Research suggests improvements needed to meet anticipated demand
WHEELING—Growth of the Ohio Valley’s shale industry recently led officials in the region to participate in an informational meeting with the Route 2/I-68 Development Authority, an appointed body seeking an estimated $1 billion in state and federal funding to widen State Route 2 and extend Interstate 68 to better serve the industry’s growing needs and stimulate economic development.
At the meeting, authority Executive Director Bob Miller highlighted the large investments currently being made in West Virginia by the shale gas industry. He noted one energy company’s $4.5 billion investment as an example of the industry’s commitment to the region. He called for the state to support these commitments with improved infrastructure. “If they have cheap energy and the raw materials that are here, we need to build infrastructure or … they might not come here,” Miller told the group.
Industry growth is expected to continue within the Ohio Valley for the foreseeable future. According to an IHS Markit study released in March, “The Marcellus and Utica shale plays are some of the largest natural gas resources in the world and underlay the Shale Crescent USA region of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.” As a result, “IHS Markit forecasts that this region will supply 45% of the nation’s natural gas production by 2040.”