| By Jeff Jenkins/Metro News
PARKERSBURG, W.Va. - Without a lot of fanfare the momentum continues to build toward that ethane cracker plant planned for Wood County.
The governor's office made an annuncement late Friday that Texas-based Range Resources has agreed to supply ethane for the project.
"This announcement marks another major step forward toward the development of the ASCENT cracker complex," Gov. Tomblin said in a prepared statement.
"That will mean thousands of construction jobs at ASCENT itself; and potentially thousands more jobs turning ASCENT's polyethylene into products for consumers and businesses worldwide. I salute Range Resources and ASCENT for their commitment to this transformative project."
State Commerce Secretary Keith Burdette also praised the development.
"The administration has worked hard to convince industry of the importance of committing some of the resources extracted from underneath our state to manufacturing projects like ASCENT," Secretary Burdette said.
"The leadership of Range Resources is important to that effort. The announcement means West Virginia natural gas will stay here and create West Virginia jobs. We're well on our way to making our abundance of shale gas the foundation for decades of prosperity in our state." | 
