The Daily Digger

by Nicole Jacobs, Energy in Depth Today, Duke University published a  study  analyzing oil- and gas-related spill rates in four states,  identifying 6,648 spills reported across Colorado, New Mexico, North Dakota and Pennsylvania from 2005 to 2014. But, much like  Duke’s 2016 study of spills in North Dakota , this latest study leaves out some crucial information that is essential to understanding the impact of those numbers. Before we get into why, it’s worth pointing out briefly that one of the researchers on the team,  Kate Konschnik , previously worked for Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), who was a  co-sponsor of the FRAC Act  — legislation that would put EPA in control of regulating hydraulic fracturing. Whitehouse is also  a huge proponent  of activist Bill McKibben and one of the ringleaders of the #ExxonKnew movement. Konschnik also  completed  a fellowship with Earthjustice and was a former member of the Montgomery ...

Powersource:   Washington County Landowners Caught in Eminent Domain Fight with Rover   -    "If David Rheinlander believes that his 5.5 acres, which include woods and a modular home, are worth $10 million, then who exactly is the Rover Pipeline or the federal government, for that matter, to say otherwise? “If they don’t like it, go around me,” Mr. Rheinlander said less than a week after..." StateImpact Pennsylvania:  GOP Lawmaker Reintroduces Controversial Royalties Bill   -    "Representative Garth Everett has called himself as a “sometimes marathoner” who is in it for the long haul. He’s now on his third attempt to pass legislation ensuring Pennsylvania landowners are paid a minimum royalty for natural gas..." TriplePundit:   Inside the House Bill That Would Close Down the EPA   -    "U.S. President Donald Trump has made no secret of his mission to slim down government oversight of business. Some supporters in Congr...

From Business Journal Daily: PTTGC America, the Thailand-based petrochemicals giant considering building a $5.7 billion ethane cracker plant in Belmont County, today announced it would postpone its decision on whether to move forward with the project. The final investment decision is planned toward the end of this year instead of its initial target of March, Toasaporn Boonyapipat, president and CEO of PTTGC America, said in a statement. “We now anticipate reaching a final investment decision in late 2017, which is several months later than what we anticipated,” he said in a press released issued Tuesday afternoon. Boonyapipat said that the project requires additional attention related to the initial designs that were submitted to the company by two engineering, procurement and construction contractors. “We recognized the need for further discussions with each of them so that we will be in a stronger position to make our decision on the engineering design and economic feasibili...

Click here to download the latest Utica shale permitting report from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. New permits issued last week: 11  (Previous week: 8) Total horizontal permits issued: 2393  (Previous week: 2381) Total horizontal wells drilled: 1911  (Previous week: 1899) Total horizontal wells producing: 1525  (Previous week: 1486) Utica rig count: 20  (Previous week: 20) Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter! Follow @EnergyNewsBlog

by Jackie Stewart, Energy in Depth The Center for Biological Diversity, in conjunction with the usual team of fringe anti-fracking activists — the Ohio Sierra Club, the Ohio Environmental Council (OEC), Athens County Fraction Action Network (ACFAN) and the Buckeye Environmental Network — recently put out a  press release  announcing they are again protesting the upcoming Bureau of Land Management (BLM) sale of federal minerals in the Wayne National Forest (WNF) slated for March 23. The upcoming sale is for 1,186 acres — all of which are located in Monroe County, home to some of the best dry gas Utica Shale wells in the state. This latest “protest” against the sale comes after the group protested the first sale in December and filed a notice of intent to sue the BLM and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, all in an effort to stop leasing in the Wayne. While anti-fracking activists may try to spin this protest as “new,” it is anything but, as all of their concerns have been...

Source: Jack Chan for The Energy Report   02/11/2017 View Original Article: https://www.streetwisereports.com/pub/na/jack-chan-finds-data-supportive-of-higher-oil-prices Technical Analyst Jack Chan reads the charts and sees a major buy signal for energy. $OSX is on a major buy signal, which can last for months and years. COT data is supportive for overall higher oil prices. OIH is one of a few energy sector ETFs we are holding for long term gains. Prices dipped into our buy zone in November, and again this week. Our trading model identifies the buy zones in a bull market, simple and effective. Energy sector gave a major buy signal in 2016, and the current correction has dropped prices into our buy zone. Summary Energy sector is on a major buy signal. Prices are now in our buy zone. We are holding energy sector ETFs for long term gains. Want to read more Energy Report articles like this? Sign up for our fre...

From Powersource: For more than four years, the natural gas company tapping the Marcellus Shale beneath Paul Sidorek’s 150-acre property in rural northeastern Pennsylvania took deductions for preparing and shipping his share of the gas. The deductions reduced his royalties by $5,000 a month, sometimes more.  Mr. Sidorek, an accountant, contested the charges and in September, the arbitrator who heard the case agreed with him.  The wells’ operator, Chesapeake Energy Corp., had breached the terms of the lease agreement, the arbitrator found. He ordered the Oklahoma-based company to repay all of Mr. Sidorek’s past deductions and to stop taking them in the future.  “To hold otherwise would be to render the express language of the lease prohibiting such deductions a nullity,” he wrote. Read the whole article by clicking here. Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter! Follow @EnergyNewsBlog

From Forbes contributor and analyst Michael Lynch: Numerous prognosticators now claim that the petroleum industry is doomed to either a quick or a lingering death, as we ‘transition’ to a new energy economy. There are even statements from within the industry that seem to confirm this: A blogger for the Financial Times reports that a senior Shell executive thinks that demand could peak in five to fifteen years, adding “I think …possibly by 2020.”  Two rationales are given for this change. Some see galloping improvements in competing technologies like photovoltaics and electric vehicles, the latter being particularly relevant, causing Bloomberg to predict : “Superior electric cars are on their way, and they could begin to wreck oil markets within a decade.”  Then there are those arguing that fossil fuel reserves are due to be stranded by climate change policies and that the industry is greatly overstating their value, with one advocacy group arguing “The shocks to some ...

From The Columbus Dispatch: Trees are likely to fall soon to make way for a $4.2 billion natural-gas pipeline slicing through Ohio, according to an eminent-domain lawsuit filed in federal court in Columbus.  Rover Pipeline said it must "complete all tree-felling activities" by March 31 to meet contractual obligations with gas shippers and "to reduce impacts, if any, on protected species of wildlife."  "Rover must begin construction immediately," the suit says.  The 713-mile pipeline received federal approval despite opposition from some communities along its path and being rerouted at least twice early in its planning. The federal government set the deadline so tree removal doesn't disturb federally protected bats that begin roosting in April. Read the whole article by clicking here. Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter! Follow @EnergyNewsBlog

by Jackie Stewart, Energy in Depth It was one year ago that the University of Cincinnati released its data on the most comprehensive Utica Shale groundwater fracking  study  ever conducted in Ohio. The study found  “no evidence for natural gas contamination”  and was “ disappointing ” news to the anti-fracking community, which funded part of the study.  Despite the fact taxpayers also funded this study, the paper has  yet to be published by a peer-reviewed scientific journal . EID has been tracking this story for the past year, uncovering the study’s funding and calling question to the delay in publication. Recently, we asked the study’s lead researcher, Dr. Amy Townsend Small, to give us an update as to the status of UC’s publication efforts. She issued the following statement in response, “I’m hopeful that the paper will be accepted for publication in 2017. It’s always been the goal of this and my other work, and we’ll keep working with the journa...

Source: Bill Newman for The Energy Report   02/09/2017 View Original Article: https://www.streetwisereports.com/pub/na/five-companies-positioned-for-healthy-returns-as-energy-markets-recover Volatility in the oil and gas markets continues, with prices plunging yet again in the recent chaos surrounding Greece's default negotiations and other global political uncertainties. But a rebound is inevitable, and Mackie Research's Bill Newman has his eye on companies that have managed to grow, step by step, even in hard times. In this interview with The Energy Report, Newman identifies companies with individual stories that will, in the end, defy the trend. The Energy Report: With the collapse of the crude oil price and the timing of a recovery difficult to predict, the energy sector has fallen out of favor with investors. In the current oil and gas investment climate, are there any stocks that are immune to the negative sentiment and can still perform? Bill...

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources has released the latest weekly permitting report for horizontal drilling in the state's Utica shale play, and the Utica rig count has continued the recent trend by dropping again. Eight new permits were issued last week.  Six of the permits listed are for wells in Monroe County, while two were for Belmont County sites. This brings the new total of horizontal drilling permits issued to 2,381.  1,899 wells have been drilled, and 1,486 wells are producing.  The rig count is down from 21 last week to 20 on this latest report. View the report by clicking here. Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter! Follow @EnergyNewsBlog

by Jackie Stewart, Energy in Depth Ohio’s top six Utica Shale counties collected more than $43.7 million in real estate property taxes on production from 2010-2015, according to a new report by Energy In Depth and the Ohio Oil and Gas Association. The report entitled “ The Utica Shale Local Support Series: Ohio’s Oil and Gas Industry Property Tax Payments ,” consults ad valorem tax collection data from six Utica Shale mineral producing counties from 2010-2015 to examine the impact made from the first three years of Utica Shale production in these six counties. The report includes breakout statistics for each county as well, including  Belmont ,  Carroll ,  Guernsey ,  Harrison ,  Monroe  and  Noble . Below are the report’s key findings, by the numbers, Real Estate Property Tax Paid for Six Counties $43.7 Million Projected Property Taxes To Be Paid (2016-2026) $200-$250 Million Amount of Tax Directly Paid to Local Government/Schools 10...