Chesapeake Energy Prepares Potential Ch. 11 Bankruptcy Filing
It’s not a done deal yet, but according to sources willing to speak with Reuters, Chesapeake Energy is preparing the paperwork for a bankruptcy filing as one of its options to deal with debt payments it likely will not be able to pay this year. This should not be a surprise to anyone. We’ve been warning about a potential bankruptcy filing since last November (see Chesapeake Energy 3Q – Slash Drilling 30%, Bankruptcy Possible).
Read More “Chesapeake Energy Prepares Potential Ch. 11 Bankruptcy Filing”
In a piece of stellar investigative journalism and reporting, MDN friend Bob Downing (at 
A partnership between Penn State EMS Energy Institute researchers and a Pittsburgh-based start-up company may hold the answer to reducing so-called greenhouse gas emissions while also paving the way to disrupt the chemical and material industries. The collaboration has resulted in several research projects that aim to “reinvent” both coal and natural gas as clean, cost-effective sources of fuels and high-performance materials.
Our favorite government agency, the U.S. Energy Information Administration, published a blog post yesterday to outline the differences between the oil markets and natural gas markets and how each market responds to world events vis-à-vis pricing. EIA says crude oil markets respond quickly and often dramatically to world events, but natural gas markets have tended to be driven by regional factors and have been less connected to the international market. Oil markets are from Mars, natgas markets are from Venus.
OTHER U.S. REGIONS: Kinder Morgan’s NGPL declares force majeure on Sabine Pass gas flows; Texas Railroad Commission rolls out proposed order for crude oil production cuts; Opinion: Texas capping oil production? Chairman Wayne Christian picks a side; NATIONAL: Moody’s maintains natural gas price outlook; Blockchain’s value proposition in the oil and gas industry; Oil’s unbelievable fall must spark us energy dominance rethink; Democrats should support America’s oil industry; COVID-19: Energy supply chain companies support care givers and families; INTERNATIONAL: TC Energy completes the sale of Ontario natural gas-fired power plants for proceeds of $2.8 billion; Natural gas follows oil, hits record low prices in Europe.
We’re learning far more about the oil business than we ever thought we would, due to the price crash brought on by the coronavirus and the Saudis and Russians dumping. Yes, oil and gas are an industry that goes together–but natural gas really is a different kind of business overall. Different kind of drilling, different kind of pipelines, different economics. We don’t know about you, but we always thought an oil driller could simply shut-in a well (essentially turn off a valve) and later, when the economics returned, just open the valve again and let the oil flow. Boy were we wrong! Shutting in a well is a major decision with long-term consequences. It’s not just flipping a switch or turning a valve.
Simon-Kucher & Partners, a global strategy and marketing consulting firm along with Rice University surveyed 195 oil and gas industry experts from around the world. They published their findings in a report titled “2020 Oil & Gas Crisis Study.” The upshot, the sentiment, is that the current crisis faced by oil companies is largely homegrown. We did it to ourselves.
MDN is floating a potential new feature. We’d like your feedback. Below are lists of new shale drilling permits issued for the past four weeks for each state: Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia. Permits issued are a strong indicator of future drilling activity. Typically it is a matter of weeks to perhaps a month or two after a new permit is issued when a driller begins work on a new well. Permits are one of the best ways of predicting future drilling activity.
MDN editor Jim Willis isn’t much into tooting his own horn. But, well, this is kind of slow news day, so we’ll toot. Marcellus Drilling News began as a hobby and side project in January 2009. Little did Jim know that it would grow to become his full-time job and in April 2020, the blog/news site would surpass having 20,000 posts. That milestone was reached last week.
CNX Resources released its first-quarter 2020 update yesterday, along with hosting a conference call with analysts. CEO Nick DeIuliis laid out a plan for the company for the next seven years. Silencing the naysaying critics who say shale companies are not profitable and some sort of Ponzi scheme, CNX says it is on track to make $300 million in free cash flow (i.e. profits) this year, $400 million next year, and then $500 million each year until 2026. CNX is a cash flow machine!