Earlier

A coalition of conservation groups on Thursday filed a 60-day notice of intent to sue the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) over its amending of 10 resource management plans (RMP) earlier this year to open more than 800,000 acres for future oil shale and tar sands leasing.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said it agrees with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) over not listing a nearly 100-mile section of the main stem of the Susquehanna River at the foot of the Marcellus Shale as an impaired waterway, despite concerns over the health of the river’s smallmouth bass.

An alliance of organizations that represent commodity-dependent industries, businesses and end-users has asked a federal court in Washington, DC, to reverse an earlier decision tossing out the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) controversial rule limiting excessive speculation in the multi-trillion swaps market.

An alliance of organizations that represents commodity-dependent industries, businesses and end-users has asked a federal court in Washington, DC, to reverse an earlier decision tossing out the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) controversial rule limiting excessive speculation in the multi-trillion swaps market.

Newfield Exploration Co. is “right where we want to be toward execution of our 2013-2015 plan,” CEO Lee Boothby said Wednesday during an earnings conference call in which management talked of a “surge” in Eagle Ford Shale production and the rising prominence of the Cana-Woodford Shale in the company’s liquids-focused portfolio.

Responding to a shareholder resolution earlier this year, Continental Resources Inc. said it plans to reduce flaring of associated natural gas at its oil wells in the Bakken Shale to “as close to zero percent flaring as possible.”

Natural gas production in the Lower 48, boosted by output from shale plays, was up to 72.70 Bcf/d in December, almost 1% (0.62 Bcf/d) over December 2011, but down 1.1% (0.83 Bcf/d) compared with November, according to the most recent data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Encana Corp. is searching for a permanent CEO after Randy Eresman, who had spent his entire career at the Calgary company, suddenly resigned earlier this month. Director Clayton H. Woitas, who is CEO of privately held Range Royalty Management Ltd., remains interim president and CEO until a successor is named.

Royal Dutch Shell plc and Qatar Petroleum provided a natural gas-based jet fuel to Qatar Airways earlier this month for the first commercial flight from Qatar’s Doha International to London Heathrow.