Temporary

The Obama administration has rejected a New York congressman’s bid to put a temporary hold on Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling and exploratory activities in the Delaware River Basin.

The Obama administration has rejected a New York congressman’s bid to put a temporary hold on Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling and exploratory activities in the Delaware River Basin.

The New York Senate overwhelmingly approved a temporary ban on drilling in the state’s portion of the Marcellus Shale by a 49-9 vote. The measure would prohibit new drilling permits until May 15, when further environmental studies by the Environmental Protection Agency are expected to be completed. The state’s General Assembly has not yet taken up the measure. The Independent Oil & Gas Association of New York has fought the bills. “New York simply cannot afford to wait to tap this homegrown resource,” the association’s website says of the Marcellus Shale.

The New York Senate late Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a temporary ban on drilling in the state’s portion of the Marcellus Shale by a vote of 49 to 9.

Pennsylvania should impose a temporary moratorium on leasing additional forest land for new natural gas development until a comprehensive environmental and community impact assessment can be completed, a report released last Tuesday argues. Such a moratorium should not affect existing leases, though, said the Pennsylvania Environmental Council (PEC).

Pennsylvania should impose a temporary moratorium on leasing additional forest land for new natural gas development until a comprehensive environmental and community impact assessment can be completed, a report released Tuesday argues. Such a moratorium should not affect existing leases, though, said the Pennsylvania Environmental Council (PEC).

The quick transition this year to the cooling season from the heating season is likely to provide only temporary support for higher natural gas prices because of the “relatively robust” inventory builds toward the end of the heating season, noted Credit Suisse energy analysts in a report issued late Monday.

A temporary, albeit modest, upcoming respite from frigid conditions took the wind out of the Northeast’s recent price spike sails Tuesday, causing citygates to plunge by more than a dollar in many cases. However, small gains remained in play for most of the rest of the market as cold temperatures continued to dominate the overall weather scene.

Lower-than-normal pressures before pipeline anomaly remediation and temporary pipeline shutdowns during the remediation drove an 8% decrease in its earnings to $106.9 million in 3Q2009 compared with $116.1 in 3Q2008, Houston-based Boardwalk Pipeline Partners said last week.