Houston-based Chimera Energy Corp. has licensed a shale oil extraction technology that is designed to replace hydraulic fracturing (fracking) with a process that was originally developed for use in areas that were too cold for the use of water. Chimera is keeping details of the process under wraps “until the company has their patent in hand, some details about exothermic extraction of shale oil will be closely held,” according to Chimera’s website. The company only said that it does not use “acids or explosives.” Non-hydraulic extraction is “a cheaper and more effective extraction method that does not affect groundwater at all,” according to Chimera, which said it has put in place a procedure for engineering its new method for mass production, patenting, licensing and sales. Testing and third-party certification of the process has begun, Chimera said.
November
Articles from November
Industry Brief
The backer of a bid to hike the severance tax levied on natural gas producers operating in Arkansas last week submitted 69,717 signatures to a petition to get the initiative placed on the November ballot. Former gas utility executive Sheffield Nelson needed to gather 62,507 signatures. The signatures gathered have not yet been reviewed and could be challenged. Nelson wants to hike the severance tax to 7% from the current range of 1.25-5%. His opponents include energy industry members as well as the Arkansas Chamber of Commerce and anti-tax hike group Arkansas for Jobs and Affordable Energy. Nelson, a Republican who was a chairman of Arkla Inc. and a two-time gubernatorial candidate, is the leader of the Committee for a Fair Severance Tax (see Shale Daily, June 29).
Economist Backs Arkansas Severance Tax Hike
Former natural gas industry executive Sheffield Nelson has enlisted the aid of economist Charles Venus in his campaign to raise the severance tax that Arkansas levies on natural gas production. Raising the tax to 7% would mean an additional $155 million per year for state coffers, the equivalent of less than a day and a half of profits for ExxonMobil, Venus said recently.
Industry Briefs
The Eagle Ford Shale will drive a 15% increase in onshore gas production from the Texas Gulf Coast by November, offsetting declines elsewhere in Texas, according to Bentek Energy LLC. The firm said it expects Texas to be “increasingly long gas in the near term as Eagle Ford production growth continues to outpace demand,” putting downward pressure on regional prices. According to Bentek’s Texas Observer, the state’s supply is up by 1 Bcf/d, or 5%, from a year ago, with the increase driven by growth in onshore production. Demand is up only 0.6 Bcf/d over the same period, according to Bentek. “Due to the combination of Marcellus [Shale] pushback and milder winter weather, net Texas outflows have declined nearly 0.4 Bcf/d since this time last year. As a result, Texas is currently 0.8 Bcf/d longer supply than year-to-date 2011,” Bentek said.
Equitrans Cleared to Use OFO to Detect Lost Gas
FERC has rejected protests to an operational flow order (OFO) that Equitrans LP issued last November to determine whether lost-and-unaccounted-for (LAUF) gas was being caused by leaks on its Appalachian Basin gathering system.
Tetco Marcellus Expansion Gets FERC Nod
FERC Thursday issued a certificate to Texas Eastern Transmission (Tetco) to expand its mainline system in southwestern Pennsylvania to transport Marcellus Shale gas to markets in the Northeast.
Industry Briefs
Purestream Technology has contracted with Whiting Oil and Gas Corp. to deploy its Avara System, which can process up to 2,000 bbls of flowback water daily, for a water treatment project in Mountrail County, ND, to support Whiting’s operations in the Williston Basin. The clean finished water will be returned for continued use in hydraulic fracturing. The Avara system was developed in partnership with Utah State University’s Energy and Space Dynamics Labs.
Odds Looked Slim, But Prices Up at Nearly All Points
The odds seemed stacked against a cash price rally following Friday’s November futures decline of 11.7 cents and mild to cool temperatures continuing to dominate the overall post-weekend weather forecasts. But somehow the market managed to pull it off, although the restoration of industrial demand from its usual weekend dropoff was only a marginal bullish factor.
Natgas Can’t Resist Siren Call of Weak Oil, Equities; October Down
October natural gas fell hard Friday in a sympathetic move with free-falling equity and oil markets. October lost 17.8 cents to $3.872 and November retreated 17.6 cents to $3.990. October crude oil fared as poorly, losing $2.48 to $86.45/bbl.
FERC: Shale Gas Increased Influence on Market in 2010
Natural gas supply and demand set new records in 2010, while regional changes in production — including that from the nation’s fast-growing shale plays — altered the industry landscape, according to a state of the markets report issued Thursday by FERC’s Office of Enforcement.
