“Bomb Cyclone” Storm Highlights Costs Of State, Local Bans On Shale Development

The Metals Service Center Institute is a member of the Energy Equipment and Infrastructure Alliance (EEIA), which advocates for full development of shale resources, while protecting the environment, health, and safety. According to EEIA, consumers pay handsomely when cities and states ban shale development.

For example, according to Natural Gas Intelligence, which tracks natural gas pricing at the major trading points throughout the country, natural gas at the Algonquin City Gate (which serves Boston), and which is subject to a ban, was priced at $33 per million BTU on December 26. Consumers in the rest of the United States, meanwhile, were paying less than $3. Prices in the Algonquin City Gate were 943 percent higher than they were during previous month.

In New York, where shale development also is banned, as the “bomb cyclone” storm descended last week on New York City residents were paying $175 per million BTU, all-time record for natural gas prices anywhere. Natural Gas Intelligence blamed the price on the ban, arguing, “The conditions driving [the] exorbitant cash prices appeared to be a perfect storm of widespread weather-driven demand and pipeline constraints.”