The Big Bust: 2026 Data Show Petrochemicals Have Been a Bad Deal for Beaver County
Beaver County, Pennsylvania is a real-time case study in the local economic impacts of petrochemical development.
Shell’s Q4 Financial Flop Underscores the False Promises of Petrochemical Investment
Shell’s “downturn in Monaca,” along with the company’s weakest quarterly profit in nearly 5 years, shows why petrochemicals are a bad bet.
2025 Ends With Another Blow to Appalachia’s Bygone Dreams of a Petrochemical Renaissance
Analysts predict another difficult year for Appalachian petrochemicals as a global overbuild and poor demand continue to drive down profits.
Desperately Seeking an Exit
Market headwinds are intensifying. Even after selling off millions in PA tax credits, Shell is unlikely to recoup its $14B petrochemical investment.
An Economic Impact Analysis of a Planned Plastics Pyrolysis Facility in Follansbee, West Virginia
A pyrolysis project in Follansbee, WV is unlikely to create many jobs or generate much tax revenue for local and state budgets, modeling suggests.
A Month from Hell
Key Points Northern Appalachia has, for a decade and a half, premised its economic development strategies on a strategic triad of natural gas, petrochemicals, and most recently hydrogen. Natural gas expansion has proven itself incapable of delivering on promises of jobs and economic prosperity. Meanwhile petrochemicals and hydrogen don’t seem capable of getting off the […]
Giving Away the Future
Billions in ITEP tax incentives have failed to grow jobs and personal incomes in Louisiana.
Measuring the ‘Cost’ of a Disaster
A lot has happened since ORVI originally published our post on the disastrous toxic train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. Cleanup efforts are still underway by the railroad operator, Norfolk Southern, but they have raised new questions about the safe transport of contaminated soil and water on public roadways to state disposal sites. New water […]
The East Palestine train derailment is petrochemical harm at its worst. For the industry, it’s a cost of doing business.
On Friday, February 3, a Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous petrochemicals derailed near East Palestine, Ohio, sparking what may be one of the worst environmental disasters in US history. Thousands of fish have turned up dead in nearby waterways; a plume of toxins is flowing down the Ohio River, and officials are still releasing […]
Appalachia is Fueling a Global Petrochemical Buildout
Although the world is awash in plastics and other petrochemical products, the industry is planning for decades more growth. Much of the expansion could be driven by Appalachia.