Activist Investor Threatens Magnum Hunter with Takeover Unless…
We’re still trying to process this bit of news. One of the Seeking Alpha blog writers we’ve enjoyed following over the past year or so is Dallas Salazar. Dallas is the CEO of Austin, TX-based Atlas Consulting. He specializes in “private company lifecycle management, up to and including taking companies public, and in helping consult publicly traded companies ranging in market cap from $100 million to $500 million.” That is, Salazar helps companies raise money to go public, and helps public companies get profitable. He’s just stepped up his game. Salazar said in a letter to Gary Evans (CEO) and the board at Magnum Hunter Resources (MHR) two days ago that he, Salazar, is close to having enough shareholder support to take over the company–unless. Unless what? Unless MHR responds to his demands, which include selling Eureka Hunter posthaste, stop doing some of the things they are now doing that put the company at financial risk, and unless they start talking to him, now. Some might view it as a form of blackmail. Some might say Dallas is transforming himself into a corporate raider, like Carl Ichan. Many call it being an “activist investor.” We’re not sure what to call it or think of it, quite frankly…
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A small earthquake that nobody felt (2.1 on the Richter scale) hit Harrison County, OH Tuesday evening. There was immediate speculation about whether or not the earthquake is tied to Utica Shale drilling in the area. Aubrey McClendon’s Ascent Resources is drilling near where the quake originated. It’s WAY too early to even speculate on whether or not the quake is tied to a fracking operation. IF (a very big IF) fracking did cause this quake, it would be the sixth known time that fracking itself (instead of an injection well) has caused an earthquake–out of millions of wells drilled and fracked. Statistically zero…
In March of this year, Syracuse University Professor Dr. Donald Siegel published the results of an extensive research study that found fracking of Marcellus Shale wells in Pennsylvania does not cause methane in water wells (see 
On Monday MDN told you about an accident in Sweden Township (Potter County), PA where JKLM Energy released soap into a water aquifer while trying to fish out a broken drill bit from a Utica Shale bore hole (see 
The price of natural gas isn’t going anywhere fast during winter 2015-2016. That’s the takeaway MDN gets from an analysis just released by the Natural Gas Supply Association (NGSA). The NGSA’s 15th annual Winter Outlook assessment (full copy below) says we have record production on the way, record amounts of gas in storage, and according to the National Weather Service, a winter that will average around 7 degrees warmer than last year. NGSA also says demand for natgas from electric generating plants and other users will tick up a bit. So on balance, NGSA says there will be “neutral pressure” on this winter’s natural gas prices compared to the winter of 2014-2015. In other words, the price isn’t going anywhere–likely to stay in the same neighborhood of last winter’s average Henry Hub price of $3.21 per thousand cubic feet (Mcf). MDN points out the price of gas varies widely depending on what part of the country you’re in. Although gas sold at the Henry Hub delivery point for an average of $3.21/Mcf last winter, gas selling at the Tennessee Gas Pipeline Zone 4 Marcellus delivery point was less than half that–around $1.50/Mcf last winter. NGSA is saying: What you saw last winter for prices is what you’re likely to see this winter…
One reason why it takes so long to build a pipeline is the litigation necessary to make it happen. In September 2014, Dominion committed full force to building a 550-mile, $5 billion natural gas pipeline that will run from West Virginia, through Virginia and into North Carolina (see 
EQT and NextEra US Gas Assets plan to build the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP), a 330-mile pipeline from Wetzel County, WV to the Transco Pipeline in Pittsylvania County, VA. There’s been plenty of pushback from landowners who won’t allow MVP access to survey (see 
Last November, MDN told you about an innovative plan by PECO, a utility company based in Philadelphia serving some 500,000+ natural gas customers in southeastern PA, to allow customers to sign up for its natural gas service and spread the cost over 20 years (see 
From time to time we bring you news of top management at drillers (upstream) or pipeline companies (midstream) who either buy or sell large blocks of their own company’s stock. It’s always hard to divine what someone’s motivation is when buying or selling. We typically take it to be a good sign when top management or board members buy stock–it shows they believe in the company they run, enough to put their own money on the line. We have another case–this time a company’s top lawyer selling stock in one of the top drillers in the Marcellus. Cabot Oil & Gas’ General Counsel, George Kevin Cunningham, sold 3,623 shares of Cabot stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 29th. He got $81,046.51. But lest you view the transaction negatively, consider this: Cunningham still owns 42,210 shares worth nearly a million bucks. Looks to us like maybe he’s sending a kid off to college or remodeling the house with this sale…
Once again the great people at Cabot Oil & Gas have done it again. Back in 2012 the company helped raise $4.4 million for a local hospital in Susquehanna County, PA, with half of the money contributed by Cabot (see 
The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading. In today’s lineup: breakeven prices in the Marcellus; OH severance tax study late; is the Utica shrinking?; natgas price hits 3-year low; EPA tightens ozone standards; shale drilling in 2016 will be down, but production up; House committee passes natgas export law to speed it up; and more!
Finally a spot of good news in the never-ending battle to keep the federal government out of the business of regulating oil and gas drilling. Going all the way back to 2012, the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM), an agency that sits under the umbrella of the U.S. Dept. of Interior (DOI), proposed draft rules for fracking on federally-controlled land (see 
Kinder Morgan continues to fight an uphill battle to get its Northeast Energy Direct (NED) pipeline project accepted and approved. In March MDN noticed that Kinder had failed to sign up any new customers in the previous eight month period, with commitments remaining at 500,000 dekatherms per day, equivalent to 1/2 Bcf/d (see 
Countless times MDN has told you that in rare cases, injecting fracking wastewater into a deep, underground Class II injection well (for disposal) can cause earthquakes–if the injection well is located over a fault. When you inject fluids under high pressure into rock formations with a fault it can act like a lubricant, allowing the rocks to slip and slide–causing a low-level earthquake. It’s happened in Ohio. It’s happened (a lot) in Oklahoma. It’s happened in Texas. And in other states too. Thirteen oil and gas states joined together with the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC) and Ground Water Protection Council (GWPC) to form the StatesFirst Initiative, a working group to pool their knowledge and try and figure out how, and under what conditions, injection wells cause earthquakes. Co-heading the initiative is Ohio’s Chief for the Division of Oil & Gas Resources Management (Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources), Rick Simmers. Rick and the working group have just released a 150-page Primer (copy below) to help regulatory agencies evaluate and develop good policies to mitigate and prevent earthquakes from injection wells…
Perhaps we now know the real reason why a group of anti-fossil fuel protesters decided to abandon their protest at the headquarters of PennEast Pipeline’s main sponsor, UGI. MDN told you yesterday how mainstream media in the New Jersey market covered a “massive” protest (of 35 people) who showed up at the Statehouse in Trenton during the day–with obviously nothing better to do–to protest against the PennEast Pipeline (see