3Q2010

Supermajor ExxonMobil Corp., which controls a huge portfolio of unconventional oil, gas and liquids projects across North America, on Thursday disclosed that it has increased its leasehold in the Ohio portion of the promising Utica Shale.

The Arkansas Public Policy Panel (APPP) issued a report Wednesday urging state lawmakers to strengthen regulation of oil and gas development in the Fayetteville Shale and encouraged them to use moratoria as needed.

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.

Average net production in the Appalachian business unit of Atlas Energy Inc. hit a record 63.3 MMcfe/d in 3Q2010, representing a 53%-plus increase in output year/year and a 15.4% jump from the previous three months, the Pittsburgh-based producer said Wednesday.

The value of global oil and gas deals reached $85 billion during 3Q2010, but U.S. shale gas deals in the quarter lost the momentum from the first half of the year, according to a survey by Evaluate Energy Inc., which tracks global merger and acquisition (M&A) activity on a daily basis.

North America led the global upstream merger and acquisition (M&A) marketplace in 3Q2010 with 100 transactions totaling $18.1 billion, or 41% of the $43.8 billion in a total of 154 trades worldwide, according to a tally by PLS Inc. in conjunction with its international partner, Derrick Petroleum Services.

The value of global oil and gas deals reached $85 billion during 3Q2010, but U.S. shale gas deals in the quarter lost the momentum from the first half of the year, according to a survey by Evaluate Energy Inc., which tracks global merger and acquisition (M&A) activity on a daily basis.

North America led the global upstream merger and acquisition (M&A) marketplace in 3Q2010 with 100 transactions totaling $18.1 billion, or 41% of the $43.8 billion in a total of 154 trades worldwide, according to a tally by PLS Inc. in conjunction with its international partner, Derrick Petroleum Services.

BP plc said it would delay the release of its 3Q2010 earnings by one week to Nov. 2 to give it more time to prepare additional data and disclosures related to the April Macondo well explosion. For 2Q2010 BP posted a $17 billion replacement cost loss, which included a $32.2 billion provision for costs related to the massive oil spill (see Daily GPI, July 28). BP also has been evicted from the FTSE4Good ethical investment index because of the oil spill. BP earlier this year was excluded from the DJ Sustainability Index.