Marcellus Drilling News

Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Tue, Jul 24, 2012
July 24, 2012July 23, 2012

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

Spot natural gas prices at Marcellus trading point reflect pipeline constraints
Alaska Business Monthly
Daily natural gas spot prices between Tennessee Gas Pipeline (TGP) Zone 4 Marcellus and Henry Hub have diverged recently largely due to rising Marcellus production, which has outpaced the growth of available take—away pipeline capacity in northern Pennsylvania.

U.S. Says Shale Gas Output Rose 24% in May From Year Earlier
Bloomberg
Natural-gas production from shale formations rose in May on increased supplies from the Marcellus deposit even after prices fell to a 10-year low, Energy Department data show.

NYT: There’s Still Hope for the Planet
Breakthrough Institute Blog
A grand experiment has taken place. Europe put in place a cap and trade scheme. The U.S. did not. And where European nations banned or did not develop shale gas resources, the U.S. tapped so much of it for the price of natural gas to drop 80 percent since 2008.

Russia’s Gazprom skeptical of US-led shale gas boom
Platts
Russia’s state-owned natural gas company says the US shale-gas boom is economically unsustainable — and it’s buttressing its claim with financial data collected by an American consulting firm located less than 20 miles from the White House.

Hedge funds increase gas bets as surplus shrinks and weather hots
Gulf Times
Hedge funds raised bullish bets on natural gas to the highest level in more than a year as a glut of the fuel shrank for the 15th consecutive week and hot weather stoked demand from power generators.

Thousands Turn Out to Learn About Natural Gas at Cabot’s 3rd Annual Picnic
Energy in Depth – NMI
While we were still enthused from the excitement of last weekend’s Vote4Energy rally where thousands of New Yorkers came out to support natural gas, we headed to Harford Fairgrounds in Susquehanna County last weekend for the 3rd Annual Cabot Oil & Gas Picnic.

Shale Gas Fixes Schools, Hospitals & Roads
Energy in Depth – NMI
Last week members of several local coalitions in Sullivan County, New York, came together for an educational meeting on the Ad-Valorem shale gas tax, as well as a screening of Truthland.

Penn State Hears Missing Voices, But Misses the Point
Energy in Depth – NMI
Sadly, for me as a Penn Stater, I am forced to conclude this is exactly what we’re seeing from the university’s Center for Economic and Community Development with its recently released Marcellus Shale: Land Ownership, Local Voice, and the Distribution of Lease and Royalty Dollars. It offers nothing new and is a little more then a platform from which to launch broadsides against owners of mineral rights.
Energy Companies | Norse Energy

Norse Stock Options for Key People: Something in the Wind?
July 23, 2012July 23, 2012

Norse Energy, a driller who has gambled on New York State allowing hydraulic fracturing (and has so far lost that gamble), just awarded stock options to a few key employees, including the CEO, CFO, Chief Legal Officer (CLO), and several vice presidents. Typically an organization floats stock options to key people in order to keep them from jumping ship before the company either hits it big or sells out to another company.

Is Norse considering a sale of the entire company? MDN doesn’t have a clue. If they are, it likely would not happen for at least a year or two—long enough for the New York moratorium on fracking to be lifted and for drilling to begin. Once that happens, Norse believes they will be in the pole position—perhaps even first in line—to receive permits to drill in the Marcellus and Utica Shale. And what better time to sell than that?! When the moratorium is lifted, if Norse receives many or even most of the permits to drill, their stock will soar.

Read More “Norse Stock Options for Key People: Something in the Wind?”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

AP to Josh Fox: Fracking Does Not Cause Breast Cancer
July 23, 2012July 23, 2012

Wow, something we never thought we would see: The Associated Press skewers Josh Fox (Gasland and The Sky is Pink), exposing the lie he spreads that breast cancer rates are higher in the Barnett Shale in Texas because of fracking. The truth is, breast cancer rates in that area are not higher than other areas of the state or country. Oh oh Josh, don’t look now, but your lies are being exposed by your pals in the mainstream media.

The AP story starts out this way:

Read More “AP to Josh Fox: Fracking Does Not Cause Breast Cancer”
Chenango County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation

Sen. Libous Responds to Chenango County, NY Rumor
July 23, 2012July 23, 2012

MDN recently told you about the CNY Landowner’s Coalition sounding the alarm that Chenango County, NY may not be included in the initial hydraulic fracturing “test run” that is rumored to be coming from Gov. Andrew Cuomo (see this MDN story). Coalition members number in the thousands and represent over 240,000 acres of land—the largest single coalition MDN is aware of. So when they mobilized their members to write and call Gov. Cuomo and State Sen. Tom Libous (their representative in Albany), that’s just what happened. And the politicians noticed.

At a recent pro-drilling event, Sen. Libous responded to the rumor that Chenango County would be dropped from the rumored plan to allow fracking in “The Lucky Five” counties:

Read More “Sen. Libous Responds to Chenango County, NY Rumor”
Accidents | Chevron | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Ohio County | West Virginia

Chevron Restarts Production for Some WV Wells after Accident
July 23, 2012July 23, 2012

Chevron previously purchased a number of leases and drilling operations in Marshall and Ohio counties in West Virginia. But they halted production for their WV operations earlier this year after a well exploded near Moundsville to conduct a top to bottom safety review and ensure the newly acquired operations met Chevron’s high safety standards.

Although the review is ongoing, it’s been completed in some areas and wells in Marshall County are now starting to come back online.

Read More “Chevron Restarts Production for Some WV Wells after Accident”
Broome County | Delaware County | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | New York | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Schoharie County | Susquehanna County | Williams

Williams Holds Public Sessions for New Constitution Pipeline
July 23, 2012July 23, 2012

MDN editor Jim Willis attended a “meet and greet” session by Williams about their proposed new Constitution Pipeline. This is a first-hand account of that meeting.

Gas production from northeastern Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale is so plentiful, new pipelines are necessary to move it to market. That was the message from Williams Corporation last Wednesday night at the West Windsor Fire Hall located just miles outside of Binghamton, NY.

Williams was on hand to discuss the proposed Constitution Pipeline, a joint venture between Williams and Cabot Oil & Gas to build a 121-mile pipeline from the Marcellus-rich area of Susquehanna County, PA north to Schoharie County, NY.

Read More “Williams Holds Public Sessions for New Constitution Pipeline”
Earthquakes | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Wastewater

Bloomberg Targets Fracking for Recycling Water, Earthquakes
July 23, 2012July 23, 2012

Another masterful hit job against fracking by Bloomberg, this one appearing in Bloomberg Businessweek. The latest propaganda piece masquerading as an article, titled “Fracking Foes Build Momentum for Recycling,” goes after fracking based on the amount of water used, especially in light of the “the worst U.S. drought in a half century.”

The aim of the article is to plant the seed that fracking uses too much water, although the article’s authors admit (slipping in this fact along the way) that water use for hydraulic fracturing in Pennsylvania is less than one-tenth of one percent (0.01) of all water used every day in that state. In other words, the amount of water used by fracking in PA is a rounding error. Makes no difference—the authors plow on trying to sully the reputation of fracking.

Read More “Bloomberg Targets Fracking for Recycling Water, Earthquakes”
Fayette County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania

Ohiopyle, PA Summer Camp Brainwashes Kids Against Fracking
July 23, 2012July 23, 2012

Be careful which camp you send your kids to this summer. The camp they attend may just be brainwashing them against the miracle of hydraulic fracturing, like the Mountain Watershed Association did when it held its Clean Water Camp last week at the Ohiopyle Community Center in Ohiopyle, PA.

Little 8 year-olds at the camp were visited by Tour de Frack bike riders on their way to a hippie-fest anti-fracking rally in Washington, D.C. and they took time out to share a brainwashing session with youngsters:

Read More “Ohiopyle, PA Summer Camp Brainwashes Kids Against Fracking”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

David Letterman Screws Himself with Fracking Comments
July 23, 2012July 23, 2012

Unfortunately for those who get their news from sources like late night television—people who frankly can’t rub two brain cells together—David Letterman has proven yet again that you can fool some of the people all of the time—into thinking that you’re right, and into thinking you’re funny. Last week Letterman did a nearly two minute rant on fracking (watch it below) that is so full of outright lies he should be charged with comedic malpractice.

During his idiotic diatribe he says “we’re screwed” because:

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About MDN | Calendar

Calendar of Events for Jul 23-Aug 5, 2012 [FREE]
July 23, 2012July 23, 2012

Below are upcoming events for this week and next.

Read More “Calendar of Events for Jul 23-Aug 5, 2012 [FREE]”
Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Mon, Jul 23, 2012
July 23, 2012July 23, 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: Mon, Jul 23, 2012”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

Father of Shale Fracking George Mitchell Talks to Forbes
July 20, 2012July 20, 2012

Forbes magazine landed the interview everyone has been trying to get: George Phydias Mitchell. He’s known as the father or inventor of the technology we now call shale fracking. Unfortunately, the 93 year-old Mitchell said he’s in favor of federal regulation of fracking and called smaller, independent drillers “wild” indicating they need to be reigned in.

A few pickings from the interview, and then MDN’s comments to follow:

Read More “Father of Shale Fracking George Mitchell Talks to Forbes”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Livingston County | New York | Regulation

Portage, NY Attorney: Bans are a Form of Regulation
July 20, 2012July 20, 2012

For or against? That’s the question being played out at town board meetings across New York State. And the full question is, “For or against hydraulic fracturing?” As the state Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) gets closer to releasing new drilling regulations for horizontal drilling and fracking, towns are lining up to either ban it (illegal in MDN’s opinion, although the court is still weighing that issue), or to “support it,” which usually means a vote to let the DEC actually issue the new regs before passing judgment.

Somehow, if you vote to wait for the DEC, anti-drillers consider that support. Whatever. One of the latest townships to consider the issue is in western New York—the Town of Portage in Livingston County. The board seems to sense the local political winds are blowing in favor of a ban, but they aren’t acting quick enough for the local anti-drilling zealots who attend every board meeting and complain. What’s interesting about the latest board meeting is not that the board decided to wait, but the admission their attorney let slip in his comments:

Read More “Portage, NY Attorney: Bans are a Form of Regulation”
Education | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Tioga County (PA)

Mansfield U. Educates Students on Shale Drilling
July 20, 2012July 20, 2012

The Chronicle of Higher Education ran an article earlier this week highlighting the tension now being felt at many colleges—especially public universities—over whether or not to allow shale gas drilling on or under their land.

The article opens by citing Ohio University’s struggle with the issue. The state has mandated that public universities inventory their assets—the land they own—to see whether or not it’s suitable for Utica Shale drilling. Some schools, like Ohio U., are resisting, claiming their “community” is pro-sustainability and anti-fracking.

The article quotes extensively from Dr. Anthony Ingraffea, a well-known Cornell professor who has made a full-time occupation out of bashing fracking and shale gas drilling.

Read More “Mansfield U. Educates Students on Shale Drilling”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

Retired NY DEC Director Pans Cuomo Fracking Plan
July 20, 2012July 20, 2012

In a letter to the editor of the Albany Times Union, the retired director of Natural Resources Planning for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), Charles Morrison, comes down squarely on the side of anti-drillers. His letter says the rumored plan by Gov. Cuomo to allow test drilling in five Southern Tier counties is a “checkerboard plan” that’s “like something out of a Cracker Jack box.” Sounds to MDN like perhaps retirement is driving Mr. Morrison a little bit crackers himself.

Here’s his letter:

Read More “Retired NY DEC Director Pans Cuomo Fracking Plan”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Statewide NY

Alec Baldwin’s Rank Hypocrisy on NY Fracking
July 20, 2012July 20, 2012

Not long ago, Alec Baldwin went to visit his mom in Syracuse (as he often does, like a good boy), and while he was there, he lent his star power to promoting Josh Fox and his anti-fracking propaganda film Gasland at a local screening (see this MDN story).

Alec likes telling everyone else what they can do with their own private property. But what’s this? He doesn’t want to be told what to do with his private property? Hmmm.

It seems Alec wants to build a great big windmill at his home in the Hamptons on Long Island. Problem is, he needs a development permit to build the $100,000 windmill that may save him $2,000 in electric bills (this is how the mind of the liberal works folks). But he’s hit a snag with getting permission to build it. Anyone see the rank hypocrisy here? What’s good for thee is not what’s good for me, when it comes to anger-challenged Alec.

Read More “Alec Baldwin’s Rank Hypocrisy on NY Fracking”