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During the first quarter Penn Virginia Corp. (PVA) set a quarterly oil production record, thanks to a 15% increase in output from its Eagle Ford Shale operations as it continues to grow and delineate its South Texas acreage.

Minor earthquakes blamed on drilling waste disposal wells have been shaking up small towns overlying the Barnett Shale of North Texas for a while now. On Monday, state lawmakers put their ears to the ground during the first hearing of a subcommittee formed on the matter, hearing from local mayors, academic, environmental, regulatory and industry representatives.

Oil and natural gas operators in the robust North Dakota production fields are facing a lot of new regulatory requirements potentially from both state and federal government, beginning June 1 with a new state requirement for gas capture plans with each new drilling permit application, as underscored Tuesday by the state’s chief oil/gas official.

A renewed attempt by President Obama on Wednesday to invest in the nation’s aging infrastructure, as well as streamline the federal permitting process, now a slow-moving spaghetti loop of agencies and stakeholders, was lauded by the natural gas industry.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) should protect public health by setting air pollution limits on oil and natural gas wells, and associated equipment near population centers, according to a coalition of 64 environmental and community groups.

The Wyoming Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (OGCC) has retained a contractor and begun a long-delayed effort to plug abandoned oil and natural gas wells.

The Alaska Division of Oil and Gas received 43 bids from companies and investors interested in obtaining state leases during its latest Cook Inlet and Alaska Peninsula oil and gas lease sales. Winning bidders have 10 years to explore and potentially develop the leased acreage. The division received 40 bids from eight bidders on 35 tracts encompassing 114,203 acres in the Cook Inlet sale area. It received three bids from two bidders on three tracts encompassing 10,280 acres in the Alaska Peninsula sale area. Winning bonus bids totaled $5.35 million for the Cook Inlet sale and $51,400 for the Alaska Peninsula sale. “This year’s lease sale results show continued optimism among investors about the hydrocarbon resource potential of these two regions, and that state-owned acreage is considered highly prospective for oil and gas development,” said Division of Oil and Gas Director Bill Barron. “The sale results also demonstrate continued growth in the market potential for Cook Inlet oil and gas.”

The Ohio House of Representatives late Wednesday afternoon voted 55-35 in favor of a bill that would levy a 2.5% severance tax on oil and natural gas produced from horizontal wells.

There should be enough power to go around this summer across the various regions of the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC). But Texas could be squeezed if peak demand hits sooner than anticipated new generating capacity comes online. Also, as natural gas accounts for a larger portion of generating capacity across power grids, systems are having to adjust, NERC said Wednesday.