Geological

President Obama’s $3.77 trillion budget for fiscal year (FY) 2014, unveiled Wednesday, for the fourth time seeks to repeal tax breaks for oil and natural gas producers. It also would tack on new fees for operations on federal lands and increase oil and gas royalties to fund renewable fuel development.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said domestic water wells in two Arkansas counties showed no evidence of contamination from oil and natural gas drilling in the Fayetteville Shale, but it cautioned that additional testing would be necessary to provide an adequate comparative analysis.

With the introduction of new risk controls, the British government has cleared the way for hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to resume in the country where the shale gas reserve could be 4.2 Tcf, according to one estimate.

A pair of attorneys with extensive knowledge of New York’s regulatory, business and geological climates said the rules proposed by the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) governing high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) won’t hamper development of the state’s shale plays, and they believe permits will be issued soon.

East West Petroleum Corp. and Lani LLC on Monday said they jointly plan to explore two prospective areas in California’s San Joaquin Basin, the Tejon Extension and Tejon Main.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) estimates that five Mesozoic shale basins along the East Coast collectively hold a mean of nearly 3.9 Tcf in undiscovered natural gas and 135 million bbl of undiscovered natural gas liquids (NGLs), according to an abstract released last week.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said it estimates that five Mesozoic shale basins along the East Coast collectively hold a mean of nearly 3.9 Tcf in undiscovered natural gas and 135 million bbl of undiscovered natural gas liquids (NGLs), according to an abstract released Wednesday.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said it estimates that five Mesozoic shale basins along the East Coast collectively hold a mean of nearly 3.9 Tcf in undiscovered natural gas and 135 million bbl of undiscovered natural gas liquids (NGLs), according to an abstract released Wednesday.

Environmental groups and supporters of the oil and gas industry have different opinions over claims by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) that an increase in earthquakes in the Midcontinent region are more than likely caused by wastewater injection well activities.