M-U Rig Count Declined 37% (19 Rigs) from Dec 2022 to Dec 2024
The number of rigs deployed to drill for natural gas in the United States decreased over the last two years, according to stats from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). U.S. natural gas-directed rigs decreased 32% (50 rigs) between December 2022 and December 2024. The decline was concentrated in the natural gas-rich Haynesville and Marcellus/Utica regions, where the combined natural gas rig count declined by 34% during 2023 (43 rigs) and by 24% during 2024 (21 rigs). In the M-U region, rigs declined 37% since December 2022 (19 rigs). However, it’s not the end of the world. Don’t jump off that cliff just yet. Read More “M-U Rig Count Declined 37% (19 Rigs) from Dec 2022 to Dec 2024”
In May 2024, more than 50 “groups” colluding with ringleader Ohio River Valley Institute (ORVI) sent a letter to the Department of Energy (DOE) calling for the suspension of the Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub (ARCH2), falsely claiming an “extreme lack of transparency” and lack of “meaningful community engagement” during project negotiations (see 
Kentucky has seen unprecedented economic growth in recent years, like other southern states. Data centers are looking to Kentucky for future expansion. Last fall, Louisville Gas and Electric Company (LG&E) and Kentucky Utilities Company (KU), both part of PPL Corporation, forecasted in their Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) the need for additional power generation due to the expected influx of data centers and economic development across their service territories (see 
OTHER U.S. REGIONS: Trump touts plans to spur mammoth Alaska gas export project; NJBIA urges policymakers to allow for immediate in-state natgas generation; NATIONAL: Alpha-Otto Technologies unveils successful hydrogen engine test; Yes, coal and natural gas remain much cheaper than wind and solar; The greatest scientific fraud of all time — part xxxiii; Don’t let this be America’s ‘Germany moment’ on energy; Ghost grids – a conservative call to reclaim America’s power; INTERNATIONAL: Oil drops as tariffs and OPEC+ supply shake markets; Ireland approves emergency floating LNG facility to address gas supply risks. 
According to the Wall Street Journal, Shell is “exploring a potential sale of its chemicals assets in Europe and the U.S.,” according to “people familiar with the matter.” The review and potential sale are part of a continuing drive to refocus the company’s business on its most profitable operations. One of the petchem assets that may be on the auction block is the recently completed Monaca (Beaver County, PA) ethane cracker complex. Our heads are officially exploding. 
While there has been no public announcement, pipeline giant Williams (owner of the mighty Transco pipeline system) filed a Form 8-K statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to say the company has signed an agreement with “an unnamed large, investment-grade company” to provide onsite natural gas and power generation infrastructure for the unnamed customer. The company will invest $1.6 billion to build a pipeline and on-site power generation. 
EOG Resources, one of the largest oil and gas drillers in the U.S. (with international operations in Trinidad and China), owns nearly a half million acres of leases in the Ohio Utica (~460,000 acres). EOG calls its position the “Ohio Utica combo play” and now considers it one of the company’s “premium plays.” EOG concentrates on oil drilling in the Utica. During the company’s fourth quarter and full-year update, we learned that EOG has fully committed to operating two rigs and one frac crew in the Ohio Utica in 2025. Looking back at 2024, the company drilled and completed 25 Utica wells. Looking forward to 2025, the plan is to drill and complete another 30 new Utica wells. 
In November 2023, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) agreed with a petition from Dominion Energy subsidiary Virginia Electric and Power Company that requested a planned LNG production, storage, and regasification facility in Greensville County, VA, should be exempt from FERC jurisdiction under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act (see 
Smart Sand is a fully integrated frac and industrial sand supply and services company, offering complete mine to wellsite proppant and logistics solutions to frac sand customers and a broad offering of products for industrial sand customers. The company produces low-cost, high quality Northern White sand, a premium sand used as a proppant to enhance hydrocarbon recovery rates in the hydraulic fracturing of oil and natural gas wells. The company’s main markets are the Bakken and Marcellus. However, the company is increasingly supplying sand to Ohio Utica drillers. 
U.S. natural gas futures jumped 7.5% on Monday on record flows to liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plants and forecasts for higher demand over the next two weeks than previously expected. The amount of gas flowing to the eight big U.S. LNG export plants rose to an average of 15.8 Bcf/d so far in March, up from a record 15.6 Bcf/d in February, as new units at Venture Global’s 3.2-Bcf/d Plaquemines LNG export plant under construction in Louisiana entered service. 
For the fifth week in a row, the Baker Hughes U.S. rig count added rigs—the first time that has happened since May 2022. Last week, the count added a single new rig for a new total of 593. The national count remained in a tight range of 581-589 for much of last year. We’ve officially broken through that range. However, note that the national count is still 6% (36 rigs) below what it was last year at this time. As for the Marcellus/Utica, the rig count was a combined 35 last week, retaining a rig added in West Virginia two weeks ago. It just feels like the sun is shining again! 
The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) published a notice in the March 1 Pennsylvania Bulletin announcing that the agency has approved an Air Quality Permit for a new cryptocurrency data center in Venango County, PA. Venango is in the northwestern part of the state. The permit was issued to a company we had not previously heard of: Nova Energy LLC. The data center will be located in Frenchcreek Township. 
Wow! Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro is an even bigger bully (and dunce) than we gave him credit for. He’s not only mean and vindictive, he’s energy suicidal. Shapiro is threatening the 12 other states (plus the District of Columbia) that belong to the PJM Interconnection, saying that he may cut them off from 25% of the electricity that powers the electric grid by pulling Pennsylvania out of PJM. PJM is a private organization that manages the grid for Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, and other states. To boost his visibility in a dying political party, Shapiro is playing with fire.