West Virginia

Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Ohio River Valley Anti-Drilling Groups Meet in WV to Plot Strategy
December 12, 2014December 12, 2014

Extremist so-called environmental groups can’t get much traction on their own, so increasingly national groups–like the odious Food & Water Watch and infamous Sierra Clubbers–form alliances and umbrella groups. It makes it look like that there are millions and millions who oppose shale drilling (when such is not the case). What works for the big guys ought to work for the little guys too, right? The trend we see is for small fringe groups to also throw in their lot together (strength in numbers). A group of tiny fringe enviro groups in the Ohio River Valley (WV and OH) recently got together in Huntington, WV to swap lies and collude on their next attack strategies…
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Anadarko | Chesapeake Energy | Citrus | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

DOL Action: Several Marcellus Drillers Pay $4.5M in Back Wages
December 10, 2014December 10, 2014

In a multi-year so-called “investigation” that cost more money that was “recovered,” the U.S. Dept. of Labor (DOL) announced yesterday they’ve forced Chesapeake Energy, Citrus Energy and Anadarko Petroleum (and perhaps others) to pay $4.5 million in back wages to some 5,300 oil and gas workers in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The apparent “violation” is that these workers, working for subcontractors (not directly for the energy companies themselves), in some cases worked more than 40 hours in a given week but didn’t get time-and-a-half wages. We’re certainly not against playing by the rules, but it sure seems like utter folly to hype this as some sort of victory by Obama’s Labor Department–to work for more than two years and come up with a thimble-full of violations and carp and complain about how fractured the energy industry is–the same industry that, because of all those many subcontractors, has generated several hundred thousands new jobs in PA & WV that wouldn’t have been there otherwise. Here’s the press release by the DOL…
Read More “DOL Action: Several Marcellus Drillers Pay $4.5M in Back Wages”
Energy Companies | Stone Energy | Utica Shale | West Virginia | Wetzel County

Stone Energy WV Utica Well Turns in IP of 30 Mmcf/d
December 9, 2014December 9, 2014

Stone Energy is crowing about a Utica Shale well–in West Virginia. Yesterday in an operational update, Stone said their Pribble 6HU well in Wetzel County, WV is producing an initial 30 million cubic feet of natural gas per day. That doesn’t make it the top producing well (that crown still belongs to Magnum Hunter, see Magnum Hunter Takes the Prize: Top Producing Utica Well). But 30 Mmcf/d? That’s one of the better producing wells we’ve heard of. And once again, it’s another Utica well outside of Ohio–in WV! Here’s the details from Stone…
Read More “Stone Energy WV Utica Well Turns in IP of 30 Mmcf/d”
Energy Companies | Gastar Exploration | Lease & Royalty Payments | Statewide WV | West Virginia

WV Looks to Lease More Ohio River, Other State Land for Drilling
December 3, 2014December 3, 2014

West Virginia is interested in leasing more under-the-water land (and under other state-owned land) for shale drilling. You may recall that Gastar recently had the winning bid to drill under 232 acres of the Ohio River as it flows through Marshall and Wetzel counties (see Gastar Wins Lease to Drill Under Ohio River in WV). WV is getting $3,500 per acre and a 20% royalty on gas produced from Gastar–a nifty $812,000 check just for signing the lease, money that goes into the coffers of the state. They like that money and they want more of it–and Gastar is interested in drilling under more WV-owned land…
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Dominion Energy | Economic Impact | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Pipelines | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Atlantic Coast Pipeline: $25M/Yr in Prop. Tax, $70M/Yr Econ Impact
December 3, 2014December 3, 2014

The arguments by anti-drillers against pipeline projects, like Dominion’s Atlantic Coast Pipeline which is slated to run from West Virginia to North Carolina, usually amount to this: “There’s no long-term benefit to the communities through which the pipeline runs. We have to ‘put up’ with the darned thing, but we see no benefit from it.” Benefit meaning money–other than a one-time fee paid to landowners through whose land it runs. Dominion is attempting to counter those criticisms by pointing out that once the Atlantic Coast Pipeline is fully operational, it will be paying in excess of $25 million per year to counties and local municipalities in property taxes (see the list below). During construction, the pipeline will generate nearly half a billion dollars per year in economic impact in WV, VA and NC. Once the construction phase is over, through permanent jobs created and associated ongoing operating costs for the pipeline, Dominion projects the pipeline will spur nearly $70 million per year of ongoing economic activity (see full report below)…
Read More “Atlantic Coast Pipeline: $25M/Yr in Prop. Tax, $70M/Yr Econ Impact”
American Energy Partners | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Statewide OH | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Aubrey McClendon Raises Another $500M for More Leases
December 2, 2014December 2, 2014

Low oil prices don’t seem to be affecting Aubrey McClendon’s ability to raise cash. He’s just landed another half a billion dollars, which he plans to use to lease more land in the Utica, Marcellus and two other shale plays. McClendon and his American Energy Partners is also looking for new employees. Hey Chesapeake workers–tired of answering to Carl Icahn and seeing your friends axed from the payroll (wondering if you’re next)? Send your resume to Aubrey! Here’s the AEP announcement from yesterday…
Read More “Aubrey McClendon Raises Another $500M for More Leases”
Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Ohio County | Statewide WV | Wastewater | West Virginia

New Brine Processing Plant Coming to Panhandle of WV
December 2, 2014December 2, 2014

The new owners of what was the AOP Clearwater brine processing plant in Marion County, WV (renamed to Fairmont Brine Processing) plan to grow their successful operation by opening a much larger, second plant in Wheeling, WV. The last time MDN wrote about the AOP Clearwater plant was in March 2010 (see AOP Clearwater Plant in WV a Big Success in Treating Marcellus Shale Wastewater). Apparently the “big success” didn’t last for AOP. An engineering firm was called in to evaluate the plant and told them they would need $10 million in upgrades, so AOP Clearwater cleared out. The guy who owned the engineering firm believed in the project, got some investors and bought the plant himself. Dave Moniot, CEO of both Venture Engineering and now Fairmont Brine Processing, turned the plant around. He’s now using that success to expand with a second plant in Wheeling…
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CNG/LNG | Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Ohio County | Statewide WV | West Virginia

New LNG Plant for Drillers Coming to Panhandle of WV
December 2, 2014December 2, 2014

LNG (liquefied natural gas) use is beginning to pick up in the Marcellus/Utica. Demand for LNG is increasing as drillers shift away from using diesel fuel to power rigs and instead use field gas, CNG (compressed natural gas) and LNG. Sensing an opporunity to serve drillers in the tri-state area of PA, WV and OH, Dave Moniot, CEO of Fairmont Brine Processing, who is also building a new brine plant in Wheeling (see today’s related story), is investing in an LNG plant in the Wheeling area–likely at the same site where he’s building a new brine processing plant. Moniot is partnering with Plum Energy to build the new plant under the name of TriState LNG…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Statewide WV | West Virginia

So-Called ‘Pipeline Air Force’ to Track Dominion Pipeline in WV
November 26, 2014November 26, 2014

Just when you think you’ve heard it all, along comes another bizarre twist from those who oppose shale drilling. As we’ve reported in a number of stories, Dominion is planning to build a 550-mile, $5 billion natural gas pipeline from West Virginia through Virginia and into North Carolina. It’s called the Atlantic Coast Pipeline project and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is now evaluating it (see Dominion Asks FERC to Start Environmental Review of SE Pipeline). Apparently a group of people who oppose the pipeline plan to keep an eye on it as it’s built (they must figure it’s a foregone conclusion that it will get built). They’ve somehow gotten ahold of three airplanes that they will use to spy from the sky as the pipeline gets built through the mountains of West Virginia…
Read More “So-Called ‘Pipeline Air Force’ to Track Dominion Pipeline in WV”
Antero Resources | Energy Companies | Lease & Royalty Payments | Noble Energy | Tyler County | West Virginia

Record High Bid to Drill Under Bambi’s Home in Tyler County, WV
November 25, 2014November 25, 2014

Looks like drilling and fracking adjacent to, and underneath, the Ohio River isn’t the only state-owned asset West Virginia has in mind to raise revenue (see Gastar Wins Lease to Drill Under Ohio River in WV). Last Friday, WV opened bids that will allow drilling under the 518-acre Conaway Run Wildlife Management Area in Tyler County, WV. Yes, those heartless monsters want to allow drilling and fracking under Bambi’s home–can you believe it?! The bids received will make your eyes pop out–some of the highest (perhaps THE highest) amounts offered in a signing bonus to date…
Read More “Record High Bid to Drill Under Bambi’s Home in Tyler County, WV”
Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Pennsylvania | Sand/Proppant | West Virginia | Wyoming County (PA)

WV Sand Company & Community Work Together to Solve Problem
November 25, 2014November 25, 2014

Ahhh, what a breath of fresh frac sand-free air. A month ago MDN told you about Hi-Crush Partners’ desire to build a frac sand transfer station in Tunkhannock (Wyoming County), PA–a plan that’s meeting resistance from the local community (see NEPA Town Residents Resist Frack Sand Transfer Station). Hi-Crush is now in court with the county planning commission. Meanwhile, in Marshall County, WV, a frac sand facility built by Unimin Sand Co. resulted in (yes) sand particles blowing into the nearby community. Did the community rise up and demand the facility be closed? Did the sand company push back and sue? Nope. They worked together. Unimin is building six new storage silos to contain the sand and the community appreciates the high-paying jobs provided by the company. Note to Wyoming County Planning Commission: Have a talk with the people in Benwood, WV to see how adults react to these issues when they occur…
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Pennsylvania | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Ben Franklin Shale Gas Ctr Announces $100K Contest for Innovators
November 25, 2014November 25, 2014

This is our annual “calling all researchers, entrepreneurs, or small businesses located in PA and WV who have innovative products or services for the Marcellus Shale industry.” If that fits you, you should consider entering the Fourth Annual Shale Gas Innovation Contest that will award $100,000 in prizes ($25K each) to four worthy winners. It may be just the shot you need to launch your product or service to success. The deadline to enter is Feb. 1, 2015. Here’s the announcement from the Ben Franklin Shale Gas Innovation and Commercialization Center…
Read More “Ben Franklin Shale Gas Ctr Announces $100K Contest for Innovators”
Energy Companies | Greene County (PA) | Lease & Royalty Payments | Marshall County | Ohio County | Pennsylvania | Tug Hill Operating | Utica Shale | West Virginia

Still Time for WV/PA Landowners to Participate in $100M Deal
November 24, 2014November 24, 2014

Landowner coalitions are certainly not new. They began in the Marcellus region around seven years ago when landowners in Pennsylvania banded together to get rates and conditions more favorably than they otherwise could on their own. Smart idea. What is new is that landowners in West Virginia are now banding together because, although Marcellus drilling takes place in the state and much of that land has been leased, the Utica Shale that underlies the state is just now getting started. So landowners, like those in Marshall and Ohio counties (in the panhandle of WV) and Greene County (in southwest PA) are forming new groups to negotiate new leases for the Utica Shale. The Marshall/Ohio/Greene landowner group did just that, recently signing a $100 million deal (see Panhandle WV Landowners Broker $100M Deal with Tug Hill Operating). A few more details about the group and the deal…
Read More “Still Time for WV/PA Landowners to Participate in $100M Deal”
Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Processing Plants | Regency Energy Partners | Statewide OH | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | Sunoco Logistics | West Virginia

Sunoco Logistics, Regency Energy Presentations from Analyst Day
November 24, 2014November 24, 2014

Last week both Regency Energy Partners, which purchased PVR Partners a little over a year ago (PVR having a major footprint in the Marcellus/Utica), along with Sunoco Logistics, another major midstream player in the northeast, participated in an analyst day last week at Ritz-Carlton in Dallas. While we don’t have a transcript, we do have the PowerPoint slide decks from both companies. And what we find on some of those slides is illuminating…
Read More “Sunoco Logistics, Regency Energy Presentations from Analyst Day”
Coterra Energy (Cabot O&G) | Energy Companies | Pennsylvania | Statewide WV | Susquehanna County | West Virginia | Wood County

Full Circle for Cabot O&G: From WV to PA and Back Again
November 20, 2014November 20, 2014

On Monday, MDN highlighted a pair of stories from West Virginia in which we noted that Cabot Oil & Gas, a Texas-based company that (so far) has concentrated its Marcellus Shale drilling in Susquehanna County, PA, had drilled and plugged a well in West Virginia that seems to be aimed at the Utica Shale (and/or Marcellus) in that state (see Cabot’s Wood County, WV Utica Well – Vertical or Horizontal Miss?). Cabot is one of the most prolific producers of Marcellus Shale gas, producing an incredible 2 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas from Susquehanna, a single county in northeast PA (see Cabot O&G 3Q14: A Wandering Eye + Welcome to the 2 Bcf/d Club!). It piqued our interest that Cabot may be nosing around a “new” area (for them) for horizontal shale drilling, so we asked George Stark, Cabot spokesman, about it. He called us yesterday to elucidate…
Read More “Full Circle for Cabot O&G: From WV to PA and Back Again”
Statewide WV | Trenton-Black River | West Virginia

Trenton-Black River: New Natgas Rock Layer in Your Future?
November 20, 2014November 20, 2014

You’ve heard of the Marcellus Shale layer, typically about a mile below the surface. You’ve heard of the Utica Shale layer, typically around 2 miles down. You may have heard (or read on MDN) about the Upper Devonian, located perhaps a thousand feet above the Marcellus (3-4,000 feet down). But we bet you haven’t yet heard about the Trenton-Black River limestone layer–nearly four miles down (around 20,000). According to the executive director of the West Virginia Oil and Natural Gas Association, the Trenton-Black River may be the next big natural gas producer that the miracle of horizontal drilling and fracking unlocks in the northeast…
Read More “Trenton-Black River: New Natgas Rock Layer in Your Future?”