Strong

While agreeing to defer nearly 10,000 acres, the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) finds itself as the target of strong opposition from local residents as it attempts to conduct an oil and natural gas lease sale in mid-February in central Colorado’s North Fork Valley.

Continental Resources Inc. announced Wednesday that its proved reserves have nearly doubled, driven primarily by strong production growth in North Dakota and Montana’s portions of the Bakken Shale, and part from a legacy play in south-central Oklahoma.

Moving right along on the energy regulatory front, Colorado’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) on Wednesday launched a study of air emissions tied to oil and gas development.

Dominion and Caiman Energy II LLC on Thursday said they are forming Blue Racer Midstream LLC, a $1.5 billion joint venture (JV) that would provide midstream services to natural gas producers operating in the Utica Shale in Ohio and portions of Pennsylvania.

Continental Resources Inc., now the king of the Bakken Shale, has expanded its empire to an estimated 1.1 million net acres after completing a deal to buy 119,218 million acres for $649.3 million in cash. The Samson Resources Co. properties in North Dakota, primarily in Williams and Divide counties, have current production estimated at about 6,500 boe/d, 82% weighted to crude oil.

At a one-day meeting of California’s state legislature Monday a new bill was introduced calling for public disclosure of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in oil/natural gas drilling by the same state lawmaker who has unsuccessfully sponsored similar bills the past two years.

The latest Interior Department Bureau of Land Management (BLM) proposed plan on oil shale and oil sands leasing on western lands has come under attack from the chairman of a prominent House energy subcommittee.

Producer Antero Resources, which recently refocused all of its efforts on Appalachia, has signed up for Utica Shale processing, fractionation and marketing services with MarkWest Utica EMG LLC.

Despite some fall-off, Houston-based CARBO Ceramics Inc. Thursday said it continues to see strong ceramic proppant sales volumes in the active major shale plays such as the Eagle Ford, Permian and Bakken.