Separate

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee is scheduled to mark up nine separate bills Thursday, which could be merged into a larger energy and climate package that the Democratic leadership will bring to the floor later this month.

Pennsylvania legislators continue to wrestle over details of a $28 billion state budget, and a severance tax on natural gas drilling, possibly to be passed as a separate measure later this year, remains on the table. At the same time, the state’s regulators are pressuring drillers in the Marcellus Shale to improve the safety and environmental impact of their operations.

The summer of 2010 is likely to be warmer than normal for much of the country, with average temperatures nationwide much warmer than the summer of 2009, according to separate forecasts issued last week by AccuWeather.com Chief Long Range Forecaster Joe Bastardi and Andover, MA-based WSI Corp. And the consensus forecast for the hurricane season is pointing increasingly towards an unusually active season, with WSI and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Climate Prediction Center each increasing the number of tropical storms they expect to form in the Atlantic.

Talisman Energy Inc., which has been working to narrow its focus in North America on unconventional natural gas, said Wednesday it has five separate agreements in place with some undisclosed buyers to sell assets in Ontario and in Western Canada for a total of C$1.5 billion.

Talisman Energy Inc., which has been working to narrow its focus in North America on unconventional natural gas, said Wednesday it has five separate agreements in place with some undisclosed buyers to sell assets in Ontario and in Western Canada for a total of C$1.5 billion.

Natural gas prices may be “rangebound” into 2011 and could, in fact, be lower than average prices this year, two separate energy analysts said last week.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the world’s largest business federation, and the state of Texas have filed separate petitions in federal court in Washington, DC, challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) authority to regulate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions under the Clean Air Act (CAA).

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the world’s largest business federation, and the state of Texas have filed separate petitions in federal court in Washington, DC, challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) authority to regulate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions under the Clean Air Act (CAA).

Range Resources Corp. and Denbury Resources Inc. in separate announcements said they would sell some onshore natural gas properties to focus on their core businesses. Range is selling some Ohio properties that include around 3,500 producing wells that currently produce 25 MMcfe/d net. The properties, which are 70% weighted to gas, include 418,000 net acres of leasehold and about 1,600 miles of pipeline and gathering system infrastructure. Range retained an adviser to assist in the sales process and it plans to open a data room in early January. Assuming a suitable bid is received, Range expects to close the sale before the end of March. Denbury, which now focuses on carbon dioxide tertiary recovery projects in the onshore, agreed to sell its remaining Barnett Shale stake for $210 million to Talon Oil & Gas LLC, a privately held producer. Talon, which expects to complete the transaction by then end of the year, had earlier purchased a 60% stake in the properties (see NGI, May 18).