Marcellus Drilling News

NY Rumor Mill: Cuomo to Allow Test Sites for Fracking?!

June 6, 2012June 6, 2012

rumor mill The anti-drillers are hot and bothered. A fringe anti-drilling group called Toxics Targeting (from where else, Ithaca, NY) held a small rally in Binghamton yesterday. They enlisted the support of the Binghamton Mayor Matt Ryan to their cause. And this week’s cause? Send a letter to Gov. Andrew Cuomo asking him to ban fracking, but especially to drop any plans to allow the drilling of “demonstration wells” in Broome, Tioga and Chemung counties.

Air Quality | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

New Study: Methane Emissions Half of EPA’s Previous Estimates

June 6, 2012June 6, 2012

A new study just released by America’s Natural Gas Alliance (ANGA) and the American Petroleum Institute (API) finds that methane emissions from hydraulic fracturing are at least 50% less than estimates from the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). And this is not a wild, unsubstantiated claim by “the industry.” ANGA and API have the science to prove it.

The new study (full copy embedded below) takes the most comprehensive look at the data to date—data from 91,000 U.S. natural gas producing wells. That’s a sample size 10 times larger than the EPA used in their estimates.

Here’s some of the stunning results found by the new study:

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Monongalia County | Regulation | West Virginia

Morgantown WV Attempts to Ban Fracking a Second Time

June 6, 2012June 6, 2012

Here we go again. Yesterday, the Morgantown, WV City Council voted on new legislation that would “regulate” (i.e. ban) hydraulic fracturing. But this time, those sharp-as-a-tack council members have contented themselves with regulating it within their own borders.

You may recall that last year the same Morgantown City Council (pictured below) passed a ban on fracking that included areas up to one mile outside of the city limits in a blatant attempt to try and stop the fracking of two gas wells that sit about a mile from the edge of the city. A WV circuit court judge overturned the ban (see this MDN story). Since then, both of those Marcellus wells were fracked, came online, and somehow, mystically—there has been no water contamination or ill health affects of any kind. Who woulda thunk?

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH

OH Watershed Looking to Increase Water Sales for Fracking

June 6, 2012June 6, 2012

The Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District (MWCD) has ordered a study to determine if three of the district’s reservoirs—Clendening, Atwood and Leesville—can safely become a source of water sales for drillers who need water for hydraulic fracturing. Some residents are concerned, but the MWCD is already successfully selling some water and believes there may be an opportunity to sell more.

PA Gov, Lt Gov Speak Out on Shell Cracker Plant Tax Break

June 6, 2012June 6, 2012

In brief public comments yesterday, both Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett and Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley supported and defended a plan to grant Shell a 25-year, $1.7 billion tax forgiveness plan if they will build and operate an ethane cracker plant in the state. For those new to the issue, ethane is one of the chemicals that comes out of the ground from natural gas drilling. Ethane can be “cracked” or converted in ethylene, a raw material used to make plastics.

The plant that Shell proposes to build will generate some 20,000 jobs and create an economic impact of $17-$20 billion. Investing $1.7 billion to get $17-$20 billion is a no-brainer.

Industrywide Issues | Regulation | Trucking

US DOT Clamps Down on Max Hours Shale Industry Truckers Work

June 6, 2012June 6, 2012

The U.S. Department of Transportation recently delivered a “rule clarification” that means trucking firms may no longer subtract “down time”—like waiting for water and sand to be loaded/unloaded—from the maximum number of hours a driver can work per day. Some trucking firms were using a loophole, an exemption for special oil field service equipment, to increase the total number of hours drivers worked. No more.

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

The Enviro-Left’s Motivation to Ban Fracking

June 6, 2012June 6, 2012

An article on the Legal Newsline website takes a look at the motivations behind calls for a ban on hydraulic fracturing—and they get it right:

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Ulster County

Town of Rochester, NY Considers Fracking Ban

June 6, 2012June 6, 2012

The Town of Rochester, NY, located in Ulster County along the Hudson River (and not the City of Rochester located on the opposite side of the state) is considering a ban on hydraulic fracturing:

Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Wed, Jun 6, 2012

June 6, 2012June 6, 2012

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

Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Ohio | Statewide OH | Utica Shale

Chesapeake Selling 337K Utica Shale Acres, Counties IDed

June 5, 2012June 5, 2012

Weakest Link MDN started seeing references yesterday to a story that Chesapeake Energy has put some of its Ohio Utica Shale acreage on the auction block. First came stories that Chesapeake says the value of each acre it controls in the Utica Shale is worth between $13,000 and $17,000:

Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies

Chesapeake Caves to Pressure, Will Replace Half its Board

June 5, 2012June 5, 2012

Chesapeake Energy, in a bid to keep the company from being sold, has caved to demands from its two largest shareholders to replace half of its board of directors. Investment firm Southeastern Asset Management, which holds 13.6% of Chesapeake stock, and corporate raider Carl Ichan, who didn’t own any Chesapeake stock a month ago but now owns 7.6%, have been very vocally challenging the company and calling for changes at the board level. Raider Carl will be one of those new board members—either him or someone he designates. The other three new board members will be appointed by Southeastern.

PA to Grant $1.7B in Tax Credits for Shell Cracker Plant

June 5, 2012June 5, 2012

The AP is at it again. This time they’ve taken aim at Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett over the proposed new ethane cracker plant that Shell announced they would build in Beaver County, PA (see this MDN story for background).

The breathless headlines are that (gasp) Pennsylvania will have to grant Shell $66 million a year in tax breaks, for a total deal of some $1.7 billion in foregone taxes over 25 years (while at the same time that nasty Corbett keeps cutting previously scheduled obscene pay increases for teachers, never mind that the state is broke after years under Ed Rendell and Democrat control). That’s the sum total of the AP story running in hundreds of newspapers now.

Let’s provide some perspective, shall we?

Air Quality | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

Is Frack Sand a Health Risk?

June 5, 2012June 5, 2012

The hydraulic fracturing process uses sand—a lot of sand. The sand is used as a “proppant” to prop open the cracks created during the fracturing process.

But it’s not just your ordinary seaside sand that is used. It’s a special kind of sand that is almost 100% crystalline (pure). When that sand gets into the air, its particles are so fine they can irritate the lungs, and according to some, may cause lung cancer. This is generally not a problem for landowners or others who live nearby a drilling site, as any airborne sand would quickly fall to the ground. However, it may be a health risk for workers handling the sand if they are not properly protected.

Energy Companies | Gulfport Energy | Ohio | Statewide OH | Utica Shale

Gulfport Energy Gets Active in Ohio’s Utica Shale

June 5, 2012June 5, 2012

Gulfport Energy Corporation is an Oklahoma City-based independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company. Most of Gulfport’s oil and natural gas drilling operations are located along the Louisiana Gulf Coast and in the Permian Basin in West Texas. However, Gulfport has acquired acreage and is starting to make moves the Utica Shale of eastern Ohio. They are currently in the process of drilling and completing their first five Utica Shale wells.

Yesterday Gulfport provided an operational update. Here are the relevant sections with respect to their Utica Shale operations:

Commodity Price | Economic Impact | Exporting | Industrywide Issues

New IEA 5-Year Report Says Natural Gas Future is Bright

June 5, 2012June 5, 2012

In a new report released earlier today at the World Gas Conference in Maylasia, the International Energy Agency (IEA) paints a rosy five-year picture for natural gas around the world. You may recall that last week the IEA released their “golden rules” for shale gas drilling (see this MDN story).

The report released today says a quarter of new gas demand over the next five years will come from China, and that electrical generating plants in the U.S. will convert and use gas as much as coal. The IEA also advocates for a global market price for natural gas and hints that a spot price for gas in Asia may be on the way.

From the IEA press release:

Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

Surveying Company Caught Sneaking Illegal Immigrants to PA

June 5, 2012June 5, 2012

A strange-but-true story: GPX, a Texas-based seismic surveying company doing work in Pennsylvania for the oil and gas industry, was caught trying to sneak in illegal aliens to work on their surveying crews in PA.