The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) on Thursday said Sunoco Pipeline LP’s Mariner East (ME) 1 could restart natural gas liquids (NGL) service after it was suspended again last month, but commissioners upheld a stay on construction of the ME 2 and 2X projects until they have more information.
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PJM Data Show Growing Interest in Gas-Fired Generation
Over the last two years nearly 70% of the new power generation plants proposed for the 13-state PJM Interconnection electric grid, which centers on the Marcellus and Utica Shales, would be fired by natural gas.
BP Suspension ‘Likely to be Short-Lived’
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last week temporarily suspended BP Exploration and Production Inc., BP plc and named affiliated companies from new contracts with the federal government, but energy analysts believe the suspension may not be in place long enough to affect its U.S. operations.
BP Temporarily Suspended from New Federal Contracts
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said Wednesday it has temporarily suspended BP Exploration and Production Inc., BP plc and named affiliated companies from new contracts with the federal government.
Shell Suspends Drilling in Arctic Seas This Year
Royal Dutch Shell, which has spent nearly $5 billion over the past seven years to drill in Alaska’s offshore, suspended its plans to drill for oil and natural gas in Arctic waters this year due to damage to a containment system caused by sea ice.
Industry Briefs
TransCanada Alaska Co. LLC (TC Alaska) has suspended development of the North Slope-to-Alberta leg (Alberta option) of its planned Alaska Pipeline Project while it assesses other alternatives to commercialize Alaska North Slope gas, including the potential export of liquefied North Slope gas, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) said in a report to Congress. Following an unsuccessful open season, “TC Alaska notified the Commission on May 11 it was curtailing interim work on the Alberta option while requesting to maintain the record in Docket No. PF09-11 for potential future use. Keeping the prefiling docket open will enable the draft resource reports and other information…to remain viable until TC Alaska moves forward on either the Alberta option or another alternative,” FERC said. TC Alaska “also indicated it was working with Alaska North Slope producers to explore the feasibility of developing a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export project that would include constructing a pipeline from the North Slope to an LNG export terminal at an undetermined location in Southcentral Alaska (LNG option). TC Alaska estimated that it would file an application with the Commission for that project in October 2014,” the agency told Congress. “The Commission will not move forward to the next step in its NEPA [National Environmental Policy Act] process until TC Alaska decides whether it will proceed with a pipeline to serve North American markets (Alberta option) or embarks on a project to liquefy and export natural gas to foreign markets (LNG option).”
FERC Updates Congress on Switch in Plans for Alaska Gas
TransCanada Alaska Co. LLC (TC Alaska) has suspended development of the North Slope-to-Alberta leg (Alberta option) of its planned Alaska Pipeline Project while it assesses other alternatives to commercialize Alaska North Slope gas, including the potential export of liquefied North Slope gas, FERC said in its 14th report to Congress on the Alaska pipeline project.
Quicksilver Battening Down After 2Q Loss
Debt- and dry gas-laden Quicksilver Resources Inc. posted a hefty loss for the second quarter, largely due to a nearly $1B asset impairment reflecting low commodity prices. On Tuesday management talked up plans to right the balance sheet and weather the low-price period with spending cuts and other measures.
Industry Brief
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.
Susquehanna Commission Suspends Water Withdrawals
The Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC) has suspended 41 water withdrawals in Pennsylvania as of Monday afternoon because of low-flowing streams in the central part of the state, forcing many natural gas driller to stop taking water from certain local waterways.