Others

Regulation of hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) by the Oil and Gas Conservation Division of the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) is well managed but could use more funding, according to a review conducted by the nonprofit State Review of Oil and Natural Gas Environmental Regulations (STRONGER).

Blizzard conditions that were still continuing in some areas but starting to fade in others, along with fluctuations in pipeline activity to handle low linepack, made for a wild mix of both large and small price declines and increases in Thursday’s market. Increases modestly outnumbered the declines.

Natural gas futures retreated Monday as traders quickly reacted to reports of some moderation in private weather forecasts while others attributed the magnitude of the decline to computer-driven sell orders. At the close February natural gas fell 15.6 cents to $4.580 and March retreated 14.5 cents to $4.598. March crude oil lost $1.24 to $87.87/bbl.

The board of EXCO Resources Inc. has formed a special committee to consider a buyout proposal from CEO Douglas H. Miller. Evaluation of the offer — and any others that might come — is expected by analysts to take anywhere from six to 12 months.

Shale plays figured prominently in the third quarter performance of Denver-based QEP Resources as the company grew production by about 20% from the year-ago period.

A proposed severance tax on natural gas drilling in Pennsylvania may be dead this year, but the issue could return during the 2011 legislative session and it lives on in the campaigns of the candidates for governor. With Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell leaving office in January and the makeup of the state’s currently Democrat-dominated House and Republican-dominated Senate likely to change with the Nov. 2 election, Pennsylvania’s Marcellus policies could be looking at a facelift next year.

The Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) is seeking comment from residential and small-volume commercial customers and others who would be affected by broader retail competition in the state’s natural gas markets.

Previous claims by former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and others that oil and gas exploration and development activity in the eastern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) would harm military training and readiness “were premature and based on incomplete information,” a recent report by energy industry group Securing America’s Future Energy (SAFE) maintains.

Previous claims by former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and others that oil and gas exploration and development activity in the eastern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) would harm military training and readiness “were premature and based on incomplete information,” a recent report by energy industry group Securing America’s Future Energy (SAFE) maintains.