Monroe County

Beck Energy | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Lease & Royalty Payments | Litigation | Monroe County | Ohio | Utica Shale

Beck Energy Sues OH Attorneys for Lease “Interference”
October 30, 2013October 30, 2013

An interesting court case that landowners in Monroe County, OH with old (30 year-old) non-Utica gas leases will be interested in following. Beck Energy holds many of those old leases (originally signed for an average $50/acre) which allows them to drill vertically into the Clinton sandstone for natural gas. However, the old leases prevent landowners from signing new leases (at much higher signing bonuses) to allow Utica Shale drilling. Apparently some enterprising attorneys have taken up the cause by shopping (i.e. advertising) for plaintiffs and Beck is none to happy about it. Beck has filed a lawsuit against the attorneys and their law firms to stop them from making mischief with “their” leases.

After reading the details of whose done what to whom (below), it seems to MDN no one will come out of this one smelling clean…
Read More “Beck Energy Sues OH Attorneys for Lease “Interference””
Antero Resources | Energy Companies | Monroe County | Ohio | Utica Shale

Antero Resources Utica Well Produces Stratospheric 38.9 Mmcf/d
August 29, 2013

Somehow the following news (now a few weeks old) slipped by our usually-good radar. Antero Resources has taken the top spot away from Gulfport Energy as having the most productive Utica Shale well in Ohio. Gulfport had what was dubbed their “alpha dog” well, the Wagner 1-H well producing 14 million cubic feet of natural gas per day (Mmcf/d). Then came Gulfport’s Shugert 1-1H, which MDN dubbed the “King of Utica Shale wells” producing a whopping 20 Mmcf/d. After that was the Shugert 1-12H well, sister well to the 1-1H. We called that one “the Emperor well” producing 28.5 Mmcf/d (see Gulfport’s New Utica Well Produces Mind-blowing 28.5 Mmcf/d!).

We’re now officially out of metaphors and labels. Antero Resources’ Yontz Utica Shale well recently saw a peak rate of a truly mind-blowing 38.9 Mmcf/d. Gulfport’s Shugert wells are in Belmont County. The Yontz well is located in Monroe County, just south of Belmont…
Read More “Antero Resources Utica Well Produces Stratospheric 38.9 Mmcf/d”
Blue Ridge Mtn Res/Magnum Hunter | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Eureka Midstream | Monroe County | Ohio | Triad Hunter

Magnum Hunter Drills 2nd OH Location – Plans 18 Wells on 1 Pad!
July 2, 2013July 2, 2013

Magnum Hunter Resources announced today they have begun shale drilling at a second Ohio location–this one in Monroe County, OH. While the fact that Magnum is now ramping up their Utica drilling program is interesting–that’s not the “new news” in the announcement. The new news is this:

The Monroe County wells are the first wells Magnum Hunter will drill using their new robotic drilling rig, a Schramm T500XD. Furthermore, they plan to drill an astonishing 18 wells at this one location–10 of them Marcellus wells, and 8 of them Utica wells. In addition, Magnum is keeping it “all in the family,” by using subsidiary Triad Hunter to operate the wells and subsidiary Eureka Hunter to pipeline the gas from the wells…
Read More “Magnum Hunter Drills 2nd OH Location – Plans 18 Wells on 1 Pad!”
Beck Energy | Belmont County | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Lease & Royalty Payments | Litigation | Monroe County | Ohio | XTO

XTO, Beck Energy Appeal OH Case Allowing Lease Termination
March 15, 2013March 15, 2013

Earlier this week MDN told you about 600-700 landowners in Ohio who won a lawsuit allowing them to terminate leases held with Beck Energy and XTO Energy (see OH Lawsuit Victory: 600-700 Landowners Can Terminate Beck, XTO Leases).

Beck and XTO are none too happy with the decision and have appealed it to the Ohio Court of Appeals:

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Beck Energy | Belmont County | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Lease & Royalty Payments | Litigation | Monroe County | Ohio | XTO

OH Lawsuit Victory: 600-700 Landowners Can Terminate Beck, XTO Leases
March 11, 2013March 11, 2013

A court case recently-decided could have big implications for landowners in Ohio. The case means that some 600-700 landowners with signed leases with Beck Energy Corp. and XTO Energy in Monroe and Belmont counties may be able to join a class action to have their leases terminated, allowing them to re-sign with a different company.

The details, as provided by law firm Jackson Kelly:

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Crosstex Energy | E2 | Energy Services | Enerven Compression Services | Industrywide Issues | Monroe County | Noble County | Ohio | Pipelines | Processing Plants | Utica Shale

Crosstex Energy to Build New Compressors, Processing Plant in OH
March 6, 2013March 6, 2013

Crosstex Energy has formed a joint venture with Enerven Compression Services called E2 to build and operate new compressor stations and a condensate processing plant in the Ohio Utica Shale. In their announcement today, Crosstex says the company has set up a new $75 million line of credit and will invest an initial $50 million from it in the new JV. First up is building two compressor stations in Noble and Monroe counties in Ohio—they already have an unnamed customer lined up for those. After that, they’ll build a condensate (“natural gasoline”) processing plant. Crosstex will own 93% of the JV and Enerven will own the other 7%.

The Crosstex announcement from this morning:

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Carroll County | Columbiana County | Guernsey County | Harrison County | Monroe County | Ohio | Utica Shale

Another 20 Utica Shale Permits Issued Last Week in OH
March 6, 2013March 6, 2013

The latest permit numbers released from the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources shows 20 new permits for the week ending March 2nd.

Here’s where the latest round of permits were issued, along with an update on how many wells have been drilled and are now in production in Ohio:

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Anadarko | Athens County | Encore Energy | Energy Companies | Guernsey County | Lease & Royalty Payments | Meigs County | Monroe County | Morgan County | Noble County | Ohio | Utica Shale | Washington County (OH)

Encore Energy to Anadarko: We’ve Got OH Land for You
February 14, 2013February 14, 2013

A for-profit company that pools acreage from both landowners that want to lease their land, and from energy companies with leases who want to re-sell those leases, is trying to get the attention of Anadarko and other drillers in the Ohio Utica Shale. Encore Energy issued a press release yesterday announcing they have land available for lease. They specifically tap Anadarko on the shoulder to tell them they have 1,300 Utica Shale acres “just 3 miles” from land they’re already drilling on in Washington County, OH.

Encore is shopping more than 18,000 acres across a number of Ohio counties, including Morgan, Washington, Noble, Guernsey, Monroe, Athens and Meigs. Here’s their “hey Anadarko, pay attention” press release:

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Energy Services | Harrison County | Industrywide Issues | MarkWest Energy | Monroe County | Ohio | Pipelines | Processing Plants | Statewide OH

Cash Runs Low – MarkWest Floats $150M Loan in Utica Midstream JV
February 6, 2013February 6, 2013

At the end of 2011, MarkWest Energy and The Energy & Minerals Group (EMG) announced that MarkWest was buying out EMG’s share in a 3-year-old joint venture deal in the wet gas portion of the Marcellus Shale called MarkWest Liberty Midstream. EMG owned a 49% stake in that JV (see MarkWest Pays $1.8B to Buy Out JV Partner in Liberty Midstream). At the time of the buyout, the two companies announced they would form a new JV to build midstream infrastructure in the Utica Shale starting in 2012.

The new Utica JV (called MarkWest Utica EMG) ramped up in early 2012 as the pair set out to duplicate their success in building out the Marcellus in the fledgling Utica. The strategy? “Creating a large network of processing complexes connected through an extensive NGL gathering system,” which they immediately began to do by beginning construction on two new processing complexes in Harrison and Monroe counties in Ohio (see MarkWest to Expand/Build NGL Plants on New Agreements). Just one tiny problem: the Utica JV is now running short on cash…

Read More “Cash Runs Low – MarkWest Floats $150M Loan in Utica Midstream JV”
Blue Ridge Mtn Res/Magnum Hunter | Energy Companies | Monroe County | Noble County | Ohio | Triad Hunter | Utica Shale | Washington County (OH)

Magnum Hunter Ramps up in OH Utica Shale with 4 Test Wells
January 23, 2013January 23, 2013

The Marcellus Shale is the powerhouse workhorse, but the Utica Shale continues to be white hot for development. Magnum Hunter Resources and its subsidiary Triad Hunter announced yesterday the company will drill a minimum of four Utica “test wells” in 2013. Provided they find a good result, they plan “further development” of their 107,000 gross acres of Utica Shale leases later in 2013—which connotes they’ll drill those test wells early this year. In fact, Triad Hunter is already working on their first Utica well pad in Washington County, OH. A second well pad in Washington County is already in the planning stages, as is a well pad in Noble County.

Magnum Hunter’s press release outlining their plans for Ohio, including references to new OH Marcellus wells just completed and new pipelines on the way for some of their existing OH Marcellus wells:

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Blue Ridge Mtn Res/Magnum Hunter | Eclipse Resources | Energy Companies | Monroe County | Ohio | Triad Hunter

Two Fierce Competitors Join Forces to Drill in OH Utica Shale
January 3, 2013January 3, 2013

Drilling company Magnum Hunter Resources announced a joint operating deal yesterday with Eclipse Resources to drill 12 Marcellus and 12 Utica Shale wells on 1,950 acres in Monroe County, OH over the next three years. Both companies together will invest $200 million in the program.

The reason for the partnership between these fierce competitors? According to Magnum Hunter, it’s due to the “treacherous terrain in this region” of the state. They want to pool resources and keep costs down. Of course, it also helps that Eclipse will start using Magnum’s pipeline system (Eureka Hunter Pipeline), providing more revenue for the midstream area of the business.

Read More “Two Fierce Competitors Join Forces to Drill in OH Utica Shale”
Antero Resources | Ashland County | Carroll County | Chesapeake Energy | Devon Energy | HG Energy | Medina County | Monroe County | Noble County | Ohio | Portage County | Stark County | Utica Shale

Flip Side: Some OH Utica Shale Wells Get Plugged/Abandoned
January 2, 2013January 2, 2013

When it comes to drilling in the Ohio Utica Shale, a lot of attention has been focused on the ramp up in activity—the growing number of drilling rigs, huge land lease deals, and eye-popping initial production results for some of the wells drilled. But there is another side to the story.

Every now and again, a well does not produce. Could be the driller did not properly find the shale layer (extremely rare). Could be they did find it but for whatever reason the layer doesn’t produce in that area. More likely there were problems during the drilling that caused the work to be stopped—like a broken-off drill bit. In Ohio, there have been nine Utica Shale wells that have been plugged and abandoned (so far). Here’s where they are located and who did the drilling:

Read More “Flip Side: Some OH Utica Shale Wells Get Plugged/Abandoned”
Antero Resources | Carroll County | Chesapeake Energy | Columbiana County | Eclipse Resources | Energy Companies | Guernsey County | Monroe County | Ohio | PDC Energy | Utica Shale

11 New Utica Shale Drilling Permits in OH, as of Dec 12
December 28, 2012December 28, 2012

The latest round of permits to drill new Utica Shale wells from the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) includes 11 new permits, 8 of which went to Chesapeake Energy.

Here’s the latest Ohio Utica permit report (with grand totals by county) as of Dec. 12:

Read More “11 New Utica Shale Drilling Permits in OH, as of Dec 12”
Economic Impact | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Monroe County | Ohio

Utica Drilling Resurrects Railroad in Monroe County, OH
December 24, 2012December 24, 2012

Yes, MDN is a sucker for a good railroad story—always has been. And here’s another one…

A 12-mile short line railroad in Monroe County, Ohio will soon roar back to life after being closed for 10 years—thanks to Utica and Marcellus Shale drilling:

Read More “Utica Drilling Resurrects Railroad in Monroe County, OH”
Energy Companies | Equinor/Statoil | Harrison County | Lease & Royalty Payments | Monroe County | Ohio | Tyler County | West Virginia | Wetzel County

Statoil Pays $590M for 70K “Wet Gas” Marcellus Acres
December 19, 2012December 19, 2012

In August, MDN told you that Statoil (a Norwegian company) was in the hunt for more U.S. shale acreage (see this MDN story). Statoil previously purchased a 32.5% interest in Chesapeake Energy’s Marcellus Shale acreage in 2008, securing 600,000 net acres for the company (but not as the “operator” for that acreage). They’ve been in the hunt for more, specifically to become an operator, and today they announced they’ve done a deal for an additional 70,000 Marcellus Shale acres—in the wet gas area of the play.

Statoil officially closed on the deal yesterday with Grenadier Energy Partners LLC, Protege Energy II LLC and PetroEdge Resources II LLC, paying $590 million for 70,000 acres in both West Virginia and eastern Ohio. The purchase price works out to be $8,429 per acre.

Here’s the Statoil press release announcing the deal, along with a slide presentation and map of the newly acquired acreage:

Read More “Statoil Pays $590M for 70K “Wet Gas” Marcellus Acres”
Carroll County | Harrison County | Holmes County | Monroe County | Noble County | Ohio | Trumbull County

10 New Utica Shale Permits Issued Last Week in Ohio
November 8, 2012November 7, 2012

Ten new Utica Shale wells were approved by the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) for the week covering Oct. 28 through Nov. 3. Here’s a breakdown on where the permits were issued:

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