CHK To Target Savings at the Pump

Though the price of gasoline has dropped slightly over the past few weeks, Chesapeake officials note that “new natural gas engines currently under development and expected to be released soon” are one of the major factors for the increased use of compressed natural gas for transportation. It also notes that environmental regulations will help promote the gas as a cleaner-burning alternative to gasoline.

The rest of the story via CHK To Target Pump Savings – News, Sports, Jobs – The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register.

Weld County oil & gas properties sustain $1M+ damage

(Here’s a scenario where S4W’s early warning perimeter security solutions would have helped deter unauthorized access and could have notified the companies AND the police of the illegal activity IMMEDIATELY!)

Vandals caused upwards of $1 million of damage Monday and Tuesday by releasing large amounts of oil and gas from tanks owned by three companies south of Kersey in Weld County.  “When I was first alerted, I was told (damages) could top $1 million,” said Weld County Sheriff’s spokesman Deputy Shane Scofield. “That was on the lower side of figures told to me.”  The Weld County Sheriff’s Office is investigating 17 known oil spills and one gas release from tanks owned by Noble Energy, Merit Energy and Aka Energy. According to reports, the releases occurred between 4 p.m. Monday and 5 a.m. Tuesday.  Jonathan Ekstrom, spokesman for Noble Engery, said, “Currently, we’re fully committed to working with the authorities to conduct an investigation and to ensure that those responsible for these illegal actions aimed at harming the environment are held responsible.”

The rest of the story via Weld County oil and gas properties sustain more than $1M in damage – Boulder Daily Camera.

Ohio AG investigating Chesapeake Energy

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine is reviewing allegations of fraud by Chesapeake Energy that may have led to investment losses for Ohio pension funds.  He said this in a letter to Ohio Citizen Action, an environmental advocacy group that wrote to DeWine earlier this month raising concerns about various aspects of Chesapeake’s conduct.

The rest of the story at Ohio AG probing Chesapeake Energy’s conduct [The Columbus Dispatch, Ohio] – Businessweek.

New chairman of Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake Energy Corp. expected to be named this week

Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake Energy Corp. is expected to name a new chairman this week, although the 23-year-old company has given no indication who that will be.Aubrey McClendon has agreed to step down as chairman of the company he co-founded in 1989 after questions were raised about the companys corporate governance and a report that he secured up to $1.1 billion in personal loans, including loans from a private equity firm that does business with Chesapeake.McClendon will remain as chief executive officer.Chesapeake has said it will name a new chairman and four new board members by Friday, but the company has yet to formally accept the resignations of two directors who were denied re-election at Chesapeakes June 8 annual meeting.

via New chairman of Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake Energy Corp. expected to be named this week.

Chesapeake Energy Settles with New York on Lease Renegotiations

Chesapeake Energy Corp. (CHK) will have to renegotiate more than 4,400 land leases in New York and pay $250,000 as part of a settlement with the state, the New York attorney general’s office disclosed Thursday.

The decision forces Chesapeake to allow other natural-gas producers to bid on certain leases Chesapeake holds that expire by Dec. 31, 2013. Chesapeake would then have to match the other bid price or give up the lease, according to the attorney general’s office.

The settlement stemmed from Chesapeake’s previous attempts to hold on to leases past the original dates agreed to by landowners without renegotiating terms. Chesapeake argued that it could hold the leases until New York state’s Department of Environmental Conservation completed a review on the effects of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.

via Chesapeake Energy Settles with New York on Lease Renegotiations | Fox Business.

Meet The Oil Shale Eighty Times Bigger Than The Bakken

Everyone has heard about the Bakken shale, the huge expanse of oil-bearing rock underneath North Dakota and Montana that billionaire Harold Hamm thinks could yield 24 billion barrels of oil in the decades to come. The Bakken is a huge boon, both to the economic health of the northern Plains states, but also to the petroleum balance of the United States. From just 60,000 barrels per day five years ago, the Bakken is now giving up 500,000 bpd, with 210,000 bpd of that coming on in just the past year. Given the availability of enough rigs to drill it and crews to frack it, there’s no reason why the Bakken couldn’t be producing more than 1 million bpd by the end of the decade, a level that could be maintained for halfway through the century.But as great as the Bakken is, I learned last week about another oil shale play that dwarfs it. It’s called The Bazhenov. It’s in Western Siberia, in Russia.

The Rest of the Story via Meet The Oil Shale Eighty Times Bigger Than The Bakken – Forbes.

PA likely to stay at forefront with Natural Gas

With billions of dollars already invested in leases, wells and related infrastructure, the state is a cost-effective place to do business. And a plunge in wholesale prices has made being thrifty a must for some companies, dealing a potential blow to would-be upstart New York.

via Experts on drilling: Pa. likely to stay at forefront – Corning, NY – The Corning Leader.

It’s not dirty to see gas as energy solution

I don’t hate the idea of Marcellus Shale drilling, which puts me in dutch with some environmentalists.

I know some use “environmentalist” as a slur, but I’m generally in sympathy with the green team. I walk, bike or take public transportation to work; our family of four gets by with one car; we generally use fans rather than air conditioners; we recycle more than we throw away; we compost; we use a rain barrel for the garden.

via It’s not dirty to see gas as energy solution.

Energy Policy Forum

By Deborah Rogers

Over the past month or so we have all been riveted by one revelation after another about Chesapeake Energy CHK. But lest we lose perspective, I believe it is important to examine other shale gas companies in depth because Chesapeake is not an aberration in an otherwise healthy industry. Far from it. Today I would like to begin an in depth look at Range Resources RRC because I believe that they are on the brink potentially of a downward spiral similar to Chesapeake’s.

via Energy Policy Forum — America has come to crossroads with regard to energy..

Families sue Range Resources

Three Washington County families claim they were exposed to carcinogens and suffered health problems including nosebleeds, debilitating headaches and stomach ulcers because of Range Resources Corp.’s drilling operations, according to a lawsuit filed on Friday.

A litany of spills and leaks and the use of a potentially cancer-causing chemical to stop odors at the site contributed to air and water pollution where the families live in Amwell, they claim. Range Resources and its contractors built a water impoundment above a dozen natural springs and the source of well water there, but made several mistakes in its construction and fixing its problems while using it as an unpermitted dump for other wells’ waste, the lawsuit states.

via Families sue Range Resources, claiming ills from gas wells | TribLIVE.