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Although it recently dropped out of a Western Canada gas-to-liquids (GTL) project with Sasol Canada (see Shale Daily, June 29), Talisman Energy Inc. still foresees monetizing its Montney Shale reserves through “some form of conversion process,” CEO John Manzoni told financial analysts during an earnings conference call. Manzoni said the Montney resource is “big enough, it’s strategic enough, it’s material enough to be in some form of conversion process, which naturally now is more likely to be LNG [liquefied natural gas] then GTL, if that’s the case.” Multiple projects have been proposed to liquefy western Canadian gas and ship it to overseas markets (see Shale Daily, July 31). Manzoni alluded to the LNG projects and said, “…in the context of all of that, we are considering all options and continue to do so…for our Montney resource, how best to create the maximum value for Talisman at the right time for our Montney resource, which is very big and very strategic.”

The New York State Public Service Commission (PSC) recently approved St. Lawrence Gas Co.’s amended certificate of public convenience and necessity for a system expansion in upstate New York. Construction is set to begin this month, the Enbridge Gas Distribution subsidiary said.

Pacific Gas and Electric Co. was placed on the defensive last week by reports that suggested that as recently as four years ago the combination utility was encouraging workers to defer natural gas pipeline leak repairs. The combination utility responded and said it took exception to the allegations, which date back to 2008.

Devon Energy recently completed its fourth horizontal well in the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale (TMS) and the initial production test figures show the strongest oil production results of the company’s TMS wells drilled to date” at 384 b/d, according to the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

The shale development frenzy of the last couple of years has cooled dramatically in recent months as natural gas prices, and more recently crude and natural gas liquids prices, have plummeted. Out of the 13 U.S. plays for which NGI’s Shale Daily tracks unconventional rig counts, nine are showing a lower level of drilling activity than one year ago, with most of them recording a drop of 30% or more.

A horizontal well targeting the Cotton Valley formation in northern Louisiana recently flowed at an initial production rate of 3,019 boe/d over a 24-hour period, according to privately held producer Indigo Minerals LLC.

Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead appealed to U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar Thursday for more time to review the proposed Bureau of Land Management (BLM) rules on hydraulic fracturing (fracking). In a letter to the Obama administration cabinet member, Mead asked for an extension of the comment period on the draft BLM rules.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently granted three separate authorizations for the export of domestic liquefied natural gas (LNG) to SB Power Solutions Inc. (SPS), Gulf LNG Liquefaction Co. LLC and Southern LNG Co. LLC. Exports are to be allowed to countries with which the United States has a free trade agreement (FTA).

Federal and state agencies have taken several steps recently to bolster the safety record of firms in the oil and gas patch, first by urging Oklahoma exploration and production companies to participate in a temporary work stoppage to address safety and health issues, and second by issuing a nationwide hazard alert related to hydraulic fracturing (fracking).