$84 billion in natural gas projects coming to WV
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — LATEST:
Brooke County may be home to one of two natural-gas power plants in West Virginia as part of a new, $83.7 billion shale gas agreement between the state’s department of commerce and China Energy Investment Corporation Ltd., it was announced Thursday morning
According to West Virginia Secretary of Commerce Woody Thrasher, the power plant deals alone are valued at more than $1.3 billion. He said construction will begin within the next 6 to 8 months. The other plant would be positioned in Harrison County, W.Va.
An energy economy is a jobs economy, and we now have a @POTUS who is embracing West Virginia’s energy and jobs potential. I thank @SenCapito, @WVGovernor & @RepMcKinley for their leadership. https://www.wvgazettemail.com/business/wv-announces-billion-shale-gas-chemical-deal-with-china-energy/article_5c921768-fa99-54dc-afbf-46e550c92c7c.html …
WV announces $83.7B shale gas, chemical deal with China Energy
West Virginia has a $83.7 billion investment agreement in place with a China-owned energy company for shale gas and chemical manufacturing projects in the state over the course of 20
“What’s really exciting about this opportunity is our consultants forecasted a day like this back in 2010, and what we learned today is that President Trump, Secretary Thrasher, and Steve Spence at the development office, have actually delivered on an opportunity that we foresee as probably $40 billion or $50 billion just probably in our region alone,” said Pat Ford, executive director of the Business Development Corporation.
China Energy selected West Virginia for the project because of the state’s position as a key energy-producer, and because it’s home to one of the world’s largest shale gas reserves. There is also a longstanding relationship between the two entities.
This $83.7B power generation, chemical manufacturing, and natural gas liquid storage investment in WV is going 2 be HUGE for our economy. My office is proud 2 have played a part in pushing this across the line, and we thank @wvcommerce for their hard work. http://www.register-herald.com/news/w-va-china-energy-sign-billion-shale-gas-chemical-manufacturing/article_9bc238e2-c54b-11e7-a95f-f72d615c9234.html …W.Va., China Energy sign $83.7 billion MOU in shale gas development, chemical manufacturing
CHARLESTON — West Virginia and China Energy have signed a memorandum of understanding announcing a plan in which China would invest $83.7 billion in shale gas development and chemical manufacturing
The China Energy announcement in West Virginia was the largest investment in a series of projects in U.S. corporations and other states, totaling a reported $250 billion of investment in the United States.
Planning for the projects is underway and will proceed in phases over the course of 20 years. The projects will focus on power generation, chemical manufacturing, and underground storage of natural gas liquids and derivatives. The plans demonstrate a total value chain approach, integrated from raw materials through the production of useful chemical intermediates locally.
Ford called it a big victory for the northern panhandle.
“The northern panhandle has been in the running, and we’ve been within the top three sites for the past two ethane crackers,” he said. “We have the sites. We have a site a Mountaineer, we have a site in Beech Bottom, and we have a site in the city of Weirton. Those sites have been cued up for the past 7 years.
“And we’ve been looked past from PTT Global and Shell, and now we’re here talking about an opportunity for that third cracker to be built, and we could not be better positioned with the real-estate, the infrastructure, and now the announcement that has been made to make that happen right here.”
Ford said the announcement will result in key manufacturing investments for companies that could employ anywhere from 50 to as many as 400 people per plant, per investment, in our region.
China Energy is the recent creation of a merger between China’s state-owned coal mining company Shenhua Group and energy producer Guodian Group. The merger positions China Energy as the world’s largest power company with more than 200,000 employees.