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President Obama was playing “fast and loose” when he claimed in his State of the Union (SOTU) address that his administration has been working to speed applications for permits to drill (APD) for energy production on federal lands, said Rep. Doc Hastings (R-WA), the chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee.

Although the New York State Department of Health (DOH) needs a few more weeks to complete a health impact analysis of high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF), Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Joe Martens said Tuesday it would not cause undue delay in starting the processing of permit applications for the practice.

Marathon Oil Corp. CEO Charles Cazalot will be required to step down in three years when he turns age 65, but the company has a succession planning process in place, Cazalot said during an earnings conference call. Last December COO David Roberts left the company with less than a week’s notice “to pursue other interests.” Cazalot said Marathon has a “very strong team and the company is in very good hands, and succession planning for the leadership team is a critical priority.” Roberts had been viewed by some as a successor to Cazalot.

Oneok Partners LP Thursday launched plans to invest up to $500 million between now and 2015 to build additional natural gas liquids (NGL) infrastructure in some of its Midcontinent operations, with the bulk of the funds earmarked for the Williston Basin.

When natural gas markets make a comeback, an extended foray into horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing shows British Columbia (BC) will be ready to fulfill expectations of taking over Alberta’s fading role as Canada’s top source of supply growth.

Physical gas prices overall averaged a healthy gain of 28 cents Monday, but when volatile East and Northeast points are factored out, the national gain was a more modest 4 cents. Points serving the New York and Boston areas finished the day over $15, but the benchmark Henry Hub was just 2 cents higher at just over $3.40. Futures prices slumped on light volume as medium term weather forecasts moderated. At the close February was down 11.8 cents to $3.351 and March had sunk 11.7 cents to $3.365. February crude oil gained $1.02 to $91.82/bbl.

When natural gas markets make a comeback, an extended foray into horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing shows British Columbia will be ready to fulfill expectations of taking over Alberta’s fading role as Canada’s top source of supply growth.

When considering the increased rate that wells are getting connected to gathering pipeline systems, North Dakota is “turning the corner” on the volumes of natural gas flaring despite the relatively high percentage of associated gas that is still being burned at the wellhead, state officials told NGI’s Shale Daily.

SandRidge Energy Inc. on Wednesday agreed to sell its Permian Basin portfolio for $2.6 billion in cash to privately held Sheridan Production Partners II, a sale that has been anticipated since early November.