Marcellus Drilling News

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

Rumor Mill: Who Will Obama Choose to Run EPA?
January 9, 2013January 9, 2013

With the resignation of Lisa Jackson as Administrator of the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—good riddance!—the speculation now turns to who her replacement will be, and whether or not that replacement will continue her legacy of trying to screw up fossil fuel energy in this country. The rumor mill has begun in earnest over who Obama will select.

Here’s a short list of possible replacements, picked up from a Bloomberg article, along with MDN’s own pick:

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eCORP International | eCORP Stimulation Technologies | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

eCORP Tests New Waterless LPG Fracking Method on First Shale Well
January 9, 2013January 9, 2013

Last year MDN told you about a deal in Tioga County, NY between landowners with 135,000 acres and drilling company eCORP to use liquefied petroleum gas (LPG, or propane) fracking as an alternative to water-based fracking. The deal, which had a complicated structure with the landowners as part-owners of the venture, fell apart (see Tioga County, NY Lease Deal with eCORP Falls Apart). One of the interesting aspects of that story is that by using a non-water-based fracking method, eCORP may have been able to proceed with drilling ahead of New York’s much-delayed new fracking regulations. However, that theory never came to a test.

Here’s the new news: eCORP was going to use GASFRAC’s LPG fracking technology in Tioga County. Since that time, a newly formed subsidiary of eCORP called eCORP Stimulation Technologies has developed its own LPG fracking technology that uses 100% propane and zero chemicals or additives of any kind. eCORP fracked the very first shale well with the new technology in December…

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Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies

Chesapeake’s CEO McClendon Will Not Get a $1.95M Bonus for 2012
January 9, 2013January 9, 2013

In a regulatory filing on Monday, Chesapeake Energy said it will not pay CEO Aubrey McClendon a bonus for 2012. Since 2009 he’s received a $1.95 million bonus each year. But the company had a tough year in 2012 with the revelation that some of McClendon’s financing deals were a bit sketchy. Too, the stock price for the company took a real tumble in 2012 because of a lot of debt, and the company’s chief asset—the ability to produce natural gas—suffered from the low commodity price for natgas. Chesapeake ended up selling off many assets to pay down their debt. Throw it all in the pot and Aubrey had a lot of Excedrin headaches last year.

What we know about the recent regulatory filing, and a quick recap of Chesapeake’s tough year in 2012:

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Health Impacts | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY | Uncategorized

NY Assemblyman Try to Stop the Clock on Fracking Comment Period
January 9, 2013January 9, 2013

Three anti-fracking New York Assembly Democrats—all three chairmen of important Assembly committees—sent a letter on Monday (full copy embedded below) to Gov. Andrew Cuomo asking, or rather demanding, that the state Dept. of Environmental Conservation stop the clock on the current 30-day public comment period. Their rationale? An old internal DEC report produced and never released to the public says fracking won’t harm public health. “Wrong answer” is their response—and they intend to make noise about it until they get the “right answer”—which of course (for them) is that fracking does harm public health.

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Crestwood Midstream | Energy Services

Crestwood Midstream Ups Marcellus Investment, Buys Out Investors
January 9, 2013January 9, 2013

Crestwood Midstream Partners, a pipeline and processing plant company with operations in the Marcellus Shale, announced yesterday they are increasing their Marcellus commitment by buying out the remaining portion of a joint venture for $258 million. Most of Crestwood’s Marcellus operations are located in the liquids-rich portion of the play in northern WV. This latest move comes after Antero Resources sold their gathering system in Harrison and Doddridge counties, WV to Crestwood for $375 million in February 2012 (see Antero Sells WV Midstream Operation to Crestwood for $375M).
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Commodity Price | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Research | Statewide PA | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Marcellus Shale’s Prominent Role in Latest EIA Outlook
January 9, 2013January 9, 2013

Yesterday the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) released their monthly Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), which includes the outlook for natural gas. EIA has some of the best and brightest that crunch the numbers, so when they issue their reports, people pay attention. EIA reports are not exactly a crystal ball to predict the future—but they’re darned close.

The Marcellus Shale of Pennsylvania and West Virginia is mentioned prominently in this update, including its predicted role in boosting overall natural gas production this year. Below is the natural gas portion of the STEO, with predictions for prices, production and consumption in 2013:

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

NY Landowners Converge on Albany in Show of Support for Fracking
January 9, 2013January 9, 2013

Hundreds of New York State landowners are expected to show up today, Wednesday, Jan. 9, in Albany, NY in a show of support for fracking and shale drilling to Gov. Andrew Cuomo as he delivers his State of the State address. Anti-drillers are expected to make a showing as well.

The 77,000-member Joint Landowners Coalition of New York (JLCNY) released this statement ahead of their rally today:

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Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Wed, Jan 9, 2013
January 9, 2013January 9, 2013

The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading:

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Cayuga County | Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Minard Run Oil | New York | Seneca County

PA Driller Buys Land, Wells from Chesapeake–in NY Finger Lakes
January 8, 2013January 8, 2013

A small independent exploration and production company from Bradford, PA—Minard Run Oil Co.—has just picked up 56,130 acres of leases, 200 miles of pipelines, compressor stations, and 413 natural gas wells—all located in the Finger Lakes region of New York. They purchased the assets from Chesapeake Energy for an undisclosed amount. According to Minard, Chesapeake was “a willing seller,” which kind of feels to MDN like it was a “fire sale” on the part of Chesapeake to get a little more cash on the books before the close of 2012.

For now, Minard plans to continue vertical-only drilling and drill another 20-30 wells in 2013. The company did not mention any plans for horizontal fracking in the future.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

NY Politicians Renew Request for Longer Fracking Comment Period
January 8, 2013January 8, 2013

Different day, same old broken tune from Mayors Matt Ryan (Binghamton), Sue Skidmore (Elmira) and an assortment of lefty elected officials, holding offices from mayor to dog catcher, who want to ban fracking.

Yesterday the group Elected Officials to Protect New York (see their website so you know whom to vote against in the next election) issued yet another tiresome nag request at a press conference in Binghamton to Gov. Andrew Cuomo asking him to extend the public comment period on the latest minor revisions to proposed fracking rules from 30 days to 90 days, knowing full well that if he does, it will kill fracking in New York. Thankfully the governor is ignoring the group.

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Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | New York | Pipelines | Statewide NY | Transco | Williams

Williams Files with FERC for New Access Point to NYC from Transco Pipeline
January 8, 2013

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has said it’s critical that NYC get more supplies of shale gas—in the near future. New York has new rules going into effect starting in 2015 that will ban certain types of fuel oil, which means all of those apartment buildings will need to be heated with an alternative, and windmills won’t do the job (see Why Mayor Mike Bloomberg Suddenly Loves Fracking).

Williams Partners yesterday filed an application with FERC to provide a new delivery point from their Transco pipeline to provide additional natural gas to NYC—but it involves constructing a new 3.2-mile pipeline (mostly offshore) to make it happen. Welcome to the next flashpoint in the anti-fracking wars…

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Maryland | Regulation | Statewide MD

MD Commission Finally Makes Recommendations on Shale Drilling
January 8, 2013January 8, 2013

The Maryland Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission, appointed by MD Gov. Martin O’Malley in 2011 to study natural gas drilling and produce a set of best practices for hydraulic fracturing has finally made a series of recommendations for how to regulate shale gas drilling in the state. It took the Commission 15 months to cast their first vote (see MD Fracking Commission Casts First Vote – in 15 Months!), so let’s just say the Commission isn’t setting any speed records for activity.

The recommendations agreed to today are a first pass and leave out some key provisions. The recommendations, such as they are, will be forwarded to the Maryland state legislature which meets for 90 days each year starting in January.

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Air Quality | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

John Hanger: How the U.S. Cut Carbon Emissions 12% in 5 Years
January 8, 2013January 8, 2013

John Hanger, former Secretary of the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP), candidate for the Democrat nomination to run as governor in PA, and MDN’s very first webinar guest (see Webinar Replay: John Hanger on Gas Drilling and Energy Choices), posted his Top Energy Fact of 2012 last Friday on his “Facts of the Day” blog site. And what might his top fact be for all of 2012? The United States has cut carbon emissions from 2007 to 2012 by 12%—while at the same time growing its economy and using more energy.

How is such an incredible feat possible? Glad you asked. John has the answer: shale gas and the miracle of hydraulic fracturing.

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Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Tue, Jan 8, 2013
January 8, 2013January 8, 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, Jan 8, 2013”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

MDN Goes to the ‘Promised Land’
January 7, 2013January 7, 2013

MDN decided to “take one for the team” and attend Promised Land, the new anti-fracking movie by Matt Damon and Gus Van Sant, this past weekend. Prior to attending, MDN had read a number of reviews from both pro- and anti-fracking writers. Almost all of those reviews said the same thing—this movie was no China Syndrome for the fracking movement. That is, Promised Land will not be a watershed movie that wins the hearts and minds of average Americans, turning them against fracking (see Anti-Drillers Disappointed with Promised Land).

We have to agree with that assessment. However, we’ll be more charitable than many anti-fracking critics by saying overall, we thought it was a decent flick, as movies go. But then, we like sentimental “the good guy wins” kinds of movies.

Spoiler Warning: This review gives it all up. If you haven’t seen the movie yet and plan to go, don’t read this review just yet. Go and see the movie, then come back and read this review. So let’s get down to it…

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

NY DEC Com. Joe Martens Sends Letter to NY Landowner Group
January 7, 2013January 7, 2013

Dan Fitzsimmons, president of the Joint Landowners Coalition of New York (JLCNY), received a letter from NY Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Joe Martens last week (see a copy embedded below). It seems Gov. Andrew Cuomo personally asked Martens to respond, in writing, to the JLCNY’s concerns about the latest delay in the release of new fracking regulations—the delay to allow for a public health review. The latest number on the NY moratorium clock (on the right) shows New York’s ban on high volume hydraulic fracturing is 4 years, 5 months and 15 days old—so far. The patience of New York’s landowners is wearing thin.

According to the letter, Gov. Cuomo and Martens want the JLCNY to know, well, nothing new that we don’t already know! It’s the gesture itself that’s important—the fact that Cuomo and Martens took the time to write. Martens’ gesture in sending the letter gives the JLCNY reason to be “cautiously optimistic that the DEC will soon complete the SGEIS and regulations,” according to an email MDN received from Fitzsimmons.

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