Ithaca-area Township Set to Ban Fracking – Is it Legal?
The Town of Caroline in Tompkins County, New York is about to pass a one-year ban on hydraulic fracturing. The question is, is it legal to do so? Attorneys who understand New York State’s oil and gas law say no.
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February 21, 2012 Leave a Comment
NY Anti-Drilling Group Tense that Drilling May Soon Begin
One of the most rabidly anti-drilling organizations in New York is NYRAD—New York Residents Against Drilling. They are a fringe organization, but they do have a following. When MDN received a copy of NYRAD’s latest call-to-action-the-sky-is-falling-oh-woe-is-me missive, it contained a couple of interesting tidbits (see a copy of the full notice embedded below).
It seems NYRADers believe that:
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February 21, 2012 Leave a Comment
Rumor Mill Buzzing: Is Range Resources Takeover Target?
The rumor mill is buzzing that Range Resources is a prime candidate for a takeover. With 1.2 million acres of Marcellus leases, whoever buys it will need deep pockets. Both BP and Exxon Mobil have been mentioned as potential suitors.
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February 21, 2012 Leave a Comment
Major New Marcellus Pipeline Planned from NE PA to Albany
El Paso Corp, owner of the country’s largest natural gas pipeline system, including the Tennessee Gas Pipeline, is planning to build a new Marcellus Shale gas pipeline from northeastern Pennsylvania to Albany, NY. It would be a major 36-inch diameter pipeline moving a lot of gas. The target market for the gas is New England.
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February 21, 2012 Leave a Comment
Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Tue, Feb 21, 2012
The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading:
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February 21, 2012 Leave a Comment
NY Landowners Sue Inflection Energy over Force Majeure
A group of 18 Tioga County, NY landowners have sued Inflection Energy to overturn Inflection’s “force majeure” claim to extend the lease on their collective 1,200 acres. A force majeure clause is written into most gas lease contracts. It means a driller can automatically extend the length of the lease if there are unforeseen events that hinder the terms of the contract—in this case commencement of drilling—from happening.
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February 20, 2012 1 Comment
Where was PA’s Top Producing Marcellus Well in 2011? Dimock
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection released new gas well production data on Friday for the second half of 2011. Gas production was up an aggressive 40 percent in the second half of the year. PA now produces more gas than they consume, making the state a net exporter of natural gas.
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February 20, 2012 3 Comments
Carroll County – The Center of Ohio’s Utica Shale Boom
Carroll County, OH is at the center of Ohio’s Utica Shale drilling boom. There have been 127 drilling permits issued in Ohio to tap both oil and gas in the Utica and Marcellus Shales. One-third of those permits are for sites in Carroll County.
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February 20, 2012 Leave a Comment
Northeast PA Starting to Feel the Dry Gas Drilling Slowdown
The decision by Chesapeake Energy and other drillers to reduce drilling in dry gas (methane only) areas and instead concentrate on wet gas (natural gas liquids) areas is already having an impact on Pennsylvania’s northeastern counties where drilling last year was extremely active. Rig counts are going down, and with them, the amount of drilling activity goes down. It ultimately impacts the local economy in those areas, as noted in a recent Scranton Times Tribune article.
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February 20, 2012 Leave a Comment
Wayne, NY Votes to Ban Fracking for One Year
The Town of Wayne, in Steuben County, NY is the latest New York municipality to enact a legally questionable ban on horizontal hydraulic fracturing:
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February 20, 2012 Leave a Comment
PA CareerLink Offers Free Training to Work in Drilling
Pennsylvania CareerLink announced they are offering a training program for those interested in working as roustabouts in the shale gas drilling industry for free for 20 people. The four- to six-week training course normally costs $2,500.
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February 20, 2012 Leave a Comment
Drilling Liquids Spill at Chevron Gas Well in SW PA
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection reports it is investigating a spill of condensate at a gas well in Washington County, in the southwestern part of the state.
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February 20, 2012 Leave a Comment