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A pair of votes Tuesday highlighted the struggle Pennsylvania’s local governments are having with a new regulatory package of shale development.

A well count “evolution” is taking place across the United States because the “cost of opportunity of drilling shale gas is growing,” said Societe Generale analysts in a note to clients.

A pair of votes last week highlighted the struggle Pennsylvania’s local governments are having with a new regulatory package of shale development.

Proving that different shale plays have different economics, Southwestern Energy Co. plans to cut spending in the Fayetteville Shale and increase spending in the Marcellus Shale this year, the company said Tuesday.

With at least two cities having passed ordinances banning hydraulic fracturing (fracking) until local rules for it can be established, state legislation has been proposed (SB 88) to reiterate that the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) has jurisdiction to oversee the practice by oil/gas exploration and production (E&P) companies.

WPX Energy, newly spun off from Williams, is having to rethink its first full year as an exploration and production (E&P) company because of sustained low natural gas prices, the company said late Monday.

The cash- and employee-strapped Colorado state government is battling a growing oil and gas drilling permit backlog created by a combination of a 70% jump in applications between 2007 and 2010 and the recession, which shrank state government. However, oil and gas industry representatives are praising state officials for attempting to address the problem.

Having outlined guidelines for balancing sage grouse and economic protections, the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Monday said it will conduct a series of eight scoping meetings in Utah Jan. 17-Feb. 1 to gain feedback on an environmental impact statement (EIS).

Gastar Exploration Ltd. achieved its goal of increasing Marcellus Shale production in northern West Virginia this year, and now the Houston-based company is setting the same goal for itself in the coming year.