Ascent Res. 3Q: Drilled 19 Wells, Produced 1.98 Bcfe/d, Lost $1.3B
Ascent Resources, originally founded as American Energy Partners by gas legend Aubrey McClendon, is a privately-held company that focuses 100% on the Ohio Utica Shale. Ascent is Ohio’s largest natural gas producer and the 8th largest natural gas producer in the U.S. The company issued its third quarter 2021 update yesterday. The company produced 1.98 billion cubic feet equivalent per day (Bcfe/d) during 3Q–nearly all of it, 1.83 MMcf/d–was natural gas, the rest was oil and NGLs. Ascent generated $28 million of free cash flow, but like other M-U drillers, hedging bets on derivatives resulted in a huge loss of $1.3 billion for the quarter.
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In April of this year, Northeast Natural Energy (NNE), a West Virginia driller, announced it had enrolled itself in both the Equitable Origin and MiQ certification programs to prove the natural gas it produces is “responsibly sourced gas” (see 
The current futures contract for NYMEX natural gas priced at the Henry Hub trading location, called the “front month” (of December), was down for the third trading day in a row yesterday. The December contract fell 45 cents (8.26%) to $4.98 per MMBtu–the first time it has slipped under $5 since October 21. Where might the price be heading next?
In August 2020 when Range Resources, the very first company to sink a Marcellus well back in 2004, issued its annual Corporate Sustainability Report (CSR), the company laid out a goal of achieving so-called net-zero carbon emissions by 2025 (see 
Piedmont Natural Gas, which is owned by Duke Energy, plans to build a small, 12-mile natural gas pipeline in northern Greenville County, SC. The company has about 90,000 customers in Greenville County right now and expects to add about 44,000 more over the next 20 years. Piedmont tends to run short on natural gas supplies now on the coldest days during winter. The pipeline will help meet demand now and in the future. Piedmont has just announced the route the pipeline will take, which is parallel to State Route 290, minimizing disturbance to the environment. Yet environmentalist wackos are opposed due to an irrational hatred of fossil fuels.
Three weeks ago the total number of permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica was 22. Two weeks ago it fell to 9. Last week the numbers picked up somewhat, with 16 new permits issued, breaking down as: 12 permits issued in Pennsylvania, 2 permits issued in Ohio, and 2 permits issued in West Virginia.
MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: U.S. Senate candidate Arkoosh calls for end to fracking in Pennsylvania; NATIONAL: EIA report sends crude higher; U.S. energy services sector adds 17,000-plus jobs; Zero-emission natural gas power plants are coming to US; INTERNATIONAL: OPEC says to Biden, if you want more oil, pump it yourself.