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Penn Virginia Corp. has acquired about 4,100 net Eagle Ford Shale acres in Gonzales and Lavaca counties, TX, for about $10 million. Under existing joint venture agreements, other nonoperated working interest owners are expected to acquire 17% of the net acreage in Gonzales County and 46% of the net acreage in Lavaca County, increasing Penn Virginia’s Eagle Ford acreage position by about 3,000 net acres to a total of 30,000 net acres (40,100 gross). The acquired 3,200 net acres of leasehold in Gonzales County is adjacent to Penn Virginia’s development area and is estimated to contain 20 horizontal well locations, excluding any down-spaced drilling opportunities. The acquired 895 net acres of leasehold in Lavaca County is complementary to existing leasehold in nine units, with an estimated addition of 10 horizontal well locations, the company said.

Unconventional oil and gas drilling within the 13 plays tracked by NGI’s Shale Daily Unconventional Rig Count increased by one rig over the previous week to 890 rigs for the week ending Aug. 10. While some of the plays reporting increases or declines in activity were to be expected, others came as a bit of a surprise.

A series of recent reports highlights the economic benefits of the burgeoning gas industry in eastern Ohio’s Utica and Marcellus shales and, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, shale energy “has the potential to be an economic game-changer” for the state and the nation.

In about nine years the United States will be a net exporter of natural gas, according to an update from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Information Administration (EIA) and despite the agency’s dramatic cut in estimates of the shale resource base, particularly in the Marcellus.

AGL Resources’ Atlanta Gas Light Co. said it has received qualified proposals from the city of Atlanta and seven commercial operators to build up to nine compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling stations throughout Georgia under a program authorized by regulators last year. The first station is slated to open in mid-2013.

AGL Resources’ Atlanta Gas Light Co. said Wednesday it has received qualified proposals from the city of Atlanta and seven commercial operators to build up to nine new compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling stations throughout Georgia under a program authorized by state regulators last year (see Daily GPI, Nov. 2, 2011). The first station is slated to open in mid-2013.

During the first quarter Pioneer Natural Resources Co. grew production by 10,000 boe/d to 147,000 boe/d, a 7% increase from the year-ago period, thanks to growth in its three core liquids-rich assets in Texas: the Spraberry field, the Eagle Ford Shale and the Barnett Shale Combo play.

U.S. household expenditures for natural gas this winter are on track to be the lowest in nine years, while consumption is poised to finish the 2011-2012 heating season at a 10-year low, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

In about nine years the United States will be a net exporter of natural gas, according to an update from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Information Administration (EIA) and despite the agency’s dramatic cut in estimates of the shale resource base, particularly in the Marcellus.