Marcellus Drilling News

Coterra Energy (Cabot O&G) | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Susquehanna County

Dimock Trial Update: Jury Deliberates, Asks Judge for $$ Guidance
March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

Now that the trial against Cabot Oil & Gas–a trial in which the two families from Dimock, PA allege Cabot caused the water wells of two families to become contaminated with methane–has gone to the jury for deliberation, the Democrat-controlled Scranton Times-Tribune and local TV station WNEP have all sudden woken up and started to cover the trial again. They simply ignored the trial for nearly two weeks as witness after witness for the plantiffs was exposed on the witness stand as lying or shading the truth. It was so bad, the Times-Tribune and WNEP simply stopped reporting the news. Now that the jury has taken more than six hours to deliberate and have asked the judge about monetary compensation–indicating they may actually find for the plantiffs–the anti-drilling Times-Tribune and WNEP is all atwitter. They’ve decided to begin covering the story again…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Coterra Energy (Cabot O&G) | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Susquehanna County

Anti-Driller Vera Scroggins Assaults Phelim McAleer at Dimock Trial
March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

Vera Scroggins is a little-known anti-driller from Susquehanna County, PA who sometimes pops up in the news for trespassing on Cabot Oil & Gas drill sites (see PA Fracktivist Permanently Banned from Cabot Property). We know she has a potty mouth–just witness her abusive treatment of Phelim McAleer (creator of the FrackNation documentary) a few years ago, insulting him and swearing at him (watch this video). It seems Vera has a violent streak too. Yesterday outside the courthouse in Scranton, PA where two Dimock families suing Cabot have a trial under way, Phelim tried to interview and ask questions of a Dimock family not part of the court case, Craig and Julie Sautner. Phelim is persistent, like any good reporter, and he had his camera rolling as he repeatedly asked them to respond to the plaintiffs’ lawyer’s admission that no chemicals contaminated the water in Dimock–as they (the Sautners) have claimed. Vera was with the Sautners and tried to keep McAleer away from them. At one point she physically struck him, several times, all caught on tape. The police were called but no charges have been filed (yet). Here’s the video to show what happened…
Read More “Anti-Driller Vera Scroggins Assaults Phelim McAleer at Dimock Trial”
Ohio | Statewide OH

Ohio Utica Shale Production Doubles in 2015! Top 5 Counties & Drillers
March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

The Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) yesterday released fourth quarter 2015 production numbers. The report shows that Utica oil production was up 75% in 4Q15 over 4Q14, and Utica natural gas production was up 80% in 4Q15 over 4Q14. Comparing year to year, shale oil production in 2015 for Ohio was up 100% (it doubled) over 2014, and shale natural gas production in 2015 was up 111% over 2014. The Utica Shale is truly the miracle that keeps on giving in the Buckeye State! Below is the ODNR announcement, along with a deeper analysis including the Top 5 counties and Top 5 drillers in the Utica Shale…
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Ohio | Statewide OH | Utica Shale

List of 24 Ohio Utica Drillers & Their #1 Producing Wells in 4Q15
March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

The production numbers are in for Ohio, and wow! What a fourth quarter! (See our companion story today: Ohio Utica Shale Production Doubles in 2015! Top 5 Counties & Drillers) Ace reporter Tom Knox from Columbus Business First has analyzed the data from the fourth quarter and assembled a list of the 24 active drillers in the Utica Shale, along with identifying their single-most productive Utica well in 4Q15. It is a cool list. Here it is…
Read More “List of 24 Ohio Utica Drillers & Their #1 Producing Wells in 4Q15”
Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Lackawanna County | Pennsylvania | Regulation

Jessup Borough Final Approval for PA’s Largest NatGas Power Plant
March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

Kudos to the members of the Jessup Borough Council (Lackawanna County, PA) who approved several measures that have now cleared the way for Invenergy to begin building Pennsylvania’s largest (to date) natural gas-powered electric generating plant. We’ve tracked this story for years. Invenergy wants to build a 1,480 megawatt electric generating plant in Jessup using cheap, abundant Marcellus Shale gas. They’re going to spend something like $500 million on the project–a big investment in Jessup and the greater Scranton, PA area. Previously the state Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) approved the project (see PA DEP Approves Jessup, PA Marcellus Gas Electric Plant). But there has been some serious local opposition, based on fears of air pollution (see Public Hearing on NEPA Proposed Marcellus-Powered Electric Plant). All of the debating and toing and froing are now done. With Monday’s votes, it’s now time for the bulldozers to begin moving dirt at the site…
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Energy Companies | Gulfport Energy

Gulfport Floats 2nd Stock Offering in a Year, Wants $371M
March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

How many times can you go to the (money) well? Gulfport Energy plans to find out. Gulfport, like many upstream (i.e. drilling) companies is in short supply of cash. One of the favorite techniques to raise new piles of cash is to sell off further ownership in the company by floating new stock. Gulfport did it in April of 2015 when it floated 9.5 million shares looking to raise $454 million (see Gulfport Upsizes Stock Offering to 9.5M Shares, Seeks $454M). They’re going back to the well again. This time they’re floating 14.7 million shares at a hoped-for price of $25.25 per share, meaning they want to get $371 million. Will they get it?…
Read More “Gulfport Floats 2nd Stock Offering in a Year, Wants $371M”
Energy Companies | Southwestern Energy

Southwestern in 2015…Drill Like Crazy; in 2016…Don’t Drill
March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

One of our favorite authors who writes for The Motley Fool, Matt DiLallo, has just published another excellent article. This one is about Southwestern Energy, one of the biggest drillers in the Marcellus Shale. Matt looks at why Southwestern’s stock price dropped like a rock in February–down 32% in a single month. In February 2015, MDN pointed out Southwestern had adopted a contrarian plan for the year–doubling down on drilling in the Marcellus (see Southwestern’s Contrarian Plan: Double Down on Drilling in the Marcellus). At the time most drillers in our neck of the woods were pulling back and drilling less. Not Southwestern. And that’s what Matt points out in his brief article. It was Southwestern’s breakneck drilling last year that got them into financial trouble. Southwestern has announced that for 2016 they’ve suspended all drilling. According to Matt, “The company clearly learned a valuable lesson last year”…
Read More “Southwestern in 2015…Drill Like Crazy; in 2016…Don’t Drill”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

Obama DOJ Considers Prosecuting Global Warming Deniers
March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

Is this what our once-great country has come to under Barack Hussein Obama? The criminalization of free speech? If you simply say, as MDN does, that extra carbon dioxide in the atmosphere–caused by mankind’s activity in burning fossil fuels–is NOT causing Mother Earth to catastrophically warm up, the Obama Justice Department is considering prosecuting you and throwing you in jail. So says the head of the DOJ, Attorney General Loretta Lynch. It is the death of the First Amendment of our tattered Constitution–a Constitution daily shredded by Obama and his sycophants…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Litigation

Radicalized Children Try to Force Climate Change Action in Court
March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

In August 2015 MDN told you about a lawsuit brought by a group of left coast radicalized children who want to force the federal government to become communist and “force action” on mythical climate change (see Group of Kids Sues U.S. Govt to Force Action on “Climate Change”). This past January the case proceeded with industry groups joining the government as defendants (see Climate Change Lawsuit by Radicalized Children Gets Interesting). What’s happening is that adults are using children to force a radical/Fascist agenda on the American public. The so-called children had their first day in court yesterday. The defendants–the government and groups like the American Petroleum Institute–asked the judge to throw out the case…
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Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Thu, Mar 10, 2016
March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading. In today’s lineup: Belmont County talks RUMA with drillers & pipeline companies; the case against the CELDF; WV production blows by 1 Tcf in 2014; no further cut in WV severance tax this year; divestment bill dies in Vermont legislature; Sabine ruling in midstream contact case not a precedent–everyone hopes; irrational exuberance in the oilfield; and more!
Read More “Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Thu, Mar 10, 2016”
Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pipelines | Processing Plants

Midstream Nightmare Comes True: Judge Lets Driller Cancel Contracts
March 9, 2016March 9, 2016

Two weeks ago MDN warned you of a court case that has the potential to upend the midstream (pipelines & processing plants) market–here in the Marcellus/Utica and across the country (see Shock: Judge May Allow Drillers to Cancel Gathering Pipeline Deals). That potential has now been realized. Judge Shelley Chapman, in a case in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, has ruled that Sabine Oil & Gas may cancel a pipeline gathering contract with Cheniere’s Nordheim Eagle Ford Gathering in Texas. Nordheim spent $84 million building a pipeline system to Sabine’s wells. In return for laying out that kind of money, Sabine, as is always the case, signed a multi-year contract with Nordheim (10 years in this case), ensuring Nordheim would make make a profit on its up-front investment. The judge is allowing Sabine to cancel the deal several years into the contract. If a driller signs a contract and that signature is no longer any good, will anyone build pipeline systems anymore?…
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Alpha Natural Resources | Energy Companies | Rice Energy

Alpha Natural Resources Selling Marcellus/Rice Energy Stake
March 9, 2016March 9, 2016

As we told you a month ago, Alpha Natural Resources, Inc., one of the largest metallurgical coal producers in the world, has been offered $500 million for the company’s major assets–its crown jewels (see Bankrupt Alpha Natural Resources Offered $500M for Assets). Among those assets is 25,000 acres of Marcellus gas leases in Greene County, PA and a stake in Rice Energy. We now have more details. Yesterday Alpha filed a proposed Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan that lays out selling the company’s best assets, keeping a few assets so it can cover the cost of reclaiming certain coal mining operations. In essence the company is throwing in the towel and calling it quits…
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Chevron | Energy Companies

Chevron Cuts 2017/2018 Budget by 34%; Scaling Back in Marcellus
March 9, 2016March 9, 2016

Chevron is cutting its budget for 2017 and 2018. Chevron maintains an active drilling program in the Marcellus Shale–but it has been selling bits and pieces of its Marcellus assets (see Chevron Lists Another 6,630 Marcellus Acres for Sale in Central PA). Previously the company committed to a capital budget of $26.6 billion for 2016–down 24% from 2015. They’ve just announced preliminary estimates for spending in 2017 and 2018–a plan to spend $17-$18 billion in each of those years. Chevron says it will continue to cut spending in order to “preserve cash” in the low price environment. What about their Marcellus/Utica program? They plan to take a “measured pace”…
Read More “Chevron Cuts 2017/2018 Budget by 34%; Scaling Back in Marcellus”
Coterra Energy (Cabot O&G) | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Susquehanna County

Dimock Trial Update: Judge Says Plaintiffs Didn’t Suffer Damage
March 9, 2016March 9, 2016

The judge in the famous Dimock water contamination case has ruled that the plaintiffs have not proven any kind of damages, so he tossed out the negligence claim against Cabot Oil & Gas. That is, he just tossed out most of the remaining case! The only claim left now for the jury to decide, beginning today, is whether or not Cabot created a “nuisance” with their drilling activities. Translation: Cabot Oil & Gas did not, in any way, contaminate water wells in Dimock with their drilling activities. That is now proven in a court of law. Once again MDN friend Tom Shepstone, who has done a superb job of covering the trial, files this report about the judge tossing the last major charge against Cabot, and about more expert testimony that demolishes the plantiffs’ so-called expert witness Tony Ingraffea…
Read More “Dimock Trial Update: Judge Says Plaintiffs Didn’t Suffer Damage”
CONSOL Energy | Energy Companies | Utica Shale

CONSOL Uses Magnum Dissolvable Frac Plugs in Utica Shale
March 9, 2016March 9, 2016

We’re always intrigued by the technology being used by Marcellus and Utica drillers. Some of the best innovations in the shale patch have come in the northeast. So when we spotted a story (press release) about a company hooking up with CONSOL Energy to provide high tech fracking solutions, our eyes and ears perked up. Magnum Oil Tools says they have provided CONSOL with 20 Magnum Vanishing Plugs (frac plugs) for use in the Utica Shale. What the heck is a frac plug?…
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Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pipelines | Statewide VA | Virginia

Mountain Valley Pipeline Wins Right to Survey in VA w/o Permission
March 9, 2016March 9, 2016

Mountain Valley Pipeline is a $3.5 billion, 301-mile pipeline that will run from Wetzel County, WV to the Transco Pipeline in Pittsylvania County, VA. The project, which filed an official application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission last October, is being built by EQT, NextEra Energy and several other partners (see Mountain Valley Pipeline Files FERC Appl, Now Just Matter of Time). The project has faced stiff opposition from landowners in West Virginia (see Mountain Valley Pipeline Sues 103 WV Landowners for Survey Access). The project has also faced opposition from landowners in Virginia. However, things just got a lot easier for Mountain Valley when it comes to surveying a potential route through the Old Dominion state. The Virginia Supreme Court on Monday decided NOT to hear an appeal of a lower court ruling that allows pipeline surveyors to access a property WITHOUT the landowner’s permission. That decision means the lower court ruling, which allows surveyors unpermissioned access, to stand…
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