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Colorado’s record-setting floods in September did not seriously impact oil and natural gas production in the state, nor result in any environmental disasters, although crude oil production took more of a hit than gas operations, according to a report from the Colorado Oil/Gas Association (COGA).

While they are unlikely to impact future production totals and may face court challenges, local community anti-hydraulic fracturing (fracking) ballot measures are likely to continue to emerge, the head of the Colorado Oil/Gas Association (COGA) told NGI’s Shale Daily on Thursday.

After a 32-year run, Royal Dutch Shell’s U.S. operations are pulling the plug on oil shale research in Colorado, noting that the company has spent tens of millions of dollars and learned a lot. The closing of the operations will be a careful, phased exit to maximize environmental and safety considerations in the Piceance Basin in northwest Colorado, Shell said.

Las Vegas, NV-basedNV Energy Inc.’sshareholders on Wednesday “decidedly” approved the power utility’s acquisition by billionaireWarren Buffett-led Berkshire Hathaway’ MidAmerican EnergyHoldings Co., a $5.59 billion deal announced last May (seeDaily GPI,May 31). Speaking at a special stockholders’ meeting called for the vote, NV Energy CEOMichael Yackirasaid the transaction is expected to close in the first quarter next year, assuming that all customary closing conditions are met, including approvals from theFederal Energy Regulatory Commissionand theNevada Public Utilities Commission.

Colorado officials on Tuesday reported three new flood-related oil spills since an assessment the day before (seeDaily GPI,Sept. 24), bringing to 11 the number of what are designated as “notable releases” by the Colorado Oil/Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC).

Weekend reports from state and industry sources in Colorado indicated that while the bulk of the oil and natural gas impact from recent devastating floods is concentrated in four counties in the Denver-Julesburg (DJ) Basin, completing assessments and correcting problems will be a long process (seeDaily GPI,Sept. 20;Sept. 19).

Last year, Colorado’s oil and natural gas industry injected $29.6 billion into the state’s economy, supporting 110,000 mostly high-paying jobs, according to a study released Monday by a research unit at the Leeds Business School, University of Colorado (UC), Boulder.

Natural gas and oil companies concerned that fringe protesters will succeed in delaying or canceling projects shouldn’t be, said the chief scientist for The Nature Conservancy. New technology eventually will be embraced, he said, but it will take time.

A call to action was sounded on Tuesday at the Rocky Mountain Energy Summit for U.S. oil and natural gas operators to take what industry pioneers created and continue reinventing for the future — with the public’s backing.