Belmont County

Apex Energy | Ascent Resources | Beech Resources | Belmont County | Coterra Energy (Cabot O&G) | Diversified Energy | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Greene County (PA) | Gulfport Energy | Harrison County | Harrison County | Lycoming County | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Seneca Resources | Susquehanna County | Tioga County (PA) | Washington County | Weekly Permits | West Virginia | Westmoreland County

20 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jan 29 – Feb 4
February 9, 2024February 9, 2024

There were 20 new permits issued to drill in the Marcellus/Utica during the week of Jan. 29 – Feb. 4, versus 27 permits issued during the prior week. Pennsylvania issued 12 new permits last week. Ohio issued 6 new permits. West Virginia issued 2 new permits last week. We had a tie for the company receiving the most permits. Seneca Resources received 4 permits to drill in Tioga County, PA, and Ascent Resources received 4 permits to drill in Harrison County, OH.
Read More “20 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jan 29 – Feb 4”
Ascent Resources | Belmont County | Energy Companies | Harrison County | Industrywide Issues | Jefferson County (OH) | M&A | Monroe County | Northern Oil & Gas | Ohio

NOG Closes on Deal for Ascent-Operated Utica Wells & Acreage
February 6, 2024February 6, 2024

Last November, Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NOG), a company that invests in non-operated oil and gas assets (they let others do the drilling), announced a deal to enter the Utica Shale (see NOG Invests in Utica Wells, Acreage Operated by Ascent Resources). The deal includes non-operated interests in Ohio’s Jefferson, Harrison, Belmont, and Monroe counties. Yesterday, NOG said it closed on the deal and now owns those assets.
Read More “NOG Closes on Deal for Ascent-Operated Utica Wells & Acreage”
Allegheny County | Antero Resources | Apex Energy | Ascent Resources | Belmont County | Butler County | CNX Resources | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Greene County (PA) | Guernsey County | Gulfport Energy | INR/Infinity Natural Resources | Jefferson County (OH) | Laurel Mountain Energy | Lycoming County | Ohio | Olympus/Huntley & Huntley | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Tyler County | Weekly Permits | West Virginia | Westmoreland County

27 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jan 22 – 28
February 2, 2024February 2, 2024

There were 27 new permits issued to drill in the Marcellus/Utica during the week of Jan. 22 – 28, versus 20 permits issued during the prior week. Pennsylvania issued 19 new permits last week. Ohio issued 5 new permits. West Virginia issued 3 new permits last week. Olympus Energy scored the most new permits with 7, all of them in Westmoreland County, PA. Apex Energy came in second with 6 new permits, also in Westmoreland. In fact, Westmoreland County, in southwestern PA, received 15 new permits last week, by far the most of any county.
Read More “27 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jan 22 – 28”
Antero Resources | Apex Energy | Armstrong County | Ascent Resources | Belmont County | Centre County | Doddridge County | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Greene County (PA) | Guernsey County | Gulfport Energy | Monroe County | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Ritchie County | Seneca Resources | Snyder Brothers | Southwestern Energy | Susquehanna County | Tioga County (PA) | Washington County | Weekly Permits | West Virginia | Westmoreland County | XPR Resources

35 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Dec 11-17
December 22, 2023January 24, 2024

New shale permits issued for Dec 11 – 17 in the Marcellus/Utica continued the trend up over the previous week. There were 35 new permits issued last week versus 27 issued two weeks ago. Last week’s permit tally included 17 new permits in Pennsylvania, 13 new permits in Ohio, and 5 new permits in West Virginia. The company receiving the most permits last week was Ascent Resources with 8 new permits in two different counties: Guernsey and Belmont counties in OH. Antero was second highest with 5 new permits in Ritchie and Doddridge counties in WV.
Read More “35 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Dec 11-17”
Ascent Resources | Belmont County | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Gulfport Energy | Industrywide Issues | Lease & Royalty Payments | Litigation | Ohio | XTO

Court Orders Ohio Drillers to Produce Documents in Royalty Dispute
December 21, 2023January 24, 2024

Back in the summer of 2020, MDN told you about a lawsuit brought by an Ohio rights owner called TERA, an organization that appears to own the royalty rights for a number of leases with wells in Belmont County, OH, drilled by different producers, suing the producers for drilling into the Point Pleasant shale layer when the lease only mentions the Utica layer (see OH Landowners Sue Rice, Ascent, XTO, Gulfport for Drilling Too Deep). That lawsuit continues to grind on. Last week, a judge ruled the drillers being sued must produce certain documents sought by the plaintiff (rights owner).
Read More “Court Orders Ohio Drillers to Produce Documents in Royalty Dispute”
Belmont County | Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Processing Plants | PTT Global

PTT Working on Plan to Build Petchem Plant…in Thailand, Not Ohio
December 19, 2023January 24, 2024

This is your friendly (somewhat snarky) semi-annual reminder from MDN that the PTT ethane cracker project in Ohio is dead (see Facing Reality – PTT Ohio Cracker Plant Project is Dead). We periodically look for signs of life in the project, and it has been a flat line for YEARS. Nothing. Local and state leaders in Ohio sometimes pop their heads up to tell us to have hope; it will still happen. BUNKUM. Earlier today, PTT Global Chemical Public Company, the parent that would build an ethane cracker in Belmont County, OH, announced a deal with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries “to explore the utilization of hydrogen, ammonia and CCS technology to develop a large-scale petrochemical plant to achieve Net Zero.” However, the location of the plant will be in Thailand, PTT’s home country, and NOT in Ohio. We’ve pointed out for years that PTT has all sorts of money to work on big, multi-billion-dollar petrochemical plant projects elsewhere, but apparently there is not enough money for the Belmont ethane cracker. Why?
Read More “PTT Working on Plan to Build Petchem Plant…in Thailand, Not Ohio”
Apex Energy | Ascent Resources | Belmont County | Best of the Rest | Encino Energy | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Guernsey County | Jefferson County (OH) | Marion County | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Southwestern Energy | Susquehanna County | Weekly Permits | West Virginia | Westmoreland County

27 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Dec 4 – 10
December 15, 2023December 15, 2023

New shale permits issued for Dec 4 – 10 in the Marcellus/Utica were up by 2 over the previous week. There were 27 new permits issued last week versus 25 issued two weeks ago. However, there was a major surprise! Last week’s permit tally included 8 new permits in Pennsylvania, 9 new permits in Ohio, and 10 new permits in West Virginia. The pattern is typically the opposite, with PA receiving the most permits and WV the least. The company receiving the most permits last week was EQT Corporation, with all 10 of WV’s permits all on the same well pad in Marion County.
Read More “27 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Dec 4 – 10”
Ascent Resources | Belmont County | Energy Companies | Harrison County | Jefferson County (OH) | Monroe County | Northern Oil & Gas | Ohio

NOG Invests in Utica Wells, Acreage Operated by Ascent Resources
November 22, 2023November 22, 2023

In February 2021, Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NOG), a company that invests in non-operated oil and gas assets (they let others do the drilling), announced it had purchased 64,000 net acres producing ~120 MMcfe/d (million cubic feet equivalent per day) in the Marcellus/Utica from Reliance Industries Limited (see Northern O&G Buys 64K Acres of RIL’s Non-Op M-U Assets for $250M). According to NOG’s second quarter 2022 update, the company continued sniffing around the M-U, looking for more deals (see Northern Oil & Gas Continues to Sniff for Deals in the Marcellus). It took a while (more than a year), but they finally found another deal. Yesterday, NOG announced a “bolt-on” acquisition in its Permian portfolio, and a deal to enter the Ohio Utica.
Read More “NOG Invests in Utica Wells, Acreage Operated by Ascent Resources”
Allegheny County | Antero Resources | Ascent Resources | Belmont County | Bradford County | Chesapeake Energy | CNX Resources | Coterra Energy (Cabot O&G) | Encino Energy | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Greene County (PA) | Gulfport Energy | Harrison County | Monroe County | Monroe County | Northeast Natural Energy | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Repsol | Southwestern Energy | Susquehanna County | Tioga County (PA) | Tuscarawas County | Tyler County | Washington County | Weekly Permits | West Virginia

37 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Oct 30 – Nov 5
November 9, 2023November 9, 2023

New shale permits issued for Oct 30 – Nov 5 in the Marcellus/Utica saw a significant increase. It almost felt like old times again! There were 37 new permits issued last week, versus 26 the week before. Last week’s permit tally included 24 new permits in Pennsylvania, 11 new permits in Ohio, and 2 new permits in West Virginia. Coterra Energy was the top permittee for the week, drawing 9 permits in Susquehanna County, PA. This will really rub the antis raw: Coterra received several permits to restart drilling in Dimock Township. 🙂
Read More “37 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Oct 30 – Nov 5”
Beech Resources | Belmont County | Butler County | CNX Resources | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Gulfport Energy | Lycoming County | Ohio | Ohio County | PennEnergy Resources | Pennsylvania | Southwestern Energy | Washington County | Weekly Permits | West Virginia | Wetzel County

21 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Sep 18 – 24
September 29, 2023September 29, 2023

New shale permits issued for Sep 18 – 24 in the Marcellus/Utica were roughly the same as the prior week. There were 21 new permits issued last week, down 1 from permits issued two weeks ago. Last week’s permit tally included 11 new permits in Pennsylvania, 4 new permits in Ohio, and 6 new permits in West Virginia. Three companies tied for top permittee last week: PennEnergy Resources with 5 permits in Butler County, PA; CNX Resources with 5 permits in Washington County, PA; and Southwestern Energy with 5 permits spread between Wetzel and Ohio counties in WV.
Read More “21 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Sep 18 – 24”
Belmont County | Economic Impact | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Taxation

Belmont County, OH Lodging Tax from O&G Workers Grows Tourism
September 7, 2023September 7, 2023

The transient workers in the Ohio Utica Shale field must stay somewhere. That somewhere is typically a hotel or motel. Belmont County, one of the hotbeds of Utica drilling, has many such transient workers. Their overnight stays at area hotels and motels create a big pile of lodging tax revenue, which is used to help fund the Belmont County Tourism Council. And the Council is thankful for it!
Read More “Belmont County, OH Lodging Tax from O&G Workers Grows Tourism”
Belmont County | Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Processing Plants | PTT Global

PTT Offers Excuses to Belmont County on Why Cracker Project Stalled
August 31, 2023August 31, 2023

Two weeks ago, MDN editor Jim Willis offered the opinion that PTT Global Chemical is not going to build an ethane cracker plant in Belmont County (see Facing Reality – PTT Ohio Cracker Plant Project is Dead). He backed up his opinion with observations and facts to support it. On Tuesday, the Belmont County Township Trustees Association heard a report from PTT’s public relations firm, which continues to dangle the carrot that the cracker plant is coming.
Read More “PTT Offers Excuses to Belmont County on Why Cracker Project Stalled”
Belmont County | Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Processing Plants | PTT Global

Facing Reality – PTT Ohio Cracker Plant Project is Dead
August 18, 2023August 18, 2023

We’ll say aloud what no one else appears ready or willing to say: The long-ballyhooed PTT ethane cracker plant project in Belmont County, Ohio, announced eight years ago, is dead. That’s our humble opinion. We periodically look for signs of life in the project, and it has been a flat line for YEARS. Nothing. A local news article from earlier this week asked, “What is the future of the Belmont County Ethane Cracker plant project?” Local county leaders are still “very optimistic” it will get built. We say it’s time to face reality.
Read More “Facing Reality – PTT Ohio Cracker Plant Project is Dead”
Belmont County | Energy Companies | Gulfport Energy | Ohio

Gulfport Drilling Marcellus (Not Utica) Wells in Belmont Co., OH
August 3, 2023August 3, 2023

Gulfport Energy, the third-largest driller in the Ohio Utica Shale (by the number of wells drilled), emerged from bankruptcy in May 2021 with a new board and top management. In January of this year, the company appointed a new CEO, John Reinhart, the former President and CEO of M-U driller Montage Resources Corporation before that company was gobbled up by Southwestern Energy (see Marcellus Veteran John Reinhart Joins Gulfport Energy as CEO). Yesterday Gulfport issued its second quarter 2023 update. The company made $78 million in net income during 2Q23 versus $216 million in 2Q22, down 64%, which tracks with similar decreases seen in other major M-U drillers.
Read More “Gulfport Drilling Marcellus (Not Utica) Wells in Belmont Co., OH”
Antero Resources | Ascent Resources | Belmont County | Columbiana County | Energy Companies | Gulfport Energy | Hilcorp Energy | Jefferson County (OH) | Noble County | Ohio | Weekly Permits | West Virginia | Wetzel County

17 New Shale Well Permits Issued for OH-WV (Not PA) Jul 10-16
July 21, 2023July 21, 2023

We’re trying not to sound too PO’d (personally offended) here, but once again, in what seems to be an every month or two occurrence, the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) online oil and gas permitting database is throwing an error. So, we are left with no permit numbers for PA for the week of July 10-16. Neither the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) reporting system nor the West Virginia DEP reporting system have these problems. It is only the PA DEP that routinely goes “off the air.” Why is that? [Rant over] Even without PA’s numbers, OH and WV combined issued 17 permits last week, versus the pathetic 11 total from the prior week that included PA.
Read More “17 New Shale Well Permits Issued for OH-WV (Not PA) Jul 10-16”
Allegheny County | Belmont County | Bradford County | Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Gulfport Energy | Marshall County | Ohio | Olympus/Huntley & Huntley | Pennsylvania | Southwestern Energy | Weekly Permits | West Virginia

11 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jun 19-25
June 30, 2023June 30, 2023

New shale permits issued for Jun 19-25 in the Marcellus/Utica took another nosedive. There were 11 new permits issued last week, down from 21 the previous week. There’s just no denying that the trend in permits is generally down. Last week’s permit tally included 6 new permits in Pennsylvania, 2 new permits in Ohio (both permits in the Marcellus layer!), and 3 new permits in West Virginia. Olympus Energy scored the most new permits, with 4 issued in Allegheny County, PA. Southwestern Energy had the second most new permits, with 3 permits issued in Marshall County, WV.
Read More “11 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jun 19-25”