Marcellus Drilling News

Energy Companies | Ethane | Exporting | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | NGLs | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Processing Plants | Range Resources Corp | Statewide PA | Washington County

Range Resources’ Top 10 Wet Gas Wells, New Company Presentation
October 30, 2013October 30, 2013

Yesterday Range Resources released their financial and operations update for third quarter 2013 (see our companion story from today). Nestled in that update is reference to a new company presentation released yesterday as well, available on the Range website. MDN downloaded it (full copy embedded below) and wow! What a presentation it is. This sucker is loaded with useful charts, maps, bullet points and more. Range has done the industry (and their investors) a great service with this presentation.

Below we will highlight some of our favorite “don’t miss it” slides from the presentation, so you know which ones to zero in on right away. However, the one slide many will want to view first is the list of Range’s Top 10 Liquids Rich (“wet gas”) wells. That slide lists the wells and their locations (hint: they’re all found in a single PA county), initial production levels, production mix (how much oil, NGLs, gas), lateral length, and number of frac stages. With lots of maps and lots of charts, here are some of our favorites, including the Top 10 Wells slide:
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Energy Companies | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Range Resources Corp | Statewide PA

Range Resources 3Q13: Nearing 1 Bcf/d, Rev Up 29%, Costs Down 12%
October 30, 2013October 30, 2013

Range Resources, the heavyweight Marcellus driller that was the very first company to drill a Marcellus well (back in 2004), continues the flurry of third quarter updates with their own yesterday. Range reports that revenues (or cash flow) were up 29% vs one year ago, costs were down 12% vs one year ago, and the Marcellus was their date to the ball and they’re still dancing with her. They also report record production of 960 million cubic feet per day (Mmcf/d)–getting close the one billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) mark.

Range’s most interesting comments (to MDN) are about the Mariner West Project, an ethane pipeline that runs from the Marcellus all the way to Sarnia, Canada. Range is one of the main customers for Mariner West which is due to be “fully operational” in November. However, Range said in early September their first delivery of ethane had already reached Sarnia, which made us scratch our heads (see Sunoco Says Mariner West Opening Soon, but Range Already Using??). After reading Range’s statements below, we now understand that Sunoco Logistics has been testing the new pipeline and it will be fully up to speed sometime in November…
Read More “Range Resources 3Q13: Nearing 1 Bcf/d, Rev Up 29%, Costs Down 12%”
Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Warren County | Wastewater

Waste Treatment, PA DEP Respond to CWA Lawsuit
October 30, 2013October 30, 2013

Yesterday MDN told you about a wastewater treatment plant in Warren, PA that has been sued by Clean Water Action with claims the plant continues to receive, process and dump frack wastewater into the Allegheny River (see CWA Sues/Accuses Waste Treatment Corp of Continued Shale Pollution). Waste Treatment Corporation’s Warren operation was supposed to have stopped that practice in May 2011. The lawsuit says it’s still happening, based on the results of tests from last year by the state Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP).

Both Waste Treatment Corp. and the PA DEP have responded with statements addressing the CWA allegations and lawsuit. Waste Treatment says they did stop processing Marcellus Shale wastewater in 2011. The PA DEP says the agency filed its own lawsuit against Waste Treatment in September of this year. Frankly, it’s not at all clear to MDN what the real facts are in this case–yet. After reading the responses, we have more questions than answers…
Read More “Waste Treatment, PA DEP Respond to CWA Lawsuit”
Beck Energy | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Lease & Royalty Payments | Litigation | Monroe County | Ohio | Utica Shale

Beck Energy Sues OH Attorneys for Lease “Interference”
October 30, 2013October 30, 2013

An interesting court case that landowners in Monroe County, OH with old (30 year-old) non-Utica gas leases will be interested in following. Beck Energy holds many of those old leases (originally signed for an average $50/acre) which allows them to drill vertically into the Clinton sandstone for natural gas. However, the old leases prevent landowners from signing new leases (at much higher signing bonuses) to allow Utica Shale drilling. Apparently some enterprising attorneys have taken up the cause by shopping (i.e. advertising) for plaintiffs and Beck is none to happy about it. Beck has filed a lawsuit against the attorneys and their law firms to stop them from making mischief with “their” leases.

After reading the details of whose done what to whom (below), it seems to MDN no one will come out of this one smelling clean…
Read More “Beck Energy Sues OH Attorneys for Lease “Interference””
Access Midstream Partners | Energy Companies | Energy Services | EnerVest | Harrison County | Industrywide Issues | M3 Midstream | Ohio | Processing Plants | Utica East Ohio Midstream | Utica Shale

Gov. Kasich “Turns the Valves” at Scio Fractionation Plant
October 30, 2013October 30, 2013

MDN told you that Ohio Gov. John Kasich went foreigner-hunting on Monday and was glad to find no “foreigners” (i.e. out-of-state workers) lurking around the Hickory Bend processing plant in Mahoning County that he was visiting for a dedication ceremony (see OH Gov. Kasich Dedicates Hickory Bend Plant, No Foreigners Found). While he was in the general neighborhood, Gov. Kasich also slipped over to Harrison County on Monday to check out the Scio fractionation plant (now being called the Harrison Hub), to see if there were any foreigners hiding there. Nope! A banner day for Gov. Kasich!

The Scio plant, built by the Utica East Ohio Buckeye joint venture (M3 Midstream, Access Midstream and EnerVest) held a “turn the valves” dedication on Monday to take advantage of Kasich being in the area. Phase 2 of the plant went online in July adding an additional 45,000 barrels per day of NGL processing capacity. Phase 3 is now being build and due to go online in early 2014. Highlights from the Kasich visit and more details about the plant from UEO officials…
Read More “Gov. Kasich “Turns the Valves” at Scio Fractionation Plant”
Energy Services | Enterprise Products Partners | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines

ATEX Ethane Pipeline to Begin Pumping Dec 2013, Ahead of Schedule
October 30, 2013October 30, 2013

Good news for drillers in the Marcellus and Utica Shale “wet gas” areas. The Appalachia to Texas (or ATEX) Express $1.3 billion ethane pipeline being built by Enterprise Products Partners from the Marcellus and Utica Shale region to the U.S. Gulf Coast, will begin flowing ethane this December, way ahead of schedule.

Speaking at the Platts Appalachian Oil and Gas Conference in Pittsburgh yesterday, an ATEX official said the ATEX is “nearly ready to go”…
Read More “ATEX Ethane Pipeline to Begin Pumping Dec 2013, Ahead of Schedule”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Regulation | Transco

Anti-Drillers Try to Slow New Transco Pipeline Near Princeton, NJ
October 30, 2013October 30, 2013

Several so-called environmental groups, including the odious Food & Water Watch, have filed a notice of intervention with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in an attempt to stop Transco from building 1.3 miles of new natural gas pipeline near Princeton, NJ.

FERC now has to review the objection and render a decision, a process that will further delay the project, which of course is the intent…
Read More “Anti-Drillers Try to Slow New Transco Pipeline Near Princeton, NJ”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Regulation | Research

Congressional Research Service Issues Updated Report on Fracking
October 30, 2013October 30, 2013

From time to time our brilliant leaders in Washington need an update on a given topic, a “Cliff Notes” summary they can scan to supposedly bring themselves up to date on a given weighty and pressing issue. Where do they turn? To their very own Congressional Research Service, of course. The CRS has been producing reports for, well, as long as there’s been a CRS (predating MDN’s Jim Willis’ time on Capitol Hill in the 1980s). Last week an updated report was issued by the CRS titled “Hydraulic Fracturing: Selected Legal Issues” (full copy embedded below). The previous version of the very same report, R43152, was issued in July (see New Congressional Report: How Federal Laws Govern Fracking).

Since these reports only get created and issued when requested by a member of Congress, we’re guessing someone requested an update. Which makes us nervous because the federal government should have NO role in the regulation of fracking (Constitutionally it belongs to the individual states, not the federal government). We don’t know what may have changed between July and today, but we include the new version of the report below for your reading and scanning pleasure…
Read More “Congressional Research Service Issues Updated Report on Fracking”
Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Wed, Oct 30, 2013
October 30, 2013October 31, 2013

The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading:
Read More “Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Wed, Oct 30, 2013”