Henderson

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett’s energy executive said “it’s not surprising or alarming” that the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has never denied an operator’s request for a waiver to the stream and wetland setback requirements enshrined in Act 13, the state’s omnibus Marcellus Shale law.

Houston-based Memorial Production Partners LP (MEMP) has agreed to acquire oil and gas properties in the Permian Basin, East Texas and the Rockies from its sponsor, Memorial Resource Development LLC, and affiliates of Natural Gas Partners for $606 million. The deal is MEMP’s largest acquisition to date and gets the partnership’s foot in the door in the Permian and Rockies.

Located three counties due north of the wet gas window of the Marcellus Shale, and over a state line from expanding development in the Utica Shale, Mercer County, PA, nevertheless appears poised to benefit from development of both plays in the near future.

Gill Ranch Storage LLC, which is being jointly developed by Northwest Natural Gas and Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E), announced last Monday it will hold an open season through Dec. 14 to test the market’s interest in a high-deliverability storage facility that it proposes to build in central California.

Koch Gateway began scheduled maintenance Monday on its SouthHenderson Line (FPL 3) in East Texas. The work, which is expectedto last 10 days, is causing shut-ins at 14 points, butaffectedshippers are being kept whole on the delivery side.