OTHER U.S. REGIONS: Electricity and natural gas prices spike in California and Texas amid heat wave; INTERNATIONAL: Big Oil’s net-zero goal: myths and realities; Oil price rally for 2021 approaches 50%; Global fossil fuel share of energy mix similar to decade ago.
Read More “Other Stories of Interest: Wed, Jun 16, 2021”
Yesterday the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) posted detailed information about this year’s distribution of last year’s impact fees on natural gas producers. PA raised a total of $146 million from Act 13 impact fees (PA’s version of a severance tax). That is by far the lowest annual amount raised and distributed by impact fees–some $46 million less than last year. Given the hit of COVID-19 in 2020 (resulting in less drilling) and the low price of natural gas at Henry Hub (the tax rate assessed for each well was in a lower revenue tier) we’re not surprised. Next year will look far different.
Read More “PA Pays Out $146M in Impact Tax for 2020 – Lowest Ever”
Finally! This is a red-letter day. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) Drilling Productivity Report for June (with forecasted numbers for July) predicts natural gas production in the Marcellus/Utica region will swing from month-over-month decreases we’ve seen for the past year and a half (beginning in January 2020) to a month-over-month increase. Hallelujah! The world is right again.
Read More “EIA DPR: NatGas Production in M-U Finally Reverses, Goes Up in July”
“A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury.” (See below for the full quote.) Yesterday Pennsylvania Democrats unveiled their latest “generous gifts” they’re promising to bestow on Pennsylvanians from the public treasury if Gov. Wolf gets his way and imposes a Marcellus-killing carbon tax on electric power generation. The Dems figure they can raise about $300 million a year via a carbon tax and they have a wish list bigger than your wildest dreams for where they’ll spend it. One tiny problem for the Dems…
Read More “PA Senate Passes Bipartisan, Veto-Proof Bill Blocking RGGI Carbon Tax”
Several weeks ago we brought you the news that landowner Gateway Royalty was sounding the alarm over a new bill quickly advancing in the Ohio legislature. Ohio’s House Bill (HB) 152 would use forced pooling if 65% of a proposed unit’s landowners are leased (too low a bar) and also would force the landowner to accept a 12.5% royalty and force them to accept post-production deductions with royalties in some cases potentially going down to nothing (see Ohio HB 152 Forced Pooling Bill Disadvantages Unleased Landowners). After the alarm was sound, the bill’s sponsors backed away from it. However, they’re back with a substitute bill. Danger Will Robinson!
Read More “Rights Owner Says Changes to OH Forced Pooling Bill Not Enough”
Keystone Clearwater Solutions, a company that provides water services for shale drillers in the Marcellus/Utica, is buying the Pennsylvania operations of competitor ECM Energy Services. Keystone, which operates primarily in Pennsylvania, is picking up ECM’s Williamsport, PA operation and rebranding it under the Keystone name. ECM says the sale frees them up to concentrate on their operations in Ohio and West Virginia.
Read More “Keystone Clearwater Buys ECM Energy’s PA Water Transport Biz”
The price of electricity and natural gas in New York State is through the roof. Average New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) power prices across major hubs increased by 50% year over year in May, and natural gas prices increased nearly 75% year over year. It’s a train wreck here in New York. And you can directly blame Andrew Cuomo and the Democrats in the NY legislature for blocking new natural gas pipelines. That’s the root cause. No pipelines = obscenely high prices for electricity and gas.
Read More “New York Electric Prices Up 50%, NatGas Up 75% – Lack of New Pipes”
MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: Bradford Co. to receive 9.3M through Marcellus Shale impact fees; Senate committee eyes vote to shield natural gas from Ohio city bans; Encino Energy wins award from Eastern Ohio Development Alliance; NATIONAL: Hydrogen isn’t as clean as it seems; US natural gas futures hold near 7-month high; How COVID-19 reshaped the future of North American LNG projects; No place for pipelines or affordable energy under Biden’s plan; INTERNATIONAL: Gas is so scarce in Europe that coal is making a comeback.
Read More “Other Stories of Interest: Tue, Jun 15, 2021”
Three Chesapeake Energy senior vice presidents have been shown the door (i.e. got fired) as of Friday. Executive Vice President of Exploration and Production (i.e. head driller) Frank J. Patterson; Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary (i.e. head lawyer) James R. Webb; and Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer (i.e. head accountant) William M. Buergler exited on Friday. It was a “termination without cause.” This follows the firing of their former boss, CEO Doug “the ax” Lawler, who himself got the ax not long after the company emerged from bankruptcy (see Doug Lawler Out as CEO of Chesapeake Energy).
Read More “Chessy’s Head Driller, Head Lawyer, and Head Accountant Get Fired”
In a brilliant move aimed at boxing in the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC), two northeastern Pennsylvania State Senators–Gene Yaw and Lisa Baker–along with members of the PA Senate Republican Caucus (27 Senators in all), filed a lawsuit in January against the DRBC accusing the quasi-governmental agency of “taking” the property rights of PA residents without just compensation under the law (see PA Senators Sue DRBC for “Taking” Property re Frack Ban). Unfortunately, last week a federal court judge in Philadelphia appointed by RINO George W. Bush has dismissed the case claiming the Senators, who represent people shafted by the DRBC, don’t have “standing” to bring the lawsuit. They represent those people! How is that not standing?
Read More “Fed Court Dismisses PA Senate Lawsuit Against DRBC Frack Ban”
Analysts at S&P Global Platts continue to track the performance of some of the country’s biggest shale gas drillers (most of them located in the Marcellus/Utica). S&P tracks production, spending, and the performance of their stock price. The price of natural gas has gone up over the past three months and along with it, the stock price for most (not all) shale gas drillers. For example, the share price for Range Resources has soared, gaining 42% in value over the last 90 days.
Read More “Stock Price for M-U Drillers Continues to Go Up as Gas Price Climbs”
Traders are crediting news from Enbridge’s Texas Eastern Transmission (TETCO) pipeline that a recent flow restriction enforced by the Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration (PHMSA) will continue through the end of summer with helping to spike the Henry Hub futures price of natgas, up 4.5% on Friday to close at $3.30/MMBtu.
Read More “TETCO Pipe Throttling 40% of M-U Southbound Gas to Last All Summer”
As we report today, Enbridge’s Texas Eastern Transmission (TETCO) pipeline will not be back to full pressure flowing Marcellus/Utica gas south (some of it to the Gulf Coast) until the end of summer. Last week MDN brought you the news that TETCO was denied permission to continue operating its pipeline system (three pipelines, actually) at full pressure (see PHMSA Forces TETCO Pipe to Throttle 40% of M-U Southbound Gas). The reduced pressure of 20% means some 40% of the gas that was flowing from the Marcellus/Utica to the Gulf Coast via TETCO is now gone. Following that post, we received an email from one of our favorite industry observers, Garland Thompson, who proposes the ultimate solution to the problem of decreased flows on TETCO (and other pipelines) to the Gulf Coast.
Read More “Solution to TETCO (& Other) Southbound Pipes? New NE Refineries”
A little over a month ago MDN brought you the big news that the voraciously hungry EQT is gobbling up the Marcellus assets of yet another driller, Alta Resources, for $2.9 billion (see EQT Buys Alta Res. PA Assets for $2.9B in “Transformative” Deal). We later told you the company is floating $1 billion in new notes to help fund the deal (see Why Did EQT Buy Alta for $2.9B? Floats $1B in IOUs to Finance Deal). Where will the other $1.925 billion come from? By floating 105,306,346 new shares of EQT common stock. Shareholders will meet on July 16 to vote on the deal to buy Alta’s Marcellus assets, including the plan to float new stock.
Read More “EQT Shareholders Vote July 16 on $2.9B Deal to Buy Alta Resources”
What would happen if there were a Green New Genie who could wave a magic wand and replace all oil and gas energy right now, today, with wind and solar energy instead. Yes, it’s impossible for many reasons, but let’s fantasize for just a moment. What if Alexandria Occasional-Cortex, and the petulant spoiled child Greta Thunberg, and John F. Kerry (a petulant spoiled adult) got their way? Poof! Here it is. Here is what it would look like…
Read More “Here’s What the World Looks Like with 100% Wind & Solar Energy”
MARCELLUS/UTICA REGION: Shale academy continues work on new location; OTHER U.S. REGIONS: Shell weighs blockbuster sale of Texas shale assets; NATIONAL: Post-pandemic E&P cash allocation shifts to debt repayment, shareholder return; INTERNATIONAL: Baker Hughes and Air Products in hydrogen team up; EU energy ministers reach compromise deal over fossil gas funding.
Read More “Other Stories of Interest: Mon, Jun 14, 2021”