Around

A consortium of environmental groups has filed a petition with a Wyoming district court, seeking to require the state Oil and Gas Conservation Commissions to disclose information about specific chemicals used in the hydraulic fracturing (fracking) of oil and natural gas wells that are being kept confidential for proprietary business reasons.

Natural gas prices may well go lower before they turn around, the head of MDU Resources Group Inc.’s exploration and production (E&P) business, Kent Wells, told a financial analysts’ conference in New York City on Thursday.

Natural gas prices may well go lower before they turn around, the head of MDU Resources Group Inc.’s exploration and production (E&P) business, Kent Wells, told a financial analysts’ conference in New York City on Thursday.

ExxonMobil Corp., whose North American portfolio washes across eight million net acres, is scooping up more liquids-weighted land and has begun to shift some of its natural gas development to more oily plays, the company’s top guns told financial analysts on Thursday.

Appalachian Basin producer Consol Energy Inc. said Monday its estimated proved, probable and possible (3P) reserves totaled 20.2 Tcf at the end of 2011, which was 41% higher than in 2010.

Cash prices around much of the country on Monday rose about a dime, excluding double-digit losses posted at a number of eastern points. Traders ascribed the gains primarily to an early surge in March futures. However, the late session futures decline should result in lower cash quotes Tuesday.

Added gas processing capacity bringing the state’s total to 1 Bcf/d is expected to cut volumes being flared significantly. Currently 34% of North Dakota’s average daily gas production is being flared, but that is slated to change a lot over the course of 2012, according to Industrial Commission spokesperson Alison Ritter.

Calgary’s Pembina Pipeline Corp. and Provident Energy Ltd. agreed Monday to merge in a C$3.2 billion ($3.1 billion) transaction that would create a Canadian giant with oil and natural gas pipelines to transport crude and natural gas liquids (NGL), midstream gas processing and an energy marketing arm.

Rosetta Resources Inc. will be dropping more than 90% of its $640 million 2012 capital budget in the Eagle Ford Shale of South Texas, the Houston-based company said Monday.