NEWS
November 2021
The Voice of the Gas and Oil Industry
Plan now to attend the 2022 Winter Meeting
The Gas and Oil Association of WV, Inc. (GOWV) will host its inaugural Winter Meeting on January 19-20, 2022, at the Marriott Town Center Hotel in Charleston. Make plans now to join friends, colleagues, legislators and professional contacts for this exciting two-day event. Mark your calendars and register now online or use the forms on pages 28 and 29. A great lineup of dignitaries, industry personnel and speakers will make your two days in Charleston very worthwhile and meaningful. To better benefit your business, take advantage of the sponsorship opportunities that are available. Simply fill out the sponsor form on page 28 or contact Lori Miller Smith for specific event sponsorships. The positive exposure, educational and networking opportunities make this a great investment for your company.
Wednesday will feature technical presentations on topics of great interest to you and your company, as well as a three-hour damage prevention seminar. Dinner that evening is on your own. At 5:00 p.m. we will welcome legislative leaders to a special reception with GOpac Jeff Isner contributors. This is followed Co-Vice President at 6:00 p.m. by the GO-WV and Program Chair Membership and Legislative Reception which is open to all members and nonmembers paying full registration fee. On Thursday, January 20, breakfast for all Winter Meeting
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2021 Tax and Accounting Seminar set Nov. 17 Make plans now to register for the 2021 Tax and Accounting Seminar which will take place virtually on Wednesday, Novermber 17. Class takes place from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. For many years, Arnett Carbis Toothman LLP has presented in-person seminars for the Independent Oil and Gas Association of WV (IOGA; now GO-WV, the Gas and Oil Association of West Virginia, Inc.), the Pennsylvania Independent Oil and Gas Association (PIOGA), and the Southeastern Ohio Oil and Gas Association (SOOGA.) In 2020, due to Covid-19 restrictions, a change was made from in-person to a one-day virtual format co-sponsored by all three organizations, covering tax and accounting issues affecting West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. This year’s seminar will continue with the virtual format.
The following important and timely topics are on the agenda: • General Tax Updates for 2021 – Federal and State, including issues now being addressed in Congress, and at the individual states’ level. • Oil & Natural Gas Industry Tax Updates for 2021 • CARES Act • Paycheck Protection Program – Forgiveness, Tax, and Accounting Considerations • Purchase/Sale, Valuation, Succession and Estate Planning • IT Security Attendees are eligible for CPE and CLE credits. The cost is $100 for members of GO-WV, PIOGA and SOOGA. The cost for non-members is $150. Oil and natural gas investors, operators, royalty Tax & Accounting Seminar Continued on page 10
INSIDE
2 Ben Sullivan 3 Christopher (Kip) Power 4 Charlie Burd 5 Bob Radabaugh 6 Association news 9 Greg Kozera 10 Michael Forbes 11 Association news 12 Industry events 13 Christine Mitchell 14 Thomas Downs 15 Kathy Hill 16 Maribeth Anderson 20 Technical Application 22 Scholarship Application 26 License Application 27 DriveSAFE 28 WM Sponsor 29 WM Registration
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Ben Sullivan GO-WV Co-President
Building the industry’s workforce of tomorrow Despite current market and political pressures, West Virginia’s natural gas and oil industry remains committed to developing our natural resources for the benefit of all West Virginians. We have a very bright future ahead of us and one that will require a diverse, skilled, and committed workforce. As the current gas and oil industry workforce ages, we all recognize the critical need to identify and prepare the next generation of workers. As one part of this effort, we must continue to inform potential job seekers – those in the market for employment as well as those still in school – of the tremendous opportunities the natural gas and oil industries offer to West Virginians. According to GO-WV’s Gas Facts analysis, natural gas jobs remain among the best paying. “Extraction jobs pay more than $95,000 per year; drilling jobs pay more than $84,000 per year; and pipeline jobs pay more than $106,000 annually”. In West Virginia, a total of 19,316 industry jobs paid more than $1.8 billion in wages! As we all know, the list of jobs and occupations necessary for production operations are vast. The pre-drilling phase requires leasing agents, environmental technicians, biologists, paralegals, geologists, petroleum engineers, not to mention attorneys, civil engineers, and cartographers. In the drilling phase, roustabouts comprise a large percentage of the workforce. Rig movers and heavy equipment operators are also necessary. Post-drilling operations require production foremen, well tenders, landscapers, plugging crews and more. And all phases of development require accountants, finance and IT professionals, and other types of administrative positions. The industry also has a significant need for truck drivers, pipeline workers, welders, and skilled laborers. Our industry has done a tremendous job of partnering with local community and technical colleges, like Pierpont, Northern and BridgeValley, among others, to offer training programs that, once completed, lead to near-immediate employment. Undergraduate and graduate programs offered through West Virginia University and Marshall University and other traditional four-year colleges and universities continue to develop the next generation of industry workers. We should enhance our efforts to communicate with job seekers as well as those just beginning to think about their future career track to convey – in terms they understand and through the information mediums they use – the promise our industry holds. Not only do we offer above average salaries and a life-long career, but also and Tomorrow’s workforce Continued on page 18
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2021 OFFICERS
Presidents: Ben Sullivan/Thomas Westfall Vice Presidents: Maribeth Anderson/Jeff Isner Secretary: Jason Harshbarger Treasurer: Kelly Moss BOARD MEMBERS
John Bane, EQT Corp. Jim Crews, MPLX Carrie Crumpton, CNX Resources Ryan Cunningham, Cunningham Energy Doug Douglass, ConServ Inc. Kevin Ellis, Antero Resources Jon Farmer, Arsenal Resources Michael Forbes, Greylock Energy Marc Halbritter, Blue Racer Midstream David Haney, E&H Manufacturing Holly Hannold, XTO Jon Hildreth, Roy G. Hildreth & Son Brittany LaPorta, TC Energy Brett Loflin, Northeast Natural Energy Rhett Metz, Energy Transfer Christine Mitchell, Dominion Energy Michael Poole, Highlands Drilling Jim Pritt, Union Oil & Gas Bob Radabaugh, S&R Gas Ventures Mollie Schall, Crestwood Mistream Chris Weikle, SWN Members Emeritus: Ben Hardesty, Alta Energy Lloyd Jackson, Jackson Management Bob Orndorff, Dominion Energy
Christopher (Kip) Power Babst Calland Attorneys at Law
WVDEP working on permitting rules for storage of captured CO2 The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP) is continuing work on rules for permitting of geologic storage of captured CO2 -- a necessary (but not sufficient) element in developing a CCS industry. As discussed in the August GO-WV News, the WVDEP released proposed amendments to its Underground Injection Control (UIC) permitting and related regulations (47 CSR 13) on June 23, 2021 and held a public hearing on the proposed rules on July 23, 2021. Although they include substantial changes to the rules for Class 1 permits (governing hazardous waste injection wells) and Class 2 permits (for enhanced recovery of oil and gas, and disposal of produced water), the rule changes primarily consist of an entirely new section establishing a permitting program for Class 6 wells (those used for injecting carbon dioxide for the purpose of permanent geologic sequestration). Those proposed new Class 6 rules are largely modeled on EPA’s detailed “Class VI” regulations promulgated under the federal Safe Drinking Water Act (40 CFR 146). Ten organizations (including GO-WV and several environmental/citizen groups) filed comments on the draft amendments, and a few of their representatives spoke at the hearing. By letter dated July 23, 2021, the WVDEP released copies of the written comments it received, along with its responses. There was a total of 10 comments that the WVDEP considered to be meritorious enough to alter the proposed rule language in minor ways, almost all of which consisted of typographical errors (along with the elimination of the use of Roman numerals for identifying the “classes” of permits). The final agency-approved rule proposal was filed with the Legislative Rule-Making Review Committee on July 30, 2021 (incorporating most, but not all, of the edits mentioned in the WVDEP’s July 23 letter). As expected, most of the comments centered on the proposed Class 6 UIC permit provisions. In this regard, the WVDEP acknowledged that it is
seeking to incorporate the Class 6 provisions (new section 13) so that the approved regulations may be included as a part of an “Application for Substantial Program Update” to be filed with the EPA, requesting that WVDEP be granted primacy over the Class 6 UIC well permit program. However, for the most part the WVDEP found that concerns raised by commenters pertaining to this aspect of the regulations either addressed matters within the agency’s discretion under the rules as drafted or exceeded the scope of the UIC program. Those topics deemed to be beyond the scope of the regulations include pore space ownership (or “subsurface trespass”) concerns, enhanced setback requirements for Class 6 projects located near sensitive areas, “liability for accidents,” and the potential transfer of liability to the State for a completed CO2 sequestration site. The WVDEP did address two Class 6-focused comments. First, it noted that the Division of Water and Waste Management has tentatively agreed to the terms of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey (WVGES) to review each application for a Class 6 well permit related to geologic matters, including seismicity. Although the WVDEP believes “the likelihood of induced seismicity is low,” its application for primacy over the Class 6 program will specify that no Class 6 permit application will be considered for approval until after such a WVGES review has been completed. Second, the WVDEP stated that it will await approval of primacy over the Class 6 well permit program, and some actual experience with processing Class 6 well permit applications, before it considers whether to seek a supplemental source of funding for the additional administrative burdens imposed by that program. In short, the WVDEP’s proposal to amend its UIC regulations to incorporate the Class 6 UIC permit program, which is an important undertaking and will be a key part of WVDEP’s Permitting rules Continued on page 14
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Charlie Burd GO-WV Executive Director
From the Burd’s Nest: Pipe dreams The dictionary defines a “pipe dream” as an illusory or fantastic plan, hope, or story. It is believed to have been first referenced from an article in The Chicago Daily Tribune, December 1890. This definition is absolutely, positively, NOT my definition. Until recent changes in Washington D.C., West Virginia did not live under the “pipe dream” scenario--indeed, it had been just the opposite. There was a plethora of pipeline projects designed to move gas within or out of West Virginia to the benefit of workers, customers, counties and municipalities and the State. The Mountain State, since the initiation of the horizontal exploration and drilling in 2008, has seen its total annual natural gas production grow from 259.7 Billion Cubic Feet to 2.519 Trillion Cubic Feet. That’s 970% growth!!! This phenomenal growth can be directly attributed to the advances in horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing technologies. Current national rankings reported by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) show West Virginia to be the fifth largest shale producer in the nation. Unfortunately, without this much needed pipeline infrastructure, it is impossible to move resources from where it’s produced to where it’s needed. Oil and natural gas development is a proven economic and environmental winner for West Virginia, the region, and our country. West Virginia’s oil and natural gas industry supported more than 82,000 good-paying jobs --with benefits-and contributed over $11.2 billion to the State’s economy, according to the PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) analysis “Impacts of the Natural Gas and Oil Industry on the U.S. Economy in 2019” commissioned by the American Petroleum Institute (API). That’s impactful!! The Consumer Energy Alliance calculates all this energy produced right here at home has saved West Virginians and estimated $4.3 billion over the past 10 years (2006-2016) in household energy costs. For commercial and industrial natural gas
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users, those savings amount to $2.7 billion. West Virginia families and communities have come to rely on affordable energy, the good-paying jobs, community investments, infrastructure improvements, and welcoming in industry neighbors that support local fire and police, small business, schools, our youth, social and civic organizations, athletic programs, churches, and other community activities. Without question, pipelines are the safest and most efficient way to transport natural gas. They are designed under exacting engineering standards, are built by men and women in the union trades, and --once operational-- are monitored by several federal agencies for compliance in multiple ways. But politics, government red tape and extreme anti-fossil fuel activism aimed at ceasing the development of all fossil fuels have stopped, blocked, or delayed critical pipeline projects that would improve access to affordable, abundant energy. Back in 2018, several major pipeline projects in the northeast under review by governmental agencies--all of which were to transport natural gas originating from the Marcellus and Utica shale plays. Here are a few of the recent major pipeline takeaways that have been, or will be beneficial to West Virginia producers: • TC Energy’s Mountaineer Xpress Pipeline, an intrastate pipeline connecting Marshall County and Wayne County West Virginia, was completed in March 2019. It’s capable of transporting 2.7 Bcf/d of natural gas per day from sources in West Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania to the TCO Pool market along the Columbia Gas Transmission system. • Rover Pipeline (Sherwood Lateral) went into service in early 2019. The larger Rover Pipeline project went operational in August 2017. Together they transport up to 3.25 Bcf/d of natural gas from the Marcellus and Utica Burd’s Nest Continued on page 17
Bob Radabaugh GO-WV Safety Committee Chair
Register now for two December offerings of DriveSAFE seminar The GO-WV Safety Committee is hosting two DriveSAFE training seminars in December, one in Charleston and one in Bridgeport. DriveSAFE is a training campaign focusing on; S-seatbelts, A-attitudes, F-fatigue and E-environmental factors. The course, provided in conjunction with the West Virginia University Extension Service, includes regionally specific curriculum on industry-related driving hazards and best practices. Additionally, workers will understand their rights and employer responsibilities according to OSHA regulations. This training includes four hours of transportation safety training for workers in the oil and natural gas industry, specifically oil and natural gas service and support companies to include hydraulic fracturing.
The courses, sponsored by Encova Insurance, will be offered on December 8 at Berry Hills Country Club in Charleston and on December 10 at the Bridgeport Country Club. Both courses begin at 9:00 a.m. and conclude at 2:00 p.m. with lunch provided at each location. The cost for each person attending is $75, and each location is limited to 25 people. Please use the form on page 27 or visit www. gowv.com to register by December 1.
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Association news
GO-WV gives Congresswoman Miller a tour of West Virginia’s natural gas and oil industry Right, Congresswoman Carol Miller (R-3) visited with the staffs of Pillar Energy and GO-WV. Below she met with Eric Blackshire (left) and Greg Hoyer (rght) at Diversified Energy.
Below, Congresswoman Carol Miller (in blue) visited at Northeast Natural Energy with (from left) Mike John, B.J. Carney, Brett Loflin and Maribeth Anderson.
Below, ConServ Energy’s Scott (far left) and David Freshwater (far right), Doug Douglass and South Charleston Mayor Frank Mullens visited with Miller.
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Below, Miller visited with the staff of ConServ Energy at a ConServ well plugging site facility.
Right, Congresswoman Carol Miller visited with Jenifer Vieweg, Lori Miller Smith, Kyle Mork and Charlie Burd at Greylock Energy headquarters and at their outside employee area.
Left, she saw a ConServ plugging rig in South Charleston. Above, she reviewed maps with Mike John and other Northeast Natural Energy employees. Below, she visited the GO-WV office and met with (from left) Kelly Moss, Greg Hoyer, David Flannery, Lori Miller Smith, Jim Pritt, Charlie Burd, Eric Vir and Joe Fawkner of her staff.
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Greg Kozera Learned Leadership LLC
The importance of a safety net A couple of weeks ago we attended the Virginia Oil and Gas Association fall meeting at Virginia Beach. This was the summer meeting moved to October because companies still had COVID restrictions in June. After my run on the boardwalk one afternoon, I walked down to the beach. There was a woman, probably about 20 years old, walking on a tight rope that was set up two feet above the sand. I watched her walk almost the entire way across, about 40 feet, until she couldn’t quite hold her balance and fell off landing in the sand. Her coach talked to her for a few moments. Then she got back up on the tight rope again. It was a great way to train someone in safe conditions until they are ready to move the wire higher. As she gets better she will graduate to a real high wire. Even then she will have a safety net under her until she becomes a professional and knows she can walk the wire flawlessly. Had they started with a wire 10 foot in the air, the young lady likely would have been injured when she fell to the sand. The coach started with what he felt she could do today to build her confidence. Fifteen years ago, when my daughter was trying to convince me that I could run a half marathon my first long training run was three miles. We both knew I could run that. It took three months of training to gradually increase my distance to 13.1 miles. The focus was getting stronger every week. Weather forecasters are predicting more weather extremes due to climate change. The solution commonly heard to climate change is to go to zero carbon by eliminating fossil fuels. Climate change or not, the weather-dependent energy sources proposed to replace fossil fuels don’t work well in weather extremes when more power is needed 24/7 for heating or cooling. Night always happens, shutting off solar energy, and the wind doesn’t blow consistently as England is finding out. Many coal plants in Europe were shut down, forcing dependence on natural gas-powered electricity. Increased European power demand
for electricity is increasing demand for natural gas and helping to drive up prices. Good news for American companies selling gas to Europe. It isn’t cold yet. Imagine what will happen if it is a cold winter. They still want to add electric vehicles to the mix! In a blackout or rolling blackout like California, transportation would also be shut down. Shutting down coal plants in Europe is coming back to haunt them. California shut down some nuclear power and added more weather-dependent power instead of natural gas. The result was rolling blackouts. When power goes off people on medical equipment can die. Vulnerable people can die from heat in the summer or freeze to death in the winter like Texas this year. Without refrigeration, food spoils and medicines like insulin can go bad. Shutting down dependable natural gas and replacing it with weather-dependent power is like raising the tight rope for the young lady learning to walk on it and not putting a safety net underneath. All Americans need dependable energy, especially in weather extremes. If we are going to use weather-dependent energy sources, natural gas is the safety net. In my opinion, those who don’t have a guaranteed back up for weather-dependent energy sources are committing malpractice or worse. Speaking for my family, we want dependable, affordable energy from multiple sources. My house is all-electric because we don’t have natural gas available in our neighborhood. If it was available, I would have a natural gas generator that turns on immediately when the power fails, like my industry friends have. My winter power failure backup is a wood burning fireplace for heat, batteries and candles for light and a propane grill for cooking. My car runs on gasoline. As a last resort we can drive to stay with family or friends. A safety net is always important. For those states declaring to be carbon free by 2050 I have yet to hear what the back-up plan is for their Safety net Continued on page 19
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Michael Forbes Membership Chair
GO-WV Board welcomes two new members in October Please join the GO-WV Board of Directors in welcoming these members approved in October: BK Corrosion Jason Rine 252 Vankirk Drive Fairmont, WV 26554 Cell: (304) 626-0314 Jason.Rine@BKCorrosion.com www.BKCorrosion.com
ISP
Millenium Energy LLC Mandy Zickefoose 243 Purdy Road Exit Burgettstown, PA 15021 Cell: (304) 404-3196 mandyzickwv@gmail.com www.millenniumenergy.com
POP
Tax & Accounting Seminar Continued from page 1 owners, service companies and accounting and legal professionals will benefit from attending this seminar. Click here to register for the Tax and Accounting Seminar. The registration deadline is November 12. We hope you can attend! Those registered will receive an email on Monday, November 15, 2021 with the schedule and instructions for connecting to the event. If you do not receive information for the tax seminar on November 15th, please check your spam folder or contact Janet Gould at janet.gould@actcpas.com or 304-472-5550.
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For more information regarding refunds, program cancellation policies or for any other concerns, please contact one of the following: Lori Miller Smith at LMillerSmith@gowv.com or 304-344-9867; Deana McMahan at deana@pioga. org or 724-933-7306, ext. 23; or Billie Leister at mail@sooga.org or 740-374-3203.
Association News
2021-2022 Online Buyer’s Guide currently in progress The Gas and Oil Association of West Virginia (GO-WV) has again partnered with Overland, KS-based Strategic Value Media, a leading nationwide provider of print and digital media solutions to the national, state and local trade and membership associations, to produce the 20212022 edition of the GO-WV Buyers' Guide, the premier resource of relevant products and services for oil and gas industry professionals. This will be the 8th year that the Guide will be produced. You can likely expect a representative from Strategic Value Media to contact you by email or phone to inquire if you want to enhance your listing in the Buyer's Guide. Please know this is a legitimate call and that SVM is partnering with GO-WV to provide our members this resource for advertising your products and services. Like the 2020-2021 version, the 2021-2022 edi-
tion of the Buyers’ Guide will feature updated and expanded company and product listings, in addition to other valuable information relating to the oil and natural gas industry. The Buyers’ Guide provides users with an efficient way to browse for goods and services and offers oil and natural gas suppliers exceptional visibility by showcasing their products and services to a targeted, industry-specific buyer group. The Buyers’ Guide is accessible through the GO-WV website at gowv.com and will be updated soon with new advertisements and updated information. To view the current Buyers’ Guide – click here. We encourage you to take advantage of this exceptional opportunity to highlight your company, products and services in the Buyers’ Guide. To learn more about advertising your products or services in the Buyers’ Guide, please email gowv-advertise@svmmedia.com.
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Industry Events
Upcoming events planned for 2021-2022 November 17, 2021 Oil & Natural Gas Accounting/Tax Seminar Virtual format Info: www.gowv.com December 8, 2021 DriveSAFE Safety Seminar Berry Hills Country Club, Charleston, WV Info: www.gowv.com December 10, 2021 DriveSAFE Safety Seminar Bridgeport Country Club, Bridgeport, WV Info: www.gowv.com January 19-20, 2022 GO-WV Winter Meeting Marriott Town Center Hotel Info: www.gowv.com December 6-8, 2021 Dug East/Marcellus-Utica Midstream Conference David L. Lawrence Convention Center Pittsburgh,, PA Info: www.hartenergyconferences.com February 21-21, 2022 NAPE Summit 2022 George R. Brown Center, Houston, TX Info: napeexpo.com/summit March 23-34, 2022 WV Construction and Design Show Charleston CCC, Charleston, WV Info: wvexpo.com/ April 5, 2022 Pipeline Safety Seminar TC Energy Charleston, WV Info: www.gowv.com
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April 6, 2022 Damage Prevention Seminar Stonewall Resort Roanoke, WV Info: www.gowv.com April 7, 2022 Pipeline Safety Seminar BHG GT&S White Oaks Office Building Bridgeport, WV Info: www.gowv.com May 9, 2022 GO-WV Spring Swing Golf Outing Berry Hills Country Club, Charleston, WV Info: www.gowv.com June 20-22, 2022 IPAA Annual Meeting The Broadmoor, Colorado Springs, CO Info: www.ipaa.org/events/annual-meeting-2022/ August 7-9, 2022 GO-WV 2022 Summer Meeting The Greenbrier, White Sulfur Springs, WV Info: www.gowv.com
Christine Mitchell Dominion Energy
Dominion Energy, others announce utility payment assistance plans As Dominion Energy West Virginia (Dominion WV) customers prepare for winter weather, they may also plan for expected increased costs to their monthly gas bills. This increase is due to greater demand withthe economic recovery and nation-wide lower storage levels of natural gas heading into the heating season. “Dominion Energy West Virginia customers have access to some of the lowest prices in the market, and while there is no U.S. shortage of natural gas, this uptick is a response to tightening supplies and market uncertainty,” said Jim Eck, vice president and general manager, Dominion WV. “The economy is seeing a resurgence from last year’s downturn and with that recovery is increased demand for energy, both domestically and globally. Demand for natural gas has increased significantly during the hottest summer on record to support electric power generation. The federal government’s Energy Information Administration is projecting an increase in drilling activity for 2022, which could ease prices.” National gas inventories are below the fiveyear average heading into winter. Contributing to the low levels of storage were above average withdrawals from storage last winter due to cold weather. However, Dominion WV customers can be assured of sufficient natural gas supplies for this coming winter. In addition, hot weather over the summer increased cooling demand, which increased gas consumption, while U.S natural gas production has been relatively flat. Hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico also contributed to the production downturn. The upcoming winter demand for natural gas could support continued price increases given these factors. For customers and families experiencing financial hardship, Dominion WV and others offer various payment plans and assistance programs that can help them stay warm this winter. Dominion Energy payment plans: Dominion Energy offers a number of different
options for customers who are experiencing high winter bills. Customers can make arrangements by contacting 1-800-688-4673. Contacting us early may provide more options. Some accommodations include: Budget Billing: a convenient option to avoid seasonal fluctuations in bills. The amount you pay on your Dominion Energy natural gas bill will be the same every month, making budgeting easier. Flexible payment plans: help spread payments out and make them more manageable. Dollar Energy: Dollar Energy Fund is a 501(c)3 organization whose mission is to improvethe quality of life for households experiencing hardships by providing utility assistance and other services that lead to self-sufficiency. The program is for those facing financial hardship, who have exhausted all other forms of energy assistance. The Salvation Army administers the program. Government programs: 2-1-1 West Virginia: If you’re past due on your energy bill or facing disconnection of your gas service, dial 2-1-1. Trained professionals can provide referrals to resources for basic human needs, childcare, elder care, housing assistance and more. Help is available 24/7. LIEAP: The Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) assists low-income households with the cost of home heating through direct payments to utility companies ontheir behalf. The Emergency LIEAP component will open following the close of Regular LIEAP and will continue until remaining funds are exhausted. Weatherization Assistance The WV Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) manages the state’s weatherization assistance program to help reduce energy costs. OEO contracts with community agencies that employ trained weatherization crews to install insulation, reduce air-infiltration, perform heating and cooling tune-ups and modifications, and when appropriate, replace heating units for energy efficiency and safety.
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Thomas Downs WeatherBELL Analytics
WeatherBELL’s winter 2021-2022 outlook There have been no significant changes to our November-March heating season outlook for 2021-22. We anticipate warm weather to start, but then a dramatic turn to colder weather should occur by Thanksgiving and last until about New Year’s. After that, signs point to a variable pattern, with colder temperatures favoring the western to central U.S. The best chance for milder weather in the January-March time frame is along and to the east of the Appalachians. For more information about WeatherBELL’s services and to get the hot-off-the-press forecast updates, please visit our website www.weatherbell.com or contact us at sales@weatherbell.com.
Permitting rules
Continued from page 3
application for primacy over that program, is moving along in the rule-making process. However, vesting authority in the WVDEP to issue such permits in West Virginia will almost certainly not be sufficient in and of itself to incentivize the development of carbon dioxide injection and sequestration projects of any significant size. As other states have done (e.g., North Dakota, Texas), it is reasonable to expect that the West Virginia Legislature will need to enact statutes establishing some fundamental property and liability principles that will govern this new industry before any organization will seek a Class 6 permit to construct a sequestration facility here. Given the number of recent federal legislative proposals that promote the use of some form of carbon capture and sequestration as an important part of the country’s evolving energy policy, and the substantial additional funding that will presumably be available to support such projects, it would appear there is no time to waste in developing those complementary laws.
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Kathy Hill
Ergon
Monthly Appalachian Basin crude oil prices
Winter Meeting
Continued from page 1
attendees begins at 8:00 a.m., prior to the 9:00 a.m. conference beginning. Special invited guest speakers include Governor Justice, Senators Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito. In addition, we will have presentations from industry leaders. The 2020 and 2021 Oil & Gas Reclamation Award recipients will be honored during lunch and a presentation will be made at that time to the Oil & Gas Museum. Please see page 29 to register for the meeting, or www.gowv.com. If you have questions, please contact Lori Miller Smith at 304-344-9867.
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Maribeth Anderson GO-WV Vice President and Communications/Education Chair
2022 GO-WV Scholarship deadline is March 18, 2022; open Jan. 4, 2022 In 1997, the Independent Oil and Gas Association of West Virginia, Inc. (now the Gas and Oil Association of WV, Inc. - GO-WV) established its Scholarship Program in an effort to become more involved in higher education in West Virginia. The Scholarship Program was specifically created to reward the outstanding scholastic achievements of high school seniors whose parents work in the oil and natural gas industry for association membership companies. The Association also awards deserving high school “student employees” who have completed a required number of working hours at an association member company. Beginning in 2020, two annual one-time, $1,000 scholarships were sponsored by ConServ Incorporated. They are for students who are choosing a career path that benefits the oil and gas industry in a vocational/technical field such as, but not limited to, welder, truck driver, well tender, electrician, mechanic, etc. Since the GO-WV Scholarship Program’s inception, $180,500 has been awarded to these very deserving students. Complete eligibility rules and documents for both scholarship types begin on page __ or at https://gowv.com/education/scholarship/ and will be sent to all member companies. The completed application, including all required forms and information, must be signed by the high school counselor and postmarked no later than March 18, 2022. GO-WV will accept completed applications between Jan. 4, 2022 and March 18, 2022. From all the applications received, a GO-WV Scholarship Review Committee will award a number of one-time only scholarships. Here is a quick glance at those rules: 1. Applicant must be a West Virginia high school senior. 2. Applicant must be a dependent of an employee/retiree of a GO-WV Company in good standing OR be employed by a GO-WV Company in good standing (Student employee must have worked a minimum of 400 hours
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is the past calendar year. Validation of hours worked and a letter of recommendation from the employer must be provided). 3. Applicant must enroll in a four-year West Virginia college or university or a community college/vocational-technical school. 4. Applicant must compose an essay answering the question asked on the application form. 5. Application must be signed by the high school counselor. 6. The completed application and all documentation requested must be postmarked no later than Friday, March 18, 2022. GO-WV will accept completed applications postmarked between Jan. 4 and March 18, 2022. From all the applications received, a GO-WV Scholarship Review Committee will award a number of one-time only scholarships. Should you have any questions, please contact Katie McCracken at 304-344-9867 or kmccracken@gowv. com.
Get your GO-WV license plate now! See page 26.
Burd’s Nest
Continued from page 4
Shale production processing plants in West Virginia, Eastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania to the Midwest Hub near Defiance, Ohio, for delivery to markets across the U.S., as well as to the Union Gas Dawn Storage Hub in Ontario, Canada. • TC Energy’s Leach Xpress was placed in-service in January 2018. The pipeline has the capacity to transport 1.5 billion cubic feet/ day (Bcf/d) of natural gas to Southeast and Gulf Coast supply markets. • Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) is over 90% complete and can transport 2.0 Bcf/d capacity from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia. Originally scheduled for completion by the end of 2018, it now has a target in-service date of summer 2022 while working through water crossing approvals and the lifting of a remaining exclusion zone around the Jefferson National Forest. But there have also been disappointments like the loss of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) in early July 2020. Dominion Energy and Duke
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Energy announced the cancellation due to ongoing delays, increasing cost, and regulatory uncertainty that compromised its economic viability. The ACP would have started in Harrison County West Virginia and ran through Lewis, Upshur, Randolph, and Pocahontas Counties. This was a pipeline designed to transport 1.5 Bcf/d of West Virginia produced natural gas. So why are these pipelines so important to the industry, West Virginia, and the Nation? Because they move gas to markets in the southeast, New England and Midwest and are critical to fueling economic growth while helping states reach their climate goals. Statistics show that in North Carolina, for example, natural gas use for electricity generation grew 13-fold from 2005-2018, and one in every four homes depends on natural gas for heating. To continue driving economic growth, keeping the lights on and achieving clean air progress in West Virginia, we need a business-friendly environment that attracts pipeline infrastructure development and related downstream investments like manufacturing and future power generation. We must prioritize making improvements in our country’s pipeline infrastructure network for the sake of all West Virginians, our nation’s energy security, and our world’s environmental well-being. If we are to continue being successful, we must commit to working with our national congressional delegation to ensure they and others see the value in expanding and building new pipelines, transmission systems, and processing facilities to deliver more affordable, safe, and reliable energy. We must work with like-minded allies to find a way to collectively thwart the negative outcry from the anti-fossil fuel crowd and be the driver in national energy policy change. With all this said, the future of oil and natural gas development and pipeline projects into the future cannot be the whimsical “pipe dream” but must be a true PIPE DREAM!!! You see, my definition includes an embracing of returning to being not just being energy independent but being energy dominate and providing this much-needed energy to the world. We were there and we can return. It may take until after the mid-term national elections…but we can return.
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Tomorrow’s workforce Continued from page 2 importantly, the opportunity to remain at home in West Virginia. Just like your companies, Diversified Energy is working to create opportunities for West Virginians. We currently employ more than 1,200 throughout our states of operation with over 400 employees in West Virginia, and we continue to pursue opportunities to enhance and build our talented workforce.
I, and I hope you, remain bullish on the future of the natural gas and oil industry in West Virginia and the United States. We are privileged to be a part of supplying energy to our country in a way that is also improving our environment. I am proud of our talented, hardworking West Virginia employees and look forward to working alongside you to build the industry’s workforce of tomorrow.
Happy Thanksgiving from the officers, board and staff of GO-WV to your family!
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Safety net
100% weather-dependent energy. We need to break their bubble and remind them and the public that windmills, solar panels and electric cars are petrochemical products. They can’t exist without oil, natural gas and hydraulic fracturing. Educating our employees and the public is essential. The truth is our ally. At VOGA, Dominion did a presentation on “environmental justice” and what me may have to deal with as an industry. I challenged Dominion and other attendees to look at “environmental justice” differently. Gasoline prices are up over $1 from a year ago thanks to shutting down the Keystone Pipeline and other attacks on our industry. That increase hurts those who can least afford it, like the single mom who works in a doctor’s office with my wife and travels 120 miles round trip to work. When rolling blackouts happen in California, the Hollywood elite can have generators or the means to leave while the common people are in the dark. When energy prices increase, ALL prices increase - especially food. Attacks on the natural gas and oil industry use the environment as an excuse and attack the poor, the middle class (many are minorities) and especially seniors on fixed incomes who are most likely to die in their homes when the power goes off. Many of these people may need to make the decision between eating and heating. Without natural gas as a safety net, if the “antis’s” are successful, how will people afford to replace their natural gas appliances and pay higher electric bills? That doesn’t sound like justice at all. On a cold snowy winter night when the lights and heat go off as they will without a safety net, people will suffer. That doesn’t sound like justice at all. Without the natural gas industry, we can expect massive manufacturing job losses and increased foreign imports, especially from China. That doesn’t sound like environmental justice at all. It is time to help manufacturers, retailers, senior citizens groups and others, like our employees, to understand the importance of the safety net natural gas and oil provide. We can have affordable, dependable energy and a clean environment. All things are possible.
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CHARLESTON, WV I PITTSBURGH, PA I SEWELL, NJ STATE COLLEGE, PA I WASHINGTON, DC
Babst_DrillAd_IOGA_4.5625x9.25_2021.indd 1
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Technical/Vocational Scholarship Application
2022 Technical & Vocational Scholarship Application
Last Name
First Name
MI
Mailing Address
Date of Birth SS Number
City
State
Zip Code
High School
Home Phone High School Phone Number
My Parent/Guardian works for a GO-WV Company Parent/Guardian Name
_GO-WV Company
I Work for a GO-WV Company (referral letter attached) GO-WV Company Graduation Date:
Awards Assembly Date & Time:
Chosen Vocation/Career:
Chosen School:
SCHOLARSHIP ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:
1. Applicant must be a West Virginia high school senior choosing a career path that benefits the oil and gas industry. 2. Applicant must be a dependent of an employee OR be employed by a GO-WV Company in good standing. (Student employee must have worked a minimum of 400 hours. Validation of hours worked and a letter of recommendation from the employer must be included with this application.) 3. Applicant must be enrolling in a West Virginia community college or vocational / technical trade school. 4. Applicant must complete both pages of this form. 5. Applicant must ensure that this application and all necessary documents are postmarked no later than Friday, March 18, 2022.
ATTENTION STUDENT:
After completing both pages of this form, deliver these documents to your high school counselor.
ATTENTION SCHOOL COUNSELOR: 1. 2.
Please write a letter stating why you, or the student’s technical or vocational course instructor, recommend the student for this scholarship. Mail the recommendation letter, all pages of this application, and the student’s transcript of grades to the address below postmarked on or before before March 18, 2022.
Student’s guidance counselor’s signature
PLEASE NOTE: ONE SIDED COPIES ONLY – NO STAPLES! Please feel free to add extra sheets if needed. Gas and Oil Association of WV, Inc. Attention: Katie McCracken 300 Summers Street, Suite 820, Charleston WV 25301
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Technical/Vocational Scholarship Application
21
College/University Scholarship Application
2022 Scholarship Application Last Name
First Name
MI
Mailing Address City
State
Home Phone Number
Zip Code
Social Security Number
Date of Birth
College/University Planning to Attend
High School
High School Phone Number
My Parent/Guardian works for a GO-WV Company Parent/Guardian Name
GO-WV Company
I Work for a GO-WV Company (referral letter attached) GO-WV Company Graduation Date Awards Assembly Date & Time
_
If you filed a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), what is the amount of your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) as reported to you on the Student Aid Report (SAR)? $
.
SCHOLARSHIP ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS: 1. Applicant must be a West Virginia high school senior. 2. Applicant must be a dependent of an employee/retiree of a GO-WV Company in good standing OR be employed by a GO-WV Company in good standing (Student employee must have worked a minimum of 400 hours. Validation of hours worked and a letter of recommendation from the employer must be provided). 3. Applicant must enroll in a four-year West Virginia college or university. 4. Applicant must compose a 300-500 word essay answering the question: “Describe your community’s perception of the Oil and Gas Industry and explain how you would improve it.” 5. Application must be signed by a high school counselor. 6. Mail the application with all activity and course forms (listed below), essay, transcript and ACT scores as instructed below. This must be postmarked on or before Friday, March 18, 2022. ATTENTION STUDENT: List your advanced placement and honors courses, organizations, volunteer and extra-curricular school activities with which you were affiliated during the four years of high school on the appropriate forms (Advanced Placement and Honors Courses, Extracurricular School Activities, Community Service and Non-School Activities - Including Employment). Please deliver these forms along with your completed application and essay to your high school counselor. ATTENTION SCHOOL COUNSELOR: Please sign this application and mail it along with the student’s essay, transcripts, ACT scores, and activity and course forms to the address below postmarked on or before March 18, 2022.
Student’s guidance counselor’s signature PLEASE NOTE: ONE SIDED COPIES ONLY – NO STAPLES! Gas and Oil Association of WV, Inc. Attention: Katie McCracken 300 Summers Street, Suite 820, Charleston WV 25301
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College/University Scholarship Application
Advanced Placement and Honors Courses Grade Level
Course
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College/University Scholarship Application
Community Service and Non-School Activities (Including Employment) Grade Level
Estimated Hours per Year
Activity
TOTAL HOURS
24
College/University Scholarship Application
Extracurricular School Activities Grade Level
Estimated Hours per Year
Activity
TOTAL HOURS
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Industry license plate application form DMV-54-GO Rev 05/21
West Virginia Department of Transportation
Division of Motor Vehicles
1-800-642-9066 dmv.wv.gov
Application for a Gas & Oil Association of WV License Plate PLATE SAMPLE
A) Applicant/Owner(s) Information ·
Use Name(s) of Owner(s) as shown exactly on current registration card that you wish to register the license plate.
Applicant’s Name Name(s) on Registration Street Address STATE
CITY
ZIP
B) B) Vehicle Vehicle Information Information Year
Make
Title No. Current Plate No.
VIN No.
C) Insurance Information
/
Effective Dates of Policy From:
/
To:
/
/
Policy No.
Insurance Company NAIC Number
Insurance Agent
D) Applicant Certification I certify that all information on this application is true and correct and if I cease to be in good standing with the above organization, I will immediately return the special license plate to the Division of Motor Vehicles.
(X) SIGNATURE OF APPLICANT
DATE
/
/
Phone No. (
)
E) Application Information 1. Anyone is eligible to apply for a Gas & Oil Association of WV license plate. 2. A vehicle must be Class A and have a West Virginia title and license plate in the name of the applicant before a special plate can be issued. 3. The current license plate must be returned to the Division of Motor Vehicles after the special plate is received. After issuance of the special plate, the exchanged plate is canceled and cannot be transferred to another vehicle. There are no refunds. 4. A $91.50 fee will cover the cost of the license plate for the 1st year or a portion of the 1st year. This is a flat fee for all applicants and is not prorated. This plate will expire on July 1st every year and have a renewal fee of $66.50. 5. Send the application and the $91.50 check or money order payable to Gas & Oil Association of WV at the address listed below. Please include your personal property tax receipt or an affidavit from the assessor if your registartion is expiring within 60 days of your application. Gas & Oil Association of WV c/o Charlie Burd 300 Summers St. Suite 820 Charleston, WV 25301 *** OFFICE USE ONLY BELOW THIS LINE OFFICE STAFF INSTRUCTIONS: Insert the plate numbers on the plate diagram to the left and submit this form to the WV DMV for recording and processing. Be sure to retain a copy for your records.
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Drive Safe Seminar registration form
2021 GO-WV DriveSAFE Safety Seminar Registration Form December 8 or December 10, 2021 | 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
____________________________________________________________________________________ Company Name ____________________________________________________________________________________ Address ____________________________________________________________________________________ City, State, Zip ____________________________________________________________________________________ Telephone Participant
Member Y/N
Lunch is included in the registration fee. Attendance is limited to 25 people at each event. Registering for: _____ December 8, Berry Hills Country Club, Charleston _____ December 10, Bridgeport Country Club, Bridgeport Registration Fees @ $75 per person $ _________ TOTAL $ _________ Please click here to register and pay online or mail registration with payment by December 1, 2021, to: GO-WV, 300 Summers Street, Suite 820, Charleston, WV 25301 For additional information, call Lori Miller Smith at (304) 344-9867. No refunds after December 1, 2021.
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Winter Meeting sponsor form
2022 GO-WV Winter Meeting Sponsorship Form
January 19-20, 2022 | Marriott Town Center, Charleston, WV
_________________________________________________________________________________________ Company Name ____________________________________________________________________________________________ Contact Name ____________________________________________________________________________________ Address __________________________________________________________________________________________ City State Zip _______________________________________________________________________________________ Telephone Email
Sponsorship opportunities:
______ Diamond Event Sponsor $5,000 and up (call for availability) • Banner hung at sponsored event • Specific signage at sponsored event • Listing on Diamond Sponsor board • Logo and name listed in event PowerPoint presentation • Logo listed in event program, web site page and newsletter ______ Platinum Sponsor $3,000 • Listing on Platinum Sponsor board • Logo and name listed in event PowerPoint presentation • Logo listed in event program, web site page and newsletter ______ Gold Sponsor $2,000 • Listing on Gold Sponsor board • Logo and name listed in event PowerPoint presentation • Logo listed in event program, web site page and newsletter ______ Silver Sponsor $1,000 • Listing on Silver Sponsor board • Logo and name listed in event PowerPoint presentation • Logo listed in event program, web site page and newsletter ______ Bronze Sponsor $500 • Listing on Bronze Sponsor board • Logo and name listed in event PowerPoint presentation • Logo listed in event program, web site page and newsletter Please return this form to GO-WV, address below, by December 15, 2021. Be sure to email a high resolution (300-dpi minimum) version of your company’s color logo and a link to your web site to lmillersmith@gowv.com.
Thank you for your continued support!
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Winter meeting registration form
2022 GO-WV Winter Meeting Registration Form
January 19-20, 2022 | Marriott Town Center, Charleston, WV
____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Company Name _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Address __________________________________________________________________________________________________________ City State Zip ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Telephone ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ Participant’s Name Member? ❏ Yes ❏ No ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Email __________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Participant’s Name Member? ❏ Yes ❏ No _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Email ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Participant’s Name Member? ❏ Yes ❏ No _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Email Please call the GO-WV Office if you have special dietary needs. Registration (fees cover all Winter Meeting activities except the GOpac Reception) Members: _____ Producers’ Issues Breakfast Meeting ONLY (for member Producers ONLY) (Wednesday, January 19) FREE! _____ Technical sessions ONLY (Wednesday, January 19) FREE! _____ Member early-bird rate of $295/person for Wednesday membership and legislative reception and all Wednesday and Thursday events ($350 after 1/7/22) _____ Non-member early-bird rate of $495/person for Wednesday membership and legislative reception and all Wednesday and Thursday events ($550 after 1/7/22) _____ Student/faculty registration fee of $65/person for Wednesday membership and legislative reception and all Wednesday and Thursday events ($90 after 1/7/22) _____ TOTAL DUE Please mail registration with payment by January 7, 2022, to: GO-WV, 300 Summers Street, Suite 820, Charleston, WV 25301. NO REFUNDS AFTER DECEMBER 15, 2021 For additional information, call Lori Miller Smith at (304) 344-9867.
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300 Summers Street, Suite 820 Charleston, WV 25301 Phone (304) 344-9867 Fax (304) 344-5836
h
GO-WV Members As USI Insurance Services, we bring over 25 years of industry experience, a proprietary risk analysis process and a local team all supported by the expertise of more than 4,500 professionals nationwide. Let us show you how the right plan and the right partner can help protect your company's people and physical assets.
Pete Thackston, Senior Vice President USI Insurance Services 418 8th Street, Suite 301, Huntington, WV 25701 304-638-7281 I Pete.Thackston@usi.comIwww.usi.com
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