2012

At least until the Environmental Protection Agency completes its 2010-2012 study on hydraulic fracturing.

FERC has issued UGI Storage Co. a certificate to acquire from UGI Central Penn Gas Inc. (UGI CPG), own and operate 14.7 Bcf of underground gas storage capacity in north-central Pennsylvania, in the heart of the state’s portion of the Marcellus Shale play.

FERC has issued UGI Storage Co. a certificate to acquire from UGI Central Penn Gas Inc. (UGI CPG), own and operate 14.7 Bcf of underground gas storage capacity in north-central Pennsylvania, in the heart of the state’s portion of the Marcellus Shale play.

Williams Cos. and separately, Williams Partners LP, on Tuesday completed acquisitions that build their portfolios in the Marcellus and Bakken shales.

Onshore natural gas plays that are able to generate profits even when gas prices are below $4/Mcf, including the Marcellus Shale, should see rig activity up by 18% in 2011 over this year, according to analysts with Raymond James & Associates Inc.

Developing Nexen Inc.’s massive shale gas position in northeastern British Columbia (BC) is on the to-do list for 2011, CEO Marvin Romanow said this week.

Chesapeake Energy Corp. CEO Aubrey McClendon continues to put his money where the shale is, most recently by adding another 500,000 net acres to the company’s million-plus acre leasehold in the Marcellus Shale.

An action plan to improve the health of the Chesapeake Bay and the Susquehanna River watershed, including some activities that focus on the impact of drilling for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale, is under way by federal officials.

An estimated 9.6 Bcf/d or more of incremental interstate and intrastate pipeline takeaway capacity is forecast to hit the Haynesville Shale region by 2012, which will likely be enough to keep up with production, but the bottleneck at the Perryville Hub in Louisiana will be an issue beyond 2011, analysts with Raymond James & Associates Inc. said last week.