Butler County

Butler County | Carroll County | Energy Companies | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Rex Energy

Rex Energy 1Q15 Update: 6 New Wells Online in Butler County
March 18, 2015March 18, 2015

The first quarter of 2015 hasn’t quite come to an end just yet (that happens on March 31)–but it’s not stopping Rex Energy from issuing a first quarter operational update. Rex, headquartered in State College, PA, is mainly focused on drilling in the Marcellus/Utica–in Butler County, PA and Carroll County, OH. According to Monday’s update, Rex placed six more wells (on two pads) in Butler County into sales during 1Q15. Because of problems with a Blue Racer compressor station, Rex reports production in Carroll County was constrained in 1Q15–but they’re quick to add those problems are over and the gas is now flowing again. Here’s yesterday’s update…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Butler County | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Rex Energy

Dela. RiverKeeper, Clean Air Council Cost Middlesex Residents $35K+
March 16, 2015March 16, 2015

THE Delaware Riverkeeper (Maya van Rossum) and the Clean Air Council, both located in the orbit of Philadelphia, have gone all the way to the opposite side of the state to meddle and cause mischief (see Martian Chronicles: Delaware River Basin Shifts to Western PA?). They’ve not only delayed legal and legitimate Marcellus drilling on the other side of the state, now they’ve cost the taxpayers in Middlesex Township (Butler County), PA over $35,000 in legal fees–and the costs keep mounting. Thank you Delaware Riverkeeper and Clean Air Council with your frivolous meddling! Those groups, in league with “four residents” are challenging the right of Middlesex to allow Rex Energy to drill several Marcellus Shale wells on a pad in a rural area that’s 3/4 of a mile away from the Mars School (see Rex Drilling Operation Near Mars School Put on Hold). Their meddling is costing real money–not only for Rex Energy, but also for the taxpayers of Middlesex who are nothing more than collateral damage for Riverkeeper and the Clean Air Council in their war on fossil fuels…
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Butler County | Energy Companies | Pennsylvania | Rex Energy

Rex Energy: Production Up 66% in 2014, New Drilling Area in 2015
January 21, 2015January 21, 2015

Rex Energy, the little energy company that could (and does) successfully drill in the Marcellus and Utica Shale, announced in December that they would reduce their drilling budget in the Marcellus by 44% in 2015 (see Rex Energy Reduces 2015 Marcellus/Utica Drilling Budget by 44%). Yesterday the company released an operational update for 2014 that shows production was up 66% in 2014 over 2013 numbers. Fourth quarter production numbers were up 15% over third quarter. In addition, Rex has begun drilling a series of Marcellus wells in a new area of Butler County, what they call the Moraine East Area. They plan to drill drill 10 to 16 wells in the Moraine East Area and complete 4 to 10 wells in 2015. Here’s the rundown from Rex for what happened in 2014, and what they intend to do in 2015…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Butler County | Ethane | Health Impacts | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Processing Plants | Research

Philly Clean Air Council “Studies” Shell Cracker Plant Impacts
January 14, 2015January 14, 2015

The Philadelphia-based Clean Air Council, a partisan, anti-drilling organization, has just issued a so-called Health Impact Assessment (HIA) for the proposed Shell ethane cracker plant in Monaca, PA (full copy embedded below). The so-called HIA has a long list of “recommendations” for Shell, most of which will cost big bucks to implement. The HIA has no official standing and Shell can completely ignore it if they so choose. However, Shell says they’re studying it now and will consider the information it conveys as they continue to evaluate their plans to build a $2-$3 billion ethane cracker near Pittsburgh. Below we have the press release from the anti-drilling Clean Air Council, along with some initial response from Shell…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Butler County | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Rex Energy

Martian Update: Principal Doesn’t want Rex Drilling Near his Home
January 5, 2015January 5, 2015

Between Christmas and New Year, Middlesex Township (Butler County), PA held the second of what may be up to five hearings on the already-granted permits for Rex Energy to drill five wells on a single well pad in the township. You may recall that two agitating “environmental” groups–headquartered on the other side of the state, in the Philadelphia area–along with four parents from the Mars School District, filed an appeal of the legal and legitimate permits granted by the state Dept. of Environmental Protection to Rex in September (see Rex Drilling Operation Near Mars School Put on Hold). The first hearing was held in November and the antis (as they always do) droned on for more than four hours (see Martians & Enviro Groups Continue to Block Rex Drilling in W PA). They continued their whine-fest on Dec. 29th with another five hours of mind-numbing sameness–drilling will kill us, drilling will pollute Mother Earth, yada yada yada. The main excuse is that drilling 3/4 of a mile from a local school will harm the kiddies. No mention that at least two school districts in the state, one close to Mars, has allowed drilling ON SCHOOL PROPERTY with no harm to the kiddies in those districts. At the hearing on the 29th, we get the REAL story behind the (ab)using of children as an excuse. One of the Mars School District principals lives near the drill pad and he opposes drilling near his expensive new home…
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Butler County | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | XTO

PA DEP Issues “Cease & Desist” Notice to XTO in Butler County, PA
December 15, 2014December 15, 2014

The Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) says XTO Energy never applied for or received a permit to push dirt around to create a truck access area near a planned drill pad in Butler County, PA. So the DEP has issued a “cease and desist” order to XTO. Unless and until they get permission (Mother May I?), XTO has five days to patch it up and re-seed it or throw mulch over it to prevent erosion…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Butler County | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Rex Energy

Martians & Enviro Groups Continue to Block Rex Drilling in W PA
November 21, 2014November 21, 2014

Martians have successfully delayed Rex Energy from continuing to drill a series of five Marcellus wells on a single pad in Middlesex Township (western Pennsylvania). You may recall that two so-called environmental groups (front groups for rigid anti-drillers)–THE Delaware Riverkeeper and the Clean Air Council, both based on the other side of the state in the Philadelphia area–along with four parents from the Mars school district, filed an appeal of the decision to allow the drilling to occur in Middlesex Township (see Rex Drilling Operation Near Mars School Put on Hold). The Mars school district is some 3/4 of a mile from the drilling site–never mind at least two other schools in PA, one near Mars, allows drilling ON SCHOOL PROPERTY! Nope. The Martians are insistent that Rex not be allowed to drill those wells because it will endanger the kiddies. So a zoning board hearing was held Tuesday night and “continued” until another meeting at the end of December. Town officials say they may end up holding five hearings total on the matter (one for each well?) before it’s concluded. Meanwhile, no more drilling for Rex at that site…
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Allegheny County | Butler County | Lease & Royalty Payments | Pennsylvania

East Allegheny, PA Leases School Property for Marcellus Drilling
November 11, 2014November 11, 2014

Earth to Mars (PA): To the anti-drilling parents in the Mars School District in Butler County, cast your eyes to the south in neighboring Allegheny County. The school district in East Allegheny, PA has just signed a lease with EQT to drill shale wells on district-owned property–in one case 500 feet away from the middle school! Now what was that about a well pad 3/4 of a mile from a Mars school–on non-school property–that has you so enraged? (see Rex Gets Permits to Drill Near Martian School, Antis Apoplectic) Back here on earth, the East Allegheny school board unanimously voted last night to lease 170.28 acres of district-owned land (in 14 parcels) to EQT. The terms are…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Butler County | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Rex Energy

Rex Drilling Operation Near Mars School Put on Hold
November 11, 2014November 11, 2014

Nearly two months ago Rex Energy received permits to drill five wells on a single well pad in Middlesex Township (Butler County), PA. The site is something like 3/4 of a mile from a school and some of the dunderheaded anti-drilling parents at the school are opposing it (see Rex Gets Permits to Drill Near Martian School, Antis Apoplectic). Those parents should take a short trip south to Allegheny County where the East Allegheny School District has just leased school property for drilling (see today’s lead story). Anywho, even though the Delaware River Basin is clear across the state and hundreds of miles from Middlesex Township, THE Delaware Riverkeeper along with another virulent anti-drilling group, Clean Air Council (also from the Philly area), have launched a challenge against Rex Energy to prevent them from drilling on the opposite side of the state. Talk about sickos…
Read More “Rex Drilling Operation Near Mars School Put on Hold”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Butler County | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Rex Energy

Martian Chronicles: Delaware River Basin Shifts to Western PA?
October 14, 2014October 14, 2014

The Martians are getting an assist from THE Delaware Riverkeeper herself (Maya van Rossum). Get this: The Delaware Riverkeeper, along with another anti-drilling group called The Clean Air Council (both based near Philadelphia), have filed an appeal with Adams Township (Butler County), PA over the town’s decision to grant Rex Energy permits to drill gas wells 3/4 of a mile away from the Mars public school. In June, Adams Township supervisors voted 4-1 to allow drilling to commence, subject to getting permits from the Dept. of Environmental Protection (see Adams Twp, PA Votes to NOT Block Drilling “Near” Mars School). Just a month ago, Rex got the permits from the DEP to begin drilling (see Rex Gets Permits to Drill Near Martian School, Antis Apoplectic). Some Martian parents objected, and found a sympathetic wallet all the way across the state in Philadelphia with van Rossum. What does Butler County, on the western edge of PA have to do with van Rossum’s Delaware River Basin group, which is focused exclusively on the eastern edge of PA? NOTHING. Except for her personal hatred of fossil fuels and willingness to spend her own (and other people’s) money to fight shale drilling wherever it happens…
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Butler County | Carroll County | Energy Companies | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Rex Energy | Utica Shale

Rex Energy: Utica Wells Pump Liquids; New Rig in PA; LOC +$100M
September 16, 2014September 16, 2014

Rex Energy yesterday issued an interim third quarter 2014 update on results for their recently drilled and completed Utica Shale wells in Ohio, and on operations in Butler County, PA. Rex’s OH Utica wells coming online in Carroll County, OH showed low daily output for methane–2.1 million cubic feet per day–but more than made up for it with big output for condensate (“natural gasoline”) and natural gas liquids: one set of Rex’s Utica wells averaged 454 barrels per day of condensate and 433 barrels per day of NGLs. Rex also announced they are adding a third drilling rig in their Butler, PA area starting in early 2015 after picking up 208,000 acres from Shell (see Rex Energy Takes Shell to the Cleaners – Picks up 208K Acres). And, the company got a $100 million increase in their line of credit…
Read More “Rex Energy: Utica Wells Pump Liquids; New Rig in PA; LOC +$100M”
Butler County | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Rex Energy

Rex Gets Permits to Drill Near Martian School, Antis Apoplectic
September 15, 2014September 22, 2014

Finally! On Friday, the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection wisely granted drilling permits to Rex Energy for a site 3/4 of a mile away from a school in Mars (Butler County), PA. Some of the Martian parents are anti-drilling and demanded the school board engage in the illegal action of setting up a no-drill zone two miles beyond school property (see Martians Still Trying to Invade Neighbors to Prevent Drilling). Clearly such a measure would never hold up in court–but that doesn’t stop anti-drillers from trying, wasting everyone’s time and money. Now it looks to be a moot point. However, the Martians are not done yet. They’re a bit shell-shocked that their pretentious demands have been turned down (adult versions of spoiled children who have just been told “NO!”), so they’re regrouping and hatching new strategies on where to go from here…
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Advanced Well Services | Butler County | Energy Services | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Supply Chain

PA “Snubbing” Company DWS Experiences Rapid Expansion
September 12, 2014September 12, 2014

What do you think of when you hear the word “snub”? We always thought it meant how Webster defines it: “to treat with contempt or neglect”. However, in the world of oil and gas drilling, to snub, or “snubbing” means something completely different. Deep Well Services (DWS) is the only “snubbing” oilfield services company located in Pennsylvania. With headquarters in Zelienople (Butler County), PA, the company has gone through a rapid expansion adding dozens of new employees over the past four months. So, what is snubbing and why should you care about it?…
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Butler County | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | MarkWest Energy | Pennsylvania | Processing Plants | Rex Energy

Rex Energy Chimes In on MarkWest Expansion Announcement
August 27, 2014August 27, 2014

Yesterday MDN told you the news that MarkWest Energy is building two additional natural gas processing plants at their Keystone processing complex in Butler County, PA–one for EdgeMarc Energy and the other for Rex Energy (see MarkWest Expanding Again in Butler County, PA with Rex & EdgeMarc). Today we bring you Rex Energy’s press release announcing the same news. We don’t detect any real new news in Rex’s version of the release, although there are a few additional details not found in the MarkWest release. We bring it to you because it’s always fascinating to us to see how different companies present news that highlights what they want it to highlight…
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Beaver County | Butler County | EdgeMarc Energy | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | MarkWest Energy | Pennsylvania | Processing Plants | Rex Energy

MarkWest Expanding Again in Butler County, PA with Rex & EdgeMarc
August 26, 2014August 26, 2014

When you have a good thing going, like MarkWest Energy does with its Keystone processing complex in Butler County, PA, you keep growing it. And that’s just what MarkWest is doing. The company announced today they have a couple of new customers for the complex–Rex Energy and EdgeMarc Energy. The new customers will each get their own 200 million cubic feet per day (Mmcf/d) processing plants in the Bluestone facility–part of the Keystone complex that includes Bluestone and Sarsen facilities. In addition, MarkWest is also adding an additional 40,000 barrels per day (Bbl/d) of de-ethanization capacity and over 20,000 Bbl/d of additional propane and heavier NGL fractionation capacity. It means more capacity, more production, more money for landowners, and more major money will be invested in Butler County…
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Butler County | Energy Companies | Pennsylvania | Potter County | Rex Energy | Shell | Tioga County (PA) | Ultra Petroleum

After Selling 208K Marcellus Acres, Shell “Buys” 155K More Acres!
August 15, 2014August 15, 2014

In a seemingly strange twist, Shell has just picked up more Marcellus and Utica Shale acreage. Say what? Yesterday MDN told you that Rex Energy just bought 208,000 Marcellus acres from Shell in southwest Pennsylvania’s wet gas area (see Rex Energy Takes Shell to the Cleaners – Picks up 208K Acres). We pointed out that many majors like Shell seem to have a hard time turning a buck in American shale plays, and that Shell CEO Ben van van Beurden had warned of scaling back their shale operations. So what happened a day later? Shell further divested itself of both conventional and unconventional holdings–this time in Wyoming and Louisiana. As part of the same deal, the picked up new Marcellus acreage (155,000 acres) in Pennsylvania’s dry gas area. Let’s try to sort through these Shell gyrations…
Read More “After Selling 208K Marcellus Acres, Shell “Buys” 155K More Acres!”