natural gas

Newly re-formed Rock Oil Holdings LLC has secured a private equity commitment of up to $250 million from Riverstone Holdings LLC subsidiaries to secure acreage in the Eagle Ford and Utica shales, and the Permian Basin. Company executives previously built a leasehold and associated production in the Eagle Ford, which were sold in separate transactions in 2012 and 2013 to Sabine Oil & Gas LLC and Sanchez Energy Corp. Abraxas Petroleum Corp. in 2010 had partnered in the play with predecessor Blue Stone Oil & Gas LLC (see Shale Daily, Aug. 30, 2010). Affiliate Riverstone Energy Ltd. also has committed $82 million to privately held Fieldwood Energy LLC, which it formed and which is the largest producer in the Outer Continental Shelf of the Gulf of Mexico (see Daily GPI, March 12).

California power plant regulators decided Wednesday to begin the certification process for building a new natural gas-fired baseload generation plant along the coast in Long Beach to replace an older gas-fired plant that faces retirement because of new statewide restrictions on using ocean water for cooling coastal power plants. The California Energy Commission unanimously agreed to begin the formal siting proceedings for AES Southland Development LLC’s proposed 1,936 MW Alamitos Energy Center, concluding the power plant operator’s application was “data adequate.” If certified, the new plant would replace the existing 2,000 MW AES Alamitos facility that uses once-through cooling, which has been deemed to harm marine life.

The North American energy sector — from exploration and production (E&P), oilfield services and midstream — still has a big target on its back again this year among activists that want to force changes, according to Moody’s Investors Service.

An explosion and the collapse of two buildings Wednesday morning that resulted in at least two deaths in the East Harlem section of New York City are believed to have been caused by a natural gas leak.

Production from five of the top six major tight/shale oil and natural gas regions in the United States are projected to increase over the next year, reaching totals comparable to nations on the world stage, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).

California Gov. Jerry Brown was shouted down by anti-hydraulic fracturing (fracking) advocates last weekend in Los Angeles at a state Democratic Party meeting in which a majority of the political party attendees forced a call for a ban on the drilling practice as part of the official platform this election year.

Hilcorp Energy Co. was hydraulically fracturing (fracking) one of its wells in the days leading up to a series of minor earthquakes that were reported in Northeast Ohio on Monday, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).

Physical natural gas prices for Thursday delivery on balance gained over 50 cents, but double-dollar gains in New England and along the Atlantic Seaboard were more than able to offset weaker quotes in the Midwest, Midcontinent, California and the Rockies. The gains on Wednesday were weather-driven as a fast moving winter storm was moving to the East Coast through Friday. At the close of futures trading, April had dropped 11.5 cents to $4.490, and May was off 10.3 cents to $4.441. April crude oil slumped $2.04 to $97.99/bbl.

The Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) announced that Steven Tambini has accepted the position of executive director, effective Aug. 1. A resolution officially appointing Tambini will be introduced at the DRBC’s next meeting on Wednesday. Tambini succeeds Carol Collier, who is retiring after 15 years of service (see Shale Daily, Sept. 16, 2013). Collier’s last day at the helm is Wednesday. Richard Gore, the agency’s chief administrative officer, will serve as acting executive director until Tambini takes over.