Deductions

A water authority in Southwest Pennsylvania has filed a lawsuit against Consol Energy Inc. and Noble Energy Inc., alleging the operators are wrongfully deducting natural gas post-production costs from royalties and those of private landowners nearby.

A water authority in Southwest Pennsylvania has filed a lawsuit against Consol Energy Inc. and Noble Energy Inc., alleging the operators are wrongfully deducting natural gas post-production costs from royalties and those of private landowners nearby.

Fearing that the downturn in oil and natural gas prices has battered the finances of Chesapeake Energy Corp. and could eventually threaten an $18 million settlement with thousands of Pennsylvania landowners, two plaintiffs have filed a motion for court ordered mediation to approve the settlement swiftly.

After more than a year-long investigation that involved hundreds of landowners and industry cooperation, Pennsylvania Attorney General (AG) Kathleen Kane’s office said Wednesday it has filed a wide-ranging lawsuit against Chesapeake Energy Corp. and its affiliates for deceptive business practices.

Driven by the Bakken Shale play, North Dakota’s oil and natural gas production continued to soar in May, but well completion rates were slowing amid a continued boom for drilling new wells, according to the latest monthly report from the state’s Department of Mineral Resources (DMR).

Range Resources Corp. has drilled the first unconventional natural gas well in Crawford County, PA, and is reportedly planning to drill more of them targeting the Utica Shale in the near future.

Prompted by the booming natural gas drilling industry in his district, Pennsylvania state Senator Gene Yaw (R-23rd) said he will introduce a series of bills that address issues related to the growing Marcellus Shale industry. Yaw’s district includes Bradford, Susquehanna and Lycoming counties, which are some of Pennsylvania’s top Marcellus producing areas.

The Obama administration’s proposal to repeal two major oil and natural gas tax credits — the Section 199 and dual capacity deductions — would produce extensive economic losses over the upcoming decade, said an economist with Louisiana State University.

“Bargain basement” severance taxes and a “dizzying array of exemptions and deductions” for the energy industry is costing Colorado a lot of money, according to a report by a nonprofit renewable energy group.