Program

Petrohawk Energy Corp. has gone west in pursuit of oil and liquids-rich gas production from the Permian Basin, adding to its established holdings in the Eagle Ford and Haynesville shales.

The California Energy Commission (CEC) awarded nearly $1 million recently for a research project on the conversion of biosolids to energy. The $999,924 from CEC’s Public Interest Energy Research program was awarded to Antioch, CA-based Delta Diablo Sanitation District to develop, demonstrate and implement a system for turning biosolids into energy. The project’s total cost is $4.7 million, with the rest of the funding coming from Intellergy Corp. in Richmond, CA. Biosolids are the treated byproducts produced by wastewater treatment facilities when organics are removed from municipal sewage. Biosolids contain latent energy that potentially can be harnessed in several ways, one of which is to heat the material, breaking it down into gases that are converted to energy. In the Delta Diablo facility, steam and carbon dioxide will be added to produce a hydrogen-rich synthetic gas that will be used to run a fuel cell to produce electricity.

EXCO Resources Inc. has withdrawn its proposal to lease nearly 300 acres of borough-owned land for Marcellus Shale gas drilling operations in Ford City, PA, about 40 miles northeast of Pittsburgh in Armstrong County, the borough council said Tuesday.

A pair of water advocacy groups claim that two Pittsburgh-area treatment plants have been discharging oil and gas wastewater without proper permits.

Despite reporting a $16.3 million net loss for 2010, Magnum Hunter Resources Corp. believes that recent and pending acquisitions could help the company more than triple production, allowing it to compete with bigger companies in three major shale plays.

ConocoPhillips on Friday said it plans to spend $13.5 billion for its 2011 capital program, with almost 90% set aside to support exploration and production (E&P).

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) this week finalized greenhouse gas (GHG) reporting requirements for the petroleum and natural gas industries as part of its mandatory reporting program.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last week finalized greenhouse gas (GHG) reporting requirements for the petroleum and natural gas industries as part of its mandatory reporting program.

Calgary-based Calfrac Well Services Ltd. said Thursday it will increase its capital spending program this year and into 2011 by C$56 million, or 25%, to accommodate the jump in hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracing) work being performed on wells in U.S. shale plays.