Marcellus Drilling News

Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Ion GX Technology | Pennsylvania | Seismic Testing | Westmoreland County

Murrysville, PA Officials Offer Advice on Seismic Testing
September 13, 2013September 13, 2013

An town councilman from the Pennsylvania borough of Murrysville (Westmoreland County) wants to make it very clear: ION Geophysical does not have permission to use township rights-of-way for seismic testing. The same official, who is not anti-drilling by a long shot (he’s a geologist), also has a few words of advice/warning for private landowners who are contemplating whether or not to sign agreements to allow testing (for a measly $5/acre)…
Read More “Murrysville, PA Officials Offer Advice on Seismic Testing”
Energy Companies | Pennsylvania | Southwestern Energy | Statewide PA

Southwestern Energy Details Marcellus Update/Plans
September 13, 2013September 13, 2013

Below is Southwestern Energy’s investor presentation/update for August 2013. Southwestern is a major driller in the Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale. Among the slides in the presentation are several that focus on their Marcellus work, including maps. Worth your time to review (we like slides #6-10 in particular)…
Read More “Southwestern Energy Details Marcellus Update/Plans”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Maryland | Statewide MD

Energy Deniers Ask Maryland Gov to Abandon Safe Fracking Path
September 13, 2013September 13, 2013

A group of extremist anti-drilling organizations, headed by the odious (and misnamed) Food & Water Watch, issued a press release to a single person yesterday–Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley–to ask him to abandon efforts at safe fracking in the state. These cuckoo organizations want no fracking–forever. They want a so-called sustainable energy nirvana now, which means what they really want is shared misery (and rolling blackouts) among everyone because that’s what a complete change to alternative energy sources would entail. There’s no physical way for non-fossil fuel sources of energy to supply all of our energy needs now–and likely not for the next generation or two (if ever). It’s just not possible and they know it, but they deny it. So we’ll call them “energy deniers.”

Here’s the missive issued yesterday by these anti-drilling extremists flying under the banner of Marylanders Against Fracking:
Read More “Energy Deniers Ask Maryland Gov to Abandon Safe Fracking Path”
Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines | Processing Plants

Dominion Will Spin Off Cove Point LNG Plant + Blue Racer as MLP
September 13, 2013September 13, 2013

Yesterday, the day after Dominion Resources learned of the approval from the Dept. of Energy for their proposed LNG export facility at Cove Point, MD, Dominion’s CEO Thomas Farrell announced that Dominion would spin off the new LNG facility along with their share in the Blue Racer Midstream joint venture in Ohio into a master limited partnership (MLP). An MLP is a special kind of company structure that issues “units” instead of shares of stock. MLPs are set up by the government specifically for the natural resources/mining industry–usually for oil and gas companies.

MLP units are traded on public securities exchanges combining the tax benefits of a limited partnership with the liquidity of publicly traded securities. Dominion’s MLP announcement caused its own shares of stock to reach a record high yesterday…
Read More “Dominion Will Spin Off Cove Point LNG Plant + Blue Racer as MLP”
Energy Services | Pennsylvania | Susquehanna County | Williams | Wyoming County (PA)

Williams BBQ Hopes to Raise $80K for NE PA United Way
September 13, 2013September 13, 2013

A few days ago MDN told you about several drillers in Ohio–Antero Resources, PDC Energy and CONSOL Energy–who are “giving back” to the communities where they drill, by donating money to local schools (see Eastern OH Shale Drillers Donate to Local Schools). Today, a story about pipeline company Williams and their annual barbecue in northeast Pennsylvania–a “little” event that raised more than $40,000 for United Way campaigns in several counties.

At this year’s event (held yesterday), Williams was hoping to double that amount…
Read More “Williams BBQ Hopes to Raise $80K for NE PA United Way”
Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Fri, Sep 13, 2013
September 13, 2013September 13, 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: Fri, Sep 13, 2013”
Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Exporting | Industrywide Issues | Maryland | Statewide MD

Celebrate! Dominion Wins DOE Approval for MD LNG Export Facility
September 12, 2013

It’s been a long, hard fight. Dominion has finally won approval from the Dept. of Energy (thank you new Secretary Ernest “Hair” Moniz!) to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility at their Cove Point, Maryland location. The LNG facility will allow Dominion to super-cool and condense natural gas to a liquid state–Marcellus and Utica Shale gas–and export it to India and Japan, countries who are allies of the United States but don’t have a free trade agreement with us. This is great news for those two countries who previously signed deals with Dominion to take 100% of the LNG the Cove Point facility can produce (see Dominion’s Cove Point LNG Facility Achieves Important Milestones). It’s also great news for Maryland: Dominion will spend between $3.4-$3.8 billion to build the plant.

The new facility has been opposed by the Sierra Club and other well-known anti-drilling organizations because they believe the facility will encourage more fracking (see Sierra Club, Others Trash Talk Cove Point LNG Export Terminal). With this approval from the DOE, Dominion says they plan to begin construction next year, in 2014, and that the facility will be online and shipping in 2017…
Read More “Celebrate! Dominion Wins DOE Approval for MD LNG Export Facility”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Research

EPA Shuts Door on Pavillion, WY Water Contamination Investigation
September 12, 2013September 12, 2013

Just last year all we heard from mainstream media (promoting the anti-drilling viewpoint) was how fracking pollutes water. Just look at Pavillion, WY! they said. MDN analyzed the Pavillion potential “fracking contaminates groundwater” issue at length one year ago this month (see 3 Things to Know about Pavillion, Fracking & Water Contamination). Then, much to the dismay of anti-drillers, the federal EPA backed away from it’s bungled investigation in Pavillion this past June (see EPA Abandons Pavillion, Can’t Prove Fracking/Water Contamination).

Now, with hardly a peep, the EPA published an official notice in yesterday’s Federal Register that they’ve turned the lights out on their Pavillion investigation (see it embedded below). Over and done. The EPA has officially washed its hands of the investigation. Do you think you’ll read about that in the New York Times? Ha!…
Read More “EPA Shuts Door on Pavillion, WY Water Contamination Investigation”
Energy Services | GreenHunter Resources | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Washington County (OH) | Wastewater

GreenHunter Begins Operation of New OH Wastewater Injection Well
September 12, 2013September 12, 2013

GreenHunter Water announced today they’ve started operating a brand new injection well at their Newport (Washington County), Ohio location–just a stone’s throw from the Ohio River (where they dearly hope to be able to barge wastewater soon). GreenHunter says the new injection well, called a “salt water disposal” or SWD facility, has the potential to pump 1,200 barrels per day of frack wastewater and brine…
Read More “GreenHunter Begins Operation of New OH Wastewater Injection Well”
Crime | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Mahoning County | Ohio | Wastewater

Harch Environmental Gets $100K Fine for OH Wastewater Dumping
September 12, 2013September 12, 2013

In early June, the Ohio Dept. of Environmental Resources (ODNR) “temporarily” shut down Harch Environment Services after it was caught illegally dumping frack wastewater on the ground (see Another OH Company Shut Down for Illegal Frack Wastewater Dumping). The ODNR investigated and has just assessed a $100,000 fine against Harch. As part of their action, ODNR is requiring Harch to cease wastewater hauling for 30 days–although we were under the impression they had already ceased as of early June. Plus, ODNR says it reserves the right to bring more charges, including criminal charges, against the company in the future.

It does appear, however, that Harch (unlike D&L Energy) will be permitted to resume operations in Ohio once again…
Read More “Harch Environmental Gets $100K Fine for OH Wastewater Dumping”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Washington County

PA Rep. White Says Fake IDs were “Error in Judgment”
September 12, 2013September 12, 2013

Western PA Rep. Jesse White, who used fake online IDs to criticize his own pro-drilling constituents (see How the Mighty Have Fallen: PA Rep White Admits Guilt, Not Sorry), went on camera for the first time yesterday since the story broke, claiming he had a political group therapy session at (where else?) Harvard University’s Kennedy School in July. White confessed his sins (being caught) to his fellow legislators attending the program, and, shazam! Jesse’s now seen the light!

White admitted on camera yesterday to Pittsburgh’s KDKA television that it was wrong to use fake IDs. Sort-of. White actually said his actions were “an error in judgment,” which is about as close to “I’m sorry” as you’ll get from a recalcitrant and arrogant White. How did he come to this revelation that he was sort-of wrong? His classmates during the summer program at Harvard told him so–that’s how he knows. It only took White four months (and a primary challenger) to admit his “guilt”…

Read More “PA Rep. White Says Fake IDs were “Error in Judgment””
Accidents | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Lycoming County | Pennsylvania | XTO

Hanger Joins Kane in Piling on XTO for 3-Yr Old Accidental Spill
September 12, 2013September 12, 2013

MDN told you yesterday about the unprecedented and egregious abuse of power by the Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane in bringing criminal charges against XTO for a more than three-year-old accidental wastewater spill in Lycoming County, PA (see PA AG Abuses Her Authority, Files Criminal Charges Against XTO). Now, Kane’s fellow Democrat John Hanger, who was Sec. of the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection at the time of the accidental spill (and someone seeking the Democrat nomination to run for governor in PA) is piling on too. He’s happy that Kane has the long knives out for XTO and says so. Hanger, you may recall, still has not disavowed his party’s call for a statewide, ongoing moratorium on shale drilling (see Rendell Paints Hanger into Corner on PA Democrat Moratorium Vote).

Kane’s actions shouldn’t surprise anyone. She telegraphed her intentions before she was elected last year. Anti-drillers have confirmed Kane was eagerly looking for an opportunity to ~~persecute~~ prosecute a Marcellus Shale driller–to make an example of them. Brings to mind another anti-drilling zealot we know about who shares the same philosophy (see EPA Administrator Al Armendariz Resigns over Crucify Comment)…

Read More “Hanger Joins Kane in Piling on XTO for 3-Yr Old Accidental Spill”
Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Jobs

Chesapeake’s Lawler Continues to Swing the Ax – More VPs Gone
September 12, 2013September 12, 2013

Chesapeake Energy CEO Doug Lawler, no doubt spurred on by his boss, board member and corporate raider Carl Icahn, continues to swing the ax at Chesapeake. Although Chessy won’t reveal how many jobs have been cut, another round of ax-chopping happened earlier this week at the company with “numerous high level employees – vice presidents” getting notified they’re on the chopping block.

The latest from Oklahoma City’s News 9:
Read More “Chesapeake’s Lawler Continues to Swing the Ax – More VPs Gone”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

Attn Gov Cuomo: CA Gov Brown Set to Sign Law to Allow Fracking
September 12, 2013September 12, 2013

This really does take the cake! NY Gov. Andrew “Ditherer” Cuomo is now considered left of CA Gov. Jerry “Moonbeam” Brown. Who would have ever thought it possible?

In under a year, California legislators have crafted new drilling rules which Gov. Brown is about to sign. Meanwhile, 5+ years later, Andy is attending fundraisers in the Hamptons, avoiding Southern Tier landowners and hiding from New York’s virulent anti-fracking protesters. Strong leadership skills there, don’t you think?…
Read More “Attn Gov Cuomo: CA Gov Brown Set to Sign Law to Allow Fracking”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

TU: Just Eyeball Those Streams, You Know What Shouldn’t Be There
September 12, 2013September 12, 2013

Like a roomful of zombies, about 20 people who belong to the anti-drilling group Trout Unlimited (some of them fisherman) lapped up the lies from TU’s community organizer for eastern PA, Paula Piatt, at a meeting in the Pocono Mountain region last night. She told them, in essence, that they don’t need scientific testing to see if there’s anything bad going on (from fracking) in the streams they like to fish. Instead, just eyeball it: “Your eyes on the stream are priceless, as far as knowing what should be there and what shouldn’t.”

One zombie reports being “totally in awe” of Ms. Piatt and her work…
Read More “TU: Just Eyeball Those Streams, You Know What Shouldn’t Be There”
Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Thu, Sep 12, 2013
September 12, 2013September 12, 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: Thu, Sep 12, 2013”