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With natural gas and electric utility operations in eight states, Xcel Energy experienced flat demand and results last year that saw a drop in gas sales, and the prospect for this year and beyond is more of the same, according to CEO Ben Fowke.

A group of Republican and Democratic senators last week proposed legislation that seeks to expedite exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member nations, Japan and others.

The coming spring could rank among the top-ten warmest on record, but that warmth isn’t expected to be as widespread or as extreme as last year, according to AccuWeather.com’s long-range forecast team.

Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman last week approved the revised route for the northern portion of TransCanada Corp.’s proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline, which would run through his state. He notified both President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton of his decision in a letter.

Chesapeake Energy Corp. last week agreed to allow the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to conduct extensive tests at one of its drilling sites as part of the ongoing investigation into the safety of hydraulic fracturing (fracking). Range Resources Corp. also may allow EPA to work at one of its drilling sites.

Iroquois Gas Transmission System said it will pursue development of the Wright Interconnect Project (WIP), an expansion of its existing compression and metering facilities in Wright, NY. Last week Constitution Pipeline Co. said that a finalized route it will propose for a Marcellus pipeline included an agreement with Iroquois to expand the compressor station, which would eliminate the need for Constitution to build a 32,0000-hp compressor facility in Schoharie County, NY (see Shale Daily, Jan. 22). The WIP project will enable delivery of up to 650,000 Dth/d of natural gas from the terminus of the proposed Constitution Pipeline in Schoharie County into both Iroquois and the Tennessee Gas Pipeline under a 15 year capacity lease agreement with Constitution, Iroquois said. WIP is targeted for an in-service date of March 2015 to coincide with the startup of the Constitution Pipeline.

Seneca Resources Corp., the exploration and production subsidiary of National Fuel Gas Co., said Tuesday that six recently completed wells targeting the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania are among the most productive ever drilled in the play, according to initial test results.

The North American onshore rig count may recover somewhat in 2013, but it likely will be lower than last year, Schlumberger Ltd. CEO Paal Kibsgaard said Friday.

Royal Dutch Shell plc has clinched a production sharing agreement in Ukraine to explore shale gas deposits in the Yuzivske gas field, which may evolve into the “largest investment in Ukrainian history,” according to the nation’s energy minister.