Houston-based ZaZa Energy LLC has struck a deal to sell about 10,300 acres in Fayette, Gonzalez and Lavaca counties in Texas for about $28.8 million to a unit of Sanchez Energy after a deal fell through with another buyer that was unable to fund and close a transaction, parent ZaZa Energy Corp. said. ZaZa calls the acreage its Moulton properties. In March, ZaZa announced two pending Moulton sales: one for $43.3 million for 10,000 acres and another for the remainder of its Moulton properties for $9.2 million (see Shale Daily, March 26). “Given the current landscape, we believe that transacting at this metric was the best and most prudent action for the company at this time,” ZaZa CEO Todd Brooks said of the latest deal. “We remain focused on monetizing select Eagle Ford assets in order to improve our balance sheet, and we are currently pursuing other joint ventures in the area. In the Eaglebine, our joint venture is progressing as planned, and we anticipate timely drilling of the first three wells as part of the agreement [see Shale Daily, April 8].” ZaZa has received a down payment of $1.4 million for the Moulton properties; closing of the sale is expected by July 31.
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Magnum Hunter Readies Growth on Added Marcellus Pipe Capacity
Magnum Hunter Resources Corp. is planning to build production through the rest of this year from its substantial asset base in the Appalachian Basin after being knocked back early this year from a lack of pipeline capacity for natural gas liquids (NGL), CEO Gary Evans said Tuesday.
Spectra Lays Groundwork for Northeast Incremental Market Project
FERC has approved a request from Spectra Energy unit Algonquin Gas Transmissions to begin a pre-filing review process for the company’s proposed Algonquin Incremental Market (AIM) Project, a significant step forward for the long-awaited pipeline, which would deliver to the Northeast critically needed gas from Pennsylvania.
Summit Midstream to Expand Bakken Gathering System
Summit Midstream Partners LLC plans to significantly expand its crude oil and water gathering system in North Dakota’s Williams and Divide counties in the Bakken Shale, the Dallas-based partnership said.
Oxy Unit Offering Crude Capacity on Cline Shale Pipeline
Occidental Petroleum Corp. (Oxy) unit Centurion Pipeline LP is holding an open season through July 1 for capacity to transport crude oil from Irion, Sterling, Coke, Tom Green and Mitchell counties in West Texas to Centurion’s Colorado City, TX, station. The project targets crude oil production from the Permian Basin’s Cline Shale, which is thought by some to be “the next Eagle Ford.”
GE Acquisition Tied to Shale, Small-Scale LNG
A unit of General Electric said Monday it has completed acquiring substantially all of the assets of a Texas-based small-scale liquefied natural gas (LNG) design/manufacturing firm, underscoring a recent consultant report that the shale boom is creating a more viable market for natural gas in the transportation sector.
Berkshire Hathaway Unit Buying NV Energy
A Berkshire Hathaway Inc. unit agreed Wednesday to buy Las Vegas utility NV Energy Inc. in a deal that values the company at about $5.59 billion with an enterprise value of close to $10 billion.
Marcellus Volumes, Capacity Prove Challenging, Says MarkWest CEO
Building midstream infrastructure in the Marcellus Shale to keep up with growing natural gas volumes was a challenge in the first quarter, MarkWest Energy Partners LP CEO Frank Semple said Thursday.
Industry Briefs
Range Resources Corp. won permission from a Texas appeals court to proceed with a defamation lawsuit seeking $3 million in damages from a man who accused the company of tainting his drinking water with drilling activities in the Barnett Shale (see Shale Daily, April 4). Two of the company’s claims against Steven Lipsky were allowed to stand by the Second Court of Appeals in Fort Worth. However, it ordered the trial court in Weatherford, TX, to dismiss Range’s claims against Lipsky’s wife, Shyla, and environmental consultant Alisa Rich, who was hired to assist in the lawsuit. The plaintiffs have claimed that Range tainted the Lipsky water well, but the Railroad Commission of Texas found otherwise after it investigated. While the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also had blamed Range for contaminating the well, the agency later backed down (see Shale Daily, Feb. 13; Feb. 21, 2012).
GE Unit to Supply Export Compression Trains for Cove Point LNG
General Electric unit GE Oil & Gas Wednesday said it has been awarded contracts to supply natural gas compression trains for Dominion Cove Point’s liquefaction project in Lusby, MD, which would give the existing import terminal export capability.