Position

Thomas F. Darden has retired from the Quicksilver Resources Inc. board chairmanship and from his officer position effective Wednesday, the company said. He will remain on the board as a director and chairman emeritus and will continue to work for Quicksilver through the end of the year. He will be focused on pursuing a joint venture in British Columbia’s Horn River Basin, something that the Fort Worth, TX-based company has sought for some time (see Shale Daily, May 8). Darden is to retire from Quicksilver on Dec. 31 but will continue to advise the company on the Horn River development and other projects, the company said. W. Yandell Rogers was elected chairman Wednesday. He has served as an independent director since March 1999.

ExxonMobil Corp. fell from its No. 1 position on the Fortune 500 of top revenue earners last year to No. 2 behind Wal-Mart Stores, Fortune reported on Monday.

Halcon Resources Corp. said it has acquired more than 50,000 net acres of leasehold in an Eagle Ford Shale play in East Texas, and plans to eventually triple its presence and invest $100 million there this year.

Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary-designate Ernest J. Moniz fielded questions about his position on hydraulic fracturing (fracking), natural gas exports and climate change during his confirmation hearing Tuesday before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Goldman Sachs on Friday joined two other analyst houses in boosting U.S. natural gas price forecasts, recommending that investors position themselves for “higher prices over the course of 2013.” The gas rig count also is predicted to surpass the 500 mark by the end of the year.

EOG Resources Inc. has struck a joint exploration and development agreement with Eaglebine formation partners ZaZa Energy Corp. and Range Resources Corp. in Walker, Grimes, Madison, Trinity and Montgomery counties, TX.

The Marcellus Shale today is the largest U.S. natural gas production region, with output of more than 7 Bcf/d, which has led to a “significant, positive” impact on early movers, but some operators continue to underperform share-wise in the play, according to IHS Inc.

Wyoming has hired a new oil/natural gas supervisor, Grant Black, a 30-year geology veteran who will assume his new position May 1. The state has been without a permanent supervisor at the Wyoming Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (OGCC) since long-time incumbent Tom Doll resigned last year after a run-in with Gov. Matt Mead (see Shale Daily, June 18, 2012). Department veteran Bob King has filled in on an interim basis. Once the oil/gas supervisor in Arkansas (1999-2004), Black holds geology degrees from the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University.

Santa Fe Petroleum Inc. announced Thursday that it had acquired additional leased acres in North Central Texas for oil and natural gas drilling, expanding its position in the Barnett Shale.