Dear Secretary Perry:
Congratulations on a productive initial six months as Secretary of Energy. As you continue your work to advance pro-energy policies for the American people, please know you have a partner in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Energy Institute and the broader energy industry we represent.
As you know well, developing America’s abundant energy resources will increase economic growth and create good-paying jobs for U.S. workers. In that respect, I want to call your attention to a truly unique energy infrastructure opportunity of national importance: an ethane storage hub in the Appalachian region.
It is widely recognized that natural gas production growth in Northern Appalachia’s Marcellus and Utica shale formations over the last decade is driving historic and beneficial changes to U.S. energy and economic security. But America’s energy entrepreneurs are just getting started, and a critical next step in the energy revolution is capitalizing on the enormous downstream manufacturing potential that can be unleashed with infrastructure development that takes advantage of the region’s wealth of ethane and other natural gas liquids (NGLs).