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    PA Atty General Sues Chesapeake Energy, Williams for Royalty Fraud

    lawsuitPennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane, who has been indicted on numerous felony charges and likely to be forced from office any day now, filed a lawsuit yesterday against Chesapeake Energy in Bradford County Court over the issue of shorting landowners out of royalties. What every story we’ve seen (thus far) misses is this: The lawsuit also names Williams as participating in the scheme to defraud landowners out of royalty payments. So this is not just a Chesapeake story, it’s a Williams story too. Landowner groups are “hailing” the decision, jumping up and down with glee. Let us throw a little cold water on your face. Note to landowners and the groups that represent them: When you (metaphorically) crawl into bed with Kathleen Kane, you’re crawling into bed with a rattlesnake. Sooner or later she’s going to turn on you too. Mark it down. It’s in her nature. With that disclaimer in place, we’ll break down the news for you, and show you a copy of the lawsuit Kane’s office filed yesterday…
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    1.1 Billion Barrels of Chesapeake Oil Disappear with a Keystroke

    Accounting is the “language of business.” Sometimes it appears to be spoken in a foreign tongue that is hard to understand. In addition to Chesapeake Energy’s major problems with lawsuits over royalties (see today’s top story about PA Attorney General Kane suing them), Chesapeake’s claim of how much oil (and gas) it can extract from its leased acreage, an important number on which loans are made, will decrease by an astonishing 45% this week. Poof! Nearly half what Chessy says is in the ground and available to extract just disappeared. How can that be? Accounting. In order to make a claim that “we have X barrels of oil, or X billion cubic feet of gas available to extract,” you have to be able to sell what you extract *at a profit* or it makes no sense to extract it and sell it. The formula drillers must use to prove they can extract it at a profit is set by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Because the price of oil and gas is low and not going up any time sooner, many companies, including Chesapeake, must now re-evaluate their numbers and restate their claims of how much inventory they have. And nearly half of Chessy’s inventory is now gone, with a few keystrokes and a spreadsheet formula…
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    Phys.org, Others Run 3 Yr-Old New York Frack Study as New News

    We found this one kind of amusing, and instructive, illustrating how anti-drillers unthinkingly get their “news.” On September 26, 2012 (yes, over three years ago) Syracuse University issued a press release about a program begun earlier in 2012 called Project SWIFT (Shale-Water Interaction Forensic Tools). The aim of the research project was to baseline test water wells for homeowners in New York State so when/if fracking arrives, there is solid scientific evidence for the condition of water before and then after fracking. The study also, as it turns out, innovated a few new techniques, including a method to measure salinity in water, the use of iodine as a tracer when testing, etc. Here’s the thing–the study was concluded in 2014 and of course in 2014 Gov. Cuomo banned fracking for the foreseeable future in the Empire State. So it’s all over and done with. No need for more testing. The project ran its course. But what’s this? Several authoritative “science” sites all of a sudden re-ran the original Syracuse University press release about Project SWFIT–with this week’s date on it! Word for word, same press release as 3+ years ago–slapping a new date from this week on it. One of the sites was EurekAlert!. Another was Phys.org. Their postings created a cascading or domino effect with a number of enviro sites picking it up and running it as new news. Egg on face anyone?…
    Read More “Phys.org, Others Run 3 Yr-Old New York Frack Study as New News”

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    Federal EPA’s New Ozone Standard: Air Not Cleaner, PA Jobs Killer

    In the name of protecting us, the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues rogue actions in regulating the oil and gas industry–against the express dictates of the U.S. Constitution. The latest violation from the EPA is a new regulation lowering ozone levels. As David Williams from the Taxpayers Protection Alliance and a Pennsylvania native explains below, the “simple” act of lowering the ozone standard from 75 parts per BILLION to 70 ppb won’t do much at all to actually clean the air, but will directly result is lost jobs in Pennsylvania…
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    What’s Up with Carrizo Top Mgmt Continued Selling of Co. Stock?

    Carrizo Oil & Gas CEO Chip Johnson continues to sell off his company stock. On June 1, Johnson sold 24,661 shares of company stock for $1.2 million. A few days later, on June 5, he sold another 6,000 shares for $309,000. Then again on September 8, Johnson sold another 6,000 shares netting him $217,000. And on October 5, Johnson sold yet another tranche of 6,000 shares, this time for $227,040 (see Carrizo O&G CEO Chip Johnson Continues to Sell His Company Stock). In an “Oops, I did it again,” Johnson sold another tranche of 6,000 shares earlier this week–this time for $193,440. That makes the grand total of Johnson’s stock sales 48,661 shares since June for a grand total of $2.1 million. But Johnson isn’t the only Carrizo top dog to sell. Others have sold their shares, including board member Roger Ramsey who this week sold 1,000 shares for $33,310. This is the third time–that we know of–that Ramsey has sold stock in the company he helps oversee (see Carrizo CEO Chip Johnson Sells Another 6K Shares of Stock and Carrizo Oil & Gas “Insiders” Continue to Sell Company Stock). We have to ask, what in the world is going on at Carrizo that top management continues to sell off their stock?…
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    Virginia Anti Groups Pressure Gov McAuliffe to Shut Down Fracking

    A group of virulent anti-drilling groups, including Clean Water Action, the Virginia Sierra Club and Shenandoah Riverkeeper, are pushing Virginia’s Democrat Governor Terry McAuliffe to halt any new fracking permits in the state until they can muster enough public support (through their lying public relations campaigns) to permanently shut down fracking in the Old Dominion, like has been done in the Empire State (i.e. New York). Said groups, which always position their “requests” as even-handed and really the only wise thing to do–have pulled this stunt in state after state after state. Fracking is a miracle. Fracking is safe. Fracking produces jobs. Fracking does not pollute water, air, land, etc. But you wouldn’t know that by the propaganda issued by these disgusting groups. We hope McAuliffe doesn’t cave to their pressure the way man-child Andy Cuomo did…
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    Paris Climate Change Hoaxers Stick Fingers in Ears, Holler La La La

    More news from Paris and the COP21 Climate Conference going on there. You might think scientists would want to know if other scientists have evidence that your hypotheses and theories need to be modified a bit–challenging your theories based on real, actual science. Any good scientist welcomes such a challenge because in the end, either your theory was off-base and you can make it better/more accurate, or your theory was correct all along and you can show the world such is the case. However, the so-called scientists at the Paris Climate Conference want to revoke the credentials/pass to attend for anyone who does not “believe” as they do in the theory that mankind is catastrophically causing Mother Earth to warm up. Can you believe that?! This has gone so far beyond science it’s no longer funny. This is the equivalent of the Catholic Church persecuting Galileo for abandoning the geocentric (earth-at-the-center) view of the solar system for the heliocentric (sun-at-the-center) view. The warmers are the Catholic Church of the Fifteenth Century. If you cross us, if you disagree with us (and use science to do so), you are dirt. You are nothing. You will be expelled. In fact, some of these zealots want to put those of us who don’t believe in man-made global warming in jail (see RIT Professor Says Jail Those Who Don’t Believe in Global Warming). It’s like these climate change hoaxers stick their fingers in their ears and holler, “La la la la la, I can’t HEAR you!” Here’s the latest from Paris, where everything BUT science is being discussed…
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    Spoiled Rotten Kids Disrupt Paris Climate Conf over Fracked Gas

    Captain PlanetThe United Nations COP21 Climate Conference in Paris is attracting some of the craziest of the climate crazies. And they’re from the northeast, no less! A group of college kids–know-nothings–interrupted a panel discussion that included Vermont’s Democrat Governor Peter Shumlin because, they say, the guv is supporting a pipeline that will bring “fracked gas” to the state. We call them clinically insane. If they knew how many pipelines already exist beneath Vermont soil that flow natural gas, we expect they would have an aneurysm. During the panel two of the know-nothings stood up and unfurled a big banner that said Fracked Gas = Climate Change, complete with a kindergartenish drawing that depicts fractures reaching up into the water table (which doesn’t happen–ever). In our day and age of blaming your asinine actions on your parents, or your teachers, or even on cartoons–we’ll blame it on the cartoons. We expect these kids grew up watching Captain Planet on Saturday mornings and believed it hook, line and sinker. Here’s the story of spoiled rotten kids behaving like…spoiled rotten kids….
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    Bernie Sanders Energy Plan: Ban Fossil Fuels, Turn Thermostat Down

    We always smile when we hear the name “Bernie Sanders.” He’s a hapless old idiot. A commie. Someone totally out of his league in running for president. But you know, he has a certain appeal–interestingly enough, with young people. The young people who like Sanders were no doubt mis-educated–not taught of the wonders and superiority of capitalism and freedom over communism/socialism/tyranny. But whatever. Bernie has a large following, which makes it somewhat scary when he announces an energy plan that includes banning all fossil fuels. Ole Bernie thinks we can stick up a windmill about every 150 feet, and solar panels on every home’s roof, and that’ll do it. We’ll be able to “save Mom Earth” by ending our “dependency” on evil, nasty fossil fuels. What dopes–Bernie AND his supporters…
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  • Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Thu, Dec 10, 2015

    The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading. In today’s lineup: Gulfport dominates Utica production; shale’s future discussed in Cambridge; Atlantic Coast pipeline told to reroute around forest; global crude supply & demand thru 2025; stop drilling or it’s a race to the bottom; Shell juggling projects; Ford F150 keeps natgas truck option; and more!
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