Gassy

Penn Virginia Corp. (PVA) on Tuesday agreed to sell “substantially all” of its gassy Appalachian Basin portfolio, except the Marcellus Shale assets, to help fund development in the oily Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas.

McMoRan Exploration Co., which has made its name through discoveries of big, gassy fields in the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), said Tuesday soaring costs from an unproductive well and impairment expenses ate into its revenues in the second quarter, sending the company to a loss for the sixth straight quarter.

Shell Canada Ltd. is looking for a partner to help develop its gassy Chinook leasehold, 102,000 acres in the Nikanassin Formation, a shale play in the Deep Basin of Western Canada.

El Paso Corp. has decided to go it alone in developing its profitable Eagle Ford Shale acreage and has scuttled plans to take on a joint venture (JV) partner.

The Obama administration last week set adrift offshore drillers’ plans to develop the gassy eastern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) and portions of the Atlantic and Pacific coasts because of the Deepwater Horizon tragedy, setting off a tidal wave of criticism by the energy industry.

The Obama administration has rescinded a decision to allow offshore drilling in the gassy eastern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) and portions of the Atlantic and Pacific coasts because of the Deepwater Horizon tragedy, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said Wednesday.

Newfield Exploration Co. late Monday said it has agreed to buy 50,000 net acres in the Marcellus Shale from EOG Resources Inc. in a transaction valued at $405 million.

Chevron Corp., which had eschewed domestic shale plays in favor of the deepwater, on Tuesday reversed course, agreeing to pay a total of $4.3 billion to acquire Atlas Energy Inc.’s million-acre-plus U.S. shale leasehold.