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After hitting a low point five years ago, associated gas is projected to grow to more than 12 Bcf/d, or about 15% of the North American natural gas supplies in 2020, according to a report released Tuesday by Canadian-based Ziff Energy.

As drillers compete for access to water for their operations, researchers are looking for new ways to reuse and recycle wastewater for the good of the environment, as well as looking ahead to the possibility of more restrictions at the state or federal level that may be imposed on underground injection wells, according to Accenture.

Making good on its plan to continue a “strategic redirection” of its business, NuStar Energy LP on Monday said it has agreed sell its San Antonio refinery and related assets, including a terminal in Elmendorf, TX, and a pipeline connecting the terminal and refinery, to Calumet Specialty Products Partners, LP for $100 million, plus closing date inventory estimated to be $15 million.

Dow Chemical Co. late Monday made good on some of the “opportunities” that have come its way with the U.S. natural gas revolution by applying for a federal air emissions permit to build a $1.7 billion ethylene facility in Freeport, TX, which would be the chemical manufacturer’s biggest in the world.

Halliburton Co. CEO Dave Lesar made clear Wednesday that the slowdown in the U.S. and Canadian drilling market is only “transitory,” and the company will sit it out before cutting prices to capture new business.

With dry gas supplies ballooning, it’s probably a good thing that the industry grew demonstrated peak working capacity in underground storage caverns last year, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). From April 2011 to April 2012, Lower 48 state capacity increased 3%, or 136 Bcf, to 4,239 Bcf, according to a new EIA report.

With dry gas supplies ballooning, it’s probably a good thing that the industry grew demonstrated peak working capacity in underground storage caverns last year, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). From April 2011 to April 2012, Lower 48 state capacity increased 3%, or 136 Bcf, to 4,239 Bcf, according to a new EIA report.

In a campaign speech in Cincinnati, OH, President Obama expressed full support for the development of natural gas and acknowledged that “a lot of folks” in the industry are engaging in hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in a safe manner. He dismissed claims that his administration — namely the Interior Department and Environmental Protection Agency — is blocking oil and natural gas development.

Chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing (fracking) have attracted the most attention from people wary of the well stimulation practice, but water consumption is another worry of fracking skeptics, as evidenced by to two recent reports.