Energy Companies

Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Statewide VA | Virginia

WV to VA Mountain Valley Pipeline Changing Routes?
February 4, 2015February 4, 2015

Last October the Mountain Valley Pipeline, a 330-mile project that will run from Wetzel County, WV to Pittsylvania County, VA, completed a successful open season to sign up potential customers (see EQT’s WV to VA Pipeline Open Season a Success, FERC Filing in Oct). However, the map we included in the October article is changing. The current path will take it through Giles, Montgomery, Roanoke and Franklin counties before ending at the Transco pipeline in Pittsylvania County. Word is out that the pipeline has been looking in Craig County, VA, which borders Giles, as an alternative path…
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Energy Companies | Pennsylvania | Southwestern Energy | Statewide PA | Susquehanna County | WPX Energy

WPX Finalizes Sale of NEPA Marcellus Leases/Wells to Southwestern
February 3, 2015February 3, 2015

WPX Energy announced yesterday they have completed the sale and transfer of some 46,700 acres of leases and 63 operational Marcellus Shale wells in northeastern Pennsylvania to Southwestern Energy. MDN first told you about the $300 million deal in early December (for details and a map, see: First Shoe Drops: WPX Sells 1/2 Marcellus Assets to Southwestern). As we said at the time, that was the first shoe. We’re still waiting for the other shoe. WPX owns acreage and/or wells in Centre, Clearfield and Westmoreland counties, in southwestern PA. According to WPX spokesperson Susan Oliver-Stough, the company is actively shopping those assets too. When sold, WPX’s presence in northeast shale drilling will be done…
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Energy Companies | Energy Services | EV Energy Partners | Ohio | Statewide OH | Utica East Ohio Midstream | Utica Shale

EVEP Wants to Sell Interest in Utica East Ohio/More Utica Acreage
February 3, 2015February 3, 2015

EV Energy Partners (EVEP) is a master limited partnership, or MLP, which distributes profits to “unit holders” instead of plowing profits into more projects. They like to invest in mature, already drilled wells and pipeline companies–things that act like an annuity throwing off profit with very little risk. Over the years EVEP amassed a huge amount of acreage in Ohio–before the Utica was known–mostly for conventional (vertical only) wells. However, some of that property is in prime Utica territory–so EVEP has been looking, since 2009, to sell it. They reiterated that in November (see EVEP Selling More Ohio Utica Acreage in 2015). There’s another fleeting reference to selling more Utica leases in EVEP’s fourth quarter 2014/guidance for 2015 press release issued yesterday. The “new news” (for us) in yesterday’s announcement is that EVEP plans to sell their 21% interest in Utica East Ohio–a midstream/pipeline company operating in Ohio…
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Bedford County | Blair County | Cambria County | Chevron | Energy Companies | Pennsylvania

Chevron Selling 17K Marcellus Shale Acres, More Sales Coming
February 2, 2015February 2, 2015

Chevron, according to NGI’s Shale Plays Factbook, is the fourth largest acreage holder in the Marcellus Shale with some 700,000 acres. It appears Chevron is looking to sell off at least some of that acreage. MDN received an email notice (below) from EnergyNet, hired to broker a sale for two of what they say will be an eventual 12 tracks of Marcellus acreage that Chevron owns. The current two are located in Bedford, Blair and Cambria counties in Pennsylvania and represent just over 17,000 acres total. EnergyNet is accepting sealed bids on various tracks, some held by production, some not…
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Energy Companies | Gastar Exploration

Gastar Finishing 5 Wells, Then Idling Rigs in Marcellus/Utica
February 2, 2015February 2, 2015

Gastar Exploration released an update today to crow about an 87% increase in their proved reserves, and to whisper that they’ve further reduced their 2015 drilling budget–all the way down to $103 million. The news, for the Marcellus, gets worse. Of that $103, they’ll spend a measly $20 million in the Marcellus–$12 million to complete five wells and another $8 million on “acreage costs.” In other words, for all intents and purposes, Gastar has stopped drilling in the Marcellus and the Utica “until economic conditions are more favorable.” Gastar is keeping three drilling rigs active in their midcontinent drilling program–for the time being…
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Energy Companies | Seneca Resources

Seneca Resources Hits 1/2 Bcf/d Production in Previous Quarter
February 2, 2015February 2, 2015

Last week National Fuel Gas Company, parent of Marcellus Shale driller Seneca Resources, reported its quarterly update for the quarter ending Dec 31, 2014. Everyone else calls it fourth quarter 2014, but for National Fuel Gas, it’s their first quarter 2015. What does the latest report show? During the quarter Seneca produced 48.2 billion cubic feet equivalent (Bcfe), an increase of 11.1 Bcfe or 30% over the prior year’s first quarter. Seneca has hit the half billion cubic foot per day club: average daily production during the quarter was 524 million cubic feet equivalent (MMcfe) per day…
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CONSOL Energy | Energy Companies

CONSOL Energy 2015: E&P Budget Cut 33%, Utica Expands
January 30, 2015January 30, 2015

CONSOL Energy released its fourth quarter 2014 and plans for 2015 today. Overall CONSOL’s revenues were way down for 4Q14 over 4Q13–down 90%. But that was due to a number of coal operations they discontinued in 2014. The gas drilling division had another outstanding quarter–pumping 70.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas for the quarter, up 45% year over year. For 2015 CONSOL plans to spend $1 billion on their Marcellus drilling budget (down from $1.5 billion in 2014). Marcellus Shale costs for CONSOL were $2.83 per million cubic feet equivalent (Mcfe) in 4Q14, a $0.18 per Mcfe improvement from 4Q13 which saw costs of $3.01 per Mcfe. The company achieved “all-in cash costs” of only $1.71 per Mcfe in the Marcellus Shale. And no, we’re not sure what the difference is between costs and “all-in cash costs.” Perhaps one of our smart readers can enlighten us in the comments? The trend is obviously good–it’s costing them less and less to produce more and more gas. CONSOL says in their update that the Utica Shale continues to grow in importance for the company…
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Energy Companies | Ohio | PDC Energy | Statewide OH | Utica Shale

PDC Energy’s Interesting 2014 – “Dynamite” in the Utica
January 30, 2015January 30, 2015

PDC Energy had an interesting 2014 in the Marcellus/Utica. During the year they sold off their 131,000-acre Marcellus Shale operation to Mountaineer Keystone for $500 million (see Major New Player in the Marcellus Emerges: Mountaineer Keystone). They entered the year intending to drill 18 Utica Shale wells (they came close). Along the way they had an accident and spilled drilling mud into a creek (see PDC Accident: Drilling Mud Spills into Creek in Morgan County, OH). During the year they fired (?) reassigned (?) their CEO back to the board and promoted the COO to be CEO (see Changing Chairs at PDC Energy: New President/CEO). And at the end of last year, the company announced they will push the pause button on new Utica drilling in 2015 (see PDC Energy Pushes Pause Button on OH Utica Drilling for 2015). Yesterday PDC provided a high level overview of 2014 (none of the above items mentioned) which includes a few brief statements about the Utica and Marcellus. One of the items their most excited about? A 4-well Utica pad called (we kid you not), “Dynamite”…
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Beaver County | Energy Companies | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Processing Plants | Shell

Shell Trimming $15B in Spending Next 3 Years – PA Cracker?
January 30, 2015January 30, 2015

Shell released their fourth quarter 2014 results yesterday, along with comments on what’s ahead for 2015. Full year profits for Shell were up in 2014–to $19 billion (a mind-blowing number). However, the company plans to trim $15 billion worth of spending in over the next three years. Ouch. MDN wondered if the Shell ethane cracker plant planned for Monaca, PA is on the list to trim…
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Carrizo Oil & Gas | Energy Companies | Guernsey County | Ohio | Statewide OH | Utica Shale

Carrizo Cuts Budget 35%, No Drilling Planned in Utica/Marcellus in 2015
January 29, 2015January 29, 2015

Carrizo Oil & Gas is the latest Marcellus/Utica driller to cut their 2015 capital expenditures (capex) budget–by 35% over 2014. According to the Carrizo announcement below, they plan to spend $450-$470 million on drilling, most of it in the Eagle Ford (Texas) where they’re running three drilling rigs. They will spend only has much as they have to on “lease maintenance” in the Utica Shale–which we take to mean they’ll only do what they must to show they still intend to drill on leases that may soon expire. In the update below we get some numbers for Carrizo’s second Utica Shale well, in Guernsey County, OH. The update also indicates Carrizo continues to throttle back production in the Marcellus. It says nothing about new drilling in the Marcellus, so we presume there isn’t any planned for 2015…
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Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Regulation | Southwestern Energy | Statewide WV | West Virginia

WV Legislature Passes Bill to Help Southwestern Keep Drilling
January 29, 2015January 29, 2015

Currently in West Virginia, if an E&P company, say Chesapeake Energy, has applied for and received permits to drill dozens or hundreds of wells which are currently in various states of being drilled, and then decides to sell those leases and drilling operations to someone else, like Southwestern Energy, the drilling law passed a few years ago says the new company buying those leases and drilling operations must re-apply for all of those permits to continue drilling. That’s a big problem. Southwestern, you may recall, has just paid Chessy $5.375 BILLION for leases, wells and drilling operations–most of it in WV. Can you imagine what will happen? Rigs idled…people laid off…chaos and confusion. It’s an economic disaster. So you can understand why the WV legislature has dispensed with the rules and passed a bill in record time that fixes the problem, allowing Southwestern (or anyone else) to assume permits on leased property that changes hands…
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Antero Resources | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Reserves (Proved and Unproved)

Antero Proved Reserves Rocket Up 66%; Dev Costs Just $0.61/Mcf
January 29, 2015January 29, 2015

Antero Resources, one of the largest drillers in the Marcellus and Utica Shale region, issued a press release yesterday to crow about some important numbers. The first important number is 66%–as in Antero’s “proved reserves” of natural gas (and liquids and oil) jumped 66% in 2014–to a mind-blowing total of 12.7 trillion cubic feet equivalent (Tcfe). Proved reserves means using existing technology and under these economic conditions, Antero can reasonably, with very high confidence, extract at least 12.7 Tcfe. Astonishing. Another number to crow about: $0.61, as in it costs the company only 61 cents per thousand cubic feet (Mcf) to find and develop/extract that gas. Of course what’s missing in that number is the midstream component–processing and pipelining it to market. But still, it shows that these large companies can still make money even in a low cost environment, which is reassuring…
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Energy Companies | Hess | Ohio | Statewide OH | Utica Shale

Hess Cuts Utica Drilling Budget 42% for 2015
January 27, 2015January 27, 2015

Hess Corporation, with some 90,000 leased acres in the Ohio Utica Shale, announced yesterday they are whacking their Utica budget, reducing it by 42% for 2015. Last year Hess spent $500 million in the Utica. This year they plan to spend $290 million and drill 20-25 wells (around $11-$12 million per well). Hess will continue their joint venture with CONSOL Energy in the Ohio Utica. Here’s the announcement from yesterday:
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Energy Companies | Equinor/Statoil | Gastar Exploration | Jay-Bee Oil & Gas | Lease & Royalty Payments | Marshall County | Noble Energy | Statewide WV | Triad Hunter | Tyler County | West Virginia | Wetzel County

More Bids to Drill Under WV State-Owned Land, Incl Ohio River
January 27, 2015January 27, 2015

West Virginia keeps up its aggressive push to lease and allow drilling under state-owned land–both under the Ohio River and under other tracts of state-owned land in prime Marcellus/Utica country. Last Friday the state Dept. of Commerce, responsible for overseeing the leasing program, opened its latest round of bids. Some of them are truly eye-popping. You may recall Antero Resources has paid $12,000 per acre (with 20% royalties) to drill under 518 acres of the Conaway Run Wildlife Management Area (see Record High Bid to Drill Under Bambi’s Home in Tyler County, WV). In the bids opened Friday, Jay Bee bid an even higher price to drill under the Jug Wildlife Management Area, also in Tyler County…
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Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

Guest Post: Bradford Co Landowner Asks Gov. Wolf to Support HB 1684
January 27, 2015January 27, 2015

MDN has written plenty about Pennsylvania’s HB 1684–the Guaranteed Minimum Royalty Act (see these MDN articles). In essence, some companies (cough *Chesapeake Energy* cough) have gotten creative with deducting post-production costs from royalty checks. According to the PA Guaranteed Minimum Royalty Act of 1979, royalty owners (landowners) must receive no less than 1/8, or 12.5%, by law. But when Chessy and others start deducting this and that, never spelled out in the original lease agreement, landowners are getting the shaft–way lower than 12.5%. In some cases they get royalty checks for a few dollars! Bradford County landowner John Williams is concerned, both about HB 1684 and newly elected Gov. Tom Wolf’s stand on that bill, and about Wolf’s proposed 5% severance tax. Will the severance tax be the next deduction gas companies take, further reducing royalty checks? Is the severance tax Tom Wolf proposes a tax that will be paid, in essence, by landowners? We thank John for his guest post…
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Blue Ridge Mtn Res/Magnum Hunter | Energy Companies

Magnum Hunter CEO: No New Marcellus/Utica Drilling in 2015
January 26, 2015January 26, 2015

Magnum Hunter Resources (MHR), a small but growing driller in the Marcellus/Utica, gave one day’s notice and then convened a phone call with investors last Friday to declare they’re not spending a dime on new drilling in 2015–until the prices charged by oilfield services companies (the companies that do the drilling and fracking) come down–a lot. MHR CEO Gary Evans said he’s looking for a 40% discount compared to what the company paid in 2014 for the same services–and until they get it, the drill rigs for MHR will be idled. But have no fear, production for the company (meaning revenue) will continue to grow each quarter in 2015 because of wells already drilled and shut-in, waiting to be connected to pipelines…
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