Belmont County Injection Well Owner Case Against ODNR Dismissed
In a March 25, 2026, decision in the Omni Energy Group, LLC v. Ohio Department of Natural Resources court case, Judge Algenon L. Marbley from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio dismissed Omni’s amended complaint regarding Class II injection well permits. Omni alleged that the ODNR unlawfully set injection pressures too low, rendering its multimillion-dollar investment in two injection wells inoperable. This case goes back to events that began in 2019, events we previously covered in a 2024 post (see OH Injection Well Owner Wins Case Against ODNR, Potential Restart). Read that post for important background. Read More “Belmont County Injection Well Owner Case Against ODNR Dismissed”
Venture Global (VG) and Edison S.p.A., an Italian electric utility company headquartered in Milan, have signed a commercial agreement to fully resolve their pending arbitration regarding the Calcasieu Pass LNG project. Expected to conclude by the end of Q2 2026, the settlement terminates all legal disputes between the companies. As part of the deal, VG will deliver additional LNG cargoes to Europe, specifically targeting the Italian market through the Adriatic LNG Terminal starting in May 2026. This agreement strengthens their long-term partnership and enhances Italy’s energy security amidst global geopolitical disruptions. 
We just happened across another XTO Energy lawsuit in which leased landowners sued over post-production deductions being taken from their royalty checks. Salvatora v. XTO Energy Inc. is a pivotal Pennsylvania case tackling the messy business of natural gas royalties. Western Pennsylvania landowners from Mercer and Butler counties sued XTO, arguing the company unfairly deducted “post-production costs”—like compression and transport—from their checks. The core debate hinged on “at the wellhead” lease language. 
In July 2022, MDN brought you news of a possible frac-out, or “inadvertent return” that happens when drilling mud pops out of places where it’s not supposed to — places outside the borehole being drilled (see 
No one should be surprised that far-left Democrat Josh Shapiro, currently the Governor of Pennsylvania (but with a major passion to become President), joined his fellow radicals from other blue states in launching a lawsuit against the Trump administration for moving to eliminate the extremist “endangerment finding” concocted by Lord Obama and the Obamadroids of the EPA. Trump’s move to overturn the finding will save Americans roughly $3,800 each. Yet Shapiro and his fellow cabal members want to keep Americans poor and subservient (to them). 
Governor Kathy Hochul warns that a recent court ruling requiring New York to meet strict 2030 greenhouse gas mandates could trigger a dramatic spike in energy costs. Justice Julian Schreibman ruled that state agencies must strictly adhere to the Climate Act’s deadlines, despite official concerns regarding feasibility. While state energy officials predict a “cap-and-invest” (better called a cap-and-tax) program could cost households thousands annually, environmental advocates are open to settling the case to avoid “draconian” economic impacts. To reach these goals affordably, Hochul is pushing to adjust emission accounting methods to a 100-year standard, extending the compliance timeline while maintaining the state’s commitment to clean energy. 
Here’s a lawsuit that had (until now) escaped our radar screen. It’s a lawsuit dealing with the issue of post-production deductions. The case is Kirkbride v. Antero Resources Corp. and is being litigated in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. On March 6, 2026, Magistrate Judge Elizabeth Preston Deavers denied a motion to certify the case as a class action. This is a significant development in the ongoing legal friction between Ohio landowners and energy companies over how royalties are calculated. 
Venture Global’s Calcasieu Pass (CP) LNG export facility in Louisiana began operations in March 2022 (see 
Several Big Green groups, including the Sierra Club, Wild Virginia, Appalachian Voices, and the Center for Biological Diversity, have filed a legal challenge against a permit issued by Virginia for the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) Southgate extension. The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) approved a water permit for the project in January 2026. Big Green radicals argue that the pipeline “threatens” 138 streams, wetlands, and regional drinking water supplies. It’s the typical lawfare tactic used by the left to stall work on projects, hoping to delay them long enough that the builder (EQT in this case) gives up. Or if the builder won’t give up, they have to pay double or triple the price to construct it. That’s the game the radicals are playing. 
West Virginia Attorney General JB McCuskey is leading a 21-state coalition urging the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Department of Energy efficiency standards adopted during the dark Biden years that effectively ban many natural gas furnaces and water heaters. Challenging a D.C. Circuit ruling, the states argue the mandate violates federal law by eliminating appliances with protected performance characteristics. McCuskey emphasizes that the rule would disproportionately burden low-income and rural families, forcing expensive structural renovations in older homes incompatible with new condensing technology.