Industrywide Issues

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Research | Wastewater

DOE Funds Projects to Make Shale “Environmentally Acceptable”
November 29, 2012November 29, 2012

The massive federal government will not leave shale energy alone—that’s a given. Not because they think they can protect citizens, but because they want to control it. The latest attempt is by funding 15 research projects addressing what they consider “technical challenges to environmentally acceptable shale gas development.” The very concept is repugnant. Big-brother government choosing how an industry will do its job—what technologies it will be “allowed” to use. Welcome to Obamaland, Alice.

Yesterday the Dept. of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy announced 15 projects (“winners”) that they will fund over the next two years with $28 million of your tax money to research shale energy and ways to control it minimize it’s impact on the environment. Three of the 15 “winners” are located in the Marcellus and Utica Shale region. Here’s the announcement listing who got what from the government gravy train:

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Economic Impact | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Statewide WV | West Virginia

WV Jobs, Wages Go Up Because of Marcellus Shale Drilling
November 29, 2012November 29, 2012

WorkForce West Virginia issued a new report to the WV legislature on Wednesday documenting that employment throughout WV in the oil and gas industry has increased 10% since 2008, and average wages for those workers have gone up 19%. Why? The Marcellus Shale, of course.

A few more interesting facts and figures from the report:

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

NY DEC Files for 90-Day Fracking Rules Extension, What Now?
November 28, 2012November 28, 2012

It’s official: The New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) will file for a 90-day extension on the rulemaking process for fracking. Although it would be better for the DEC to just release the new rules now, before tomorrow (Nov. 29), at least the process is still alive, albeit now delayed. Still, given the current climate in New York, MDN takes it as good news for landowners and a signal that drilling may indeed yet come to the Empire State.

Here’s how it all came down yesterday, with Gov. Andrew Cuomo admitting to reporters that the DEC will “have to” file for an extension:

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Elk County | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Ensign Drilling | Forest County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Jefferson County (PA) | Lycoming County | McKean County | Pennsylvania | Seneca Resources

Second Seneca 100% LNG-Powered Drilling Rig Goes Online
November 28, 2012November 28, 2012

MDN recently told you about Seneca Resources, the first Marcellus driller to convert a drilling rig to run on a 100% liquefied natural gas (LNG) engine, a rig they now use for drilling in Lycoming County, PA (see this MDN story). Seneca has just completed the conversion of a second 100% LNG-powered rig and uses it for drilling in Forest, Elk, Jefferson and McKean counties in PA.

Stands to reason the company that makes the engine would want to crow about it, and sure enough they now have. General Electric is the manufacturer of the Jenbacher J320 turbocharged natural gas engine, and they issued this press release yesterday about their innovative new engine being used by Seneca:

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

NY DEC New Permit System for Large Water Withdrawals
November 28, 2012November 28, 2012

In order to comply with the Great Lakes Compact, the New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation yesterday instituted a new permitting system for large water withdrawals from NY bodies of water. The new system impacts any industry or user withdrawing more than 100,000 gallons per day. It also helps pave the way for natural gas drillers who use fracking—when and if new fracking rules are released in the state.

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Economic Impact | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

Marcellus Shale Production Up 72% in One Year
November 28, 2012November 28, 2012

A few facts and figures about the Marcellus Shale and it’s immense importance to the energy picture in the United States, from a recent U.S. Energy Information Administration report:

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Allegheny County | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Wastewater

Setting the Record Straight on Bromides and Drilling in PA
November 28, 2012November 28, 2012

A few weeks ago the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette took a swipe at the gas drilling industry with an article that implied that wastewater from drilling is responsible for ongoing, high levels of bromides in the Allegheny River near Pittsburgh. Louis D’Amico, the president and executive director of the Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association (PIOGA), responds in today’s PPG to set the record straight and provide background and context missing from the article.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

NY Groups Launch New Ad Campaign – End Fracking Delays Now
November 28, 2012November 28, 2012

The Independent Oil & Gas Association of New York (IOGA of NY), Joint Landowners Coalition of New York (JLCNY) and a number of other landowner and business groups announced yesterday they have launched a new public relations advertising campaign that calls on Gov. Cuomo and state leaders to end the delays in allowing safe natural gas drilling in the state.

From the press announcement:

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Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Noise | Pipelines | Principle Energy Services

New Product Reduces Noise from Pipeline Compressor Stations
November 28, 2012November 28, 2012

Principle Energy Services, a Texas-based company with offices and operations in both the Marcellus and Utica Shale regions, has just launched a new product/service called Whisper Noise Enclosures™ that it says will drastically cut noise coming from compressor stations.

Calling it a “game changing solution,” here’s the Principle press release announcing their new service:

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Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Major WV Court Case Goes Against Surface Landowners
November 27, 2012November 27, 2012

A major court case before the West Virginia Supreme Court was decided last week, and the decision is not favorable to surface rights landowners. MDN previously alerted you to the case as it went to court back in September (see this MDN story). In brief, in WV the sub-surface mineral rights in many cases were severed and sold separately from the surface landowner rights—years ago. Surface rights landowners understand that mineral rights owners (and drillers) need access, but they want the right to have a say in where a drilling pad will be located on their property—and just compensation for taking the property for that purpose.

The WV Supreme Court decided last week (a copy of the decision is embedded below) that surface rights landowners cannot challenge WV DEP permits for drill pads, and where the pads are located, on their property:

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Alternative Energy | Industrywide Issues | New York | Statewide NY

New York Towns Vote to Ban… Wind Energy
November 27, 2012November 27, 2012

The mainstream media loves to run stories about the dozens of townships in New York state that voted to ban hydraulic fracturing. What the media doesn’t cover are the dozens of townships in New York state that have voted to ban or restrict wind power in their communities. You read that right. Many communities in New York don’t like the noisy, disruptive (and permanent, unlike natural gas drilling) presence of huge wind turbines.

Take the case of 60 residents in Herkimer County who are suing Iberdrola, the parent company of New York State Electric & Gas (NYSEG), over a wind farm in their community:

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Antero Resources | Crestwood Midstream | Doddridge County | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Harrison County | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | West Virginia

Crestwood Midstream Buys 4 Compressor Stations in WV
November 27, 2012November 27, 2012

Crestwood Marcellus Midstream announced yesterday they have purchased four compression/dehydration stations from Enerven Compression for $95 million. The stations service Crestwood’s own gathering pipelines in Harrison and Doddridge counties in West Virginia. Antero Resources is the driller in the area using the Crestwood pipeline system. Crestwood’s CEO calls it a “bolt-on acquisition” for the company.

From the Crestwood press release, which includes an update on their Marcellus-related business with Antero:

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Industrywide Issues | NG Vehicles | Pennsylvania | Research | Statewide PA

Regulatory Hurdles in Converting Vehicles to NatGas
November 27, 2012November 27, 2012

MDN has highlighted plenty of stories about companies and governments hopping on the bandwagon to convert vehicle fleets to run clean-burning natural gas. Why wouldn’t you? It’s half the cost of gasoline! There are, of course, some hurdles along the way—namely finding filling stations. But ever-so-gradually more filling stations are appearing. But in addition to the problem of lack of filling stations, there are federal, and often state, regulatory hurdles to consider as well.

A new white paper from the Ben Franklin Shale Gas Innovation and Commercialization Center takes a look at both Pennsylvania and federal regulations when it comes to converting vehicles to run on natural gas (a copy of the white paper is embedded below). Here’s the press release announcing the white paper, which provides a good overview of what’s in it:

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Air Quality | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Greene County (PA) | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation

Marcellus Drillers Drop Flaring, Adopt “Green Completions”
November 27, 2012November 27, 2012

The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved new rules earlier this year (that is, created new laws by fiat that no one has the guts to oppose) requiring all oil and gas drillers nationwide to use so-called “green completions” by the year 2015. What are green completions?

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Economic Impact | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

PA Marcellus is “Global Superstar” of NatGas Plays
November 27, 2012November 27, 2012

An opinion-editorial piece in today’s Harrisburg Patriot-News co-written by PA Dept. of Environmental Protection Sec. Michael Krancer and Gov. Tom Corbett’s energy executive Patrick Henderson touts Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale as the “global superstar of natural gas formations.” Referring to recently released reports from the IEA and S&P, here’s what else they said about the mighty Marcellus:

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Commodity Price | Industrywide Issues | M&A

3Q12 M&A Deals in the Marcellus Fall to Zero
November 27, 2012November 27, 2012

For the past five years one of the key indicators that the Marcellus Shale has been red hot is the level of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity among energy companies. That is, companies doing deals to work together, or to buy outright, leased acreage, drilling operations or pipelines and other infrastructure. For the first time in several years, there was no significant M&A activity for an entire 3-month period (third quarter 2012) in the Marcellus, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers, a consulting and research firm that tracks it.

What, exactly, does that mean?

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