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When North American operators successfully used technology to tap into unconventional onshore natural gas reserves, it triggered a shift in the markets that has upended activity around the world, but where it leads is still a question to be answered, two long-time market watchers said Thursday.

Continuing its basement-to-the-penthouse rise in the energy sector, North Dakota’s latest oil/gas production statistics make the state that had no drilling rigs operating in 1999 now the second biggest oil producer in the nation, trailing only Texas.

After a chemical disclosure bill was shot down last year, critics of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in California are attempting to rekindle a fire in Sacramento to heat up both regulators and legislators, according to a report in Thursday’s Los Angeles Times. Focused on ways to create jobs, Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration has shied away from the issue, fearing it could stymie growth in the energy sector.

Ohio is a “long shot” for a world class ethane cracker planned for Appalachia, but the state would still benefit if the facility lands anywhere in the region, Ohio Gov. John Kasich said Tuesday.

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. says it is “disappointed” and “concerned” over a decision by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to conduct water sampling in Dimock Township, PA, saying the action duplicates a state investigation, causes regulatory uncertainty and conflicts with Obama administration policy.

The Obama administration on Wednesday denied the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline proposal on the recommendation of the U.S. State Department, saying at this time it is not in the U.S. national interest to build the 1,700-mile link from Alberta, Canada to the Gulf of Mexico (GOM).

Saying daily demand exceeds its capacity, Southern issued Wednesday an OFO Type 3 Level 2 allocating deliveries at 16 groups on its system.

Pacific Gas and Electric’s (PG&E) California Gas Transmission system issued a Cold Weather Alert Tuesday, saying the current forecast called for many areas to be at or beyond its Cold Winter Day (CWD) conditions, including the cities of Santa Rosa, Redding and Sacramento. CWD is a design day criteria used to ensure reliable gas service for core and noncore customers, PG&E said. The CWD design temperature is defined as the coldest temperature that may be exceeded once in every two years, on average. The system-weighted mean temperature for a CWD is about 37 degrees Fahrenheit. Lows for the valley areas in PG&E service territory were expected to be in the upper 20s and low 30s Monday morning, and upper 20s on Tuesday morning. No local curtailments are expected, PG&E said.

Tennessee will implement Imbalance Warnings in downstream market-area Zones 5 and 6 Saturday, saying it has limited operational flexibility to manage imbalances there over what is predicted to be a cold long holiday weekend. All delivery point operators in the zones will be required to keep actual daily takes out of the system equal to or less than scheduled quantities regardless of their cumulative imbalance position. Receipt point operators must keep actual daily receipts into the system equal to or greater than scheduled quantities regardless of their cumulative imbalance position.