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A class action lawsuit in Ohio pending in a Youngstown court could affect property owners attempting to rid themselves of original lease agreements with oil and natural gas operators.

Private energy equity behemoth Riverstone Holdings LLC has raised $7.7 billion to invest in energy businesses, exceeding its original $6 billion target, the firm said Wednesday.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he will make the long-delayed decision on whether to lift a moratorium on high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) before the next gubernatorial election in 2014.

What once was Rockies producers’ hotshot ride to higher netbacks is to be remade as the “expressway to the markets” from the Marcellus and Utica shales. The Rockies Express Pipeline LLC (REX) is embarking on a “great reversal” with the aim of sparing Appalachia producers the pricing pain felt so deeply out west half a decade ago.

ConocoPhillips leaseholds in the Eagle Ford and Bakken shales, along with the Permian Basin, together boosted their year/year output by 42% in the first quarter, management said Thursday.

Scaling back from original plans for a shift to more natural gas-fired generation, Nevada’s major utility, NV Energy, has submitted to state lawmakers a plan for dumping coal-fired generation, but so far the plan has stirred a political fight.

A lawsuit filed by Range Resources Corp. against a Texas couple that accused the company of contaminating drinking water with drilling activity should be heard in state district court in Weatherford, TX, the Texas Second District Court of Appeals in Fort Worth ruled recently. Landowners Steven and Shyla Lipsky sued Range in 2011 after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an order that said Range was responsible for the contamination. However, EPA ultimately backed down from its claim (see Shale Daily, April 2). Range counter-sued the Lipskys and environmental consultant, Alisa Rich of Wolf Eagle Environmental, claiming that they conspired to incriminate the company. The Lipsky’s lawsuit against Range was thrown out, but Range’s counter-suit was allowed to proceed (see Shale Daily, Aug. 29, 2012). The case could still be heard in appeals court but only if all parties, including the trial court judge, agree to it by April 11. Range is seeking $3 million in damages. A Range spokesman said the company was still considering the court question, but is confident that the original ruling is correct and that Range’s claims should proceed to trial.

Portions of the Susquehanna River Valley aquifer in an area of New York that overlies the Marcellus and Utica shales are among the most favorable for potential large-scale groundwater supply, according to a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) study.

As the state of New York missed Wednesday’s deadline to create regulations for high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF), supporters and opponents of the practice took aim at Gov. Andrew Cuomo, anti-fracking lawmakers sought a one-year moratorium, and a landowners group said it would sue the state over the delay.