Marcellus Drilling News

Baker Hughes | Energy Services | Ohio | Pennsylvania | West Virginia

M-U Rigs Even @ 37; Haynesville Even @ 58; Nat’l Up 1 @ 548
May 11, 2026May 11, 2026

Last week, the combined Marcellus/Utica Baker Hughes rig count remained at 37 active rigs for the seventh week in a row. The M-U’s chief competitor, the Haynesville, remained at 58 active rigs after adding two rigs two weeks ago, some 21 more than the M-U. Clearly, drillers are choosing to put their money into the Haynesville over the M-U. The national count added one rig last week and now operates 548 rigs. Read More “M-U Rigs Even @ 37; Haynesville Even @ 58; Nat’l Up 1 @ 548”
Ascent Resources | Energy Companies | Ohio

Ascent 1Q Profit Swings $658M, Utica Output Tops 2.1 Bcfe/d
May 11, 2026May 11, 2026

Ascent Resources, formerly American Energy Partners, was founded by Aubrey McClendon and is a privately held company that focuses 100% on the Ohio Utica Shale. Ascent, headquartered in Oklahoma City, OK, is Ohio’s largest natural gas producer and one of the largest natural gas producers in the U.S. The company issued its first quarter 2026 update last week. First quarter net production averaged 2,132 MMcfe/d, consisting of 1,838 MMcf/d of natural gas, 11,500 bbls per day of oil, and 37,589 bbls per day of natural gas liquids (NGLs), putting liquids at 14% of the overall production mix for the quarter. Read More “Ascent 1Q Profit Swings $658M, Utica Output Tops 2.1 Bcfe/d”
Energy Companies | EOG Resources

EOG Shifts Capital to Oil-Weighted Utica, Adds 10 Wells
May 11, 2026May 11, 2026

EOG Resources is one of the largest crude oil and natural gas exploration and production companies in the U.S., with proved reserves in the U.S. and Trinidad. The company bought and merged with Encino Energy’s extensive Ohio Utica operation last August, making EOG one of the largest drillers in the Buckeye State (see EOG Closes on $5.6B Purchase of Encino Assets in Ohio Utica). The deal made the Utica one of EOG’s “foundational plays” with a total core acreage position of 1.1 million net acres and associated resource potential net to the company of 2-plus billion barrels of oil equivalent. Last week, EOG issued its first quarter 2026 update, including details on its Utica program. Read More “EOG Shifts Capital to Oil-Weighted Utica, Adds 10 Wells”
Industrywide Issues

Major Marcellus Landowner WhiteHawk Energy Files for IPO
May 11, 2026May 11, 2026

It’s been nearly a year since we last wrote about WhiteHawk Energy (now undergoing a rename to WhiteHawk Minerals), a natural gas mineral and royalty interest owner in the Marcellus and Haynesville plays, with over 3.4 million gross acres under lease for drilling (see WhiteHawk Finally Gets PHX Minerals to the Altar; Merger Done). Last June, WhiteHawk finally completed the purchase and merger of PHX Minerals, after pursuing that company for two years. The company is now filing the paperwork for an initial public offering (IPO). Read More “Major Marcellus Landowner WhiteHawk Energy Files for IPO”
Beaver County | Energy Companies | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Processing Plants | Shell

Shell Still Pondering Sale of Chemicals Div., Including PA Cracker
May 11, 2026May 11, 2026

In March 2025, the Wall Street Journal reported that Shell is “exploring a potential sale of its chemicals assets in Europe and the U.S.,” which includes the Monaca (Beaver County, PA) ethane cracker complex (see Shocker: Shell Considers Selling Beaver County, PA Ethane Cracker). In August 2025, during a quarterly earnings call with analysts, Shell CEO Wael Sawan confirmed the rumor, saying Shell is “not the natural operator and owner of that asset” referring to the Monaca cracker plant (see Shell Looks to Sell All or Part of Monaca, PA Ethane Cracker Plant). Last Thursday, during Shell’s latest quarterly update, Sawan once again reiterated the desire to sell the company’s chemicals division, including the PA cracker, but only if it creates “shareholder value.” Read More “Shell Still Pondering Sale of Chemicals Div., Including PA Cracker”
Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Regulation

Sen. Alan Armstrong: High Energy Costs Come from Lack of Pipelines
May 11, 2026May 11, 2026

U.S. Senator Alan Armstrong (R-OK)

Alan Armstrong, recently retired from his role of CEO at Williams, and the newly appointed U.S. Senator for Oklahoma (filling out the term of Markwayne Mullin, who left to become Secretary of Homeland Security), is already making his mark on the D.C. swamp. Armstrong is working on permitting reform. Along those lines, he published an op-ed appearing on The Hill website (required reading in the D.C. swamp). In his column, Sen. Armstrong argues that America’s high energy costs stem less from foreign conflict than from domestic infrastructure failures. Read More “Sen. Alan Armstrong: High Energy Costs Come from Lack of Pipelines”
Best of the Rest

MDN’s Energy Stories of Interest: Mon, May 11, 2026
May 11, 2026May 11, 2026

OTHER U.S. REGIONS: NY City official rallies investors to block ExxonMobil move to Texas; NATIONAL: U.S. natural gas futures little changed on week; INTERNATIONAL: Crude settles higher on Gulf clashes; Brent oil price futures understating physical market stress; LNG carriers test Iran blockade in Strait of Hormuz; IEA head calls on Canada to move faster on energy; EU awards $1.3B in subsidies for cleaner hydrogen production; Oil and gas trade will never be the same after the Iran war. Read More “MDN’s Energy Stories of Interest: Mon, May 11, 2026”