There is “significant concern” among oil and gas interests that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court could deadlock in a 3-3 tie over the constitutionality of Act 13 because the high court’s newest appointee will not participate in the case challenging the law.
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Apache GOM Sale Shifts Focus to Onshore
Apache Corp., which had planned to sell about $4 billion worth of assets by the end of the year, accomplished that goal and more last week after agreeing to sell Gulf of Mexico (GOM) Outer Continental Shelf operations and properties, and the asset retirement obligations, to a Riverstone Holdings affiliate for $5.25 billion total.
Newfield, Hess Terminate Leases in Pennsylvania
Newfield Exploration Co. and joint venture (JV) partner Hess Corp., have terminated about 1,500 leases in northeastern Pennsylvania, dashing hopes that landowners could earn about $187.5 million in royalties.
California Recommends PG&E Pay Additional Penalty
In what would be an historically high fine, the safety staff of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) last week amended its $2.25 billion penalty recommendation against or Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) concerning the San Bruno, CA, natural gas pipeline rupture, to include a minimum of $300 million paid to the state’s general fund.
Industry Leaseholds Face Scrutiny in Pennsylvania, Ohio
The Pennsylvania Superior Court has thrown out a lawsuit brought by Fayette County family, which wanted an oil and gas lease agreement voided by claiming that some drilling activities weren’t contemplated when the contract was executed. However, similar lawsuits in the state and in Ohio are facing new scrutiny as well.
Flat Basis, Power Demand Need Rethink by NatGas Pipes, Say Experts
Power generation will continue to grow in importance to the natural gas market. Reliably connecting gas supply to power plants in the years ahead will take more than synchronizing the gas and power days; a capital-intensive infrastructure buildout is necessary, as is new thinking on the part of pipelines, industry executives said in Houston last Thursday.
Harvard Researcher Sees U.S. as Largest Oil Producer by ’17
The United States could produce 5 million b/d from shale oil deposits by 2017 and may become the world’s largest oil producer — reaching up to 16 million b/d in just a few years by combining shale with conventional oil, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and biofuels, according to a researcher at Harvard Kennedy School.
Industry Briefs
Tennessee Gas Pipeline has launched an open season through July 31 for firm natural gas transportation capacity on the Connecticut Expansion Project, which would deliver gas from its existing interconnect with Iroquois Gas Transmission in Wright, NY, to Zone 6 delivery points on Tennessee’s 200 and 300 Lines in Connecticut. The project, which would require upgrades and modifications to the existing pipeline system in New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut, is slated for service by November 2016. Available capacity would be about 72,100 Dth/d. The pipeline has entered into binding precedent agreements with three anchor shippers. Inexpensive shale gas has recently caught the attention of the Constitution State. In June Connecticut gas distribution utilities Yankee Gas, Connecticut Natural Gas and Southern Connecticut Gas, filed a joint gas expansion plan with the state’s Public Utilities Regulatory Authority and the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (see NGI, June 24). The plan outlines how the utilities would meet expansion goals proposed in the Gov. Dannel Malloy’s comprehensive energy strategy and the the recently enacted HB 6360 (see NGI, March 18). The utilities plan a “structured approach” to add 280,000 new gas heating customers over the next 10 years.
U.S. Dominating Global Energy M&A Market
The United States continued to crush the global merger and acquisition (M&A) market between April and June, but deal values in the first half of 2013 (1H2013) represented the lowest six-month period since at least 2007, according to a survey by PLS Inc. and partner Derrick Petroleum Services.
Alliance Pipeline Seeks Capacity Commitments Beyond 2015
With most of the pipeline’s original 15-year term natural gas transportation agreements ending on Nov. 30, 2015, Alliance Pipeline is offering capacity on its system effective Dec. 1, 2015.