Hydraulic Fracturing

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

House Passes Bills to De-Fang BLM Frack Rules, Speed Up Permits
November 21, 2013November 21, 2013

Republicans have grown tired of heavy-handed regulations coming out of the Obama administration, from the Obama EPA and Dept. of Interior (DOI) that seek to strangle the blossoming energy industry in this country due to shale drilling. Mainstream media tells you Obama is an “all of the above” guy–he likes that shale drilling stuff ’cause he’s a big thinker and sees the big picture, and even some in his own party grumble and complain about his support for drilling. It’s bunkum. Obama and his sycophants seek to enforce federal regulations on drilling any way they can–to slow it down.

Republicans have had enough and passed two bills yesterday: one would de-fang the DOI Bureau of Land Management’s plan to enforce new fracking regulations on federal lands; the other speeds up the permitting process for drilling on federal lands, to allow more drilling more quickly…
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Economic Impact | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Research | Statewide NY | Statewide OH | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Marcellus/Utica States Slip in Global Petroleum Survey
November 21, 2013November 21, 2013

Each year, the Canadian-based Fraser Institute surveys petroleum industry executives and managers (864 of them for 2013) asking them their opinions on the barriers to investing in exploration and production in various geographies across the globe. That is, what makes them more likely or less likely to spend money drilling in a particular location? It’s vitally important to understand what drives investors because without money, drilling doesn’t happen.

The Global Petroleum Survey, as it’s called, tallies the survey responses and ranks each geography from most desirable place to invest, to least desirable. MDN reported the rankings last year (see Energy Execs Rank Drilling Locations Including WV, OH, PA, NY). A copy of this year’s full report/rankings is embedded below. How did Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia and (yes) New York fare this year, compared to last?…
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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Research | Statewide OH | Utica Shale

OH Annual O&G Report: Utica 36% of All Wells Drilled in 2012
November 21, 2013November 21, 2013

On Tuesday the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) published their 48th annual “McCormac Report”–the 2012 Ohio Oil & Gas Summary report chocked full of charts, maps and statistics about oil and gas drilling in Ohio (full copy embedded below). As you can imagine, a lot of the report is dedicated to Utica Shale drilling. The report covers calendar year 2012, the year when Ohio’s Utica Shale really started to blossom. However, it does not include data for 2013, which is the year when the OH Utica grew up and became a serious shale play contender. Still, there’s lots to love about the McCormac Report, so named for Mike McCormac, the guy who’s been producing it for the past 32 years.

We learn in the report that in total, $706 million worth of natural gas and oil was drilled in Ohio in 2012. We also learn the state saw it’s longest ever horizontal well drilled–16,664 feet! That’s an astonishing 3.15 miles long (drilled in Jefferson County). And we learn that 36% of all wells drilled in 2012 were Utica Shale wells. Here’s a few highlights from the report:
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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

NY Congressman Chides Cuomo for Continued Fracking Delay
November 21, 2013November 21, 2013

Well there’s at least one New York Congressman with a spine–willing to stand up and call Gov. Andrew “can’t make up his mind on fracking” Cuomo what he is: someone who kowtows to fringe anti-drilling, anti-business wackos. Republican Congressman Chris Collins represents the 27th district in western NY–everywhere from the edge of Buffalo to the edge of Rochester, and from Lake Ontario to halfway down the state. It’s a large district.

Collins was speaking on the floor of the house yesterday in support of H.R. 2728 (see our companion story today on the two pro-drilling House bills that passed yesterday). Here’s Collins chiding his lordship Andy:
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Allegheny County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation

Allegheny County (PA) Council Votes Down Drill Ban for Parks
November 20, 2013November 20, 2013

A few weeks ago MDN told you about a meeting convened by PA State Sen. Jim Ferlo (we called it Ferlo’s Follies) where Ferlo and other anti-drillers carped and complained about a proposed plan to allow drilling under (not on) some Allegheny County, PA parks. We noted that one anti-driller at the meeting offensively and shamefully shoved an 8 year-old child in front of the microphones to plea for a ban on drilling in parks (see PA Anti-Drillers Shove Their Children Before the Microphones).

We’re happy to report the anti-drilling rabble-rousers have been defeated–soundly. Last night the Allegheny County Council voted down the proposed 3-year moratorium on drilling under (not on) county parks, and they voted it down rather convincingly: 9 to 2…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Lackawanna County | Pennsylvania | Regulation

Scranton Area TU Chapter Hears about New Tactic to End Drilling
November 20, 2013November 20, 2013

As MDN pointed out a few days ago, anti-drilling members of the anti-drilling Trout Unlimited (TU) have changed tactics (see TU: If You Can’t Beat Shale Drillers, Try a New Lie). Instead of calling for an outright ban on Marcellus Shale drilling in Pennsylvania, they’ve decided to call for over-regulation–attempting to make their requests sound reasonable and fair. The intent is still the same: stop drilling any way you can.

TU community ~~agitator~~ organizer Paula Piatt traveled from Mifflin County (central PA) to Lackawanna County (northeast PA) to spread the “let’s regulate them to death” message yesterday…
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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Public Opinion

Nationwide Poll Finds Majority of Americans Support Fracking
November 19, 2013November 19, 2013

A new nationwide poll by Robert Morris University (RMU) finds a big majority of Americans support fracking. Here are the numbers: 42.3% strongly support fracking; 32.8% somewhat or strongly oppose fracking; and 24.9% are unsure. And get this: 40% of all respondents support fracking in their own hometown! You certainly won’t read these poll results in mainstream media outlets like Bloomberg, Reuters or AP. Even the company that paid for the poll–the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review–only gives it a small mention in a “roundup” article with a bunch of other news (see it here).

The FACT that most Americans support fracking is simply not the narrative the liberal media is willing to report–once again showing that the mainstream news you consume is extremely biased. The media silence on this poll illustrates the lie of so-called impartial reporting…
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Carroll County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Research

UC Study: OH Utica’s Most Drilled County – No Water Contamination
November 18, 2013November 18, 2013

Results from a new scientific study of drinking water in the most drilled Utica Shale county in Ohio, Carroll County, were released last week at a meeting of Carroll Concerned Citizens (anti-drilling group). And what, pray tell, did the study, conducted by researchers at the University of Cincinnati find? “You have very good quality water. There’s no evidence of problems from drilling.”

Whoops, that story line won’t play well in the mainstream media! We thought that (like Mary and her little lamb) everywhere that drilling went, water problems were sure to follow. What happened to that nursery rhyme thinking? That’s right–it’s a fiction that’s debunked by study after study after study. The UC study is just one more in a long line that proves shale drilling doesn’t contaminate drinking water supplies…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Mifflin County | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

TU: If You Can’t Beat Shale Drillers, Try a New Lie
November 18, 2013November 18, 2013

An interesting twist. Apparently the devout anti-drilling group Trout Unlimited has at least one leader and one chapter that isn’t quite so anti-drilling. Either that or they’re trying a new tactic: bald-faced lying (wouldn’t be the first time).

At a local Penns Creek chapter meeting of TU in Lewistown, PA, Paula Piatt, a “sportsmen organizer” for the group said she doesn’t want to tell landowners not to lease and not to drill–well, she really does want to tell them that, but she isn’t, not right now anyway. No, what she does want to tell them is this is how you should drill. To which we say, the utter arrogance of these people….
Read More “TU: If You Can’t Beat Shale Drillers, Try a New Lie”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

Cuomo Continues to Stall on Fracking in NY, Decision by Nov 2014
November 18, 2013November 18, 2013

In case you missed it, Gov. Andrew “the ditherer” Cuomo was asked the day after the November election by Binghamton reporter Bob Joseph (WNBF Radio) if he expects to make a decision on fracking before next November’s election. And Cuomo said, “Yes, I do.” Meaning, “Yes, I expect to make a decision, but I’ll hedge my bets and delay that decision as long as I can” (our words, but his real meaning).

Real presidential leadership by our fearless governor, wouldn’t you say? What a waste of a politician. No different than his prevaricating father Mario…
Read More “Cuomo Continues to Stall on Fracking in NY, Decision by Nov 2014”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA | Taxation

PA Dems Continue to Beat the “Tax & Regulate Marcellus” Drum
November 18, 2013November 18, 2013

Here’s not a surprise: The eight (or ten or twelve) Democrats who have announced they’re running against incumbent Republican PA Gov. Tom Corbett next year want to more than double the taxes on Marcellus Shale drilling and slap super-strict and unnecessary new regulations on drilling. Ever hear of an elected Democrat who wasn’t in love with taking YOUR money and giving it to other people? Or an elected Democrat who doesn’t love micromanaging your life for you–telling you what you can and can’t eat, drink, smoke, do? (Everything except sex–you can have all the risky sex you want.) No, we haven’t either, which is why we NEVER vote for them. EVER.

We won’t make this an anti-Democrat diatribe–MDN has lots of Dem subscribers (and friends) and we appreciate them all–and we hear from them when we make these kinds of comments. 🙂 Have no fear–we will not cover the upcoming PA governor’s race ad nauseam. However, every now and again we’ll bring you an illustrative story of the PA governor’s race just to remind you of the philosophical Grand Canyon that exists between those who truly support drilling and those who would, by intent or ignorance, crush it with ill-advised over-tax and over-regulate policies…
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About MDN | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | MDN Resources

Important New Shale Energy Resource Launches: NaturalGasIntel.com
November 15, 2013November 15, 2013

As some MDN readers may know, in addition to writing and publishing Marcellus Drilling News each weekday and writing/editing the Marcellus and Utica Shale Databook, MDN editor Jim Willis also consults for Natural Gas Intelligence (NGI). You may recognize the NGI name–they’re the publishers of the fabulous Shale Daily newsletter–the first and still the only daily publication dedicated to news coverage from all North American shale plays. Jim works with the fine folks at NGI to help with marketing Shale Daily and other NGI publications and products (like a really cool shale/pipeline wall map). One of the projects Jim has had a small hand in is the design and launch of the NaturalGasIntel.com website.

NaturalGasIntel.com is an incredibly important new resource for those interested in the shale energy industry. It incorporates all of the great content from Shale Daily PLUS content from NGI’s other publications PLUS brand new features like shale basin resource pages–individual pages dedicated to each of the major (and many of the minor) commercial shale plays in North America. MDN will tell you more about how you can leverage these new features in the coming weeks. For now, we include the NGI press release announcing the new site (read it below) and we encourage you to head on over and get a free 7-day trial and try it out for yourself…

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Economic Impact | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Lackawanna County | Luzerne County | Pennsylvania | Supply Chain

NE PA Audience Hears How to Plug in to the Marcellus Supply Chain
November 15, 2013November 15, 2013

The Marcellus means jobs and an economic boom for northeast Pennsylvania. That was the message delivered yesterday in Wilkes-Barre at a Marcellus forum hosted by State Sen. John Yudichak and State Sen. John Blake (both from the Scranton/W-B area). The forum was attended by over 100 people–local contractors, trade unions, small manufacturers and others. MDN friend John Augustine from the Marcellus Shale Coalition was one of the featured speakers, with lots of good tips for those who want to plug in to the Marcellus supply chain.

The Wilkes-Barre Times Leader was on hand and filed this helpful report:
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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

JLCNY Landowner Lawsuit Against NY & Gov. Cuomo Ready to Go
November 14, 2013November 14, 2013

MDN recently received an email update from the Joint Landowners Coalition of New York (JLCNY)–posted below. The JLCNY reports their “takings” lawsuit against New York State, Gov. Andrew Cuomo, DEC Commissioner Joe Martens and State Health Commissioner Nirav Shah is now ready to go. Cuomo, Martens and Shah together form a cabal working against NY landowners by intentionally denying them their 5th Amendment Constitutional private property rights without just compensation. The JLCNY is ready to expose the cabal by filing this case.

According to JLCNY President, Dan Fitzsimmons, the legal team spent over 300 hours preparing the necessary court documentation, called a “complaint” in legalese (we’ve embedded a copy of the complaint below). The lawsuit will be filed on behalf of six New York landowners. The landowners are not (yet) named in the complaint, but if you read the complaint, you’ll see each one is uniquely identified–these are real people that are ready to go to court…
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Energy Companies | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Mountaineer Keystone | Ohio | Portage County | Utica Shale

ODNR Says Methane in OH Water Well NOT Caused by Utica Drilling
November 14, 2013November 14, 2013

In January MDN told you about the Kline family, in Portage County (near Cleveland), who claimed nearby Utica Shale drilling had contaminated their water well with methane (methane migration) to the point they could, yes, light their water tap on fire. It made big headlines at the time and the family (with flaming faucet) was featured on the NBC Today show (see Methane Migration into Water Well Near Cleveland, OH). At the time MDN said it certainly appeared like they had a case against driller Mountaineer Keystone for methane migration. Our assumption was completely wrong.

The Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) performed an extensive investigation of not only the Kline family’s water well but a dozen other nearby water wells. Using test results from before and after drilling, they concluded the methane in the Kline’s water well is NOT from nearby Utica Shale drilling but is instead naturally occurring. Oops. Think the $25 million/year salaried Matt Lauer will now have the Kline family back on Today to ask them if they’re ready to apologize for making a false claim against the driller? Yeah, don’t hold your breath on that one…
Read More “ODNR Says Methane in OH Water Well NOT Caused by Utica Drilling”
Economic Impact | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Research

EIA Drilling Report Nov 2013: Marcellus Ready to Blow by 13 Bcf/d
November 13, 2013November 13, 2013

Last month the U.S. Energy Information Administration launched a fabulous new Drilling Productivity Report (DPR) that covers six of the key shale formations producing oil and gas in the U.S. Last month we learned that the Marcellus had just blown by an astonishing 12 billion cubic feet of natural gas production per day, and if the Marcellus were its own country, it would be the eighth largest producing natgas country in the world (see New EIA Drilling Productivity Report: Marcellus Passes 12 Bcf/d!).

The November DPR from EIA came out yesterday. What do we learn from it? The Marcellus is on the cusp of passing 13 Bcf/d in natural gas production! The numbers just continue to astonish and amaze everyone, and confound anti-drilling critics who keep saying “it won’t last–not long from now it’ll all just peter out and decline.” Yeah right, you keep telling yourself that one. Here’s the latest full DPR from the EIA:
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