Shales

The Marcellus and Eagle Ford shales have exactly what the U.S. gas market doesn’t need right now: more gas on the way, according to natural gas analysts at Barclays Capital. They titled their latest note — an analysis of the effects of upcoming pipeline debottlenecking in the two plays — “Unleashing a Caged Monster.”

A series of recent reports highlights the economic benefits of the burgeoning gas industry in eastern Ohio’s Utica and Marcellus shales and, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, shale energy “has the potential to be an economic game-changer” for the state and the nation.

Williams Partners LP is holding a nonbinding open season through June 28 for expansion of its Transco pipeline to provide incremental firm service to markets in northern Georgia and Alabama by 2016.

Although its profits fell while production grew, Southwestern Energy Co. said its drilling programs in both the Fayetteville and Marcellus shales remain profitable. But the Houston-based company also plans to divert $50 million in midstream capital toward ventures in the Brown Dense formation and the Denver-Julesburg (DJ) Basin.

Consol Energy Inc. began its shift toward liquids in the first quarter, moving into the wet-gas portions of the Marcellus and Utica shales of southwestern Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio.

Consol Energy Inc. began its shift toward liquids in the first quarter, moving into the wet-gas portions of the Marcellus and Utica shales of southwestern Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio.

As oil and gas companies look to hire local workers in eastern Ohio’s booming Marcellus and Utica shales, local and company officials say they are keeping a cautious eye on the issue of drug abuse in the region.

A new technology to remotely monitor conditions at gas wells in the Marcellus Shale play to ensure compliance with environmental regulations has been developed through a research partnership funded by the Department of Energy (DOE), according to DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy (FE).

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine is urging state lawmakers to enact tougher regulations on the oil and gas industry, including higher penalties for violations and requiring operators to not only disclose what chemicals are used for hydraulic fracturing (fracking) but also their precise formulations.