Statewide PA

Pennsylvania | Statewide PA | Washington County

Political Stunt: PA Rep Wants Sec. of DEP Elected Position
September 6, 2012September 6, 2012

Making some rather wild claims about being denied access to information from the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection, and apparently on a political vendetta against PA Gov. Tom Corbett and DEP Sec. Michael Krancer, State Rep. Jesse White (Washington County) has introduced two bills into the PA legislature that would turn Krancer’s position from being a secretary appointed by the governor into being a term-limited commissioner elected by voters statewide—similar to attorney general and state treasurer.

White introduced House Bills 2606 and 2607 to amend the Pennsylvania Constitution, saying:

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Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PA Lawyers in Act 13 Lawsuit Say State Legislature has “Supreme Authority”
September 5, 2012September 5, 2012

A quick update on the Act 13 lawsuit before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court: Lawyers for the state, on behalf of the governor, the Dept. of Environmental Protection and the Public Utility Commission, filed a 45-page brief yesterday defending the law. The seven towns suing the state to overturn the zoning portions of Act 13 (the part that disallows local municipal control over the siting of drilling and compressor plants, etc.) will file their brief later this month.

Among the arguments made by the state in defending the zoning portion of Act 13:

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Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Dominion Turns On Appalachian Gateway Project Pipeline
September 5, 2012September 5, 2012

Dominion Transmission “threw the switch” (or rather opened the valve) to the Appalachian Gateway Project yesterday. The project was 3/4 of a billion dollars spent by Dominion to upgrade and expand existing infrastructure, and to build 110 miles of new pipeline. The end result is a big increase in the amount of Marcellus Shale gas flowing from West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania to markets along the eastern seaboard.

From the Dominion press release:

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Coterra Energy (Cabot O&G) | Energy Companies | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

New Production Milestone Achieved by Cabot Oil & Gas
September 5, 2012September 5, 2012

Cabot Oil & Gas CEO Dan Dinges released a statement yesterday highlighting a new milestone just achieved by the driller: Natural gas production for Cabot averaged over 700 million cubic feet per day (Mmcf) for the last two weeks, reaching as high as 752 Mmcf during one 24-hour period. Cabot is one of the largest producers in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale.

From the press release:

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Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Property Value | Statewide PA

Have a Marcellus Lease? Forget a Mortgage with ESB Bank
September 4, 2012September 4, 2012

It appears that ESB Bank (located in the Pittsburgh, PA area) is running a scam on Pennsylvania landowners with Marcellus Shale leases. ESB doesn’t tell landowners with leases looking to finance or refinance a mortgage that they won’t approve the application because of the lease—until after the homeowner has spent $500 to have an appraisal done. Oh, and ESB keeps the $500—sorry, no refunds.

Fortunately, ESB Bank seems to be one of the only banks (if not the only) refusing to finance/refinance properties with Marcellus leases. Here is one Pennsylvanian’s story of being fleeced by ESB Bank:

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Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

PA State Geologist Talks about Shale Gas in Gettysburg Basin
September 4, 2012September 4, 2012

The Harrisburg Patriot-News has an excellent article (well worth your time to read) on the topic, Is there shale gas in the mid-state area of PA? The article’s author, Donald Gilliland, first introduces us to the state geologist, George Love, painting an interesting picture of where he works and what he does. Gilliland then skewers the southeastern Republicans (properly so) for inserting an eleventh-hour moratorium on drilling in their part of the state into the recent state budget (see MDN’s dim view of their action in this article). The moratorium prevents drilling in the South Newark Basin, located around the Philadelphia area, until a study is completed. George Love is the man in charge of that study.

But it is the article’s focus on another nearby shale basin, formed at roughly the same time as the South Newark Basin, that is fascinating to MDN. It’s called the Gettysburg Basin, so-named for the historic place under which part of it lies. Would there, could there be drilling under the hallowed ground at Gettysburg and other mid-state locations like Harrisburg? Mr. Love’s study of the South Newark will also look at other basins in the state and will help answer those questions.

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Health Impacts | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

Much-Ballyhooed Marcellus Health Impact Study Not Funded
September 4, 2012September 4, 2012

MDN recently reported on the big story that two large health care systems are working together to conduct what is believed to be the first widespread health impact study of residents living in areas where there is active Marcellus drilling (see this MDN story). The two health care systems, Guthrie Health and Geisinger Health System, serving a combined 2.4 million patients, have good intentions. But now comes the word they don’t have the money (yet) to conduct the study. Oops. That’s embarrassing.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PA DEP Releases Draft New Rules for Streamlined Drill Permitting
August 31, 2012August 31, 2012

A couple of weeks ago MDN outlined the smear job being attempted by the AP against PA Gov. Tom Corbett over his executive order to streamline the process used by the Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) for permitting new gas and oil drilling (see this MDN story). Lord help us if a politician actually tries to reduce the red tape involved in legitimate businesses trying to do business!

The DEP has just submitted a draft for new rules to streamline the permitting process (embedded below). The DEP is now asking for public comments on the revised rules. As part of that process, they’ll hold two webinars for the public in September.

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Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA | Taxation

Final Numbers for 2011 PA Impact Fee Revenue Due Next Week
August 31, 2012August 31, 2012

As of next week, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) will know just how much money the new Act 13 drilling law will have generated for drilling that was initiated in 2011. The Act 13 law provides for an “impact fee” which is due payable by September 1.

Impact fee revenue will be used for a variety of reasons by local municipalities where drilling has occurred. In addition, 40% of the fees collected (in the spirit of compromise and American socialism) will be “spread around” to all 67 PA counties—the price of getting the legislation passed.

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Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

BENTEK’s Big Prediction on PA Natural Gas Production
August 30, 2012August 30, 2012

BENTEK Energy, a company started in 1985, has a deep understanding of the natural gas market having chronicled it, studied it and consulted on it for more than 25 years. BENTEK has just made a startling prediction: Pennsylvania’s natural gas production, mainly due to the Marcellus Shale, will increase 78% in the next three years.

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Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

The Evolving Position of PSATS on PA’s Act 13 Law
August 30, 2012August 30, 2012

The Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors (PSATS) is an organization representing 1,455 local municipalities across PA—some 44% of the entire population. PSATS has appeared to some as wishy-washy when it comes to its support, or lack thereof, for PA’s new Act 13 drilling law. Initially they supported it as “the best deal” they could get from the PA legislature (something Gov. Corbett still refers to in his statements).

Later on, when seven of its member towns sued the state to overturn the zoning portion of Act 13, PSATS sort of supported them, eventually filing a brief in their support. Now they’re offering full-throated support to the effort to overturn the zoning provisions in Act 13 as it goes before PA Supreme Court.

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Ohio | Pennsylvania | Statewide OH | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

PA Drilling Rig Count Sinks to Lowest in 2 1/2 Years
August 29, 2012August 29, 2012

If you kick around the oil and gas industry for any length of time, you’ll hear about something called “the rig count.” Rig counts are the number of drilling rigs in use by energy companies to drill (or “spud”) new wells. If the rig count falls, that means new leasing is likely to fall and eventually, natural gas production will fall. But in the case of the Marcellus, falling rig counts don’t mean falling production—quite the opposite. It just means there’s a whole lot of wells already drilled, waiting to be completed and hooked up to pipelines.

Still, a falling rig count does give you a feel for where new drilling will (or won’t) take place—valuable for landowners and businesses to know. The latest numbers for Pennsylvania show the rig count in that state falling to its lowest level in years:

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Economic Impact | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

PA Electric Utility Dropping Rates – Again
August 29, 2012August 29, 2012

Electric utility Penelec, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. serving 600,000 customers in 31 western Pennsylvania counties, announced they are dropping the rate they charge for electricity for the third quarter in a row, saving the average residential customer an additional 4.2% on their electric bill.

Why the rate drop? In part, because of the Marcellus Shale.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

MSC Releases Guidelines for Pre-Drill Water Sampling
August 29, 2012August 29, 2012

The Marcellus Shale Coalition (MSC), the powerhouse industry group headquartered in Pittsburgh that provides information to companies part of the drilling industry as well as info for the media, government and other “stakeholders,” yesterday released guidelines for drillers to use in sampling and testing water supplies before drilling commences.

The “Recommended Practices: Pre-Drill Water Supply Surveys” document (embedded below) helps drillers comply with the newly enacted Pennsylvania Act 13 law which requires drillers to sample and test water supplies within 2,500 feet of a proposed Marcellus Shale natural gas well. A certified laboratory must conduct the testing which provides baseline numbers that can be used for comparison during and after drilling to ensure water quality has not been adversely affected.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

Rewrite of 1984 PA Oil and Gas Act Underway
August 28, 2012August 28, 2012

Pennsylvania’s newly passed Act 13 was an important update to the state’s oil and natural gas drilling laws, but it didn’t do the whole job. Written into the Act 13 law itself is a requirement for the regulatory rewrite of the state’s 1984 Oil and Gas Act. That process has now begun.

Two weeks ago, the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) issued a 23-page “concept paper” of proposed changes to the agency’s Oil and Gas Technical Advisory Board (a copy is embedded below). It’s essentially a list identifying sections of the law with brief comments on changes (not intended to be the final language of a new law). The changes cover important issues like well location restrictions, water supply protection, predrilling surveys, application requirements, erosion and sedimentation controls, wastewater controls, standards for pit and tank containment and more.

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Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

Penn State Extension Announces New Webinar Series
August 28, 2012August 28, 2012

The Penn State Extension Marcellus Education Team has just announced a new monthly shale webinar series, which begins on Thursday, Sept. 13 from 1:00-2:00 pm. The topic of the first session is a general overview of the Marcellus Shale with latest trends and updates. MDN has attended previous Penn State Extension webinars—they’re well worth your time.

Here’s the press release announcing the series along with the list of topics for future sessions:

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