For those Shalers following the lawsuit brought against Cabot O & G by residents of Dimock, PA, some initial rulings by the Federal Court's Judge Jones have largely gone against the defendant.  Cabot had sought to dismiss or otherwise strike several of the plaintiff's claims. I'm curious exactly why this case ended up in Federal Court instead of a State one.  Anyone know?…

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Whether you agree with Katherine Nadeau of the Environmental Advocates of NY or not, she makes a good point that the debate over drilling in NY is frequently framed as a conflict between dirt poor farmers who want to drill and environmental extremists who hotly oppose development. The true situation is neither black or white, but rather falls within the shades of gray between these two polar extremes. In this… Continue

The Marcellus Shale Coalition is the most important industry organization specifically focusing on Marcellus shale developments. It has a brand new web site with many interactive features. Along with Energy In Depth, these are the two best places to find out what the industry has to say, and a must read for anyone trying to understand… Continue

Penn State's indefatigable Professor Terry Engelder says both sides of the environmental debate are exaggerating. The natural gas E & P companies minimize the risks to groundwater--there are a few, such as drilling into pockets of methane gas that can produce milky-looking well water. Some environmentalists have attacked hydro-fracturing as if it were a proven source of water contamination (it's not). …

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We've heard about all of the dangers of hydro-fracturing (aka fracing), and doubtless environmental concerns deserve to be adequately addressed, yet its easy to lose sight of the big picture and to realize that the Marcellus shale and other similar shale gas developments in Louisiana and Texas change everything. …

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The worst cold snap in 30 years has drawn down Britain's supply of natural gas to a dangerous level. The U.K.'s North Sea supplies are running out, and the country has become increasingly dependent upon imports. It could happen here too, if the E & P industry is prevented from developing the full potential of our shale gas reserves. Read more

Exxon's buyout of XTO Energy, a dramatic move announced earlier this week, is the former company's biggest financial action since merging with Mobil in 1999. It builds even greater credibility than previously held for Marcellus shale development. Two things… Continue

Prior to the upsurge in shale gas drilling, and the vast new reserves that are now understood to exist, the odds-on favorite for supplementing the waning conventional domestic supply of natural gas was liquefied natural gas (LNG) brought here from Indonesia, the Middle East, and Russia. Huge capital investments were made in LNG terminals that now sit largely idle. For example, there is the Costa Azul terminal built on the west coast of Mexico with a capacity of 1 billion cubic feet of natural… Continue

A quick video intro to the significance of developing the Marcellus shale play featureing Penn State's indefatigable Dr. Terry Engelder who "talks turkey" about what policy makers should be taking away.

Aubrey McClendon, CEO of Chesapeake Energy, and John Pinkerton, CEO of Range Resources have both called for demystifying the chemicals used in… Continue

The Barnett shale formation lies directly underneath Ft. Worth, Texas, a metro area of some 1.6 million. Urban drilling has become commonplace in the suburban areas there and even in downtown Ft. Worth. Any open field can be a potential drilling site for a gas well. Range Resources is one of the companies that is leasing… Continue

Cabot Oil and Gas has recently started using fit-for-purpose rigs. These have been optimized for pad drilling. They have a smaller footprint than conventional rigs and minimize damage to environmentally sensitive surface areas, and, all the while, get world-class drilling results. One of Cabot's Susquehana Co. wells just produced 1/2 Bcf of natural gas in its first 60 days. For the latest… Continue

Chesapeake Energy has been intensifying its efforts in the Marcellus shale and is poised to take over the lead in production of natural gas coming from it. In an operations update issued at the end of the first half of '09 the company hi-lighted a couple of reasons that probably help explain why so many companies are shifting their exploration activities to the Marcellus. Assuming $7 gas and $70 oil (today's… Continue

Terry Engelder of Penn State along with Gary Lash (SUNY-Fredonia) are two pioneering geologists who have really educated the public about the Marcellus shale formation. In this Webinar, Dr. Engelder, explains some of the technical side of horizontal drilling and fracking when drilling for… Continue

What is the legitimate role of government in regulating chemicals used in hydro-fracturing natural gas wells? Hydro-fracturing is a key technology used in achieving productivity in shale gas wells, and has been in use for decades. Now these chemicals are coming under Congressional scrutiny as… Continue

This rig tour is on a Barnett shale rig, but it's got to be pretty similar with Marcellus shale.