A delegation of researchers and policy analysts from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) are exchanging ideas and plans for expanding and improving West Virginia’s potential for natural gas-related product development at the eighth Marcellus and Manufacturing Development Conference today and tomorrow at the Marriott at Waterfront Place in Morgantown, West Virginia.

The event, sponsored by the West Virginia Manufacturers Association, was created to allow companies interested in locating new facilities or expanding existing operations in West Virginia to gain an expanded understanding of the potential for new product development in the state.

DOE Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy Steven Winberg will address the conference at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, April 9. Winberg has 39 years of experience in the energy industry and participated in a range of policy and energy initiatives. He has extensive experience in numerous energy technologies, including advanced fossil energy combustion, coal-to-liquids, fluidized bed combustion, fuel cells, alternative fuel vehicles and carbon utilization. NETL is the research arm of the DOE Office of Fossil Energy.

According to Rebecca R. McPhail, president of the West Virginia Manufacturers Association, Appalachia is well situated for a regional extraction-consumption strategy for the Utica, Marcellus, and associated shale gas plays that focuses on long-term opportunity. The conference attendees are learning about West Virginia’s advantages, including tax incentives, environmental permitting, workforce development, availability of employees and site options. Attendees can also network with West Virginia leaders, manufactures and suppliers, including experts from NETL.

Specific agenda topics are addressing best management practices for pipeline, oil and gas development; future demand and pricing for natural gas markets; how natural gas is making renewables feasible; and why companies are choosing the Marcellus region for development.

McPhail said she believes infrastructure investment can create a readily available single-source supply of ethane for consumers, predictability in pricing, and distribution channels that promote a broader geographic use and investment that could benefit the businesses and citizens of Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

NETL, the only DOE national laboratory devoted to fossil energy research, brings decades of research expertise and policy analysis to the discussion. An early pioneer of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling processes, the Laboratory has remained on the cutting edge of efforts to safely and productively expand oil and gas production throughout the nation.

For example, NETL has partnered with Northeast Natural Energy and The Ohio State University to support the Marcellus Shale Energy and Environmental Laboratory (MSEEL) in West Virginia to provide a long-term field site to develop and validate new knowledge and technology to improve recovery efficiency and minimize environmental implications of unconventional resource development.

“Listening to public and private sector representatives explain challenges, needs and opportunities, and sharing our own expertise is all a part of what NETL does for the nation,” NETL Director Brian Anderson, Ph.D. said.