall by Aug. 20 and deliver at least 62,507 valid signatures in total.

Enterprise Products Partners LP plans to build one of the world’s largest propane dehydrogenation (PDH) units on the Texas Gulf Coast to take advantage of abundant supplies of propane thrown off by shale gas plays and to address periodic shortages of propylene in the region.