PA Marcellus News Digest 6/6/12

PA Marcellus News Digest

June 6, 2012

Articles

Assumptions drive huge gas refinery commitment
Public Opinion
Editorial
Matthew Major
June 6
Much has been made this week over Gov. Tom Corbett's rather expensive attempt to persuade Shell Oil Corp. to build a petrochemical refinery about 35 miles northwest of Pittsburgh.
But let's take a deep breath. Nothing has been settled. Shell agreed in March to focus its due diligence solely on the site, but has not committed to Pennsylvania yet.
Link: http://www.publicopiniononline.com/opinion/ci_20788975/po-editorial-assumptions-drive-huge-gas-refinery-commitment

Give Corbett an ear on tax-break plan
Shell Oil plant promises thousands of jobs
Tribune-Democrat
Editorial
June 6
For those who have so quickly criticized Gov. Tom Corbett’s plan to give tax breaks to Shell Oil Co., we say this: Slow down. Wait until more information is available.
They shouldn’t have a long wait. A bill is expected to be introduced in the Senate this week.
Link: http://tribune-democrat.com/editorials/x1968183779/Give-Corbett-an-ear-on-tax-break-plan

Assurances must precede tax break
Citizens Voice
June 6
Gov. Tom Corbett faces a serious public relations and public policy problem while promoting one of the biggest industrial tax breaks in state history.
The governor's tenure has been marked by sweeping direct and indirect cuts to funding for education and social services, amid a refusal to impose a fair state-level tax on the natural gas industry that could help mitigate the cuts' effects.
Link: http://citizensvoice.com/news/assurances-must-precede-tax-break-1.1325500

Pike County commissioners take gas pipeline detour fight to D.C.
Pocono Record
Beth Brelje
June 6
Pike County Commissioners are racing against a June 27 federal deadline in their two-year battle to prevent a seven-mile gas pipeline detour.
Commissioners have drafted a letter protesting the detour to Dennis Reidenbach, National Park Service Northeast Regional Director, and Ken Salazar, U.S. Secretary of the Interior.
Link: http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120606/NEWS/206060322

Gov. Corbett Talks Tax Breaks For Cracker Plant
CBS Local Pittsburgh
Andy Sheehan
June 5
(includes video)
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Governor Tom Corbett is making his first comments today about $1.6 billion in tax breaks he’s proposing to help bring Shell Oil’s new multi-billion dollar cracker plant to Beaver County.
Link: http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2012/06/05/gov-corbett-talks-tax-breaks-for-cracker-plant/

Corbett: Petro tax deals will grow jobs
Pitt Trib
Brad Bumsted and Timothy Puko
June 4
HARRISBURG -- Gov. Tom Corbett and his top aides on Tuesday defended his proposal to give $66 million in annual tax breaks for petrochemical companies locating in Pennsylvania, including a Beaver County plant that Royal Dutch Shell plc plans to open in 2017.
Link: http://triblive.com/home/1914883-74/corbett-tax-jobs-plant-state-gas-rep-shell-2017-companies

Secret deal would give Shell a big corporate welfare check
Inquirer
Daily News Editorial
Philadelphia Daily News
June 6
IT’S WELL-KNOWN to most by now that Gov. Corbett doesn’t much like welfare programs. His recent initiative to deny food stamps to anyone with assets exceeding $5,500, the banishment of about 90,000 kids from the Medicaid rolls, and the elimination of cash-assistance grants for the disabled and others are among recent moves that makes his position clear.
Link: http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/20120606_Secret_deal_would_give_Shell_a_big_corporate_welfare_check.html

Natural gas is not a clean energy investment
Post-Gazette
Jeff Schmidt
Letter to the Editor
June 6
Brian O'Neill's May 31 column ("It's Not Dirty to See Gas as Energy Solution") makes some false assumptions about natural gas and clean energy.
Link: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/opinion/letters/natural-gas-is-not-a-clean-energy-investment-639127/

Okla. billionaire’s meltdown could mean more Pa. fracking
Inquirer
Will Bunch
June 6
OK, SO THINGS aren’t looking so good right now for flamboyant Oklahoma City oil-and-gas mogul and possibly now ex-billionaire Aubrey McClendon.
The CEO of Chesapeake Energy has federal securities agents asking hard questions about $1.3 billion in personal loans; famed corporate raider Carl Icahn is outside his doorstep; and McClendon has watched the company stock that’s the bulk of his fortune lose half of its value since August.
But not to worry: McClendon has a plan.
You could call it, "frack, baby, frack."
And a corner of Pennsylvania is ground zero.
Link: http://www.philly.com/philly/news/politics/20120606_Okla__billionaire_rsquo_s_meltdown_could_mean_more_Pa__fracking.html?cmpid=124488469

Details emerge on proposed UGI pipeline
Citizens Voice
Elizabeth Skrapits
June 6
FRANKLIN TWP. - A letter to township officials brought more information to light about a proposed natural gas pipeline from wells in Wyoming County to UGI customers in Wilkes-Barre and Scranton.
According to plans submitted to Franklin Township by the Philadelphia-based engineering firm CH2M HILL, the 27.4-mile, 24-inch diameter Auburn pipeline extension will run from an existing metering and regulator station near Meshoppen to an existing Transco interstate pipeline in West Wyoming.
Link: http://citizensvoice.com/news/details-emerge-on-proposed-ugi-pipeline-1.1325638

The Shell deal: Another hosing?
Pitt Trib
June 6
The first word that comes to mind as details begin to leak about what carrots were hung from what sticks to lure Shell to Beaver County to build a multibillion-dollar ethane "cracker" plant is "BLECH!" (as in "disgusting"). For Pennsylvania has been down this road before. Think Volkswagen, Sony, Kvaerner and Comcast, among others.
Link: http://triblive.com/opinion/1920317-74/shell-pennsylvania-taxpayers-gas-haulk-jobs-marcellus-plant-accounting-allegheny

Rep. White claims his letter to DEP leaked
Observer-Reporter
Christie Campbell
June 6
State Rep. Jesse White is claiming someone leaked a letter he sent to state Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Krancer on the situation at Cornerstone Care to a pro-oil and gas industry website.
That website, Energy in Depth, used the letter to attack White, D-Cecil, for taking an anti-gas drilling stance.
Link: http://www.observer-reporter.com/or/gasdrilling11/06-06-2012-Jesse-White-letter-sidebar

Corbett defends proposed Shell refinery tax break
The Mercury
Peter Jackson, AP
June 5
HARRISBURG — Defending his proposed $1.7 billion tax break for a planned petrochemical refinery in western Pennsylvania, Gov. Tom Corbett said Tuesday the facility would be a major step toward rebuilding the state’s manufacturing sector.
Link: http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20120605/NEWS03/120609692/corbett-defends-proposed-shell-refinery-tax-break

Cawley Says Pennsylvania And Shell Are Still In “Early Negotiations” Over Ethane Cracker
State Impact
Scott Detrow
June 5
Link: http://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2012/06/05/cawley-says-pennsylvania-and-shell-are-still-in-early-negotiations-over-ethane-cracker/

Federal Government Closes Trucking Loophole
State Impact
Scott Detrow
June 5
Link: http://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2012/06/05/federal-government-closes-trucking-loophole/

Pennsylvania Lags in Green Energy Ranking
State Impact
Susan Phillips
June 5
Link: http://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2012/06/05/pennsylvania-lags-in-green-energy-ranking/

Enviros push for ban on fracking waste disposal
E&E News
Ellen M. Gilmer
June 6
(full text below)
New Jersey environmentalists intensified a campaign this week to discourage the Legislature from allowing oil and gas companies to deposit wastewater in the Garden State.

The Sierra Club and other groups are concerned about waste from hydraulic fracturing, a production technique that shoots water, sand and chemicals deep underground to loosen up shale oil and gas. The resulting wastewater must be reused, stored or treated, and some of it from Pennsylvania, for example, can find its way to New Jersey plants.

Legislation from state Sen. Robert Gordon (D), paired with a bill from state Rep. Connie Wagner (D), would ban the shipping of fracking wastewater to New Jersey and treatment of the fluid in the state.

"The New Jersey Legislature needs to stand up and stop fracking waste from being dumped in New Jersey. We need to protect our waterways, roadways and protect the people of New Jersey from these toxic chemicals," New Jersey Sierra Club Director Jeff Tittel said in a statement.

New Jersey is a prime target for wastewater disposal because of its close proximity to Pennsylvania's booming Marcellus Shale operations and its existing wastewater treatment facilities, such as the 1,455-acre DuPont Chambers Works complex in South Jersey.

Sierra Club New Jersey has charged that DuPont and other New Jersey facilities are not equipped to handle the chemicals used in fracking. DuPont did not respond by deadline to requests for comment.

"New Jersey cannot allow its water supplies to be held captive by multi-national oil and gas companies," Tittel said. "We need this ban to protect New Jersey's waters, economy, and public health. We cannot allow special interests to destroy New Jersey's drinking water supplies in order to make a quick buck."

Republican Gov. Chris Christie has not taken a public position on the proposed ban.

"If and when it reaches the Governor's desk, it will receive the careful review of our Counsel's office prior to the Governor taking action," spokesman Kevin Roberts wrote in an email to EnergyWire.
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Tax break for ethane cracker draws questions from lawmakers, enviros
E&E News
Ellen M. Gilmer
June 6
(full text below)
After a high-stakes bidding war among states seeking industrial development, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett (R) has revealed a plan to sweeten the pot for Shell Oil Co. as it moves toward building a multibillion-dollar chemical plant near Pittsburgh.

Corbett's proposal would grant a hefty tax break -- $65 million annually for 25 years -- for Shell's planned ethane cracker in Beaver County. The company has already announced that it is focusing on the Pennsylvania site but has not absolutely eliminated other contenders in Ohio and West Virginia.

An ethane cracker is a chemical plant that breaks down ethane, a drilling byproduct, into ethylene, a plastic feedstock.

It is unclear whether the tax break proposal was recently brought to the table or was part of early private negotiations with Shell. But the plan met with surprise and discord this week among many state lawmakers and budget watchdogs.

"What you don't bring in in taxes means you have to cut from somewhere else," said George Jugovic Jr., president of the citizens group PennFuture. "Our concern is what the governor is cutting."

Jugovic said he was especially worried about potential cuts to education and conservation programs, and he questioned the economic prudence of such an incentive.

"We recognize that there are going to be important choices made as any governor establishes their tax policy," he said, "but you have to wonder with this type of a choice from this administration whether Adam Smith's going to be rolling over in his grave."

Republican state Rep. Jim Christiana, who represents Beaver County, said the tax break was exactly what Pennsylvania needed to parlay its deal with Shell into further industry growth in the Pittsburgh area. Christiana hopes a pro-business climate surrounding the cracker will attract other industrial manufacturing ventures to Pennsylvania, which is in tight competition with other states eager to cash in on the natural gas boom currently sweeping the Marcellus Shale (Greenwire, Dec. 15, 2011).

The expenditure won't be in effect until 2017, when the cracker is expected to operate, giving the Legislature ample time to find room in the budget, Christiana said. And, he added, the cracker tax break will ultimately pay for itself.

"When we're creating economic activity, this isn't going to be an expense," he told EnergyWire as he stepped off the state House floor yesterday evening. "In the long term, this is going to be a revenue generator if we create enough industry activity and enough jobs."

Department of Community and Economic Development spokesman Steve Kratz told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review this week that the tax break was crucial for adding jobs in the state.

"This is about keeping a resource here and having that economic development happen here," he said. "You can figure out what the job numbers will be and what the economic investment will be if we lose the project, and that is zero."