Westmoreland County

Carroll County | Encino Energy | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Expand Energy | Greene County (PA) | Lycoming County | Marshall County | Monroe County | Ohio | Olympus/Huntley & Huntley | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Seneca Resources | Southwestern Energy | Tioga County (PA) | Washington County | Weekly Permits | West Virginia | Westmoreland County

24 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jun 16 – 22
June 27, 2025June 27, 2025

For the week of June 16 – 22, the number of permits issued to drill new wells in the Marcellus/Utica rose from the previous week. There were 24 new permits issued across the three M-U states last week, up six from 18 issued two weeks ago. The Keystone State (PA) issued 16 new permits. Olympus Energy received the most new permits, six, all of them in Westmoreland County (across two pads). Seneca Resources received five permits for one pad in Tioga County. Range Resources scored three permits for a single pad in Washington County. Read More “24 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jun 16 – 22”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Apex Energy | CNX Resources | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Westmoreland County

Anti-Shale Group Loses EHB Appeal to Block CNX Wells in SWPA
June 23, 2025June 23, 2025

A leftist anti-fossil group calling itself Protect PT (Penn-Trafford), located in Westmoreland County, PA, backed with big money from Big Green groups, has for years challenged Penn Township ordinances that allow Apex Energy (now CNX Resources) to drill and operate shale wells. Protect PT finally struck out (legally) at the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in May 2020 (see Penn Twp Frack Ban Case Strikes Out at PA Supreme Court). However, using Big Green money, Protect PT soldiered on even after its crushing defeat at the Supreme Court. Apex (later bought by CNX) proposed drilling two wells—the Drakulic Well project—on a pad in a rural part of Trafford, PA, a borough straddling Allegheny and Westmoreland counties. Protect PT challenged the original permits and a time extension at PA’s special environmental court called the Environmental Hearing Board in early 2024 (see PA EHB Allows “Narrow” Appeal of 2 Apex Energy Well Permits). The EHB recently ruled against Protect PT’s appeal. Read More “Anti-Shale Group Loses EHB Appeal to Block CNX Wells in SWPA”
AI | Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Westmoreland County

Strategy Revealed for Building 3 GW Gas-Fired AI/Data Center in SWPA
May 23, 2025May 23, 2025

In January, MDN brought you the news that TECfusions, based in Tampa, Florida, had purchased 1,395 acres in Upper Burrell (Westmoreland County), PA, for a groundbreaking data center project called TECfusions Keystone Connect (see Massive 3 GW Gas-Fired AI/Data Center Coming to Southwest Pa.). The site is the old Alcoa R&D campus and the surrounding real estate in New Kensington. The project will transform the shuttered office and industrial site into a state-of-the-art data center campus, with plans to deploy up to 3 gigawatts (GW) of gas-fired capacity over six years, using gas wells on the property (see Massive 3 GW Gas-Fired AI/Data Center in SWPA to Use Local Wells). At the Appalachian AI Energy Conference held earlier this week, TECfusions COO Mark Hamilton laid out the company’s strategy for developing the site moving forward. Read More “Strategy Revealed for Building 3 GW Gas-Fired AI/Data Center in SWPA”
Arsenal Resources | Beaver County | Carroll County | Coterra Energy (Cabot O&G) | Encino Energy | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Greene County (PA) | Harrison County | Ohio | Olympus/Huntley & Huntley | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Susquehanna County | Tuscarawas County | Washington County | Weekly Permits | West Virginia | Westmoreland County

24 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Apr 21 – 27
May 2, 2025

For the week of April 21 – 27, the number of permits issued to drill new wells in the Marcellus/Utica was down nine from the previous week. Last week, 24 new permits were issued in the M-U. In the Keystone State (PA), 17 new permits were issued. Both Coterra Energy in the northeastern part of the state and EQT Corporation in the southwestern corner received six permits each. Coterra’s permits were all issued for the same pad. EQT received five permits for a single pad in Greene County, and one permit for a pad in Washington County. Range Resources received four permits for a single pad in Beaver County, and Olympus Energy scored one permit in Westmoreland County. Read More “24 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Apr 21 – 27”
AI | Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Westmoreland County

Massive 3 GW Gas-Fired AI/Data Center in SWPA to Use Local Wells
April 29, 2025April 29, 2025

In January, MDN brought you the news that TECfusions, based in Tampa, Florida, had purchased 1,395 acres in Upper Burrell (Westmoreland County), PA, for a groundbreaking data center project called TECfusions Keystone Connect (see Massive 3 GW Gas-Fired AI/Data Center Coming to Southwest Pa.). The site is the old Alcoa R&D campus and the surrounding real estate in New Kensington. The project will transform the shuttered office and industrial site into a state-of-the-art data center campus, with plans to deploy 3 gigawatts (GW) of capacity over a six-year period. Put another way, some 3,000 megawatts of electricity will be required to power it! Where will all that electricity come from? Read More “Massive 3 GW Gas-Fired AI/Data Center in SWPA to Use Local Wells”
Belmont County | CNX Resources | Columbiana County | Encino Energy | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Fayette County | Guernsey County | Gulfport Energy | Harrison County | HG Energy | Hilcorp Energy | INR/Infinity Natural Resources | Marshall County | Monongalia County | Monroe County | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Southwestern Energy | Tuscarawas County | Weekly Permits | West Virginia | Westmoreland County | Wetzel County

36 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Apr 7 – 13
April 17, 2025April 17, 2025

Last week was an interesting week for new permits issued to drill new shale wells in the Marcellus/Utica. For the week of Apr 7 – 13, the number of permits issued soared, up 15 from the previous week. Last week, 36 new permits were issued. The surprising thing is just how few of those new permits were issued in the Keystone State (PA). Just five new permits went to PA. CNX Resources had four of PA’s new permits, all for the same well pad in Westmoreland County. The other permit went to EQT in Fayette County. Read More “36 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Apr 7 – 13”
Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Washington County | Westmoreland County

Massive 3 GW SWPA Gas-Fired AI/Data Center Builder to Speak at Conf
April 9, 2025April 9, 2025

MDN has written numerous posts about AI (artificial intelligence) and the data centers that provide the computing power AI requires. Why? AI data centers use enormous amounts of electricity, most of which is generated by natural gas-fired power plants. Some 25% of all the data centers currently operating in the country are located in northern Virginia, where they use Marcellus/Utica molecules. The entire data center sector is experiencing massive growth—much of it in the M-U. We previously told you about a must-attend event, the Appalachian AI Energy Conference, scheduled for May 21, 2025, at the Hilton Garden Inn Pittsburgh in Southpointe. Now comes word that the builder of a previously announced data center project in Westmoreland County, TECfusions Keystone Connect, will speak at the AI Energy Conference in May. Read More “Massive 3 GW SWPA Gas-Fired AI/Data Center Builder to Speak at Conf”
Ascent Resources | Belmont County | Campbell Oil & Gas | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Greene County (PA) | Harrison County | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Seneca Resources | Tioga County (PA) | Weekly Permits | Westmoreland County

19 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Mar 24 – 30
April 4, 2025April 4, 2025

For the week of Mar 24 – 30, the number of permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica to drill new shale wells dropped by three from the previous week. Last week, 19 new permits were issued, with 15 going to the Keystone State (PA). Seneca Resources received the lion’s share, 13 of the 15 permits, all in Tioga County spread across three different pads. One permit was issued to EQT (Rice Drilling) in Greene County, and one was issued to Campbell Oil & Gas in Westmoreland County. Read More “19 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Mar 24 – 30”
Accidents | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Westmoreland County

Tank Explosion at Westmoreland County Conventional Well Site
March 31, 2025March 31, 2025

Production storage tank

On March 25, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) was called to the scene of a conventional well explosion in East Huntingdon Township in Westmoreland County. The explosion involved a production storage tank at the pad. The incident happened around 10:25 AM when the well tender was “blowing out the well” to the storage tank (we’ll explain). A “well tender” refers to the person responsible for the day-to-day monitoring, routine maintenance, and operation of a well site after it has been drilled and completed. Read More “Tank Explosion at Westmoreland County Conventional Well Site”
Accidents | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Westmoreland County

Freak Accident Ignites Conventional Natural Gas Well in SW Pa.
March 25, 2025March 25, 2025

Photos from accident report, courtesy of PA Environment Digest Blog (click for larger version)

A one-in-a-million, freaky-deaky accident happened in Westmoreland County, PA, that caused a conventional natural gas well operated by Kriebel Natural Gas Co. to explode. On March 19, a truck was hauling a trailer down nearby Interstate 76 Eastbound. The wheel/rim set (with brake drum and tires still attached) disconnected from the trailer and went flying. It hit the conventional gas well. The impact broke off the casing annulus wing from the well head and caused escaping natural gas to ignite. Read More “Freak Accident Ignites Conventional Natural Gas Well in SW Pa.”
Antero Resources | Apex Energy | Bradford County | Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Greene County (PA) | Lycoming County | Pennsylvania | Ritchie County | Weekly Permits | West Virginia | Westmoreland County | Wetzel County

22 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jan 27 – Feb 2
February 7, 2025February 7, 2025

For the week of Jan 27 – Feb 2, the number of permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica to drill new shale wells recovered from the previous week. Two weeks ago, only 7 new permits were issued. Last week, the number increased to 22 new permits issued. Whereas the Keystone State (PA) issued no new permits two weeks ago, PA issued 13 new permits last week. Six of those permits went to Apex Energy in Westmoreland County. Five permits were issued to EQT (Rice Drilling) in Greene and Lycoming counties. And two permits went to Expand Energy (Chesapeake) in Bradford County. Read More “22 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jan 27 – Feb 2”
Apex Energy | CNX Resources | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Pennsylvania | Westmoreland County

CNX Closes Deal to Buy Apex Energy for $505M, Adds SWPA Assets
January 28, 2025January 28, 2025

In December, CNX Resources announced it had struck a deal to buy the assets of Apex Energy II, LLC, a portfolio company of funds managed by Carnelian Energy Capital Management, for $505 million (see CNX Resources Buys Apex Energy for $505M, Adds Pa. M-U Assets). Apex owns wells, acreage, and pipelines in Westmoreland County, PA. The Apex assets are close to, in some cases adjacent to, CNX’s considerable assets in the region. As of yesterday, the deal is complete. Apex Energy II is no more. Read More “CNX Closes Deal to Buy Apex Energy for $505M, Adds SWPA Assets”
Antero Resources | Apex Energy | Beaver County | Bradford County | Carroll County | Chesapeake Energy | Columbiana County | Doddridge County | Energy Companies | EOG Resources | EQT Corp | Greene County (PA) | Harrison County | HG Energy | Hilcorp Energy | Marion County | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Washington County | Weekly Permits | West Virginia | Westmoreland County | Wetzel County

41 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jan 13 – 19
January 24, 2025January 24, 2025

Wow! Is this the Trump effect? For the week of Jan 13 – 19, permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica to drill new shale wells achieved levels we haven’t seen in, oh, about four years. There were 41 new permits issued last week, up significantly from 27 issued the week before and 30 issued two weeks before. The Keystone State (PA) issued a whopping 25 new permits, with 17 (!) going to EQT spread across Greene and Washington counties. Another six permits went to Chesapeake Energy (now Expand Energy) in Bradford County. One permit each went to Range Resources and Apex Energy in Beaver and Westmoreland counties, respectively. Read More “41 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jan 13 – 19”
Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Westmoreland County

Massive 3 GW Gas-Fired AI/Data Center Coming to Southwest Pa.
January 15, 2025January 15, 2025

Location of proposed TECfusions Keystone Connect (click for larger version)

We have some exciting news to share. Datacenter builder/operator TECfusions, based in Tampa, Florida, has purchased 1,395 acres in Upper Burrell (Westmoreland County), PA, for a groundbreaking data center project called TECfusions Keystone Connect. The site is the old Alcoa R&D campus and surrounding real estate in New Kensington. The project will transform the shuttered office and industrial site into a state-of-the-art data center campus, with plans for 3 gigawatts (GW) of capacity to be deployed over six years. Put another way, some 3,000 megawatts of electricity will be required to power it. MASSIVE! Read More “Massive 3 GW Gas-Fired AI/Data Center Coming to Southwest Pa.”
Apex Energy | CNX Resources | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | M&A | Pennsylvania | Westmoreland County

CNX Issuing New Notes for $200M to Help Fund Purchase of Apex
January 14, 2025January 14, 2025

CNX Resources announced in December that it had struck a deal to buy the assets of Apex Energy II, LLC, a portfolio company of funds managed by Carnelian Energy Capital Management, for $505 million (see CNX Resources Buys Apex Energy for $505M, Adds Pa. M-U Assets). Apex owns wells, acreage, and pipelines in Westmoreland County, PA. Its assets are close to (in some cases adjacent to) CNX’s considerable regional holdings. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2025. However, CNX needs more money to help fund it. Read More “CNX Issuing New Notes for $200M to Help Fund Purchase of Apex”
Apex Energy | CNX Resources | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Westmoreland County

Anti-Shale Group Continues to Try and Block Apex Wells in SWPA
January 3, 2025January 3, 2025

A leftist anti-fossil group calling itself Protect PT (Penn-Trafford), located in Westmoreland County, PA, backed with big money from Big Green groups, has for years challenged Penn Township ordinances that allow Apex Energy and Huntley & Huntley (now Olympus Energy) to drill and operate shale wells. Protect PT finally struck out (legally) at the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in May 2020 (see Penn Twp Frack Ban Case Strikes Out at PA Supreme Court). However, Protect PT soldiered on (with Big Green $$), even after its crushing Supreme Court defeat. Apex Energy proposed drilling two wells (the Drakulic Well project) on a pad in a rural part of Trafford, PA, a boro straddling Allegheny and Westmoreland counties. Protect PT challenged the original permits and a time extension of the permits (see PA EHB Allows “Narrow” Appeal of 2 Apex Energy Well Permits). We are nearly a year later, and the case still plays out. A hearing is set for Jan. 15 to examine whether the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) lawfully issued drilling permits to Apex Energy. Read More “Anti-Shale Group Continues to Try and Block Apex Wells in SWPA”