Appalachian

With activity ramping up on land and offshore, the U.S. rig count surged 13 units higher to 430 during the holiday-shortened week ended Thursday (April 1), according to data published by Baker Hughes Co. (BKR). As has often been the case recently, the increase in domestic drilling for the week was driven by the oil…

A federal judge has halted oil and gas development in Ohio’s Wayne National Forest (WNF) after a ruling last year found the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) failed to adequately consider the impact of unconventional development when they opened the land for drilling. The U.S. District Court for the…

Pennsylvania unconventional natural gas production surpassed 7 Tcf last year, up 3.9% from 2019, the lowest growth rate on record for a full year of production, according to the state’s Independent Fiscal Office (IFO). Fourth quarter production increased 2.9% year/year to 1.8 Tcf, flat with the annual growth level in the third quarter. Quarterly production…

The Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) on Thursday voted to make permanent its longstanding de facto prohibition on hydraulic fracturing (fracking), drawing cheers from environmentalists and a sharp rebuke from oil and gas industry advocates in the region. The DRBC, the hybrid interstate and federal regulatory body established in 1961 to oversee the waters of…

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has cleared a National Fuel Gas Co. (NFG) subsidiary to start construction on the FM100 natural gas pipeline expansion and modernization project.  NFG said it would start construction early next month and expects to bring the project online by the end of the year. FM100 would boost natural gas takeaway…

Natural gas production from seven key U.S. shale plays is set to fall by a combined 560 MMcf/d from February to March as output from most major producing regions is expected to slow over the next month, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Combined natural gas output from the Anadarko, Appalachian and Permian…

Range Resources Corp. agreed to pay a $294,000 fine to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) for failing to properly classify over 40 inactive conventional oil and gas wells. DEP said the company applied for inactive status for the Shirocky No. 1 well in Fayette County in September 2017, indicating that it planned to…

Appalachian pure-play Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. plans to keep year/year production flat in 2021 and cut spending, despite what management believes is likely to be a better year for natural gas producers. In formally releasing its plans for this year, the company reiterated preliminary guidance unveiled in October to move through 2021 in maintenance…

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear PennEast Pipeline Co. LLC’s case against New Jersey, which has stopped the natural gas project from condemning state-owned land.  The high court on Wednesday granted PennEast’s petition in a win for the project, which has been under development for more than five years. The pipeline is one…