Marcellus Drilling News

Health Impacts | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Research | Statewide PA

PA Marcellus Health Study by Geisinger Turns into Data Warehouse
January 6, 2014January 6, 2014

In August 2012 two major health system networks announced, to much fanfare, that they would partner to launch a multi-year study of the health impacts on residents living near Marcellus Shale drilling sites (see Health Care Systems Partner to Study Marcellus Impacts). To which we said, great! It’s about time some real science is done instead of pseudo-scientific fantasies spun by people like professors Howarth and Ingraffea at Cornell University. But we quickly learned that Geisinger Health Systems and the other participants in this new study were not willing to fund it themselves–they have their hands out and want someone else to foot the bill. So we’ve had some enjoyment over the past year and a half, poking fun at the non-study study (see PA Marcellus Health Study Still No Pulse – Needs Extra $24M).

Time for an update from the AP on the non-study study. The short version: The comprehensive “study” of health impacts has now morphed into a “data warehouse” for researchers as Geisinger and the other partners continue to putter. Oh, and they still have their hands out…
Read More “PA Marcellus Health Study by Geisinger Turns into Data Warehouse”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PA’s Impact Fee in Jeopardy from Supreme Court’s Act 13 Decision
January 6, 2014January 6, 2014

The decision of the PA Supreme Court to invalidate large portions of the 2012 Act 13 Marcellus drilling law, particularly those portions dealing with zoning, have left much of the law–perhaps the entire law–in doubt. The court’s decision was like an explosion, and we’re just now seeing the mushroom cloud but haven’t felt the fallout just yet. Did the Supremes just destroy shale drilling in PA? Is their decision really no big deal? It all depends on whom you ask.

One thing that appears to be in jeopardy is the impact fee/tax that’s already raised over $400 million in the last two years. A lot of that fee gets distributed to the places impacted by drilling, hence its name. It’s a sensible fee notwithstanding our objection that 40% of it goes to politicians to spend in non-drilling parts of the state. However, high court’s decision throws the future of the impact fee into doubt. Last week Gov. Tom Corbett’s administration asked the Supreme Court to reconsider its decision and further clarify some issues in hopes the impact fee (among other things) can be retained…
Read More “PA’s Impact Fee in Jeopardy from Supreme Court’s Act 13 Decision”
Air Quality | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Somerset County

PA Drill Equipment Company Predicts Diesel Rigs Gone in 5 Years
January 6, 2014January 6, 2014

For some time now MDN has written about Marcellus drillers who now use dual-fuel drilling rigs–rigs whose big engines are powered by a blend of diesel fuel and natural gas, with some drillers using 100% natural gas-powered engines (see this list of MDN stories). Three weeks ago, CONSOL Energy announced a first–they will use electric motors for drilling near the Pittsburgh Airport (see CONSOL to Use Electric Motors for Drilling at Pittsburgh Airport).

One of the primary suppliers of drilling equipment for Marcellus and Utica drillers, Keystone Drill Services in Somerset County, PA, recently made this startling prediction: Within five years diesel-powered engines will be gone from drill sites. Keystone should know since they’re creating the future now at their Somerset facility…
Read More “PA Drill Equipment Company Predicts Diesel Rigs Gone in 5 Years”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

Top 10 Marcellus Anti-Drilling Stories of 2013, Courtesy NPR
January 6, 2014January 6, 2014

MDN and RBN Energy weren’t the only blog sites to do a top 10. Our post was, in our humble opinion, a serious analysis and “think piece” to give those concerned with Marcellus and Utica Shale drilling perspective on the big issues of last year (see MDN’s Top 10 Most Important Stories of 2013 – Our View). RBN Energy’s top 10 looked at the entire country (see today’s story of RBN’s top 10 2014 predictions). MDN and RBN were not alone.

It seems everyone and their sister was doing top 10 pieces last week, including the reliably anti-drilling StateImpact Pennsylvania–which is a couple of NPR reporters who hate fossil fuels writing about energy and about those evil, nasty Republicans that support shale drilling in PA. We found their top 10 list rather amusing and thought you might too…
Read More “Top 10 Marcellus Anti-Drilling Stories of 2013, Courtesy NPR”
Crime | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Lycoming County | Pennsylvania | Seismic Testing

Final Chapter in GPX Saga of Using Illegals in PA Marcellus
January 6, 2014January 6, 2014

We thought the final chapter had been written about GPX, a Texas-based seismic surveying company doing work in Pennsylvania for the oil and gas industry that was caught using illegal aliens to work on their surveying crews. Last March we told you the company admitted to the scheme and agreed to pay out some big money (see GPX Pleads Guilty in Using Illegal Aliens for PA Marcellus Work).

It’s taken 10 long months, but on Thursday in a federal courtroom in Harrisburg, PA the final chapter really will be written:
Read More “Final Chapter in GPX Saga of Using Illegals in PA Marcellus”
Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies

Chesapeake Energy Jan 2014 IR Update Focuses on Utica/Marcellus
January 6, 2014January 6, 2014

Corporate raider Carl Icahn will be happy. Chesapeake Energy, the company where Icahn pulls all the strings, released an investor’s report (IR) on Jan. 2 that shows capital expenses year over year have dropped an astonishing 48%, thanks to Doug Lawler (Icahn’s toady) firing 1,200 Chesapeake employees in 2013 (see The Great Chesapeake Massacre: Lawler Fires 800 People in One Day). The company reports net income for 2013 is forecast to be up 150%, and profits will be up 33%. However, overall production for the company is only up a minuscule 3%, largely because Chesapeake sold off so many assets in order to “right” the financial ship–or so they say.

Below is a good analysis of the Jan. 2 IR by a Seeking Alpha contributor, along with a copy of the Jan. 2 IR (embedded below). Interesting to MDN: Although the Chesapeake report contains a map showing 10 shale plays where Chesapeake remains active (slide #5), management chose to highlight just three of those 10 plays by providing detailed information in the Jan 2 report. Two of the three are the Utica and Marcellus (slides #14 & #15)…
Read More “Chesapeake Energy Jan 2014 IR Update Focuses on Utica/Marcellus”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

AP Drive-By Article Says Drilling Pollutes Water Wells
January 6, 2014January 6, 2014

A classic example of mainstream media’s drive-by murder of the truth has happened yet again–at the hands of the Associated Press (hitman: Kevin Begos). The introduction to the most recent hit piece (read it below) is that the AP has done extensive “research” (which is, of course, laughable) into all of these numerous cases of potential water contamination by oil and gas drilling and by golly some of those cases are true–oil and gas drilling polluted some people’s well water. Never mind what kind of pollution, the water was polluted and that’s all you need to know.

Near the end of the article the mountain of evidence is offered–and what do we find? A statistically infinitesimally small number of complaints about well water contamination, very few of which were proven to be true. So the opening paragraphs are a clever deception, but most people don’t bother to read down to the point where the truth is revealed–and some may not even grasp the truth when they do read it. This one story, written by a reporter with an anti-drilling agenda, is reprinted ad nauseum in hundreds of local newspapers across the country that never bother to question its veracity or attempt to verify the facts. Welcome to Propaganda 101…
Read More “AP Drive-By Article Says Drilling Pollutes Water Wells”
Columbiana County | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH | Taxation | Utica Shale

OH County Engineer Speaks Truth to (Utica Taxation) Power
January 6, 2014January 6, 2014

It takes a “lowly” county engineer in an Ohio Utica Shale county–Columbiana–to have the guts to stand up and say if Republican politicians are going to cave and raise taxes on Utica Shale drilling, they ought to at least allocate some of the new-found money to the places that are actually impacted by drilling, instead of giving all the money away to people who had nothing to do with it! So we pin a medal on Columbiana County Engineer Bert Dawson for having the guts to stand up and say (in essence) “the Kasich emperor has no clothes” when it comes to this insane tax increase he keeps pushing…
Read More “OH County Engineer Speaks Truth to (Utica Taxation) Power”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Mahoning County | Ohio | Regulation

Third Time the Charm? Youngstown Anti-Drillers Try Again for Ban
January 6, 2014January 6, 2014

The crazies are back in Youngstown, OH–or more properly, they never left. Anti-drillers couldn’t get the good citizens of Youngstown to vote in favor of a frack ban twice in a row, but that doesn’t stop zealots like members of FrackFree Mahoning Valley from trying again. They’re back at it, circulating a petition that–for a third time–asks residents to put the same tired old “ban fracking” measure on the ballot for a vote. After twice being voted down in large numbers. The nutters call it a “Bill of Rights” hoping to fool people. Call the measure what you want–its effect would be to shut down Youngstown from the drilling industry and deny residents the multitude of benefits they now get from Utica drilling (jobs and business tax revenue).

But hey, it’s (still) America where fruitcakes have the freedom to do what they want–including pestering their neighbors to sign a petition circulated twice before. Our advice: If one of the FrackFree Mahoning fruitcakes comes knocking on your door–hand them the fruitcake you got for Christmas and still haven’t eaten, and send them packing…
Read More “Third Time the Charm? Youngstown Anti-Drillers Try Again for Ban”
About MDN | Calendar

Calendar of Events for Jan 6-19, 2014 [Free]
January 6, 2014January 6, 2014

Below are upcoming events for this week and next.
Read More “Calendar of Events for Jan 6-19, 2014 [Free]”
Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Mon, Jan 6, 2014
January 6, 2014January 6, 2014

The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading:
Read More “Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Mon, Jan 6, 2014”
About MDN | Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Commodity Price | Crude Oil | Economic Impact | Ethane | Health Impacts | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | MDN Resources | NGLs | Pipelines | Regulation

MDN’s Top 10 Most Important Stories of 2013 – Our View
December 31, 2013December 31, 2013

Yes it’s trite and certainly overdone, but hey, it’s the last day of 2013 and a slow news day. So MDN editor Jim Willis thought he would put together a list of what he considered to be the top 10 Marcellus and Utica Shale stories from 2013. It’s a look into what we believe, based on your input and feedback, to be the most relevant and important stories from this year. Enjoy!…
Read More “MDN’s Top 10 Most Important Stories of 2013 – Our View”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Public Opinion | Research

Peer-Reviewed Fracking Survey Peers into U.S. Minds, and Finds…
December 31, 2013December 31, 2013

A new survey of Americans on the topic of fracking appears in the upcoming February issue of the peer-reviewed journal Energy Policy. The survey, titled “Fracking” controversy and communication: Using national survey data to understand public perceptions of hydraulic fracturing (full draft copy embedded below) was actually conducted in September 2012–so the data is already quite old. Apparently 15 months is how long it takes to get your articles reviewed by journals like Energy Policy. A lot has happened in the last 15 months: FrackNation and Gasland II were both released, Dimock faded away as an issue, Pennsylvania’s natural gas production more than doubled, the U.S. became the world’s #1 producer of both natural gas and oil–the list goes on. Still, the survey is interesting and yields confirmation of what we already know along with the odd insight into what can be used as a predictor of whether or not someone will support fracking and shale drilling.

For example, if you’re conservative, educated and like to let the free market determine which energy sources should win, you support fracking. Conversely, if you’re liberal, less educated and like the idea of government picking the winners (that is, you have a touch of fascism in your philosophy), you don’t support fracking. If you’ve been reading MDN for any length of time, you already know all of this. The benefit of this particular survey is the scientific “rigor” used in testing which characteristics are good predictors of support or lack of support–and which characteristics are not good predictors. That’s what is interesting to MDN about this particular study.
Read More “Peer-Reviewed Fracking Survey Peers into U.S. Minds, and Finds…”
About MDN | Industrywide Issues | MDN Resources

Social Media Comes to Shale Plays, Including the Marcellus/Utica
December 31, 2013December 31, 2013

The shale energy industry is getting its own Twitter/Facebook/LinkedIn platform–all rolled into one. Not long ago MDN was tapped on the shoulder by the folks at Oilpro.com, an online community of oil & gas professionals interested in connecting with colleagues. The shale social media site is only a few months old but has already taken off and attracted something like 30,000 active users–which is an astonishing feat in our industry! Oilpro.com is founded by the same people who founded (and later sold) Rigzone.com–so the people behind it have energy chops and know their way around a drilling rig.

Below is information about Oilpro.com–what it is and what it does. MDN encourages you to check it out and consider joining. We did!…
Read More “Social Media Comes to Shale Plays, Including the Marcellus/Utica”
About MDN | MDN Resources

See You in 2014
December 31, 2013December 31, 2013

MDN has noticed the shale drilling news…has…..really……..slowed……….down. Which is to be expected. A lot of people will take off from Wednesday the 1st through the rest of the week. We are too. We will keep an eye on the news and if anything major happens with respect to the Marcellus/Utica, we’ll issue an update. Otherwise, we’ll see you next Monday, Jan. 6th. We want to take this opportunity to thank our readers–especially our paid subscribers. We look forward to serving you in 2014.

We’re planning a website update in 2014–and more products, so stay tuned! If you ever thought, “I wish MDN would publish X or create Y,” we would like to hear about it. Drop us a line at: jim@marcellusdrilling.com. Now is the time to hit us up while we’re planning the next 12 months.

While we’re “on break” over the next few days, we’ll be working on Volume 3 of the Marcellus and Utica Shale Databook, which will be published in January. We’re going to make a big announcement that soon. Stay tuned!

A very happy New Year to all.

– Jim Willis, Editor, MDN
Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Tue, Dec 31, 2013
December 31, 2013December 31, 2013

The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading:
Read More “Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Tue, Dec 31, 2013”