2017 is off to a truly amazing start when it comes to shale-related news for the Buckeye State. Week after week we are hearing positive news about investment and job creation coming to the state — and it’s all thanks to fracking. From pipeline projects, natural gas-fired power plants and drilling programs signaling a return to exploration and production, it’s “all good,” as Ohio Congressman Tim Ryan recently said.

This week was no exception, as the Youngstown Business Journal reported steel manufacturing is coming back online. In an interview with EID, newly elected state Sen. Sean O’Brien (D) — whose district is an area of Ohio that has been heavily impacted by the ancillary industries that support oil and gas development — credited shale development for the investment coming to his district and emphasized that 2017 is off to a “great” start when it comes to the industry driving economic growth in the state,

“We’re starting to see significant economic change in the valley due largely to oil and gas development here in Ohio. This is a positive sign for the entire region. There’s no question energy development in Ohio is off to a great start this year. For my district, the state of Ohio and the country, the return of natural gas exploration and the ancillary industries that support it are critical to bringing back middle-class jobs. This week alone, we have the announcement of return to work and new hiring’s at Vallourec; in Lordstown, the announcement of the construction of a second gas fired power plant. These two projects will create hundreds of good paying jobs, billions of dollars in investments and will have a huge impact on the area.  Both of these projects are a direct result from what is happening with the oil and gas here in Ohio.  So from an economic and energy standpoint, 2017 is looking very promising”

Yes, it has been confirmed that an Ohio steel manufacturing company has announced that are indeed hiring, and it’s full steam ahead as they look to fill orders created by the demand for steel pipe used by the oil and gas industry. All eyes are on Vallourec Star, as the company has announced its plans to ramp up production of steel pipe used in o...