Conventional

Mainland Resources Inc. reported positive results from its Burkley Phillips No. 1 Well in Jefferson County, MS, in the Buena Vista Haynesville Shale that suggest there is more adsorbed and free gas in place in the reservoir than previously thought.

While unconventional energy plays require more water than their conventional counterparts, it’s the rapid growth of those new plays that is shining a spotlight on how the oil and gas industries use water, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) professor told attendees at CERAWeek 2011 in Houston last week.

About 351 energy projects — both conventional and alternative — have been stopped in their tracks nationwide due to a sluggish permitting process and environmental opponents, costing the U.S. economy $1.1 trillion in gross domestic product (GDP) over a seven year period and 1.9 million jobs annually, according to a report released by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce last Thursday.

About 351 energy projects — both conventional and alternative — have been stopped in their tracks nationwide due to a sluggish permitting process and environmental opponents. This is costing the U.S. economy $1.1 trillion in gross domestic product (GDP) over a seven year period and 1.9 million jobs annually, according to a report released by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Thursday.

Gastar Exploration Ltd. announced Monday that it will lease about 3,300 gross acres in West Virginia from PPG Industries Inc. and plans to drill into the Marcellus Shale play as early as July.

While Talisman Energy Inc. has a diverse portfolio of international exploration and production (E&P) interests, in North America the company is focused largely on the Marcellus, Montney and Eagle Ford shales, plays in which its activities are in various stages of development. In the Marcellus, where its shale activities are the most mature, Talisman is enjoying improved well results as it continues to learn the play.

Leading House opponents of hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) said their nearly year-long investigation revealed that oil and natural gas service companies have continued to use diesel fuel to produce shale gas without receiving regulatory approval.

Montreal-based producer Gastem Inc. said Thursday its Ross No.1 vertical well in the New York portion of the Marcellus Shale has been completed and is testing 150 MMcf/d after four weeks of “extended flow.”

Conventional wisdom says the bursting of the real estate bubble triggered the nation’s latest recession. But a researcher at the University of Texas at Austin (UT) puts the blame on energy — or rather the fact that citizens were forced to pay a greater percentage of their incomes for energy.