Reach

Pennsylvania lost nearly $200 million in state revenue by not imposing a tax on natural gas in October 2009, according a statewide think tank.

The economics of shale gas development are fundamentally different than conventional resources, requiring a longer time line to reach profitability, according to Terry Engelder, the Pennsylvania State University geosciences professor who helped prove the value of the Marcellus Shale.

The economics of shale gas development are fundamentally different than conventional resources, requiring a longer time line to reach profitability, according to Terry Engelder, the Pennsylvania State University geosciences professor who helped prove the value of the Marcellus Shale.

Omaha, NE-based TC PipeLines LP late Tuesday agreed to expand its reach in a $605 million transaction that would give it a one-quarter stake in two natural gas pipelines owned by TransCanada Corp.: Gas Transmission Northwest LLC (GTN) and Bison Pipeline LLC.

Chesapeake Energy Corp. expects to reach a 2014 goal to convert its entire corporate fleet of 4,200 vehicles to compressed natural gas (CNG), officials said Tuesday.

Seal Beach, CA-based Clean Energy Fuels Corp. has made two deals to expand its market reach nationally, entering a securities purchase agreement to acquire fueling technology provider Wyoming Northstar Inc. for $10.9 million in cash, and through a subsidiary inking an agreement with a New Jersey-based alternative fuel vehicle manufacturer, Clean Vehicle Solutions LLC, to provide compressed natural gas (CNG) systems for the small vehicle makers’ products.

Operator Williams Field Services (WFS) said the Opal Plant did not reach full production at the projected time Tuesday due to a delay in the turnaround time from a shutdown. Thus it was necessary to curtail nominations for Wednesday’s gas day to make up for the previous day’s shortfalls to downstream pipes, WFS said. LaBarge Compressor Station remained down, it added, and Enterprise “had issues at Bridger Station, which resulted in a significantly reduced volume to the inlet of Opal Plant.” There was no estimated time for Bridger Station start-up, WFS said Wednesday.

Forecasts of peak temperatures remained on either side of 90 in the South, Northeast and Midwest, and they were even destined to reach the mid to upper 90s Tuesday in the Rockies. Cash traders shrugged their shoulders, however, and instead noted the previous Friday’s 6.3-cent drop by August futures and the weekend fade of any tropical storm threat to Gulf of Mexico output in sending prices slightly lower at most locations Monday.

Will this country’s abundant, home-grown natural gas shale resources reach their full potential as a bridge fuel to a clean, green energy future or will market forces and onerous government restrictions combine to ratchet down their explosive development? Industry leaders at the 24th annual GasMart will be discussing how companies now are moderating their spending on natural gas development while emphasizing oil and liquids-rich properties, just as the economy and industrial markets are coming back to life.