Helped

The shift to shales — and the rise in oil prices — has lifted the domestic rig count close to 20-year highs and shifted the landscape, helped several states join Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana in the chase for natural gas and oil production, according to Headwaters Economics.

Routine U.S. nuclear plant maintenance, exacerbated by Japan’s plant outages, lifted U.S. natural gas markets in late April and helped to take out an estimated 3 Bcf/d year/year (y/y) of gas supply, but the looser market won’t last long, analysts with Raymond James & Associates Inc. said Tuesday.

Increased Marcellus Shale production helped Seneca Resources Corp. offset the production it lost after selling its Gulf of Mexico assets earlier this year, and now the company is again pursuing partnerships to speed up that growth.

Increased Marcellus Shale production helped Seneca Resources offset production it lost after selling its Gulf of Mexico assets earlier this year, and now the company is pursuing partnerships to speed up that growth.

Drilling in liquids-rich corners of the Marcellus Shale and Midcontinent region helped Range Resources Corp. post record production volumes in the first quarter of the year.

Drilling in liquids-rich corners of the Marcellus Shale and Midcontinent region helped Range Resources Corp. post record production volumes in the first quarter of the year.

A focus on liquids-rich resource plays helped MarkWest Energy Partners LP increase its volumes and earnings despite low natural gas prices in 2010, and the Denver midstream player plans to expand its liquids-based operations considerably in the next few years.

Better-than-expected performance in the Marcellus Shale helped Cabot Oil & Gas Corp.’s shareholders kick the stock almost 13% higher on Wednesday, the day the producer released its latest quarterly earnings.

The “brute force” drilling process that unlocked North America’s shale deposits won’t easily be transferred overseas, Schlumberger Ltd. COO Paal Kibsgaard said Wednesday.