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36 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Apr 7 – 13

Last week was an interesting week for new permits issued to drill new shale wells in the Marcellus/Utica. For the week of Apr 7 – 13, the number of permits issued soared, up 15 from the previous week. Last week, 36 new permits were issued. The surprising thing is just how few of those new permits were issued in the Keystone State (PA). Just five new permits went to PA. CNX Resources had four of PA’s new permits, all for the same well pad in Westmoreland County. The other permit went to EQT in Fayette County. Read More “36 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Apr 7 – 13”

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21 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Mar 31 – Apr 6

For the week of Mar 31 – Apr 6, the number of permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica to drill new shale wells increased by two from the previous week. Last week, 21 new permits were issued, with 12 going to the Keystone State (PA). Expand Energy, via its merged companies Chesapeake Energy and Southwestern Energy, scored five permits, with three permits for Southwestern in Susquehanna County and two for Chesapeake in Bradford County. Greylock Energy received three permits for drilling in Potter County. Range Resources also received three permits to drill wells in Lycoming and Washington counties. Read More “21 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Mar 31 – Apr 6”

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Driller Wins Briggs v SWN Rule of Capture/Trespass Resurrected Case

In January 2020, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled in THE most consequential lawsuit for Marcellus Shale drilling we’ve seen, a case called Briggs v Southwestern Energy (see HUGE NEWS: PA Supreme Court Keeps ‘Rule of Capture’ for Fracking). The PA Supreme Court ruled in favor of Southwestern, retaining the “rule of capture” in the Keystone State. In 2022, the Briggs family filed a new lawsuit, call it “Briggs 2,” along the same lines, alleging that Southwestern’s drilling and fracking on a neighboring property had intruded (“trespassed”) under the property line, draining gas from the Briggs property and injecting PFAS “forever chemicals” under their land (see Briggs v SWN Rule of Capture/Trespass Court Case Resurrected). The United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania recently ruled in favor of Southwestern (now Expand Energy) and against the landowner’s claims. Read More “Driller Wins Briggs v SWN Rule of Capture/Trespass Resurrected Case”

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SRBC Renews Water Use Permits for 34 Marcellus/Utica Shale Pads

The highly functional and responsible Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC), unlike its completely dysfunctional and irresponsible cousin, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC), continues to support the shale energy industry by approving water withdrawals and consumptive use for responsible and safe shale drilling. The SRBC published a notice in the March 22 Pennsylvania Bulletin that the Commission renewed 34 general water use permits in January for individual shale gas well drilling pads in Bradford, Centre, Clinton, Elk, Lycoming, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Tioga, and Wyoming counties. Read More “SRBC Renews Water Use Permits for 34 Marcellus/Utica Shale Pads”

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SRBC Approves 6 Water Withdrawals for Shale Drilling at March Mtg

The highly functional and responsible Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC), unlike its completely dysfunctional and irresponsible cousin, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC), continues to support the shale energy industry by approving water withdrawals for responsible and safe shale drilling. On March 13, the SRBC board acted on 24 new water withdrawal requests within the basin, six of them approvals for water used in drilling and fracking shale wells in Pennsylvania. The Marcellus/Utica shale drillers receiving a green light from SRBC included Diversified Energy, EQT, JKLM, Repsol, and two requests for Expand Energy (under SWN or Southwestern Energy). Read More “SRBC Approves 6 Water Withdrawals for Shale Drilling at March Mtg”

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Expand Energy Drilled 5.6-Mile Lateral in the WV Utica in 5 Days

Hart Energy reports that Expand Energy, formed by the combination of Chesapeake Energy and Southwestern Energy, drilled a massive 5.6-mile lateral in northern West Virginia’s dry-gas Utica—and it was drilled in five days with just one bit run. Expand’s Shannon Fields OHI #3H well, located in Ohio County, WV, has a 29,687-ft lateral. We always get in trouble when we make statements like this (because some drillers don’t disclose details for their wells), but we’re pretty sure this is the longest onshore shale well lateral ever drilled in the U.S. Maybe even in the world! Read More “Expand Energy Drilled 5.6-Mile Lateral in the WV Utica in 5 Days”

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16 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Feb 24 – Mar 2

For the week of Feb 24 – Mar 2, the number of permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica to drill new shale wells increased by a couple. Four weeks ago, 24 new permits were issued. Three weeks ago, the number increased to 36 new permits. Two weeks ago, the number deflated, going down to 14. Last week, we added two permits for a total of 16 new permits issued. The Keystone State (PA) issued just one new permit, which went to Snyder Brothers for a well in Armstrong County. Read More “16 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Feb 24 – Mar 2”

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Expand Energy’s “Just in Time” Program Equals “Profits on Demand”

One year ago in March 2024, MDN told you about a new strategy by Chesapeake Energy (now Expand Energy) to drill new shale gas wells but leave them offline (see Chesapeake Brings Japanese “Just in Time” Concept to Gas Wells). As explained in that article, the company does more than drill DUCs (drilled but uncompleted wells). They complete the wells but do not “turn them inline” (or TILs), meaning they aren’t yet connected to the pipeline network. In writing about the strategy, Bloomberg called it “suspended animation wells,” noting the company planned to use that strategy for 80 wells in 2024 (see Chesapeake Plans to Place 80 Wells into “Suspended Animation”). Read More “Expand Energy’s “Just in Time” Program Equals “Profits on Demand””

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Expand Energy COO Opens Up About Marcellus/Utica, Pipelines & More

Josh Viets

Expand Energy Corporation Chief Operating Officer (COO) Josh Viets presented at yesterday’s 46th Annual Raymond James Institutional Investor Conference. Viets provided insights into Expand’s assets and capital allocation strategy. The company’s approach is based on “a very constructive outlook for the natural gas commodity.” Expand, you may recall, is the new name for two merged companies: Chesapeake Energy and Southwestern Energy (see Chesapeake & Southwestern Complete Merger; Now #1 U.S. Gas Driller). We found Viets’ comments VERY enlightening—especially his comments about the relative ease of building pipelines in the Haynesville (Louisiana) compared with difficulties building in the Marcellus/Utica in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Money flows to where it’s easier to do business—that’s just a fact. Read More “Expand Energy COO Opens Up About Marcellus/Utica, Pipelines & More”

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14 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Feb 17 – 23

For the week of Feb 17 – 23, the number of permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica to drill new shale wells fell back to earth. Three weeks ago, 24 new permits were issued. Two weeks ago, the number increased to 36 new permits. Last week the number deflated, going down to 14. The Keystone State (PA) issued six new permits last week, with all six going to Blackhill Energy for a single pad in Bradford County. Read More “14 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Feb 17 – 23”

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Expand Energy Reopens the Taps, More Drilling & Production Coming

Expand Energy, formed by the merger of Chesapeake Energy and Southwestern Energy, is the largest natural gas producer in the U.S. with approximately 1.9 million leased net acres. Expand drills and operates in three distinct regions: Northeast Appalachia (Pennsylvania), Southwest Appalachia (mostly West Virginia, but also Pennsylvania and Ohio), and the Haynesville (Louisiana). The company issued its fourth quarter and full-year update yesterday. In 4Q24, Expand operated an average of twelve rigs to drill 44 wells and turned 41 wells in line, resulting in net production of approximately 6.41 Bcfe per day (91% natural gas). Read More “Expand Energy Reopens the Taps, More Drilling & Production Coming”

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Expand Energy has “Long Pedigree” and “Deep Technical Bench”

On Oct. 1, 2024, Chesapeake Energy announced its buyout of and merger with Southwestern Energy in a $7.4 billion deal was completed (see Chesapeake & Southwestern Complete Merger; Now #1 U.S. Gas Driller). The newly merged company was renamed Expand Energy Corporation and began trading on the NASDAQ stock market under the “EXE” ticker symbol. Expand is the #1 natural gas producer in the U.S., eclipsing the former #1 EQT. The big difference is that Expand’s production comes from both the Marcellus/Utica and the Haynesville, whereas EQT’s production is 100% from the M-U. Expand is quite the company. Enverus recently named Expand the #2 most prolific shale producer by production in 2024 (see Expand Energy Ranked #2 Most Prolific Shale Producer in 2024). Read More “Expand Energy has “Long Pedigree” and “Deep Technical Bench””

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27 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jan 6 – 12

For the week of Jan 6 – 12, permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica to drill new shale wells remained healthy. There were 27 new permits issued last week, down three from 30 issued the week before. The Keystone State (PA) issued 13 new permits, with four going to Snyder Brothers in Armstrong County, four going to Coterra Energy in Susquehanna County (must be Coterra has restarted drilling), three for Infinity Natural Resources (INR) in Indiana County, and two for Range Resources in Washington County. Read More “27 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jan 6 – 12”

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Expand Energy Ranked #2 Most Prolific Shale Producer in 2024

Close-up of hands holding a silver medal showcasing achievement and recognition.Enverus, a prominent analytics and advisory firm in the oil and gas space, released its Top 50 Public E&P Operators of 2024 list last week. Enverus is famously guarded in not allowing the media to publish their data, so we don’t have the full list of 50. However, Enverus shared the top three most prolific (by production) shale drillers for last year. Two of the top three are oil drillers in the Permian Basin (Exxon at #1, Occidental Petroleum at #3). However, at the #2 spot, nestled between those two, is Expand Energy, the new name for the combined Chesapeake Energy and Southwestern Energy. Yes, a natural gas company (gas converted to barrels of oil equivalent) is the #2 most prolific producer in the entire country, beating out Oxy! Most of the gas Expand produces is produced in the Marcellus/Utica. Read More “Expand Energy Ranked #2 Most Prolific Shale Producer in 2024”

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30 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Dec 30 – Jan 5

For the week of Dec 30 – Jan 5, permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica rebounded from holiday lows. There were 30 new permits issued last week, up from just 12 issued the week before. The Keystone State (PA) issued nine new permits, with six going to Range Resources in Allegheny County and three to EQT, split between Lycoming and Washington counties. Read More “30 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Dec 30 – Jan 5”

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27 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Dec 16 – 22

For the week of Dec 16 – 22, permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica remained healthy. There were 27 new permits issued last week, up from 22 issued the week before. In something of an unusual twist, the Keystone State (PA) issued just four new permits, all of them to different drillers. PennEnergy Resources’ permit was in Beaver County; Seneca Resources’ permit was in Tioga County; and Range Resources and EQT (Rice) each had one permit in Washington County. Read More “27 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Dec 16 – 22”