M-U Rigs Even @ 37; Haynesville Up 1 @ 56; Nat’l Up 1 @ 544
Last week, the combined Marcellus/Utica Baker Hughes rig count remained at 37 active rigs for the fifth week in a row. The M-U’s chief competitor, the Haynesville, added one rig and now runs 56 active rigs, some 19 more than the M-U (bummer). The national count added one rig last week and now operates 544 rigs. Baker Hughes said oil rigs fell by three to 407 last week, their lowest since February, while gas rigs rose by four to 129, their highest since early April. Other miscellaneous rigs held steady at eight. Read More “M-U Rigs Even @ 37; Haynesville Up 1 @ 56; Nat’l Up 1 @ 544”
In March, the Trump administration announced “South Mon,” a $17 billion natural gas-fueled facility in southwestern Pennsylvania intended to expand domestic energy production (see 
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has extended three temporary air permits for the Shell ethane cracker plant in Monaca, PA, which would have expired on April 28, 2026. The DEP did the same thing in May 2024 (see 
The highly functional and responsible Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC), unlike its dysfunctional and irresponsible counterpart, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC), continues to support the shale energy industry by approving water withdrawals and consumptive use requests for responsible, safe shale drilling. The SRBC published a notice in the April 25th Pennsylvania Bulletin that the Executive Director of the SRBC approved and/or renewed 46 general water use permits in March for individual shale gas well drilling pads in Bradford, Clinton, Elk, Lycoming, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Tioga, and Wyoming counties. 
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is seeking public comment on an Individual Stormwater Permit for a 5.8-mile natural gas pipeline in Indiana County. Serving the proposed Homer City Generation LP 4.5 GW power plant and data center, the 30-inch pipeline will traverse Black Lick, Burrell, and Center Townships, involving several stream and wetland crossings. The DEP will host a public hearing on May 12 from 5 to 7 PM at the Indiana Theater regarding Homer City Generation’s proposed 5.8-mile natural gas pipeline in Center Township. In response to this new project, local anti-fossil fuel groups are actively mobilizing. So-called “Concerned Residents of Western PA” (CROW) is holding a preparation meeting this afternoon to help “citizens” draft their public comments and build speaking confidence. 
You’ve seen the headlines and maybe read the news that “Qatar supplies 20 percent of the world’s LNG.” Iran bombed Qatar’s LNG export facility in early March and took it offline. The world press had a stroke, predicting a natural gas Armageddon without 20% of LNG coming from Qatar. But what’s this? U.S. LNG exporters “have so far offset the drop in shipments from Qatar following Iranian attacks on its facilities” and the closure of Hormuz. We’ve been able to make up for the lost exports from Qatar. 
OTHER U.S. REGIONS: Q1 Dallas Fed energy survey gets update; NATIONAL: U.S. natural gas falls as market frets over storage; Climate shakedown lawsuits threaten U.S. energy dominance; Leftists fake tears about high energy prices, but ignore foreign-funded lawfare; INTERNATIONAL: Oil falls on renewed Iran talk hopes; Canada approves Enbridge’s $3 billion Westcoast gas-pipeline expansion; Hormuz crisis is ‘biggest energy disruption ever,’ Yergin says; The billion-barrel Hormuz oil shock is about to crash demand; Alternative routes for Middle East oil and gas to bypass the Strait of Hormuz.