Operations

As drilling increases in the Marcellus and Utica shales, researchers from the Battelle Memorial Institute are studying the geology and operations of wastewater injection wells in four states, with the hope that the data collected will ensure that future wells are drilled in safe locations.

Some of the pieces, albeit uneven, were being put back in place Tuesday by natural gas and oil operators that have felt the sting of the torrential rains and flash flooding that has claimed lives and property throughout the Front Range of Colorado.

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell Wednesday named former Vice Admiral Brian Salerno to direct the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), which oversees oil and gas operations on the federal Outer Continental Shelf. Salerno, who retired from the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) last year as its Deputy Commandant for Operations, will assume his new post on Aug. 26, replacing James Watson.

Royal Dutch Shell plc has launched a strategic review of its North American oil and gas operations, particularly the unconventional assets, after taking a charge of more than $2 billion on the value of its U.S. and Canadian liquids-rich properties.

ENGlobal Corp. has been awarded a $5 million contract to provide engineering and procurement support services for a cryogenic processing plant being built in Carroll County, OH, and owned by Utica East Ohio Midstream LLC (UEO).

North American exploration and production (E&P) companies will, over the next few weeks, unveil their earnings and operations results for the second quarter, but analysts aren’t expecting any big upside surprises. Instead, they hope for details on Marcellus Shale pricing, emerging sweet spots in the Utica Shale and details about wells in several big onshore basins.

A state-of-the-art terminal in northwestern Alberta to provide sand for unconventional drilling operations is set to open this November, Edmonton-based Di-Corp said Wednesday.

Oilfield services provider Flowserve Corp. will relocate some of its pump division operations from New Jersey to Pennsylvania, a 15-mile move that brings more than 100 jobs to a state much more supportive of the company’s bread and butter: oil and gas drilling.

While critics and environmental activists are unhappy, the oil and natural gas industry is celebrating long-awaited changes in New Mexico’s rules for disposal of drilling waste known as the “pit rule.”