Lead

Consol Energy Inc. said last week it has too much of a good thing — natural gas — and low prices will lead to reduced spending and well drilling in the Marcellus Shale this year.

Consol Energy Inc. said Thursday it has too much of a good thing — natural gas — and low prices will lead to reduced spending and well drilling in the Marcellus Shale this year.

The prospects for exporting U.S. natural gas are intertwined with a whole set of variables that are becoming increasingly tough to predict, according to the lead gas and electricity prognosticator at the California Energy Commission (CEC).

The prospects for exporting U.S. natural gas are intertwined with a whole set of variables that are becoming increasingly tough to predict, according to the lead gas and electricity prognosticator at the California Energy Commission (CEC).

Shale-inspired historic low prices for natural gas are reconfiguring the electricity generation sector, particularly for renewable or clean power, according to Sacramento, CA-based consultant/independent power entrepreneur Mark Henwood. The market is beginning to notice what Henwood called “this rapid shift in natural gas economics.”

The global economy has stabilized or is improving, which will lead to more investments and job growth in 2012 for the oil and gas industry, according to a majority of energy executives surveyed by Ernst & Young LLP.

The global economy has stabilized or is improving, which will lead to more investments and job growth in 2012 for the oil and gas industry, according to a majority of energy executives surveyed by Ernst & Young LLP.

The Cana-Woodford, Eagle Ford and Bakken/Sanish/Three Forks plays continued to lead the activity growth in unconventional fields over the last year as oil and gas producers put more weight on liquids-rich shales to take advantage of higher commodity prices found in oil and natural gas liquids. Conversely, some of the nation’s dry gas shales have seen the largest drilling activity declines as natural gas prices remain below $4/MMBtu for much of the country.

The Cana-Woodford, Eagle Ford and Bakken/Sanish/Three Forks plays continued to lead the activity growth in unconventional fields over the last year as oil and gas producers put more weight on liquids-rich shales to take advantage of higher commodity prices found in oil and natural gas liquids. Conversely, some of the nation’s dry gas shales have seen the largest drilling activity declines as natural gas prices remain below $4/MMBtu for much of the country.