CNX Resources | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Washington County
CNX Failed to Ask “Mother, May I?” for Reservoir Water Withdrawal
CNX Resources was slapped with a “notice of violation” (NOV) by the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) for withdrawing over 1.8 million gallons of water in Washington County, PA (for use in shale gas fracking) without first seeking the proper “Mother, May I?” approvals. The withdrawals happened over a 22-day period in the summer of 2023. Yes, it takes the DEP a looooong time to respond to so-called violations. When CNX realized it didn’t have express permission to withdraw the water, the company immediately reported the situation and corrected it. Still, DEP wants a new plan to prevent it from happening again. The plan is due today.
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There were 19 new permits issued to drill in the Marcellus/Utica during the week of Mar. 4 – 10, up 2 from 17 permits issued the prior week. Pennsylvania issued 11 new permits. Ohio issued 5 new permits. And West Virginia issued 3 new permits. Range Resources and Ascent Resources tied for most new permits with 5 each. Range received 5 permits to drill in two PA counties: Lycoming and Washington. Ascent received 5 permits to drill in Belmont County, OH. Chesapeake Energy got 3 permits to drill in Bradford County, PA, and Seneca Resource also received 3 permits for Tioga County, PA. Southwestern Energy scored 2 permits for Ohio County, WV, and CNX Resources received a single permit for Marshall County, WV.
CNX Resources, headquartered in Pittsburgh, is the latest major Marcellus/Utica driller to announce a pullback in spending and production due to low-low prices that natural gas is fetching. Yesterday, CNX announced the company will “delay completions activities on three upcoming Marcellus Shale pads consisting of 11 wells to avoid bringing incremental volumes into the current oversupplied market.” The delay means CNX will spend $50 million less on drilling in 2024 and produce 30 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) less over the course of this year.
CNX Resources filed a request with the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) in April 2023 to build two pipelines — two for natural gas — along a 13.9-mile route in Bell, Loyalhanna and Salem Townships in Westmoreland County. An additional 4-mile pipeline would be built for water. Called the Slickville Trunkline Project, the DEP told CNX last December (yes, it took the agency eight months to reply!) that the application was “incomplete” and that CNX had 60 days to provide the extra info.
Wow! Where does the time go? In April 2021, CNX Resources Corp. announced instead of just blowing smoke about ESG (environmental, social, governance) with pretty slide shows and hoopla, they would donate $30 million to local, underserved communities and populations in the tri-state region (see 
Last November, CNX Resources CEO Nick Deiuliis signed a voluntary deal with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro to expand drilling setbacks and several other regulatory steps not mandated for shale drillers under PA law (see 
Yesterday, CNX Resources issued its fourth quarter and full year 2023 update. The company’s earnings totaled $537.83 million, or $2.89 per share in 4Q23. That compares with $1.17 billion, or $5.68 per share, in last year’s fourth quarter (down 54%). CNX’s revenue for 4Q23 fell 39% to $999.56 million from $1.64 billion last year. On the plus side of the ledger, CNX’s production was 146.9 Bcfe (billion cubic feet equivalent) in 4Q23 (1.6 Bcfe/d), bringing the full-year total to 560.4 Bcfe of production — approximately 5 Bcfe above the high end of the company’s previously announced full-year guidance range. Production one year ago (in 4Q22) was 140.6 Bcfe — meaning 4Q23 production was about 4.5% higher.
In November, the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County (MAWC) issued a water conservation warning asking more than 56,000 MAWC customers to conserve water due to the lack of rainfall and the low level of the Beaver Run Reservoir (see 
One of our favorite Marcellus/Utica people is Nick Deiuliis, CEO of CNX Resources. Apart from Nick’s great work in leading CNX, he is also a writer and thinker. Like a few others, he understands political and philosophical issues related to energy. And Nick isn’t afraid to “say it straight.” Nick is in the process of releasing three videos called “A Rational Thinker’s Guide to Climate Change and Related Policies.” We previously brought you Part 1, Diagnosing the Problem and Issue (see 
We have a special treat for you today. One of our favorite Marcellus/Utica people is Nick Deiuliis, CEO of CNX Resources. Apart from the great work Nick does in leading CNX, he is also a writer and a thinker. He understands the political and philosophical issues related to energy like few others. And Nick isn’t afraid to “say it straight.” Last week, Nick released the first of three videos (embedded below) called “A Rational Thinker’s Guide to Climate Change and Related Policies.” In Part One of the “Rational Thinker’s Guide” trilogy, Nick argues that the most pressing issue of our time is the inept policies being pushed on society by the climate alarmist movement.
How was 2023 with respect to the return on investment (ROI) in the stocks of gas-focused (largely Marcellus/Utica) drillers? Of the three classes of O&G companies — oil-focused, diversified, and gas-focused — it was the gas-focused drillers who had the best stock returns in 2023, according to an analysis by RBN Energy. Gas-weighted E&Ps posted a 7% median gain last year, according to RBN. Most of the companies in RBN’s list of gas-focused drillers have major operations in the M-U. Let’s have a look at how each one did.