Communities across Appalachia are seeing new jobs and incredible investment stemming from a new influx of oil and natural gas related operations. As  the development of the Marcellus and Utica/Point Pleasant Shale formations continues to expand,  new projects –  like the recently announced processing and polyethylene manufacturing plants – are coming online to create marketable products from the incredible amount of natural gas being produced in the region.

In Ohio, the construction of a cryogenic plant will begin later in 2013 in Leesville . The plant is expected to bring  hundreds of construction jobs and 25 to 30 permanent jobs once it goes online in June of 2014.  The plant is part of a project containing another cryogenic plant in Kensington in Columbiana County and a fractionation facility in Scio in Harrison County.  The project is a joint venture of M3 Midstream, Access Midstream, and EnerVest Energy Partners.  Cryogenic processing facilities subject natural gas to low temperatures and recover more than 90 percent of natural gas liquids (NGLs). Once the Kensington and Leesville facilities have completed that process, the NGLs will be piped to the Scio fractionation facility which should come online in June of this year.

The Leesville facility will be part of the Utica East Ohio Buckeye complex, where the three partners are making an initial investment of $900 million.  Ground is expected to be broken in late summer or early fall of this year.  The location was chosen because they needed one cryogenic location in the north and one in the south.  The plant was originally to be constructed in Scio, but the partners recently signed an agreement with Dominion East Ohio Gas, giving them access to their pipelines.  Leesville made sense because the location is close to the pipelines.

George Francisco, executive vice president of M3, explained how the location benefits the companies in a recent interview with the Canton Repository.

It’s strategic for us. It extends our footprint to the south, and it enhances the efficiency of our overall system to have two plants at either end—(Plant construction to create jobs in Leesville, 2/19/13)

The move – and the jobs that come with it – is welcome news to the residents of Leesville, including  Mayor Ed Alsept.

I’m all for it. We need growth in this area. If we get 20 to 30 jobs, that’s a good thing. (Plant construction to create jobs in Leesville, 2/19/13)

Not only is the plant bringing jobs to Leesville and Carroll County, but also opportunities for infrastructure.  The village is currently trying to build sanitary sewer system. Since the plant would mean more customers for the sewer system, prices should be lower for residents.

I’ve heard they would need infrastructure run up there. I’ve talked with our engineering firm, and we would have the capacity to take that—(Plant construction to create jobs in Leesville, 2/19/13)

Since the plant would mean more customers for the sewer system, prices should be lower for residents in yet another example of the far-reaching benefits shale development is bringing to the area.

It’s good news that we’re getting a Midstream plant in the county, such as water and sewer. These are good-paying jobs, and they should all become local jobs. - Amy Rutledge, director of the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce (Plant construction to create jobs in Leesville,2/19/13)

Just over the river in West Virginia, Appalachian Resins Inc. announced they are seeking to place a polyethylene (PE) manufacturing plant at with a targeted construction date in late 2013.  The plant, which will be located south of Wheeling, is being created to take advantage of the resources in the Marcellus and Utica/Point Pleasant formations. Included in their plans is the construction of a small cracker plant, a project that will bring additional construction jobs along with the ability to “crack” ethane, crude and liquids coming from the area’s shale production to extract ethylene.

The Appalachian Resins Inc. project will bring $500 million dollars in investment, with the plant being designed to hold the capacity to produce 500 million pounds of PE per year. This feedstock, the most widely used plastic in the world, is used to create some of the most common, everyday items we use in our lives. Plastic bottles,  cling wrap, kitchen utensils  and plastic bags – all are polyethylene products.

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