Study

Shale gas production activities in the Barnett Shale have not resulted in volatile organic compound (VOC) exposures great enough to pose a health concern for area residents, according to a new study of the region’s air quality.

Last year, Colorado’s oil and natural gas industry injected $29.6 billion into the state’s economy, supporting 110,000 mostly high-paying jobs, according to a study released Monday by a research unit at the Leeds Business School, University of Colorado (UC), Boulder.

Maritimes Canada natural gas consumers should consider taking up to 600 MMcf/d of firm pipeline capacity from the Marcellus Shale to ensure security of supply and avoid the $30/MMBtu gas prices seen last winter, ICF Consulting Canada Inc. said in a new study prepared for the Nova Scotia Department of Energy.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said it agrees with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) over not listing a nearly 100-mile section of the main stem of the Susquehanna River at the foot of the Marcellus Shale as an impaired waterway, despite concerns over the health of the river’s smallmouth bass.

While water use for hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in drought-stricken Texas is considered modest when compared to other uses, such as for agriculture, where the water is drawn from is a significant consideration, according to an analysis by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).

President Obama’s $3.77 trillion budget for fiscal year (FY) 2014, unveiled Wednesday, for the fourth time seeks to repeal tax breaks for oil and natural gas producers. It also would tack on new fees for operations on federal lands and increase oil and gas royalties to fund renewable fuel development.

At his confirmation hearing Tuesday, Department of Energy (DOE) secretary-designate Ernest J. Moniz committed to review the department’s study of natural gas exports, which relied on what some have said is outdated information which failed to examine the regional impacts of exporting liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Over the last two years nearly 70% of the new power generation plants proposed for the 13-state PJM Interconnection electric grid, which centers on the Marcellus and Utica Shales, would be fired by natural gas.

Citing a recent U.S. Department of Energy-commissioned study that supports export of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the United States (see Daily GPI, Dec. 6), Teekay LNG Partners LP said it has entered into an agreement with Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. Ltd. (DSME) of South Korea for the construction of two 173,400-cubic meter LNG tankers, with options to order up to three additional vessels. The partnership said it intends to secure long-term contract employment for both vessels prior to their delivery in the first half of 2016. “The delivery of these vessels is timed to coincide with the next wave of increased demand for LNG carriers, which is expected when a large number of new LNG export projects come on-stream commencing from late-2015,” said Teekay GP LLC CEO Peter Evensen. “They are also among the largest LNG carriers that will be able to transit the Panama Canal after its expansion project is complete, which makes them ideal for U.S. LNG exports.”