$3 Billion Doddridge County Power Plant Locks In 10-Year Natural Gas Supply With EQT

WEST UNION, W.Va. — One of the largest planned energy projects in West Virginia has secured its natural gas supply for its first decade of operation.

Competitive Power Ventures announced that EQT will supply the entire anticipated natural gas requirement for the proposed 2,100-megawatt CPV Shay Energy Center in Doddridge County under a 10-year agreement that will begin when the plant enters commercial operation.

The scale of the agreement is significant.

EQT is expected to supply approximately 325,000 dekatherms of natural gas per day, while CPV estimates the plant would consume more than 100 billion cubic feet of natural gas each year.

That would create a major new source of natural gas demand in the heart of Appalachia and further connect two industries already central to north-central West Virginia’s economy: natural gas production and electric generation.

“This is a strong partnership and sets the foundation for the project’s commercialization,” CPV President Peter Podurgiel said. “Since first announcing our plans to develop CPV Shay, we have understood the critical need for new generation that continues to increase in the PJM region.”

EQT is one of the largest natural gas producers in Appalachia, while Doddridge County sits within one of West Virginia’s most active natural gas-producing regions.

The agreement is also structured differently from a traditional fixed-price natural gas contract.

EQT said the price it receives will be linked to electricity prices in the PJM power market, giving the company greater exposure to growing electricity demand rather than relying only on Appalachian natural gas pricing.

EQT President and CEO Toby Rice said the deal is another sign that significant new natural gas demand is beginning to develop closer to the company’s Appalachian operations.

“We also announced another long-term gas supply agreement supporting a new 2-gigawatt power generation facility in the heart of West Virginia, further validating our view that the next wave of natural gas demand growth is emerging in our backyard,” Rice said.

The agreement comes as utilities, grid operators and energy developers prepare for significant increases in electricity demand across the region.

Growth from data centers, artificial intelligence, manufacturing and other large electricity users has placed increasing attention on the need for additional power generation throughout the PJM regional electric grid, which includes West Virginia and portions of 12 other states and the District of Columbia.

CPV is developing Shay as large-scale, dispatchable generation capable of producing electricity when it is needed by the grid.

The project has grown since it was first announced.

CPV selected Doddridge County for the facility in 2022, initially describing an approximately 1,800-megawatt project representing an investment of more than $3 billion.

Current plans call for approximately 2,100 megawatts of generation capacity, enough electricity to serve the equivalent of about 1.8 million homes.

The West Virginia Public Service Commission approved a siting certificate for the project in 2024, along with a nine-mile, 500-kilovolt transmission line that would connect the facility to the regional electric grid.

CPV currently estimates construction could begin in 2027, with commercial operation targeted for 2031.

The company estimates the project could employ approximately 2,000 workers during peak construction and support 50 to 60 full-time jobs once operational.

The facility is also being designed and permitted with the option to incorporate carbon capture technology. CPV has said a future system could capture as much as 95 percent of the plant’s carbon emissions.

The new EQT agreement does not mean construction will begin immediately. The project remains under development and still faces additional financing, equipment procurement, construction and grid-related milestones.

It does, however, answer one of the biggest operational questions surrounding a natural gas power plant of this size: securing a long-term fuel supply.

If completed, CPV Shay would create demand for more than 100 billion cubic feet of natural gas each year while adding approximately 2,100 megawatts of new electricity generation.

For Doddridge County and north-central West Virginia, the project would represent another major energy investment while creating a large new market for natural gas in the heart of Appalachian production.