Tag: natural gas

EQT To Buy Equitrans, Builder Of The Mountain Valley Pipeline

The $7.5 billion project has gone over its original budget and past its original completion schedule because of court challenges, bad weather and labor issues.

Natural gas producer EQT is buying the company that’s building the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

Pittsburgh-based EQT Corporation said Monday it would buy Equitrans Midstream, the company building the 303-mile MVP.

The $7.5 billion project has gone over its original budget and past its original completion schedule because of court challenges, bad weather and labor issues.

EQT was set to be the pipeline’s biggest customer, transporting up to 1.2 billion cubic feet of gas a day of the pipeline’s capacity of 2 billion cubic feet a day.

“Equitrans is the most strategic and transformational transaction EQT has ever pursued, and we see this as a once in a lifetime opportunity to vertically integrate one of the highest quality natural gas resource bases anywhere in the world,” said EQT President and CEO Toby Rice, in a statement. “As we enter the global era of natural gas, it is imperative for U.S. natural gas companies to evolve their business models to compete on the global stage against vertically integrated rivals.”

The MVP opens up gas produced in north central West Virginia to additional markets in the mid-Atlantic, and potentially for export through Gulf Coast terminals.

Environmental groups and landowners continue to fight the project, though federal courts have dismissed multiple lawsuits in the past several months.

The companies value the transaction at $35 billion.

Presentation: Pleasant Plant’s Hydrogen Conversion Still Involves Coal

Burning hydrogen emits no carbon dioxide. However, the source of that hydrogen at Pleasants will still be coal.

A state Senate committee heard new details Wednesday about how the Pleasants Power Station will be converted from coal to hydrogen.

Pleasants is a 1,300-megawatt power plant along the Ohio River north of Parkersburg. Its coal-fired boilers went cold in June when its then-owner, Energy Harbor, shut them down.

But state lawmakers, including Sen. Donna Boley, a Pleasants County Republican, fought to save the plant from closure.

Not long after the plant went idle, a California company called Omnis Technology stepped in.

Omnis reactivated the plant. The ultimate goal, though, is to produce graphite on the site and use the hydrogen byproduct to generate electricity.

Burning hydrogen emits no carbon dioxide. However, the source of that hydrogen at Pleasants will still be coal.

Steve Winberg, the former Assistant Secretary of Fossil Energy in the Trump administration, explained to the Senate Energy, Industry and Mining Committee how the process would work. 

“Their goal is to convert Pleasants from coal to 100 percent hydrogen, and then make the hydrogen from the coal. So, at a minimum, we’ll see the same amount of coal going to Pleasants, but it will be converted to hydrogen, and then the hydrogen will be burned in the boiler. So, there’s going to have to be a retrofit on that boiler to allow it to burn hydrogen and still maintain the 600 megawatts that it’s capable of maintaining or producing.”

Winberg explained to the committee that the technology is emerging. It requires heating the coal to 3,000 degrees Celsius. The bar the process has to clear is producing hydrogen that’s cheaper than natural gas.

“If this technology works, it will be cost competitive with natural gas. And so proof is in the pudding, we’ll see if they’re able to get it to work at 3,000 degrees. But if they do, it’s a pretty intriguing technology.” 

Omnis is investing $800 million into the facility. If successful, it will need 600 workers to operate in addition to the 160 who run the current plant.

Future Of AI And Issues With Natural Gas Storage Wells, This West Virginia Morning

On this West Virginia Morning, there has been a lot of discussion about artificial intelligence (AI), but many of us use it every day without even thinking about it. Randy Yohe spoke with Joshua Spence, chief information officer for Alpha Technologies, and Del. Evan Hansen, D-Monongalia, on what AI means for now and the future.

On this West Virginia Morning, there has been a lot of discussion about artificial intelligence (AI), but many of us use it every day without even thinking about it. Randy Yohe spoke with Joshua Spence, chief information officer for Alpha Technologies, and Del. Evan Hansen, D-Monongalia, on what AI means for now and the future.

Also, in this show, we listen to the latest story from The Allegheny Front, a public radio program based in Pittsburgh that reports on environmental issues in the region. Their latest story looks at issues with natural gas storage wells and their potential for failure.

West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting which is solely responsible for its content.

Support for our news bureaus comes from Shepherd University.

Eric Douglas is our news director and producer.

Listen to West Virginia Morning weekdays at 7:43 a.m. on WVPB Radio or subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode. #WVMorning

State Blacklisted BlackRock. But Guess What It’s Financing?

A report earlier this month from the Sierra Club shows that in 2022 and 2023, BlackRock bought more than $45 million in bonds issued by EQT Corporation.

One of the banks barred from state contracts by the Treasurer’s Office is financing the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

In 2022, following the enactment of Senate Bill 262, Treasurer Riley Moore issued the first list of “restricted financial institutions” he determined were not friendly to fossil fuels.

One of those was BlackRock. Moore accused the firm of putting China’s interests over West Virginia’s and encouraging companies to move away from coal, oil and natural gas.

“Any company that thinks Communist China is a better investment than West Virginia energy or American capitalism clearly has a bad strategy,” Moore said in 2022. “We will continue to give our state’s business to people who aren’t simultaneously trying to destroy our economy.”

Two years later, BlackRock is still on the list. 

“It’s one of the largest shareholders of publicly traded fossil fuel companies on the planet,” said Ben Cushing, director of the Sierra Club’s Fossil Free Finance campaign.

A report earlier this month from the Sierra Club shows that in 2022 and 2023, BlackRock bought more than $45 million in bonds issued by EQT Corporation.

Not only is EQT one of the largest gas producers in Appalachia, it also is poised to be the biggest user of the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

Once the pipeline becomes operational this year, EQT plans to use it to ship 1.2 billion cubic feet of gas per day 303 miles from north central West Virginia to southern Virginia. That’s two-thirds of the pipeline’s total capacity.

Environmental groups and landowners have long opposed the pipeline. The state’s leading elected officials have been its biggest champions.

Cushing said BlackRock’s earlier public commitments to address climate change may have made it a target.

“Lots of speculation, I suppose as to why they’ve been particularly attacked, I think, because they are the biggest and one of the best well, well known and that they have at least nominally stated their commitment to climate action, has put them in the crosshairs of this climate denial movement,” he said. “But the fact remains that many of those commitments have not actually been implemented, and they continue to be one of the largest investors in fossil fuels in the world.”

Five banks are on the original list. Moore sent letters this week to six more. They have 45 days to prove they’re not boycotting fossil fuels, or they will be added to the list.

Jared Hunt, a Treasury spokesman, said SB 262 allows any company to petition the Treasurer to be removed from the list. None has asked to be removed, Hunt said. 

Mountain Valley Pipeline Delayed Again, Cost Rises To $7.7 Billion

Equitrans Midstream, the builder of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, said Tuesday that challenging winter weather in January has delayed the project’s completion to the second quarter of the year.

Equitrans Midstream, the builder of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, said Tuesday that challenging winter weather in January has delayed the project’s completion to the second quarter of the year.

The delays have also boosted the projected cost to nearly $7.7 billion from $7.2 billion.

In the company’s fourth quarter earnings presentation, President and CEO Diana Charletta said construction made good progress in the final months of 2023, but slowed down in January.

“Along with unforeseen construction challenges, throughout much of January, construction crews encountered adverse weather conditions, including precipitation well above 20-year averages,” she said. “While our construction plans took into account the potential effects of winter weather, these conditions were far worse and longer in duration than anticipated, imposing a significant impact on productivity, which, in turn, impeded our ability to reduce construction headcount. Collectively, these factors resulted in our updated timing and total project cost targets.”

The 303-mile, 42-inch pipeline is expected to transport as much as 2 billion cubic feet of gas per day from north central West Virginia to southern Virginia.

It faced many court challenges over the past several years from landowners and environmental groups. The project has been delayed multiple times.

Congress mandated its completion last year as part of the Fiscal Responsibility Act. It is a top priority for the state’s elected leaders and the gas industry.

Appeals Court Again Rejects Suit Against Mountain Valley Pipeline

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled Tuesday that the Virginia landowners cannot sue developers of the Mountain Valley Pipeline for taking their land through eminent domain.

 A federal appeals court has again rejected a bid by Virginia landowners to challenge the construction of a natural gas pipeline.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled Tuesday that the Virginia landowners cannot sue developers of the Mountain Valley Pipeline for taking their land through eminent domain.

The same court had earlier rejected the landowners’ case, but the U.S. Supreme Court sent it back for further review.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued a siting certificate to the pipeline’s builders in 2017. It enabled them to use eminent domain to acquire property for the 303-mile pipeline.

The $7.2 billion project is over its original budget and past its scheduled completion. When finished in the coming months, it will transport as much as two billion cubic feet of gas a day.

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