M-U Rig Count Stabilizes @ 33; National Rig Count Drops 2 @ 588

Two weeks ago, the national rig count, which counts all oil and gas rigs, added an astonishing eight rigs to the count after languishing for months — the biggest weekly gain in a year. As we told you, the Marcellus/Utica rig count from two weeks ago remained at 33, but that wasn’t the whole story (see…

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ARCH2 Hydrogen Hub Looking for 3 New Projects to Replace Dropouts

Yesterday, Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub (ARCH2) leadership team members presented an update on the ARCH2 initiative and its current status. Among the big news from the event was that ARCH2 is looking “for up to three” new projects that would be built in southwestern Pennsylvania, West Virginia, or eastern Ohio as part of the…

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Understanding the “Heat Content” of Natural Gas in PA, OH, WV

Here’s a new concept for some (including us): Have you ever heard about the “heat content” of energy like natural gas? Heat content is the amount of heat energy available to be released by the transformation or use of a specified physical unit of an energy form, like how much heat a cubic foot of…

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Rig Bloodbath Continues – Pennsylvania Loses 7 Rigs in 3 Weeks

Hidden in last Friday’s weekly Baker Hughes official rig count is a big story happening in the Marcellus/Utica. From the 30,000-foot level, Friday’s latest rig count report appeared just fine. The national rig count, which counts all oil and gas rigs, added an astonishing eight rigs to the count after languishing for months — the…

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Ohio Utica 2Q24 Production – Oil Up 23%, Gas Down 4% vs Year Ago

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) released production numbers for the second quarter of 2024 yesterday. The story the numbers tell continues to be about Utica oil, which continues to rise each quarter. Ohio’s total oil production during 2Q24 was 8.01 million barrels, up 23% from 2Q23’s 6.5 million barrels and up 11% from…

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Sept. STEO Predicts NatGas Price to Stay Down Near $2 This Fall

Once a month, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) analysts issue the agency’s Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), their best guess about where energy prices and production will go in the next 12 months. Starting in June, the EIA axed its monthly Drilling Productivity Report that focused on shale plays and instead rolled it into the…

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Trend Accelerates: Pennsylvania Loses 2 More Rigs to West Virginia

A very big story is unfolding in the Marcellus/Utica, and nobody else is talking about it. There is a major reshuffling of rigs in the M-U, with Pennsylvania losing active rigs and West Virginia picking them up. Two weeks ago, PA dropped from 21 to 18 active rigs, the lowest count it has had in…

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EOG Tells Conf Attendees It Is Now Ramping Up Ohio Utica Drilling

We’ve been waiting for this! For the past few years, since EOG Resources acknowledged it had quietly amassed nearly half a million acres of leases in the Ohio Utica Shale, the company has been experimenting with crude oil drilling in the Utica. Each quarter EOG’s managers have sung the praises of the Utica (see EOG…

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Pennsylvania Dropped 3 Rigs Last Week, Lowest Count in 2.5 Years

The big news (for us) with the weekly Baker Hughes rig count is that last week, Pennsylvania laid down its use of three active drilling rigs, resulting in the lowest rig count in the state in 2 1/2 years. PA now operates 18 active rigs, down from 21 the week prior. The last time PA…

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Analyzing Monthly New Permit Trends for PA, OH, WV Shale

We spotted an article on the always-excellent NGI website (the Daily Gas Price Index) that said exploration and production (E&P) permitting activity shows a “summer slump” in natural gas plays, including in the Marcellus/Utica. The information in the article is from data compiled by Enverus and Evercore ISI. So, we decided to review our weekly…

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Binghamton Univ. Study Says Drillers Bully Landowners to Sign Leases

A study led by Binghamton University and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) claims it has uncovered that energy companies pressure landowners into allowing hydraulic fracturing (fracking) on their properties, “often resorting to persistent and personalized tactics.” In other words, those nasty frackers bully poor landowners into signing leases. We have no doubt there…

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PA-Based Frac Sand Co. Opening Ohio Terminal for Utica Sales

We first told you about a frac sand company called Smart Sand some 12 years ago (see Smart Sand Lands Big Name for Board of Directors). Smart Sand, headquartered in Yardley, PA, is a supplier of industrial sand, primarily serving customers in the oil and gas industry, including drillers in the Marcellus and Utica Shale…

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Encino Energy, Vendors Donate Over $100,000 to Local Nonprofits

From Left to Right: Guy Coviello, Youngstown Chamber; Nick Ruppelt, Evolution Well Services; Hardy Murchison, Encino Energy; Gary Hauck, Vallourec (click for larger version) Encino Energy, which is Ohio’s No. 1 oil producer, and its vendors, recently announced over $105,000 in donations from the 2024 Encino Vendor Charity Classic. This year’s gathering was a two-day…

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Ascent Resources 2Q – Pivots to Drill More Oil & NGLs

Ascent Resources, founded as American Energy Partners by gas legend Aubrey McClendon, is a privately held company focusing 100% on the Ohio Utica Shale. Ascent, headquartered in Oklahoma City, OK, is Ohio’s largest natural gas producer and the 8th largest natural gas producer in the U.S. The company issued its second quarter 2024 update on…

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6th Circuit Rules Sabre Energy Can’t Get Royalties from Deeper Wells

Here’s a court case that flew under the radar until now. It’s a case that has the potential to affect some drillers and some royalty owners in Ohio. Sabre Energy Corporation (the plaintiff) sued Gulfport Energy Corporation and Antero Resources Corporation (the defendants) for breach of contract. Sabre Energy owns Overriding Royalty Interests (ORRIs), or…

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