Alaska’s junior Senator, Dan Sullivan (R), made some waves on March 17 in making his pitch for a massive natural gas project in his state.  He was asked about whether climate change is a natural security threat, and he answered by arguing that selling more natural gas to Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and China would do more to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (by reducing coal usage) than almost anything else America can do.  
 
Burning natural gas for electricity creates far less carbon dioxide than burning coal or oil, and natural gas has rapidly been replacing coal in U.S. power plants.  This has driven carbon emissions to levels lower than even some of the most optimistic projections from environmentalists.  Most projections now are for natural gas and renewables to continue gaining market share while coal and nuclear level off at relatively low levels.
 
Alaska has some of the world’s largest oil fields located on its barren North Slope.  Oil from those Prudhoe Bay and Point Thomson fields have been flowing through a massive pipeline across the state since 1977.  In all that time, the natural gas produced on the slope has been wasted, shot back into the ground, or used to power equipment up there.  Alaskans have dreamed about building a new pipeline to get that gas to market, but the current price tag for the project is $43 billion.  Permitting efforts are still underway so the pipeline remains at least a theoretical possibility, and Sen. Sullivan and others continue to push it.  

Here in Appalachia, we have natural gas that can easily be connected to a growing system of gathering lines and then rapidly shipped to gas-hungry markets across the U.S, and increasingly across the world.  Cimmaron Land has been helping companies acquire exploration and production rights through the whole natural gas boom of the last decade, and we can help you too.  Contact us today for more information.  

Politicians in New York have been hostile to the boom in natural gas that the northeast has been experiencing in recent years, as many policies would prefer to switch completely to renewables.  The people seem to want affordable, reliable, energy, though.  This clash between what politicians want and what the people demand has come to a head over the last couple months in Westchester County, New York.            
 
Con Edison, the local gas utility, has for years been trying to get more natural gas into New York.  They say they need more pipelines and more storage facilities.  State politicians and regulators in Albany, New York have thwarted these projects, though.  The biggest example is the Constitution Pipeline, a $638 million, 124-mile pipeline that is supposed to run from the gas-rich Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania to Schoharie County, New York.  Federal regulators seem to recognize the need, but New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and his appointees have stopped the project in its tracks for now. 
 
On January 17, Con Edison issued a moratorium on new customers, saying it would not have enough gas to hook up more people.  That moratorium took effect on March 15, and the company announced it now has a backlog of 1,300 applications.
 
New York State is refusing to back down and help Con Edison get the gas it needs.  Instead, the State announced on March 14 that it would invest $250M in clean energy programs to reduce energy consumption in Westchester County.  The idea is that instead of bringing in more of the abundant natural gas from nearby states, New York will create enough green energy to allow the existing natural gas supplies to be shared with new customers.  So far, Con Edison seems to not be buying it.  The company says the moratorium is still going into effect, because new customers would compromise the limited capacity in existing interstate pipelines in the region.  
 
If New York politicians ever change their mind, there is plenty of gas available in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia.  Cimmaron Land has been helping producers secure the rights to produce this gas, and if you are interested in joining them you can contact us online.

 
Two of the biggest oil majors spent March 5 trying to outdo each other on who could commit more money to exploration and production, with American shale being a major focus.  Exxon announced that it expects to have capital expenditures of $30 billion this year and $33-35 billion next year, after spending $26 billion last year.  Chevron expects to spend $19 to $22 billion per year in capital expenditures for the next few years, including $1.6 in shale fields outside the Permian.  
 
All these expenditures come as America is set to surpass Saudi Arabia in a remarkable milestone, becoming the world’s largest exporter of oil, natural gas liquids, and petroleum products.  Even as the shale boom took hold, very few people thought America would ever become a significant exporter.  America would be doing well just to cut its own imports.  
 
Exports of refined products grew quietly and then in 2015 Congress lifted the ban on crude oil exports that was put in place during the 1970s oil crisis.  As a result, America is now exporting about 3 million barrels per day of crude oil and about 5 million barrels per day of natural gas liquids and petroleum products.  Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia is exporting about 7 million barrels of crude and 2 million barrels of products.  America may never catch Saudi Arabia in raw crude exports, but we are expected to soon catch them in total exports.   
 
Cimmaron Land is helping companies lease acreage in the Marcellus and Utica plays, and if you want in you can call us at (412) 212-7517 for more information.

 
On March 1, TransCanada announced that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has approved putting its full Mountaineer XPress pipeline into service.  The massive project required an economic investment of around $3.2 billion, and it will now dramatically expand the ability of customers in southern West Virginia to utilize the natural gas produced in their state.  
 
The pipeline cuts south for 170 miles from Marshall County to Wayne County in West Virginia.  The project has been nearing completion in recent months and had been partially put into service already.  The project is comprised of 36-inch-diameter pipes and includes three compressor stations installed along the way.  The gas flowing through the pipe will be delivered into the Columbia Gas Transmission System
            
The full service of Mountaineer XPress also has a bit of a domino effect, because it allows TransCanada to begin operating its Gulf XPress project.  Gulf XPress ties in with Mountaineer XPress in southern West Virginia and then carriers on through Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi.
 
These two projects together will greatly increase the ability of Appalachian Basin natural gas to make its way south to new markets.  Gas has been a huge boon to parts of West Virginia that have struggled economically throughout American history.  In the better years, West Virginia’s economy was largely powered by coal and as the coal industry has fallen out of favor West Virginia has sought new opportunities.  Natural gas has given many areas a “second chance” at a vibrant economy.  The lack of pipeline capacity has been a constraint, but new capacity is being built every day that is opening new doors.

Throughout this whole boom, the Pennsylvania-based land services company Cimmaron Land has been helping companies acquire interest in the land that is driving the boom.  If you want to get involved, you can call us anytime at (412) 212-7517.