Bakken

Although drilling activity in the Marcellus Shale has slowed and some producers have dropped rigs, there is enough of a drilling backlog that, if wells were brought online over a one-year period, production would continue to grow but at a slower pace, energy analysts with Barclays Capital said.

A proposal to cut down on flared associated natural gas supplies in the Bakken was rejected by the North Dakota Senate Wednesday on a 34-13 vote. The measure (SB 2315) by Sen. Tim Mathern would have eliminated any hardship exemptions to the state’s ban after a year. Viewed as one of the toughest proposals to combat flaring yet, SB 2315 was strongly opposed by the industry, led by the North Dakota Petroleum Council (see Shale Daily, Feb. 12). State officials increasingly have worried about flaring, which has stayed above 30%, but below a September 2011 record of 36%. Senators opposing the measure urged patience in letting the industry address the problem. Even with the ability to flare gas for a year without paying taxes or royalties, and beyond that to seek hardship status for extending the practice, some operators are trying to find uses for the gas, including using it to produce electricity to run hydraulic fracturing equipment, and to produce fertilizer (see Shale Daily, Dec. 26, 2012).

Hess Corp. won’t sell its unconventional assets in the Bakken, Eagle Ford and Utica shale plays, but it is looking at proposals from a hedge fund that wants a larger stake in the company, Hess officials said during a 4Q2012 earnings call on Wednesday.

“Headline” U.S. natural gas production continues to move higher, but signs of decline are emerging in some onshore plays, according to Barclays Capital energy analysts.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has undertaken five case studies in the Marcellus, Barnett and Bakken shales and the Raton Basin on the impact of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) on drinking water sources as part of its multi-year review of the well stimulation technique used in unconventional plays.

Magnum Hunter Resources Corp. brought online two new company-operated Eagle Ford Shale wells three days before Christmas. The wells’ best-ever results for the company in the Eagle Ford could have Magnum Hunter rethinking its idea of divesting Eagle Ford properties, said CEO Gary C. Evans.

Citing its plans for expanding its reach from Canada and the Bakken to the U.S. East Coast, Enbridge Inc. reaffirmed its intention to use pipeline-to-rail strategies for expanding to the Philadelphia and other mid-Atlantic eastern markets during a conference call to unveil its latest financial and capital expansion plans to analysts and the news media.

As part of a continuing effort to stretch Bakken and western Canadian oil supplies into new markets, Calgary-based Enbridge Inc. on Thursday outlined a $6.2 billion, four-year effort to expand several of its pipelines to access light oil markets in the eastern United States and Canada.

In an effort to determine which government agency has oversight authority for the Bushton, KS, natural gas liquids (NGL) fractionation plant, three subsidiaries of Oneok Partners LP have filed a declaratory judgment action in federal District Court in Tulsa, OK, seeking a ruling on the jurisdictional limits of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).