Partnerships

While it kicks off a long-term partnership with Chesapeake Energy Corp. on a drilling program in the Utica Shale of eastern Ohio, EV Energy Partners LP (EVEP) is preparing its own exploration campaign in the region.

The technical portion of a feasibility study of a gas-to-liquids (GTL) project in Western Canada, which is under consideration by Talisman Energy Inc. and Sasol Ltd., is expected to be completed during the fourth quarter of this year, according to the Foster Wheeler AG subsidiary that will perform the study.

EnerVest Ltd. and affiliated partnerships including EV Energy Partners LP have agreed to buy oil and gas properties in the Barnett Shale from Talon Oil & Gas LLC for $967 million. The price, subject to adjustments, includes 3-D seismic across all of the acreage and hedges from the seller. The majority of the 20,207 gross acres is in the core of the Barnett Shale in North Texas. The properties produce 87 MMcfe/d from 212 active wells, with 1.1 Tcfe in reserves. The acquisition adds the Barnett Shale as EnerVest’s fourth core operating area. Production from the wells is 29% natural gas liquids/71% natural gas, the company said. EnerVest said it will produce 384 MMcfe/d from 18,530 wells with 2.7 Tcfe of reserves upon closing of the acquisition, which is scheduled for Dec. 30.

NiSource Gas Transmission & Storage (NGT&S) and MarkWest Liberty Midstream & Resources Inc. have joined a growing list of joint venture partnerships onshore to develop new natural gas gathering, processing and transmission projects to support more production volumes in the northern West Virginia area of the Marcellus Shale.

Enterprise Products Partners LP (EPD), which became one of the largest publicly traded midstream partnerships in the country after it merged last year with related entity TEPPCO Partners LP, stands ready to provide natural gas producers with the infrastructure they need to process and transport their production, CEO Michael Creel said last week.

Enterprise Products Partners LP (EPD), which became one of the largest publicly traded midstream partnerships in the country after it merged last year with related entity TEPPCO Partners LP, stands ready to provide natural gas producers with the infrastructure they need to process and transport their production, CEO Michael Creel said Monday.

Enterprise Products Partners LP (EPD), which became one of the largest publicly traded midstream partnerships in the country after it merged last year with related entity TEPPCO Partners LP, stands ready to provide natural gas producers with the infrastructure they need to process and transport their production, CEO Michael Creel said Monday.

Upstream master limited partnerships (MLP) have suffered from the credit crisis along with all high-yield securities, but the distributions from companies in this sector are backed by “solid” oil and natural gas production and cash flows, which will only increase over time, said energy analysts in a note to clients.

In a major win for interstate pipelines, FERC last Thursday adopted a policy statement that allows the use of master limited partnerships (MLPs) in proxy groups to determine oil and natural gas pipelines’ returns on equity (ROE) for ratemaking purposes. The new policy responds to the decline in publicly traded companies with substantial pipeline assets and the rise in MLPs in the pipe sector.