Marcellus Drilling News

Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Broome County | Industrywide Issues | New York | Statewide NY

NY Politicians Say Drilling will Bring an “Invasion”
November 14, 2012November 14, 2012

Binghamton’s failed mayor, Matt Ryan, was in Albany yesterday to stir up trouble on the fracking issue. (First Dimock, now Albany…seems Mayor Ryan’s pass time is to cause trouble somewhere else while your own city is crumbling around you.)

Mayor Ryan has started his own cultic anti-fracking group called Elected Officials to Protect New York. The group, meeting in Albany yesterday, said that if drilling is allowed in New York, it will create an “invasion” of crime and social unrest. Here’s the scoop:

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Chemung County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York

Elmira, NY Mayor Comes Out Against Fracking
November 14, 2012November 14, 2012

The mayor of Elmira, NY has outed herself as anti-drilling. Mayor Sue Skidmore attended an anti-fracking event in Albany yesterday and went on record against drilling:

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CNX Resources | Dominion Exploration | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Ohio | Stark County

Landowners at 2nd OH Gas Storage Field Sue for Right to Drill
November 14, 2012November 14, 2012

MDN previously told you about a lawsuit from landowners who sit atop the Brinker Gas Storage Field in Columbiana County, OH (see this MDN story). Columbia Gas Transmission owns the rights to the hollowed out cavern in the Berea Sandstone known as the Brinker field—a place where they store natural gas for later use. The question or issue is whether or not the landowners have the right to drill under the Brinker, in the Utica Shale, or whether that right belongs to Columbia.

Landowners atop another gas storage field, the North Canton Gas Storage Field in Stark County, OH, have now filed a lawsuit for the same reason. In North Canton the storage field is leased by Dominion East Ohio (a division of Dominion) and CNX Gas (a division of CONSOL Energy). Dominion and CNX claim it’s their right to drill under the storage field—the landowners believe they forfeited the right to drill years ago.

Read More “Landowners at 2nd OH Gas Storage Field Sue for Right to Drill”
Allegheny County | Beaver County | Energy Companies | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Washington County

Why the Blood Feud Between Jesse White & Range Resources?
November 14, 2012November 14, 2012

It’s evident to anyone who follows the news out of Pittsburgh that there is a blood feud, or grudge match—choose your metaphor—between Pennsylvania State Rep. Jesse White (from western PA) and Range Resources. It wasn’t always that way. Just a few short years ago Rep. White and folks at Range were pals. Not anymore.

Range says White is the one who has changed in this relationship and they’ve released a number of emails as “proof.” The friction seemed to start when Range turned down a request by White for a plane ride to the 2011 Super Bowl…

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Statewide NY

Newspaper Says Recent Election is Proof NYers Want Fracking
November 14, 2012November 14, 2012

An editorial in today’s Jamestown, NY Post-Journal endorses shale gas drilling in New York. The editorial writers rightly point to the overwhelming results from last week’s election in which the pro-drilling candidate won in every major, and in most minor, races where drilling was an issue. The P-J conclusion? Cuomo needs to wake up and get off the dime:

Read More “Newspaper Says Recent Election is Proof NYers Want Fracking”
Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Mahoning County | Ohio | Valerus

New Gas Equipment Plant Coming to Youngstown, OH
November 14, 2012November 14, 2012

Valerus, an oil and gas services company that specializes in manufacturing and operating compression and processing equipment, is partnering with a Youngstown, OH company to build a new manufacturing plant in Youngstown. The new plant will build equipment that removes water from natural gas. Thirty more jobs on the way courtesy the Utica and Marcellus Shale.

Here’s a few more details about the Valerus plant:

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Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Wed, Nov 14, 2012
November 14, 2012November 14, 2012

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: Wed, Nov 14, 2012”
Ashland County | Carroll County | Columbiana County | Harrison County | Medina County | Ohio

The Best (and Not So Best) Utica Drilling Locations in Ohio
November 13, 2012November 13, 2012

A recent shale gas conference held in Cambridge, Ohio on Nov. 10 turned up some surprising and interesting facts. One of those facts: Almost 100 percent of the land in Carroll County has been leased for possible Utica shale drilling, or is being held by production.

Here’s a few more interesting items from the conference, shared by a team from Ohio State University Extension (including where drilling is producing good results, and where it’s not):

Read More “The Best (and Not So Best) Utica Drilling Locations in Ohio”
Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Lease & Royalty Payments | Mahoning County | Ohio | Statewide OH

Lawyer Cautions ALOV Landowners on Revising Signed Leases
November 13, 2012November 13, 2012

At a meeting of the uber-large Associated Landowners of the Valley (ALOV) landowner group last night in Youngstown, Ohio, lawyer Alan Wenger warned the 500 landowners in the audience that landmen are knocking on doors once again, this time asking landowners already signed to modify their leases.

Wenger told landowners what energy companies like Chesapeake are asking for, and what landowners need to consider before signing:

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Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Regulation | Statewide OH

New OH Bill Requires Landmen to Register, Become Experts
November 13, 2012November 13, 2012

Ohio arguably has the most strict drilling rules of any state in the country for shale gas and oil drilling (so far, before New York gets off the pot). But the Dems in Ohio want more rules. This time they’re targeting landmen.

Ohio House Bill 493 would require landmen to become experts in exploration and production, in addition to real property and contract law. It also requires them to be registered:

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Research

IEA Issues World Energy Outlook 2012 – Shale Energy the Star
November 13, 2012November 13, 2012

The International Energy Agency (IEA) released its annual World Energy Outlook (WEO) for 2012 yesterday. One of the starring roles in the report goes to unconventional shale gas and oil being produced by the U.S. Among the statements in the report: “The WEO finds that the extraordinary growth in oil and natural gas output in the United States will mean a sea-change in global energy flows.” The report predicts the U.S. will be a natural gas net exporter in eight short years—in 2020.

Below is the press release for the new report which contains a lot of interesting detail. Below we’ve embedded (1) a copy of the executive summary from the report, (2) a copy of the many of the findings in the report in the form of a “fact sheet”, and (3) a copy of PowerPoint slides shown to the press. There are a number of highly interesting slides (see our description below).

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Industrywide Issues | Lycoming County | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA | Taxation

Final PA Impact Fee List – Williamsport Gets Extra $300K
November 13, 2012November 13, 2012

Last week the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) released the final breakdown for impact fee revenue and which municipalities get how much. You may recall the original breakdown released in mid-October (see this MDN story). Some municipalities scratched their heads and asked the PUC how they determined the numbers. The PUC went back and reworked the numbers and the list below is the final final list. The biggest change by far was the City of Williamsport, PA which saw an increase just north of $300,000.

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Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH | Wastewater

Battelle to Assist OH in IDing Shale Wastewater Technologies
November 13, 2012November 13, 2012

The Battelle Memorial Institute is going to give the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA) and the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) a hand with figuring out which shale gas wastewater treatment technologies will work for Ohio.

Battelle, OEPA and ODNR issued a joint press statement yesterday outlining the collaboration:

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Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | New York | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Statewide NY | Susquehanna County | Williams

Southern Gas Utility Invests in NE Constitution Pipeline
November 13, 2012November 13, 2012

Piedmont Natural Gas, a natural gas utility with more than one million customers in North and South Carolina and Tennessee, has decided they want a piece of the Marcellus Shale gas action. Piedmont is investing $180 million in the yet-to-be-built Constitution Pipeline that will run from Susquehanna County, PA to Schoharie County, NY. Williams, the company building the new pipeline, and Piedmont collaborate on other projects too. Piedmont is also a customer of Williams’ Transco natural gas pipeline.

Here’s the announcement from Piedmont on why they’ve decided to invest in the Constitution Pipeline project:

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Anchor Drilling Fluids | Columbiana County | Energy Services | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Supply Chain

Drilling Mud Manufacturer Opens Plant in Wellsville, OH
November 13, 2012November 13, 2012

Drilling mud manufacturer Anchor Drilling Fluids USA has just opened a new facility in Wellsville, Ohio—the first such facility in Ohio’s Utica Shale region. Anchor sited the plant next to a barite processing plant which they’ve invested in. Barite is one of the compounds used to make drilling mud.

From the press announcement about the new plant opening:

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Economic Impact | Energy Companies | Exxon Mobil | Industrywide Issues

ExxonMobil: Shale Gas is Revitalizing U.S. Petrochemical Industry
November 13, 2012November 13, 2012

At a petrochemical industry conference last week in Philadelphia, a senior ExxonMobil executive said shale gas in general, and the Marcellus Shale in particular, is revitalizing the petrochemical industry in this country.

Comments from Lynne Lachenmyer, senior vice president, ExxonMobil Chemical Company:

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