Appalachia hub gets a lift

An ambitious proposal to invest in infrastructure that would allow a local petrochemical industry to grow out of Appalachia’s vast shale gas resources won preliminary support from the federal government. Appalachia Development Group says it has been invited to submit a Part II application for a $1.9 billion loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Energy to build its proposed storage and trading hub, which would provide storage and pipeline transportation for petrochemical raw materials and products such as ethane, propane, and ethylene. Despite sitting on top of the Marcellus Shale formation, the region hasn’t attracted investment like the Gulf Coast has, largely because it lacks the same extensive petrochemical infrastructure. In May, the American Chemistry Council, a trade group, issued a report that said a $10 billion storage hub could attract $36 billion in chemical projects and generate 100,000 jobs.