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U.S. Gas Tantalizes Europe, but It’s Not a Quick Fix

As congressional pressure builds on the Obama administration to quicken gas exports to Europe to reduce its dependence on Russia, it may be tempting to gaze upon a marshy, alligator-infested Louisiana inlet of the Gulf of Mexico. There 3,000 workers are installing a huge set of turbines, pipelines and refrigeration units, building a terminal that will send American natural gas around the world by the end of next year. By 2017, the facility built by Houston-based Cheniere Energy could handle roughly a sixth the amount of gas that flows from Russia to Europe every day. The Cheniere plant will be part of a new surge of liquefied natural gas supplies coming from not only the United States but also Australia, Africa and the Middle East. That surge, perhaps along with increased production in Europe itself, promises to keep the Continent flush with non-Russian natural gas at the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Amid showdown with energy-rich Russia, calls rise in Europe to start fracking

Europe’s newest weapon in the battle of wills with Russian President Vladimir Putin lies buried deep beneath the ancient oaks and rolling green pastures of this quintessentially English village. There, wedged in the bedrock, lie vast quantities of oil and natural gas — enough, when combined with the spoils of hundreds of other sites like it, to help kick Europe’s addiction to Russian energy. Or so says David Cameron. Ever since Russian forces took hold of Crimea last month, the British prime minister has been leading a chorus of conservative politicians and energy executives in a refrain they believe will spark a shale gas revolution in Europe: Frack, baby, frack. The push for a European boom in fracking — shorthand for hydraulic fracturing — has been underway for years, but it has taken on new urgency in recent weeks as fears grow […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Pa. Shale Impact Fees Reach Record Levels in 2013

As Pennsylvania shale production continues to soar, the state Public Utility Commission (PUC) announced Friday that impact fee revenue for 2013 hit record levels. With a total of 6,489 unconventional wells under development or in production as of December 31, 2013, shale producers contributed a total of $224.5 million in impact fees for the calendar year. This brings total impact fee revenue to more than $630 million over the past three years, in addition to the more than $2.1 billion in state tax revenue generated by the industry since 2008.    Marcellus Shale Coalition president Dave Spigelmyer issued this statement following the release of this data:   “This new stream of revenue is having a positive and real impact in communities with shale development as well as those without active Marcellus production. Whether these funds are invested in bridge and road projects, the purchase of new firefighting equipment, key environmental programs, […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report

Working gas in storage was 822 Bcf as of Friday, March 28, 2014, according to EIA estimates. This represents a net decline of 74 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 878 Bcf less than last year at this time and 992 Bcf below the 5-year average of 1,814 Bcf. In the East Region, stocks were 448 Bcf below the 5-year average following net withdrawals of 46 Bcf. Stocks in the Producing Region were 410 Bcf below the 5-year average of 762 Bcf after a net withdrawal of 24 Bcf. Stocks in the West Region were 134 Bcf below the 5-year average after a net drawdown of 4 Bcf. At 822 Bcf, total working gas is below the 5-year historical range. The shaded area indicates the range between the historical minimum and maximum values for the weekly series from 2009 through 2013. Source: Form EIA-912, "Weekly Underground Natural Gas […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Power Stations Switch to Gas, But Coal Stays on the Menu

Power utilities American Electric Power Co. and Southern Co. say the U.S. needs to keep coal in the mix for electricity generation because it’s cheap and plentiful. “Coal has to be part of the puzzle,” Nick Akins, chairman and chief executive of power giant AEP said Thursday at The Wall Street Journal’s ECOnomics conference in Santa Barbara, Calif. The dirtiest of the fossil fuels, coal has lost major market-share to natural gas in recent years as power generators switching to burning gas to create electricity. Columbus, Ohio-based AEP plans to shut down up to 6,000 megawatts of coal-fired power plants by 2016 – enough to light between 3 million and 6 million homes – mostly so it can comply with tighter federal pollution limits. By 2020, the company will generate about 46% of its electricity from coal, down from 60% today. But Mr. Akins argued the U.S. has so […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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EU puts emphasis on Southern Gas Corridor

The Southern Gas Corridor of transit networks is a necessary ingredient for energy security, a joint U.S.-European Union statement said. European Commission President Manuel Barroso in 2009 said the transit networks envisioned under the system would provide the "building blocks" for regional energy security. A 2009 move by Russian energy company Gazprom to cut gas supplies through Ukraine because of contractual disputes sparked concerns about Russia’s grip on the energy sector. European consumers get about a quarter of their gas needs met by Russia, though most of that runs through the Soviet-era transit system in Ukraine. EU Energy Commissioner Gunther Oettinger met Wednesday in Brussels with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to discuss renewed concerns about energy security in the wake of the Ukrainian upheaval. "The [joint U.S.-EU Energy] Council reaffirmed the importance of the Southern Gas Corridor to bring gas to Europe," they […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Asian Gas Demand Spawns Floating Superfactories

A rendering of Prelude, which when completed is expected to be the largest floating structure ever built. High costs are driving energy companies into the sea. In an effort to cut expenses, an increasing number of natural-gas producers are planning to pack entire gas-production plants onto superships bigger than aircraft carriers instead of building expensive land-based industrial complexes. These huge floating gas factories are creating a multibillion-dollar market for Asian shipyards, especially South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. , Samsung Heavy Industries Co. and Co. The new fleet of floating liquefied natural-gas vessels, or FLNGs, also demonstrates how the global race to provide cheaper gas supplies to Asian economies is pushing the boundaries of technology in the oil-and-gas sector. Oil-and-gas exploration is going deeper and farther into the oceans, and the size of gas discoveries is shrinking, making it more economical to build a single floating facility and move […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Britain Confronts Gas Mother Lode With Fracking by Lord Browne

The hills of Lancashire, England, sit atop a mother lode of shale gas that may be extracted with hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. Photograph: Alan Clarke/Bloomberg Markets Close The hills of Lancashire, England, sit atop a mother lode of shale gas that may be extracted with hydraulic… Read More The hills of Lancashire, England, sit atop a mother lode of shale gas that may be extracted with hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. Photograph: Alan Clarke/Bloomberg Markets Close John Browne, a former CEO of BP, is a prime mover behind efforts exploit Britain’s natural gas through fracking. … Read More John Browne, a former CEO of BP, is a prime mover behind efforts exploit Britain’s natural gas through fracking. Photograph: Alan Clarke/Bloomberg Markets Close Andrew Pemberton, who keeps 130 cows, says he’s worried that his dairy business is located downstream from a proposed… Read More Andrew Pemberton, who keeps […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Gazprom chief Miller meets EU leaders

Russian energy company Gazprom said Wednesday its chief executive, Alexei Miller , went to Brussels to discuss his commitments to the European energy sector. Miller met in Brussels with European Commissioner for Energy Gunther Oettinger and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Gazprom in a statement said both sides discussed a "wide range" of bilateral issues. "The parties confirmed their interest in maintaining the mutually beneficial relationship built over the decades of successful collaboration," the Russian company said in a statement . There was no public statement from Oettinger or the German foreign minister on the meeting with Miller. European leaders have tried to add a layer of diversity to a natural gas market that’s dependent on Russia. Ukraine’s role as a transit nation for Russian gas has added to concerns about European energy security. European officials have looked to supplies from gas-rich Azerbaijan as a […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Cuadrilla: UK Could Produce Shale Gas in 4 Years in Emergency

LONDON, April 2 (Reuters) – Shale gas production in Britain could begin within four years if the current crisis in Ukraine escalates to such an extent that a national state of emergency is declared, the chief executive of Cuadrilla Resources said. Britain is in the early stages of exploring for shale gas to counter its growing dependence on imports, and geologists have estimated it could have shale resources equivalent to several hundred years of demand. Cuadrilla is the only company in Britain so far to have used hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in test wells in Lancashire. It is two to three years away from establishing whether its British shale gas operations are commercially viable, Chief Executive Francis Egan said at an event at think-tank Chatham House on Tuesday evening. If the Ukraine crisis worsens dramatically and Britain declares a state of national emergency and removes all constraints, "it would […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple