Wyoming

In a state with significant energy and environmental issues, Wyoming’s new Gov. Matt Mead announced his appointments to various boards and commissions, including a number that deal with the energy sector. In most cases Mead went with incumbents, such as his reappointment of Kathleen “Cindy” Lewis to the three-member Public Service Commission. Similarly, Thomas Doll was reappointed as director and Donald Basko as a member of the Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. These appointments require confirmation by the state Senate by the end of this month. Other appointments were to the Energy Resources Council, Enhanced and Improved Oil Recovery Commission, Environmental Quality Council, Geological Survey Board, Infrastructure Authority, and Pipeline Authority. The oil recovery panel appointment was new — Tom Fitzsimmons, succeeding Gail Chenoweth; and the infrastructure and pipeline panel selections were reappointments — Kyle White and Duane Zavadil, respectively.

TransCanada’s new Bison Pipeline between Wyoming and North Dakota is still not in service because of some final commissioning work, some of which relates to the monitoring of pipeline pressures, a Houston-based TransCanada spokesperson told NGI.

Laflin, PA-based coal company Silverbrook Anthracite has leased approximately 1,635 acres for Marcellus Shale gas exploration in Lackawanna County, PA, to a Texas land services firm in what county officials are calling the largest such lease ever recorded in the northeastern Pennsylvania county.

In a unanimous vote, Arkansas regulators have agreed to give the public access to the ingredients of hydraulic fracturing (frack) fluid used to stimulate wells in their state, but they can’t have the recipe. The new rule will apply to wells permitted after Jan. 15.

Encana Natural Gas Inc. has opened a compressed natural gas fueling station in Coushatta, LA, its first, to serve the company’s fleet of vehicles in Red River Parish. Starting next year the Encana Corp. subsidiary expects to offer the station’s fueling service to other corporate fleets in the region. The company said plans to open its next four natural gas fueling stations, one in each of the states of Wyoming and Colorado and two in Western Canada next year.

A unit of Japan’s ITOCHU Corp. is to acquire a one-quarter interest in Niobrara oil shale acreage in southeastern Wyoming, marking the first time a Japanese company is participating in a U.S. oil shale project.

UGI Corp. midstream unit UGI Energy Services Inc. has agreed to gather Marcellus Shale production of Citrus Energy Corp. in Wyoming County, PA, for delivery to Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co.’s interstate system in Susquehanna County.

Saying it had completed repairs of electrical problems that began Saturday at Laramie Compressor Station, Wyoming Interstate Co. canceled Monday afternoon an associated force majeure for the Laramie East Constraint (LWE) and restored LWE to full capacity of 793 MMcf/d.

Pacific Gas and Electric did not extend a systemwide high-inventory OFO beyond Saturday.