Shallow

Black Elk Energy on Sunday expanded its efforts to locate the last worker missing following a Friday explosion and fire onboard a shallow-water Gulf of Mexico (GOM) production platform.

Test well results and micro-seismic analysis have identified more than 200 drilling locations in the Mondak in the Upper Bakken Shale, according to initial drilling results released Thursday by Calgary, Alberta-based PetroShale.

Despite an ongoing struggle to clear a blockage on its Davy Jones prospect, considered one of the biggest natural gas discoveries in the Gulf of Mexico’s shallow waters, McMoRan Exploration Co.’s exploration results “remain positive,” the New Orleans-based producer said.

Davy Jones, considered one of the biggest natural gas discoveries in the Gulf of Mexico’s shallow waters, faces several weeks of delay before commercial production begins after operator McMoRan Exploration Co. reported that a blockage has prevented a measurable flow rate in the first well.

After a record-setting 2011, North Dakota continues to set all-time highs in oil and natural gas production, producing wells and rig counts, according to the latest statistics from the state’s Department of Mineral Resources (DMR).

An Alaska North Slope exploratory oil well that experienced “a shallow gas kick” Wednesday morning did not cause any injuries, but workers were evacuated as a precaution. The incident occurred at the Qugruk 2 drill site near Nuiqsut, about 625 miles north of Anchorage.

The West Virginia legislature overwhelmingly approved a landmark Marcellus Shale regulatory reform bill on Wednesday, opening a new chapter for natural gas development in the state.

Preliminary findings from a study being conducted by The University of Texas at Austin’s (UT) Energy Institute suggest no direct link between hydraulic fracturing (fracking) and groundwater contamination, researchers said Wednesday.

The GOP-controlled House last week easily passed two energy bills calling for an end to the de facto moratorium on shallow water and deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) and lifting President Obama’s ban on new offshore drilling. But the legislation faces an uncertain future in the Senate, which is controlled by Democrats.