The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was put in the hot seat Friday as House lawmakers took the agency to task for what they said are flawed reports on hydraulic fracturing (fracking), most notably the December 2011 report that found groundwater in Pavillion, WY, to be contaminated. That report was later retracted. Before directing any more funds to the EPA for reseach into fracking, the lawmakers demanded that it furnish Congress with more information on reseach activities so far.
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Cabot Production Up, Considering Sixth Marcellus Rig in Fall
A surprise increase in natural gas prices could allow Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. to deploy a sixth drilling rig in the Marcellus Shale by the fall, helping the company accelerate its plans for pad drilling and move more primary term acreage into production.
Chesapeake Alters McClendon’s Exit Agreement
Chesapeake Energy Corp. last week altered former CEO Aubrey McClendon’s noncompete agreement, giving him the right to acquire oil and natural gas holdings that are adjacent to the company’s wells in which he holds a stake.
TexStar Acquires Eagle Ford Shale Pipeline
TexStar Midstream Services LP has acquired Tierra Pipeline LP from The Tierra Companies, and the companies said they have tentatively agreed on the sale of trucking operator Tierra Transportation to Black Creek Well Services, a TexStar sister company, with closing expected by July 1.
EDF: Two-Dozen Texas Counties Represent Biggest Water Concerns
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).
Pennsylvania Midstreamers to Improve Facilities in EPA Agreements
Two natural gas midstream operators in western Pennsylvania have agreed to improve their facilities after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said they failed to comply with Clean Air Act (CAA) rules to prevent accidental releases of flammable substances.
Truck Stop Operator, Shell Plan LNG Fueling Network
Ohio-based TravelCenters of America LLC (TA) and Royal Dutch Shell plc unit Shell Oil Products U.S. said Monday they have reached an agreement to construct and operate a network of natural gas fueling lanes at existing TravelCenters located along the U.S. Interstate highway system.
Wyoming Coal Mine Development Stopped
Citing a lack of market, the developers of a new coal mine in southwestern Wyoming on Thursday said they were suspending development after a year of work. The actions underscore concerns expressed in Wyoming and elsewhere about the state of the U.S. coal industry.
Source, Stoppage of Colorado NGL Leak Confirmed
Williams officials said they have concluded that “a failed pressure gauge is the source of the hydrocarbon fluids” the company found last month near its Parachute Gas Plant. “The leak was stopped on Jan. 3, 2013 at 12:33 a.m. The gauge was part of valve set on a four-inch NGL pipeline belonging to Williams Partners.”
People
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has notified victims of Enron Corp.’s fraud and 2001 bankruptcy that they have until April 17 to object to a possible resentencing agreement with imprisoned former CEO Jeffrey Skilling. Skilling, 59, has served more than six years of a 24-year prison term after he was convicted by a Houston jury in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas in May 2006 on 19 criminal counts for securities fraud, conspiracy, making false statements to auditors and insider trading (see NGI, May 29, 2006). The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans reaffirmed the conviction in 2011, finding that the federal government’s evidence of conspiracy was “overwhelming,” but it reiterated, as it had in 2009, that the sentence had been miscalculated by the district court (see NGI, April 11, 2011). The resentencing issue was remanded to the lower court (U.S. v. Skilling, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas, No. 04-cr-00025).