Enhanced Geothermal Systems Use Fracking for Carbon-Free Energy
The United States is developing its first large-scale commercial Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) in Utah, set for 2026. Unlike conventional geothermal energy, restricted to rare natural reservoirs, EGS uses fracking and horizontal drilling to create man-made hydrothermal wells anywhere. That’s right. Fracking provides reliable, “carbon-free,” weather-independent power anywhere via EGS. And nutty environmentalists are eating it up! If you sprinkle EGS dust over a conversation, magically gone are all of the claims that fracking contaminates the water table. That nasty chemicals are used to frack. That fracking is loud. That it uses too many trucks. That is uses way too much water. That fracking carves up forests and habitats. That it is literally destroying the earth. All of those arguments (lies) are magically gone with EGS dust sprinkled on them, revealing the hypocrisy of the environmental left. Read More “Enhanced Geothermal Systems Use Fracking for Carbon-Free Energy”
MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: CNX closes tender offer for 6% senior notes due 2029; NATIONAL: U.S. natural gas futures fall despite blizzard; Oil cos get Supreme Court hearing on climate suits; Retirement delays of U.S. electric generating capacity may continue in 2026; Energy reliability is a life-or-death matter; INTERNATIONAL: Oil resilient amid Middle East tensions. 
On Friday, Baker Hughes reported that the U.S. rig count remained unchanged at 551 active rigs. That’s three weeks in a row at the same number (pretty much unheard of). Two weeks ago, the Pennsylvania Marcellus added another rig, bringing the total to 20 active rigs, the most it has operated in well over a year. PA kept its new/higher total last week. Both Ohio and West Virginia remained at 13 and 7, respectively. The combined M-U count was 40 rigs last week, the most operated rigs in well over a year, now for a second week in a row. The M-U’s primary competitor (for attention and money), the Haynesville, added 2 rigs two weeks ago and kept them last week, operating 52 rigs (12 more than the M-U). 
DT Midstream is an owner, operator, and developer of natural gas interstate and intrastate pipelines, storage and gathering systems, compression, treatment, and surface facilities, including major assets that are in (or flow molecules from) the Marcellus/Utica. Last week, the company issued its fourth quarter and full-year 2025 update. The update showed the Marcellus and Utica (Northeast) regions remain a core growth engine for the company, particularly as a supply source for the Upper Midwest and LNG demand corridors. Driven by a spike in natural gas demand, DTM has expanded its five-year organic project backlog by 50%, bringing the total to $3.4 billion. 
The Texas Eastern Transmission Pipeline (TETCO), operated by Enbridge, is a major 8,580-mile interstate natural gas system connecting Gulf Coast/Texas supplies to the Northeast US. Originally designed for northbound flow, it now heavily supports bidirectional, southbound, and regional supply, including Marcellus/Utica gas. A short 5.3-mile section of TETCO (actually four separate pipelines that make up TETCO) running through Greene County, PA, needs a fix to protect it from coal mining activities set to begin directly underneath the pipeline in that area. 
Last Tuesday, President Trump unveiled the first projects under a $550 billion trade deal with Japan, including a $36 billion investment in U.S. energy and minerals (see 
In January 2026, New England experienced record-high natural gas prices triggered by an intense cold snap. On January 27, wholesale electricity costs reached $441.8/MWh, a significant jump from the previous January’s average of $135.08/MWh. The problem is not enough natural gas pipelines. But that’s not what the dunderheads who run the blue states of New England believe. They think natgas is the problem and that more unreliable renewables are the solution. You can’t fix stupid, but you can vote it out of office. 
A recent article by David Blackmon (writing for Forbes) argues that critics unfairly blame rising U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports for high domestic energy costs. While narratives suggest exports drain supply and spike prices, Blackmon highlights data showing that inflation-adjusted natural gas prices have trended lower or remained stable as the LNG industry has grown. He attributes regional price hikes not to exports but to infrastructure roadblocks (a lack of pipelines) in specific states. Furthermore, he contends that gas price volatility is a long-standing market characteristic unrelated to LNG. 
It’s not often MDN gets to report on something happening in our own (relative) back yard. This is a treat! Construction has begun on an eight-megawatt natural gas fuel cell system at the Huron Campus in Endicott, NY, to support future redevelopment. Developed by Bloom Energy and managed by Phoenix Investors, the facility will supplement existing power from the local utility substation to meet the energy needs of upcoming tenants. The project is located on a site recently cleared of former IBM buildings and is expected to be operational by April or May. This infrastructure investment aligns with ongoing efforts to attract new business to the campus, ensuring reliable utility capacity for the modernized industrial space. Natural gas to the rescue! 
The Marcellus/Utica region received a combined 43 new drilling permits last week, Feb. 9 – 15, up 19 from the permits issued two weeks ago. The most recent high in permits (going back at least a year) occurred during the first week of December, when 60 new permits were issued (see 
The bidding war for Ascent Resources continues to bubble. Ascent, formerly American Energy Partners, is a privately held company focused 100% on the Ohio Utica Shale. Ascent, headquartered in Oklahoma City, is Ohio’s largest natural gas producer and the 8th largest natural gas producer in the U.S. The largest shareholder in the privately owned company is the private equity firm Energy & Minerals Group (EMG), with an “over 30% stake.” EMG wants to sell that stake in one of its portfolio companies to another EMG company. That action set off a firestorm with one major investor (the Abu Dhabi Investment Council) suing to block the transfer, and several other investors, including Mason Capital Management, making offers to buy the company lock, stock, and barrel. Mason issued a press release yesterday, “demanding” answers from Ascent, accusing the board of stonewalling. 
Expand Energy turned in its fourth quarter and full-year 2025 update earlier this week. The company reported a year of “phenomenal execution,” marked by a 15% reduction in Haynesville breakevens and significant debt reduction post-Southwestern merger. The company, the largest natural gas producer in the U.S., had combined (Marcellus/Utica and Haynesville) production of 7.4 Bcfe/d, up 16% from 6.4 Bcfe/d for the same period in 2024. Interim CEO Michael Wichterich said the company is making a “strategic move” to Houston (from Oklahoma City) to align with a projected 40% rise in natural gas demand over five years. 
In December, Antero Resources announced a deal to sell its Ohio Utica assets to a partnership of Northern Oil & Gas (NOG) and Infinity Natural Resources (INR) for $1.2 billion in cash (see 
Hedging is the practice of locking in a price now to sell gas you will produce in the future. We’ve written a fair bit about hedging (
One of the environmental left’s favorite tactics to defeat fossil fuel projects is to challenge every single infrastructure project (pipeline or otherwise) connected to fossil energy at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). As soon as a company files an application to build a new project and FERC approves it, Big Green will challenge it first at FERC and eventually in court. FERC had an internal rule, called Order No. 871, that states a company cannot begin construction (even though FERC has approved the certificate) until all such legal challenges are resolved, which can take YEARS. Which is the point—delay, and eventually, some of the projects will give up and won’t be built. Run out the clock. In October, FERC issued a new rule eliminating the Order No. 871 rule, meaning construction can now begin months and years sooner, even while appeals continue (see