WPX Pays $1.2M Fine to Settle 2012 Case of Leaky PA Impoundment
In July 2014, MDN told you the water wells for two of three families living near a WPX recycled frack wastewater impoundment (i.e. “pond”), near Ligonier (Westmoreland County), PA, were determined to have been contaminated by that impoundment. That is, the Kalp impoundment leaked into the ground, according to the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP), and that caused a long-term problem with those wells (see WPX Wastewater Impoundment Source of Water Contamination in W PA?, and our follow-up story, Important Update on WPX Energy Leaking Impoundment in SWPA). A month later the DEP later made a final determination that the third family’s well, the elderly Ken and Mildred Geary, was also affected and that WPX will need to find a permanent water replacement solution for them too (see DEP Says WPX Needs to Replace 3rd Water Supply in SW PA). From the beginning, WPX owned up to the problem and worked hard to make it right by installing water treatment systems–for five (total) affected water wells. The Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) continues to monitor the water for the affected wells. However, the DEP is now ready to close the door on this now three year-old case, by assessing WPX with a $1.2 million fine and a requirement that they complete a remediation of soil in the area that may still be affected…
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The legislative session for West Virginia is in full swing–a session that lasts for 60 non-contiguous days at the beginning of each year. This year’s session opened on Jan. 11 and will conclude on Apr. 8th. As MDN previously reported, perhaps the biggest energy-related issue for this year’s session will NOT be (as it has in five previous sessions) a bill on forced pooling. Instead, the West Virginia Oil and Natural Gas Association (WVONGA) is pushing a legislation on co-tenancy and joint development (see 
Last September MDN reported on a midstream deal with major implications for the Marcellus/Utica: Canadian pipeline operator Enbridge Inc. announced an all-stock deal to buy out pipeline operator Spectra Energy, based in Houston, for $28 billion (see 
Stone Energy is an independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company (E&P) headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana, drilling mainly in the Gulf of Mexico but also has (or rather had) a presence in the Marcellus/Utica Shale with 86,000 acres of leases. Stone quit actively drilling in the Marcellus in 2015, and filed for bankruptcy last October. As part of the bankruptcy filing, Stone signed a deal with Tug Hill to sell those 86,000 acres to Tug Hill for $350 million (see 
In December, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) threw a little cold water on two important pipeline upgrades to carry more Marcellus/Utica gas to southern markets. A final environmental impact statement (EIS) was due from FERC for both the Mountaineer XPress and Gulf XPress projects no later than April 28, 2017. FERC said that the deadline would slip by three months due to reroutes and additional environment information requested (see 
After idling most of its rigs in the Marcellus/Utica during 2016, Southwestern Energy, one of our regions biggest drillers, is restarting rigs and drilling new wells in 2017–according to announcements made by the company over the past several days. Southwestern issued its 2016 update, and 2017 guidance, late last week. Some of the most exciting news to come from Southwestern came on the earnings call last Friday. Southwestern CEO Bill Way said this: “We are very encouraged by the early results of our first Utica well [in Marshall County, WV] and as a result have accelerated the timing for our second test well located in Washington County, Pennsylvania, which was spud earlier this month. And you will recall that we had originally planned to begin our Utica testing in 2018, but results from wells and circling our position and our first well, provided us with the confidence to accelerate this activity.” Although rigs got idled in 2016, it doesn’t mean there was no drilling. Last year Southwestern invested a total of $623 million in drilling, and drilled 62 wells, completed 86 wells, placed 85 wells to sales and had 135 wells in progress. Of the 135 wells in progress at year-end, 73 were located in Northeast Appalachia, 42 in Southwest Appalachia and 20 in the Fayetteville Shale. On the down side, the company reports losing $2.8 billion (mostly a paper loss for “impairments”–write-downs of asset value). But that’s a vast improvement over losing $4.7 billion in 2015…
Earlier this month Rover Pipeline, a $3.7 billion, 711-mile Marcellus/Utica natural gas pipeline that will run from PA, WV and eastern OH through OH into Michigan and eventually into Canada, received its final authorization from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Friday (see 
Across the Keystone State (i.e. Pennsylvania), the shale revolution is “boosting agriculture,” says a farm expert. How? By providing new sources of capital (cash) to buy new equipment, more livestock, fix buildings, etc. Shale is also lowering the cost of fuel and fertilizer for farmers. And it provides jobs for members of farming families–bringing in an important new income stream. It is not an overstatement to say that shale is literally saving the family farm in PA…
For those in the Pittsburgh region, there is still time to register and attend this year’s Oil & Gas Awards Northeast Industry Summit, being held on March 2 in Pittsburgh. MDN editor Jim Willis will moderate two of the panel discussions at the event. Jim invites Marcellus Drilling News readers in the Pittsburgh orbit to attend the Summit–for FREE. 
The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading. In today’s lineup: OH hotels lose business with drilling downturn, slowly regaining; PA’s natgas industry poised for a rebound; confirmation votes for Energy, Interior picks coming this week; second coming of shale even more powerful than the first; U.S. drillers add rigs for 6th week in a row; oil production increasing in 2017; and more!