Jeffrey E. Fort of Porter Wright Morris & Arthur guest blogs for EID on the Monroe Falls, Ohio decision to uphold the Ohio Department of Natural Resource's preemption:

"In State ex rel. Morrison v. Beck Energy Corp., 2013-Ohio-356 (Ninth Dist.) Beck Energy obtained a permit from the Ohio…

EID's Shawn dissects the New York Times piece on the Utica Shale's impact on construction in Ohio and notes other projects that deserve notice:

"It’s not every day Ohio is featured in the New York Times but that’s exactly what happened yesterday as the Grey Lady focused on the remarkable investment and jobs that Utica…

"This week, Energy In Depth attended the Ohio Shale Development: Economic Impact & Opportunities Forum in Youngstown.  The event was co-sponsored by the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber, the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, the Ohio Energy Resource Alliance, and the Ohio Shale…

Christopher J. Baronzzi, an oil and gas attorney at Porter Wright Morris & Arthur, gave EID his insight on laws and regulations concerning Ohio's Utica Shale:

"Less than three years into Ohio’s Utica shale development and it is becoming apparent that we are in the midst of a once in a generation opportunity for Ohio.  But, even though there is plenty of reason for optimism and excitement, we must be careful not to take this emerging industry for granted – it is not a bottomless…

UPDATE (3/9/13 12:00 pm ET): The Wellsville Intermodal Park is continuing to be a success story in Columbiana County.  With only about 14 acres left in total, the facility is seeing an increase of work for companies who have set up shop.

Pier 48 Stevedoring LLC operates the 60-ton overhead river crane that came online last summer.  The company has unloaded steel coil from 18 barges filled to capacity and 36 barges loaded with material for…

"UPDATE (03/07/13 6:00 am ET): Ohio may be seeing more midstream facilities in the coming year.  At a conference last year, information surfaced pointing to Kinder Morgan building a processing plant.  According to the Akron Beacon Journal, company spokesman Richard Wheatley…

Last year, Chesapeake Energy released the results of its Buell 8H well in Archer Township, Harrison County, to much fanfare. The returns – a peak rate of 9.5 million cubic feet per day of natural gas and 1,425 barrels per day of natural gas liquids and oil (3,010 barrels of oil equivalent) per day – sent a strong signal…

During Gulfport Energy’s 4^th quarter earnings call, Gulfport CEO Jim Palm reiterated that the Utica/Point Pleasant will be their number one priority in 2013.  Gulfport Energy spudded 14 gross wells in 2012 with 2 in production, 8 wells completed and in their resting period, 2 wells…

UPDATE (03/4/2012, 11:00 am ET): During my original post on PDC Energy, I mentioned that PDC just completed its second well and was in the resting phase allowing the stimulation to dissipate.  Following its 60-day resting phase, the Detweiler 42-3H has now been opened up for the first time.  The well, which is located in eastern Guernsey County off route 265…

Yet another company tied to shale development is making the Buckeye State their home. Unimin Corp., based in New Canaan, Connecticut is establishing a distribution terminal in Navarre. The company provides proppants used in the hydraulic fracturing process.  Proppant, usually sand, is used to keep the paper-thin fractures open to allow gas and oil to release from the shale.

The company chose Navarre because of its easy access to railroad and…

Two major universities in our region are recognizing the impact shale development is having on Ohio and West Virginia.  Ohio State University and West Virginia University are partnering to research the economic implications as well as environmental, community, and public health impacts of natural gas and shale development.  The schools will exchange information on Utica and Marcellus shale development and are expecting to…

EID's Shawn on OOGEEP's "Opportunities and Challenges: Education and the Utica/Marcellus Shale Industries":

"The Franciscan University of Steubenville recently hosted the Principals’ Leadership Academy.  The event, which included superintendents and principals from Belmont, Harrison and…

Dan Moadus, Owner of American Auto Painting gives his take on the anti-development crowd:

"I am sure that most know about the recent illegal dumping of waste hydraulic fracturing fluid into the Mahoning River and the concern it caused. State Rep. Robert Hagan, D-Youngstown, was apoplectic over the spill, and the local anti-development groups were lighting the tar pots and gathering feathers.

When I heard about the dumping, I…

Communities and companies around the Mahoning Valley are seeing an upswing in electrical work as a result of shale development.  The two locals, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) and VEC Inc., are taking advantage of the new infrastructure construction projects for oil and gas development.

Projects like…

A group of environmental extremists stormed the New Matamoras UIC storage site for GreenHunter Water, disrupting business and terrorizing the staff while a fellow activist erected a pole, anchored by a brine truck and a fence, climbed to the top and refused to come down.

If this scenario sounds familiar, it is because Energy In Depth covered their initial training previously in…

Communities across Appalachia are seeing new jobs and incredible investment stemming from a new influx of oil and natural gas related operations. As  the development of the Marcellus and Utica/Point Pleasant Shale formations continues to expand,  new projects –  like the recently announced processing and polyethylene manufacturing plants – are coming online to create marketable products from the incredible amount of natural gas being produced in the region.

In Ohio, the construction…

"While Governor Kasich is set to give his 2012 State of the State address in Lima, Ohio, which is coincidentally home to a large refinery that could benefit from increased Utica Shale/Point Pleasant production, the Columbus Dispatch wrote an…

Sometimes, consequences become very clear.  Nowhere is that more evident than in Brunswick, Ohio.  Just days after Governor Kasich declared “jobs are our greatest moral purpose” and noted that Ohio is leading the Midwest in job creation thanks, in large, part to  the continued development of the Utica Shale, it appears this newfound prosperity could be limited in Brunswick due to a…

Ohio Oil & Gas Energy Education Program Executive Director and EID partner Rhonda Reda writes for the Daily Jeffersonian:

"In late 2011, the Ohio Oil and Gas Energy Education Program (OOGEEP) released the Ohio Oil and Gas Industry Economic Impact Study. The Study, conducted by Kleinhenz & Associates, recognized the significant impact of both the current oil and gas industry, as well as the economic and job potential of the Utica-Point Pleasant Shale formation. The report was…

EID's Shawn:

"Banks are becoming the newest industry forecasting the significant, positive impact that Utica Shale/Point Pleasant development has had – and will continue to have- in Ohio.

These impacts range from growing Ohio’s Gross Domestic Product over $100 billion in two years, to being responsible for dropping Ohio’s unemployment rate at a faster pace than the national average.  Any way you look at it, oil and gas development is on pace to revitalize Ohio’s…