Fed District Court Sends Pennsylvania Royalty Dispute to Trial

MDN first reported on a lawsuit by a group of Wyoming County, PA, landowners back in January 2019 (see Fed Court Allows PA Royalty Lawsuit Against Chesapeake to Proceed). The lawsuit was originally filed in February 2018 by landowners against Chesapeake Energy and Equinor, claiming post-production deductions were made from royalty checks that should not…

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Y&S Railroad Expanding Youngstown Yard to Service Cracker, M-U

We’re a sucker for a railroad story. There’s something magical about railroads, dontcha think? We spotted a railroad story that ties in with the Marcellus/Utica. Yesterday morning, the Ohio Rail Development Commission (ORDC) voted to approve a project (and back it with a grant) in Youngstown, Ohio. It is a significant, large-scale project by the…

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Kentucky Utility Plans to Build 4 New Gas-Fired Power Plants

Yesterday, the East Kentucky Power Cooperative (EKPC), a nonprofit power generation and transmission electric utility with headquarters in Winchester, Kentucky, announced plans to build two new natural gas-fired power plants and convert its two existing coal-fired power plants to burn natural gas. That’s four new gas-fired power plants coming to two different counties, one county…

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Court Rescinds Approval of WNY Gas-Fired Plant Sale to Bitcoin Co.

In September 2022, the New York Public Service Commission (PSC), which oversees and regulates public utilities in the state, approved the takeover of the Fortistar gas-fired power plant in North Tonawanda, NY, a town close to Niagara Falls, by Canadian crypto mining company Digihost. In December 2022, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) offered its…

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PHX Response to WhiteHawk Energy’s Latest Marriage Proposal: NO!

Runaway Bride Our observation is that WhiteHawk Energy is smitten with PHX Minerals. For the last 15 months, WhiteHawk has been trying to get PHX down the marriage aisle in any way it can. PHX has repeatedly given WhiteHawk the cold shoulder. WhiteHawk’s latest attempt, which we told you about yesterday, was an appeal to…

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Siren Song: Coterra Energy Buys Permian Assets for $4 Billion

We continue to mourn the loss of Cabot Oil & Gas (100% focused on the Marcellus in northeastern PA) following its merger with Cimarex Energy (an oil driller focused on the Permian and Anadarko basins) in 2021 (see Cimarex Takes Over Cabot, Merged Co. Called “Coterra Energy”). The time and focus and creative thinking and…

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Plan for Massive 3,500-MW Va. Gas-Fired Plant Slashed 91% to 300-MW

Two weeks ago, MDN brought you the news that Christmas had come early with the announcement of a plan to build the country’s largest natural gas-fired power plant at a proposed data center site in Pittsylvania County, Virginia (see Massive Data Center with 3,500 MW Gas-Fired Plant Proposed for Va.). Balico, LLC applied to rezone…

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WhiteHawk Energy Keeps Up Public Pressure to Make PHX Merge

Some 15 months ago, WhiteHawk Energy, headquartered in Philadelphia with ownership of mineral and royalty interests for over 1 million gross unit acres and over 3,400 producing horizontal shale wells between the Marcellus and the Haynesville, proposed marriage to PHX Minerals, based in Fort Worth, Texas, owner of 75,000 leased mineral acres principally located in…

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An In-Depth Look at Lee Zeldin, Nominated for Head of EPA

Lee Zeldin Two days ago, MDN told you the great news that President Trump will nominate New York State’s own Lee Zeldin to lead the viper’s nest known as the Environmental Protection Agency (see Trump to Tap NY’s Lee Zeldin to Head EPA; Climate Radicals Enraged). The left’s heads have been exploding all week long…

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PA EHB Blocks Work on Wastewater Injection Well in McKean County

In January, MDN brought you the news that the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) approved a plan by Catalyst Energy to convert an existing conventional gas production well on Route 646 in Cyclone (Keating Township, McKean County, PA) into a shale wastewater injection well (see PA DEP Approves Shale Wastewater Injection Well in McKean…

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PA Re-Adds a Rig to 14; National Rig Count Even 3rd Week @ 585

Three weeks ago, Pennsylvania’s rig count dropped to just 12 rigs, the lowest that state has operated in the last 17 years (see PA Drops Another Rig to 17-Year Low; National Rig Count Even @ 585). Two weeks ago, PA picked up a rig, returning to 13 active rigs. Last week, Baker Hughes reported PA…

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EQT, Diversified Settle WV Class Action Lawsuit re Old Wells

In August, MDN brought you up to speed on a lawsuit filed by several West Virginia landowners (turned into a class action) against Diversified Energy and EQT over EQT’s sale of 11,350 conventional wells and 2.5 million acres of leases spread across several states, including West Virginia (see WV Landowner Lawsuit Against EQT, Diversified re…

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PA Bill Denies Impact Fees to Shale-Hostile Municipalities

In May, MDN told you that several Republican Pennsylvania State Senators were planning to introduce a bill to cut off millions of dollars in impact fee revenues to municipalities that set protective standards on the development of natural gas that “imposes a standard or condition on well development that conflicts with or exceeds those contained”…

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