Commercial

Portland, OR-based NW Natural retail residential and commercial/industrial customers will share in a $35 million one-time credit on their utility bills in June, resulting from the continuing drop in wholesale natural gas prices. The Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) approved credits that will average $36.58 for residential customers and will range from $714 to $20,000 for industrial customers. The utility asked the PUC to approve the credit as a way of passing along lower gas price savings accumulated from Nov. 1, 2011 through March 31. State regulators also indicated that there may be another credit stemming from lower gas costs in the second quarter. In addition, the PUC approved a separate $3.1 million credit for storage and transportation activities that will further reduce the average residential customer’s June bill by nearly $10.

Production of oil, natural gas and condensate from the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas increased dramatically from 2010 to 2011, according to a new study of the play and its impact on the region. And there’s more to come, thanks in large part to the attractive economics offered by the Eagle Ford’s oil and liquids-rich gas.

Exploration and production companies looking for ways to develop vast natural gas reserves deep within upstate New York’s Southern Tier have faced an “unwelcome” mat in recent years, with a state-imposed drilling moratorium on hydraulic fracturing (fracking), as well as many town council-imposed outright drilling bans. However, producers now face what may be an even bigger threat: the Preservation League of New York State.

Perth, Western Australia-based Golden State Resources has received further verification it could be holding a significant shale gas play in the Golden Eagle field in Grand County in southeast Utah. The economics look good, according to a recent petroleum engineering consultant’s study.

Days after visiting natural gas operations in the Marcellus Shale, Poland’s treasury minister said commercial shale gas production may begin in his country in 2014.

Encana Oil & Gas (USA), owner of a natural gas field in Pavillion, WY, that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) claims is contaminated by chemicals used in production practices (including hydraulic fracturing, or fracking), has called on the agency to suspend the public comment period on a draft report issued in December.

Fort Worth, TX-based Quicksilver Resources Inc. has added depth to its North American lineup of oil and gas prospects with two large-scale commercial projects — one in search of a partner — which altogether would give it a large presence in seven North American basins, officials said Thursday.

After weathering the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s draft report late last week, which claimed that the groundwater in Pavillion, WY, contains chemicals that are normally used in natural gas production practices, such as hydraulic fracturing (fracking), Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc., a subsidiary of Encana Corp., went on offense Monday, noting that many of the EPA’s findings from its recent deep monitoring wells, including those related to any potential connection between fracking and Pavillion groundwater quality, “are conjecture, not factual, and only serve to trigger undue alarm.”

If Europe develops its shale gas resources, it will likely take its sweet time about it, according to a new report from Ernst and Young Global Ltd.