Signed

Surrounded by members of the state’s congressional delegation, Utah Gov. Gary Herbert on Friday signed legislation (HB 148) that seeks to have the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) turn over to the state the public lands it manages. The expectation is that this is the opening shot in what may become a legal war between several western states and the federal government.

The governing boards of Mexico’s Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) and Spain’s Repsol YPF announced Tuesday that they have signed a 10-year strategic alliance and plan to cooperate in several areas, including exploration and production (E&P) and liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Officials from the United States and Mexico have signed an agreement that would allow for the development of oil and natural gas reservoirs along the two countries’ maritime boundary in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM). The transboundary agreement removes a ban on exploration and production activities in nearly 1.5 million acres of U.S. Outer Continental Shelf, which the Interior Department estimates contain as much as 304 Bcf of natural gas and 172 million bbl of oil. The agreement also would open up resources in the Western Gap — located in the western planning area of the GOM — that were off limits to both countries under a previous treaty, which imposed a moratorium along the boundary through 2014. The agreement sets guidelines for U.S. producers and Mexico’s state oil company Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) to agree to jointly develop the boundary-hugging reserves. If consensus cannot be reached, the agreement establishes a process through which U.S. producers and Pemex can individually develop the resources on each side of the border while protecting each nation’s interests and resources.

Officials from the United States and Mexico signed an agreement Monday that would allow for the development of oil and natural gas reservoirs along the two countries’ maritime boundary in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM).

Pennsylvania is on its way to officially charging a fee for Marcellus Shale drilling. Gov. Tom Corbett signed House Bill 1950 on Monday evening, giving shale gas-rich counties in the state the ability to impose a 15-year impact fee on unconventional gas wells; now it’s up to the locals.

Pennsylvania is on its way to officially charging a fee for Marcellus Shale drilling. Gov. Tom Corbett signed House Bill 1950 on Monday evening, giving shale gas-rich counties in the state the ability to impose a 15-year impact fee on unconventional gas wells; now it’s up to the locals.

West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin signed a bill Thursday that offers tax breaks to companies that build an ethane cracker in the state, then jetted off to Houston to meet with Royal Dutch Shell plc executives about their plans to possibly build such a facility in the Mountain State.

Range Resources Corp. is expanding the reach of its Appalachian ethane operation. A subsidiary of the Fort Worth, TX-based company said Thursday it had signed a deal to ship 20,000 b/d on Enterprise Product Partners LP’s proposed Appalachia-to-Texas (Atex Express) ethane pipeline.

Two anchor shippers have signed binding agreements for capacity on Texas Eastern Transmission LP’s (Tetco) TEAM 2014 expansion project to carry gas from Appalachia’s shale plays to the Northeast, Midwest and southern United States, the Spectra Energy Corp. pipeline said.