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No Change in Either M-U Or National Baker Hughes Rig Counts

This is an interesting pattern we’ve not seen in a long time for the venerable Baker Hughes rig count. The national rig count and the count for the Marcellus/Utica remained the same for multiple weeks in a row. The national count was 589 active rigs last week (now four weeks in a row). The M-U count was 34 last week (now three weeks in a row). The national count remains rangebound between 581 and 589 since June 2024 (except for Sep. 13, when it hit 590 for a single week). The M-U remained static last week, with PA at 15 rigs, OH at 9 rigs, and WV at 10 rigs. Read More “No Change in Either M-U Or National Baker Hughes Rig Counts”

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No Change in M-U Rig Count @ 34; No Change in Nat’l Rig Count @ 589

The Baker Hughes national rig count dramatically increased three weeks ago, adding seven rigs for a national count of 589 (see OH Drops 1, PA Adds 1 Rig; National Rig Count Soars, Adds 7 @ 589). For the past three weeks, we have held on to the gains made (still at 589), including last week. Note that the national count continues to be rangebound between 581 and 589 since June (except for Sep. 13, when it hit 590 for a single week). The Ohio Utica lost one rig three weeks ago, and the Pennsylvania Marcellus picked it up. Two weeks ago, PA lost the rig it picked up the week prior. Last week, nothing changed; the combined M-U count stands at 34 for two weeks in a row, with PA at 15 rigs, OH at 9 rigs, and WV at 10 rigs. Read More “No Change in M-U Rig Count @ 34; No Change in Nat’l Rig Count @ 589”

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Pa. Top Electricity Exporter, Va. Top Electricity Importer

The dataheads (sounds better than geeks or eggheads) at the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) published an interesting analysis on Friday detailing which states export the most and import the most electricity. In 2023, Pennsylvania exported 83.4 million megawatt-hours (MWh) of electricity to other states in the PJM electric grid. That’s roughly 26% of all the electric power the Keystone State produced. Meanwhile, for the first time in years (maybe in forever?) Virginia became the #1 state importing electricity, importing 50.1 million MWh. Virginia is also in PJM, so it’s not a stretch to suggest Pennsylvania’s electric exports went (largely) to Virginia. Read More “Pa. Top Electricity Exporter, Va. Top Electricity Importer”

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Details for Surface Owners re Diversified Deal to Plug Wells

In November, MDN told you that Diversified Energy and EQT Corporation had settled a class action lawsuit originally brought by several West Virginia landowners (see EQT, Diversified Settle WV Class Action Lawsuit re Old Wells). Diversified and EQT are ponying up $3.25 million each ($6.5 million total) with requirements for Diversified to plug more wells on an advanced schedule in West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee. Who, exactly, is affected by this settlement? A new court-ordered website provides some answers. Read More “Details for Surface Owners re Diversified Deal to Plug Wells”

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PA Drops 1 Rig, M-U @ 34; National Rigs Keep Gains, Even @ 589

The Baker Hughes national rig count dramatically increased two weeks ago, adding seven rigs for a national count of 589 (see OH Drops 1, PA Adds 1 Rig; National Rig Count Soars, Adds 7 @ 589). Last week, the national count didn’t change, and we are holding on to the gains made the previous week (still at 589). Note that the national count continues to be rangebound between 581 and 589 since June (except for Sep. 13, when it hit 590 for a single week). Two weeks ago, the Ohio Utica lost one rig, and the Pennsylvania Marcellus picked it up. However, last week, PA lost the rig once again, so the combined M-U count now stands at 34, down one rig from the previous week. Read More “PA Drops 1 Rig, M-U @ 34; National Rigs Keep Gains, Even @ 589”

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PA+WV+OH Produced Nearly One-Third of All U.S. NatGas in 2023

Yesterday, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported five states produced more than 70% of the record 113.1 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of U.S. marketed natural gas production in 2023. Two of the five were in the Marcellus/Utica: Pennsylvania (18% of the country’s gas) and West Virginia (8% of the country’s gas). We did some digging and found that when adding the production from PA, WV, and OH, the three together represented 31.5% of all the natural gas produced in the U.S. in 2023. It is an astonishing fact! Read More “PA+WV+OH Produced Nearly One-Third of All U.S. NatGas in 2023”

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PA IFO Predicts Impact Tax Revenue to Drop 9% in 2024

Pennsylvania assesses an impact fee (PA’s version of a severance tax) on shale drillers, raising revenues that are paid to local municipalities and the black hole of Harrisburg politicians. Yesterday, the PA Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) issued an estimate for how much the impact fee will raise this year, which will be distributed next year. The IFO says it thinks, based on the price of low natural gas and the number of new and existing wells, that PA will generate $163.8 million from the impact fee in 2024, a decrease of $15.8 million (8.8%) from 2023. Looking back further, the price is down $115.1 million (41%) from 2022. Why did impact fee revenues drop so dramatically over the past two years? Read More “PA IFO Predicts Impact Tax Revenue to Drop 9% in 2024”

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Details on Diversified Deal to Plug More Wells in WV, OH, PA

One month ago, we brought you the news that Diversified Energy and EQT Corporation had settled a class action lawsuit originally brought by several West Virginia landowners (see EQT, Diversified Settle WV Class Action Lawsuit re Old Wells). There is the money aspect of the lawsuit, a payout of up to $6.5 million (subject to attorneys grabbing one-third of that). But then there is (in our opinion) the more important aspect of the settlement that requires Diversified to dramatically increase the number of wells it plugs over the next 10 years. Read More “Details on Diversified Deal to Plug More Wells in WV, OH, PA”

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OH Drops 1, PA Adds 1 Rig; National Rig Count Soars, Adds 7 @ 589

The Baker Hughes national rig count dramatically increased last week, adding seven rigs for a national count of 589. Note that the national count continues to be rangebound between 581 and 589 since June (except for Sep. 13, when it hit 590 for a single week). Will we break out of the rut and go higher? Stay tuned. Meanwhile, the Ohio Utica lost one rig last week, but the Pennsylvania Marcellus picked it up, keeping the combined M-U count at 35. Read More “OH Drops 1, PA Adds 1 Rig; National Rig Count Soars, Adds 7 @ 589”

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Same Guy Who Drilled 1st Marcellus Well Helped Crack Utica Oil Code

John Pinkerton

Hart Energy has published a number of articles highlighting companies and key people in the Marcellus/Utica region. Hart has an ongoing series called Hart Energy’s Hall of Fame to honor industry pioneers and the Agents of Change (ACEs) who are leading the energy sector into the future. A recent Hall of Fame article highlights one of the most important figures in both the Marcellus and Utica plays—John Pinkerton. Read More “Same Guy Who Drilled 1st Marcellus Well Helped Crack Utica Oil Code”

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PA DEP Gives Away $600K for Woke EJ; Next Day Claims “Funding Gap”

Did we nail it, or did we NAIL it? Two days ago, the Josh Shapiro Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) puffed out its chest to announce it was donating $600,000 to 12 leftist organizations to promote “environmental justice” (EJ) in Pennsylvania (see PA Gov. Shapiro’s DEP Blows $600,000 on “Enviro Justice” Grants). EJ is anti-drilling advocacy under a different name. We observed that it’s interesting how the DEP cries poverty at budget time and then finds money lying about it can blow on favored leftist programs later in the year. Yesterday (one day after announcing $600K in grants), the DEP Deputy Secretary for Oil and Gas Management, Kurt Klapkowski, told the Oil and Gas Technical Advisory Board there is a “very significant budget gap” in the funding needed for the Oil and Gas Regulatory Program again this year. Voila. MDN the oracle. Read More “PA DEP Gives Away $600K for Woke EJ; Next Day Claims “Funding Gap””

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More Than $40 Million Remains Unclaimed in PA Well-Plugging Grants

Come and get it! Only ten companies have applied to plug 77 orphaned wells in Pennsylvania as part of $44.4 million allocated for PA’s Methane Emissions Reduction Program (MERP) grant program. By our calculations, more than $41 million remains in the pot unclaimed. However, the clock is ticking. There is a Dec. 16 deadline to meet if you want some of the money. Use it or lose it. What are you waiting for? Read More “More Than $40 Million Remains Unclaimed in PA Well-Plugging Grants”

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PA Gov. Shapiro’s DEP Blows $600,000 on “Enviro Justice” Grants

Every budget season in Pennsylvania, it’s the same old dog-and-pony show by the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). “We don’t have enough money to pay our staff,” and “We aren’t making as much money from (insanely high) shale permit fees anymore, so we need more taxpayer money to make up the difference.” Etc. Yet a few months later, after the budget is adopted, the DEP somehow finds money lying around to donate to various leftwing causes. Case in point: The DEP announced yesterday it is donating $600,000 to 12 leftist organizations to spread more wokeness across the Commonwealth under the banner of “environmental justice” (EJ). Read More “PA Gov. Shapiro’s DEP Blows $600,000 on “Enviro Justice” Grants”

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IFO 3Q24 Report: New Wells Drilled in Pa. Lowest Since 2008

Yesterday, the Pennsylvania Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) released its latest quarterly Natural Gas Production Report for July through September 2024 (full copy below). There were 63 new horizontal wells spud (drilled) in 3Q24, the same exact number as in 2Q24, but 3Q’s number was a decrease of 39 wells (-38%) compared to the third quarter of 2023. The number of new wells drilled, 63, is the lowest since 2008 (except for 2Q24, which was also 63). This was the eighth consecutive quarter with a year-over-year (YOY) decline in new wells spud. Natural gas production volume was 1,838 billion cubic feet (Bcf) in 3Q24, down 33 Bcf (1.8%) from the 1,871 Bcf produced in 3Q23. Read More “IFO 3Q24 Report: New Wells Drilled in Pa. Lowest Since 2008”

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Where M-U Drilling is Now, Where Might It Be Headed Next

According to an extensive report appearing on the World Oil website (and in the November issue of the magazine), multiple possible futures lie ahead for the Marcellus and Utica shales. So, which future will come to pass? Today, both industry and government see the Marcellus and Utica formations as tremendous opportunities for companies and state governments, with domestically produced energy, jobs, and a huge economic impact. Read More “Where M-U Drilling is Now, Where Might It Be Headed Next”

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M-U Rigs Steady @ 35; National Rig Count Drops Another Rig @ 582

The Baker Hughes national rig count dropped another rig last week and now sits at 582. The national count continues to be rangebound between 581 and 589 since June. Slicing the national count slightly differently—by oil-focused vs. gas-focused rigs—oil rigs fell by two to 477 last week, their lowest since July, while gas rigs rose by one to 100. Last week, all three Marcellus/Utica states maintained the same count for the third week in a row, with PA operating 15 active rigs and Ohio and West Virginia operating 10 rigs each, for a combined 35 rigs. That’s the third week in a row the M-U has operated 35 rigs. It feels like the doom and gloom is finally starting to lift. Read More “M-U Rigs Steady @ 35; National Rig Count Drops Another Rig @ 582”