connect by pipeline to 25 Gulf Coast refineries and 6 Midwest refineries. It is also connected to 4 marine terminals, making shipping by ocean- going oil tankers feasible. For more information on the SPR please visit Infographic: Strategic Petroleum Reserve and Fact Sheet: Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Source: The United States Department of Energy ****************************************************** Mountain Valley Pipeline Southgate It was announced in late December 2023 that the proposed Southgate extension of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) is being redesigned to run for 31 miles from southern Virginia to natural gas delivery points in North Carolina. In a December 29 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, it was stated “In contrast to the original, lengthier project route and design…the revised project would include substantially fewer water crossings and would not require a new compressor station.” The MVP has faced significant legal and permitting challenges since first being announced in 2014, which has caused delays; however, the main project is expected to be operational in the first quarter of 2024. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has granted Mountain Valley a three-year extension to finish MVP Southgate by June 18, 2026. ****************************************************** Louisiana Granted Primacy for CCUS development On December 28, 2023, the EPA approved Louisiana’s application to oversee permitting of CO2 injection wells used for CCUS. Class VI wells are used for geologic sequestration of carbon dioxide. Granting of Class VI well primacy is expected to speed up injection well approvals in Louisiana, which is top-rated for its CCUS potential. Incentives in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act and 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law have led to a backlog in the EPA process. States with primacy have issued permits in as few as nine months, whereas the EPA, with more than 170 applications on file, can take several
years (approval for Louisiana took 4 years). Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards has stated, “While CO2 sequestration is not the only strategy available for carbon management, it is the most mature and market-ready tool available in the near term.” Thanks to Louisiana geology and existing pipeline infrastructure the state will be able to advance as a major hub for carbon capture and sequestration projects. The EPA has previously given primary authority to issue permits for Class VI wells to North Dakota and Wyoming. Texas, West Virginia, and Arizona have also requested primacy. ****************************************************** Winter Weather affects oil production Extremely cold temperatures and blizzard conditions had a chilling effect on production in the Texas Permian Basin and Bakken in North Dakota. The below freezing temperatures freeze water at the wellhead forcing production to be shut in and icy roads make reaching well sites difficult to reach. During extreme cold, natural gas gathering systems connected to oil wells may fill up with liquids, which disrupts compressor operations, and North Dakota wells are shut in to avoid flaring. Refining operations were also disrupted due to the cold as well as for scheduled maintenance. Experts advise it will take several weeks to restore production and output to regular levels. ****************************************************** Liquid Natural Gas The United States became the world’s leading LNG exporter in 2023, surpassing Australia and Qatar, according to new data from Bloomberg. Europe is the main destination for U.S. LNG, as EU countries reduce reliance on Russian gas, with Asia being the second largest market for U.S. LNG exports. Freezing weather in Texas and Louisiana in January disrupted scheduled exports when gas production was reduced, and ports were briefly closed. ******************************************************
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G rowth T hrough E ducat i on - J anuary / F ebruary / M arch 2024
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