Utica Shale

With the Utica Shale making a reputation for itself in Ohio after a series of eye-opening well results, and with technology pushing drilling efficiencies to new heights, the formation is poised to become the next horizon of development in West Virginia and Pennsylvania.

Ben W. Lupo, who in February 2013 pleaded not guilty to violating the Clean Water Act for his role in dumping tens of thousands of gallons of oilfield waste down a storm drain in Youngstown, OH, reversed course on Monday and pleaded guilty to the charge in U.S. District Court in Cleveland.

This year's record-setting gas storage withdrawals, combined with developing acreage positions, superb reservoir quality and the momentum…

Gastar Exploration Ltd. executives said the company plans to spud its first test wells targeting the Utica Shale in West Virginia and the Hunton Limestone in Oklahoma next month, and will place more than a dozen Marcellus Shale wells into production during the rest of the year.

Magnum Hunter Resources Corp. said Friday that a series of its long-awaited wells in the Utica and Marcellus shale plays will begin flowing into sales within the next two months, which the company estimates will net it up to 8,000 boe/d.

For the first time since going public in January, senior officials at Rice Energy Inc. on Thursday laid out a development plan that looks as far ahead as 2016 and made a case for why they believe the pure-play Appalachian company is poised for unique growth.

Republican Ohio Gov. John Kasich on Tuesday proposed a 2.75% oil and gas severance tax, which is slightly higher than a delicate proposal put forward by his party now being debated in the state’s House of Representatives.

With Marcellus/Utica shale producers still clamoring for exits from the gas-bloated region, numerous pipelines have been stepping up with capacity offers on their systems.

Hilcorp Energy Co. was hydraulically fracturing (fracking) one of its wells in the days leading up to a series of minor earthquakes that were reported in Northeast Ohio on Monday, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).