Biblio
The Primer provides regulators, policy makers, and the public with an objective source of information on the technology advances and challenges that accompany deep shale gas development and describes the importance of shale gas in meeting the future energy needs of the United States.
Protecting and conserving water resources is an important aspect of producing shale gas, and this effort was championed by the Ground Water Protection Council through a cooperative agreement with NETL.
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Fossil Energy and National Energy Technology Laboratory. Modern Shale Gas Development in the United States: A Primer. Washington, D.C. U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). April 2009. 116pages. [PDF-5.11MB].
In a speech in Buenos Aires last year, BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward called this "a quiet revolution...in the gas fields of North America."
New techniques like hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling are opening up new gas resources that could last the U.S. between 50 and 100 years, he said.
"One field where these techniques were pioneered--the Barnett Shale near Fort Worth in Texas--has almost single-handedly turned around the production of natural gas in the U.S.," Hayward said.
BP made its entry into U.S. shale gas in 2008 when it acquired 90,000 acres of the Arkoma Basin Woodford Shale play and 135,000 acres of the Fayetteville shale from Chesapeake Energy for $2.85 billion in cash.
Among the largest natural gas companies in North America, based in Calgary, Alberta.
The Michigan Land Use Institute reported that In 2006 the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission fined Encana $370,000 for flawed drilling practices. Residents said the drilling contaminated Divide Creek with methane and benzene.
Alan Boras, Encana’s spokesman, said in an interview that the leak was “a rare circumstance” caused by flaws in the cement that holds the well casing in place.
“Within less than a week of being alerted, the problem was rectified,” Mr. Boras said.
Lisa Bracken, on Journey of the Forsaken, reported on June 30, 2010 that,
"EnCana has recently submitted twenty well permits (with at least twenty more on the horizon) to infill drill in our neighborhood... despite 1) low natural gas prices, despite 2) EnCana suing the state of Colorado over new public safety rules (which are by the way utterly toothless) and which they say are driving them from Colorado; and, 3) despite the persistent, increasing and largely un-investigated presence of leaking hydrocarbon toxins into groundwater and private water wells.
Why the renewed surge in activity? Could be because China is dumping investment dollars into EnCana's bank account to facilitate extraction of gas for export to China?"
See: Natural gas: the commodity world’s ‘ugly duckling’.
See Lisa Bracken video.
See: Lisa Bracken Website: Journey of the Forsaken.
See: Will Koop. Encana's Cabin Not So Homey: Cumulative Environmental Effects - An Unfolding and Emerging Crisis in Northeastern British Columbis'a Shale Gas Plays. (PDF 13. 4 MB, 58 pp.). November 9, 2010.
An Introductory Journey Into BC's Dirty Domino Zone - Commentary and Recent Photos by Garth Lenz.
See: Letter written to Vancouver Sun by Fort Nelson First Nation Chief, Kathie Dickie. Dec. 22, 2009. (Koop, p. 21)
Calgary-based EnCana Corporation, Canada's largest gas producer, along with a consortium of seven other oil companies, is planning to build the biggest gas processing plant in North America in the heart of our 1910 treaty territory.
We've been told many things by the B. C government as we've tried to participate in the environmental assessment process. One official said that because our 100-year-old treaty doesn't specifically address clean air, we have no say on clean air when it comes to the construction of the biggest greenhouse gas creator in B.C. Imagine being told by a government official in 2009 that you have no say on the quality of air you or your children breathe! What parent would stand for it?
We understand the value to the province of shale gas development in the Horn River Basin. But such economic development, whether for our community or yours, should not come at the expense of a gutting of the land, water, and air where a community lives.
We are the only Treaty 8 Nation that lives within the Horn River Basin, and this gas plant, designed to open the basin to drilling, pipelines and gas development, will have an immense effect on our rights and interests. Without the capacity to determine and plan for this development, the survival of the Fort Nelson First Nation is in jeopardy. This plant and the development that it brings must not mean the end of us.
Source: Fort Nelson First Nation Chief, Kathie Dickie, Vancouver Sun, December 22, 2009, Premier’s climate-change hypocrisy could doom first nation’s way of life.
See: Julie Green. "The Game Changer." UpHere Business. June 2010.
...In mid-April, Dickie signed an agreement with Spectra. “It’s more than an impact-benefit agreement,” says Spectra’s Duane Rae. “It formalizes the relationship we already have and talks about how we’re going to continue working together.” The band is working on similar agreements with TransCanada and EnCana. Dickie has a list of substantial fears about shale development and water is at the top.
Energy in Depth is an oil and natural gas industry informational site.
Since June of 2010, this has been the place to read the rebuttal to Josh Fox's documentary Gasland.
"We’ve spent some time over the past couple months taking a critical look at some of the key assertions made in the HBO documentary Gasland, putting forth in that time two separate rebuttal documents that we believe address in a substantive way a number of the misconceptions upon which the film, and its broader political message, is based.
Read the opposing viewpoints on Energy in Depth as an information source on Sourcewatch Wiki
See: Nora Eisenberg. AlterNet. July 23, 2010. Exposing the Natural Gas Industry's Attempt to Silence Its Critics
Please note that information taken from Wikis should be verified using other, more reliable sources. It is a good place to start research, but because anyone can edit a Wiki, we do not recommend using it in research papers or to obtain highly reliable information.
About Energy in Depth:
"Who We Are: America’s natural gas and oil producers – the majority of which are small, independent businesses with less than 12 employees- are committed to strengthening America through the safe, responsible and environmentally-friendly development of domestic energy resources."
See extensive press-releases and archived press-releases reacting to environmental pressure, presenting the arguments of industry in favor of fracking the Marcelus Shale.
Related:
Lee Fuller. "HF 101: As Cornell Begins Study of Shale Gas Exploration, Energy In Depth Offers Itself Up as Resource for Ad Hoc Panel". Energy in Depth.
Lee Fuller
Mike Hale. The New York Times. June 21, 2010. The Costs of Natural Gas, Including Flaming Water.
Oral Statement Submitted by Mr. Lee Fuller, Representing Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) and Energy In Depth (EID), 3-28-10. (PDF, 3 pp., 46,255 bytes). Submitted to: EPA Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) Environmental Engineer Committee Hydraulic Fracturing Research Plan Review. 4/7/2010- 4/8/2010. The St Regis, 923 16th Street, NW, Washington DC 20006.
See: Drilling Isn't Safe.
Landmen constitute the business side of the oil and gas and mineral exploration and production team. "The American Association of Professional Landmen is a voluntary international professional organization that unites approximately 12,000 landmen and land-related persons through professional development and service."
WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. -- Halliburton is building a permanent outpost here on the edge of a one of the 21st century's biggest energy booms.
...Halliburton is a ubiquitous presence in the world's biggest oil fields. For the past two months, it has defended itself against charges that shoddy cement work contributed to a methane blast that sank BP's rig in the Gulf of Mexico and killed 11 people. As long as the well keeps gushing, public anger could weaken America's appetite for offshore drilling.
But far from the Gulf Coast and outside of the media spotlight, Halliburton and the oil and gas industry are spending billions of dollars in preparation for decades of drilling in the Marcellus Shale. The 95,000-square-mile sheet of natural gas-rich sediment sprawls across Pennsylvania, southern New York, West Virginia and eastern Ohio.
...Energy companies from India and Japan are dumping shareholder wealth into Appalachian gas production. In February, Japan's Mitsui & Co. entered a $1.4 billion joint venture with Anadarko Petroleum Corp.
Pittsburgh-based Atlas Energy Inc. in April formed a $1.7 billion partnership with Reliance Industries Ltd., the largest private-sector company in India. The conglomerate is controlled by Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani, who has been pushing the company to secure lucrative energy investments outside of India.
"In the last few years, we realized we had this extremely valuable asset," says Jeff Kupfer, senior vice president of Atlas. "We needed a lot of capital to develop it." Once Atlas put out a feeler, the Marcellus prospect attracted attention from the world's major oil and gas companies. "There was something in the chemistry with Atlas and Reliance."
From EOG website: EOG Resources, Inc. is one of the largest independent (non-integrated) oil and natural gas companies in the United States with proved reserves in the United States, Canada, Trinidad, the United Kingdom and China. EOG Resources, Inc. is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and is traded under the ticker symbol “EOG."
An EOG blew out in Clearville PA. on June 4, 2010.
From Sourcewatch: On June 4, 2010, a western Pennsylvania natural-gas well owned by EOG Resources Inc. blew out, releasing an undisclosed amount of gas and drilling fluids before being contained about 16 hours later, as reported by the Wall Street Journal and The Boston Globe.
Operators at this site were preparing to extract gas after through [hydrofracking]]. In a press release, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection stated that it would "aggressively investigate" the Marcellus Shale well blowout and that it would take the "appropriate enforcement action."
"As a result, the well released natural gas and flowback (fracturing) fluid onto the ground and 75 feet into the air," the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection said in the press release. It should be noted that EOG Resources is the new namesake for the company formerly known as Enron.
...Open and honest communication, a safe working environment, ethical business practices and good neighbor initiatives are all an important part of how we do business each and every day.
Chief's gas well in Moundsville, West Virginia exploded June 7, 2010. Read the report from Pittsburgh Tribune Review.
Chief's most recent focus has been the development of the Marcellus Shale, a formation that runs from the southern tier of New York, through the western portion of Pennsylvania into the eastern half of Ohio and through Maryland and West Virginia. Chief currently holds more than 580,000 acres in Appalachia.
"Energy in Depth (EID) is a pro-oil-and-gas drilling industry front group formed by the American Petroleum Institute, the Petroleum Association of America and dozens of additional industry organizations for the purpose of denouncing legislation proposed by Colorado U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette to regulate underground hydraulic fracturing fluids."
"The Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) publishes SourceWatch, this collaborative, specialized encyclopedia of the people, organizations, and issues shaping the public agenda. SourceWatch profiles the activities of front groups, PR spinners, industry-friendly experts, industry-funded organizations, and think tanks trying to manipulate public opinion on behalf of corporations or government. We also highlight key public policies they are trying to affect and provide ways to get involved."
Please note that information taken from Wikis should be verified using other, more reliable sources. It is a good place to start research, but because anyone can edit a Wiki, we do not recommend using it in research papers or to obtain highly reliable information.
Chesapeake Energy breaks another promise. In meetings with Fort Worth, Texas residents, Chesapeake promised Fort they wouldn't flare the Barnett Shale gas wells in the Trinity Trees area.
See: Bluedaze by Sharon Wilson (TXSharon). December 6, 2010. "Chesapeake Energy uses fear to divide communities and pit neighbor against neighbor".
See: Poison Fire.
The membership of American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) includes geologists, geophysicists, CEOs, managers, consultants, students and academicians. The purpose of the organization is to foster scientific research, advance the science of geology, promote technology and inspire high professional conduct.
"The American Petroleum Institute (API) is the only national trade association that represents all aspects of America’s oil and natural gas industry. Our nearly 400 corporate members, from the largest major oil company to the smallest of independents, come from all segments of the industry. They are producers, refiners, suppliers, pipeline operators and marine transporters, as well as service and supply companies that support all segments of the industry."
See API Ads:
Increased production of oil and natural gas can help rebuild America’s economy by creating new jobs and generating more than $1 trillion for federal, state and local budgets.
Let's check the facts. The costs of spill clean-up, global warming, and devastated marine ecosystems remain undocumented.
See also: Put America to Work. (2009). Scroll down and roll over the interactive U.S. map and click on any state to read the same copy with plug-in paragraphs state by state.
Ardent is a privately held, independent oil and gas company headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Ardent is mentioned in Item 11 of an online petition, "Remove Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Pete Grannis and Director of the Division of Mineral Resources Bradley J. Field". In the form of a letter to New York's Governor Patterson, this petition is found at the website Catskill Citizens for Safe Energy.
Although Ardent addressed a problem caused by their drilling, residents questioned how they could afford the annual maintenance costs for the high-tech purification systems, which improved the quality of their water supply at a cost of between $10,000 and $14,000.
BJ is one of the large companies being investigated by the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee to see if the gas extraction method known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is a hazard to groundwater drinking supplies.
The Houston Chronicle reported that Texas Democratic gubernatorial nominee Bill White, 2010, may have had a conflict of interest during his term as mayor of Houston. Bill White earned more than $2.6 million serving on the board of a gas well servicing company that now is part of a congressional investigation into possible groundwater contamination.
White, who made cleaning Houston's polluted air a hallmark of his tenure as Houston's mayor, has been on the board of BJ Services Co. since 2003, the year he was elected, earning more than $627,000.
White also received almost $830,000 in stock and another $245,000 in stock options. He will receive an additional $180,000 in stock and a retirement payout of $783,000 if the firm's merger with Baker Hughes is approved by shareholders Friday.
See: 03/31/2010--Baker Hughes and BJ Services Stockholders Approve Merger
From the web site: "BJ Services has earned a reputation for providing reliable fracturing services for virtually every major shale oil and gas operator. Since 1981, our skilled engineers and crews have successfully designed and pumped more than 21,500 shale frac treatments around the world. We know that every shale formation is different and we offer the most advanced fracturing technologies–the right fluids, proppants and equipment–needed to “crack the code” for optimum frac designs and operations."
ExxonMobil. The Lamp. No. 4, 2009. p. 7-8.
Andrew Swiger, Exxon Senior V.P. has said,
"A key question about shale and other unconventional plays will be whether a company has the technology to turn them into profitable opportunities.
Swiger notes that technology advances ExxonMobil has perfected in producing unconventional natural gas from tight-sands formations in Colorado’s Piceance Basin should prove advantageous.
ExxonMobil‐XTO Merger:
Read preliminary transcripts of Rex Tillerson, CEO, giving testimony to the House Energy Committee.
ExxonMobil‐XTO Merger: Impact on U.S. Energy Markets Preliminary Transcript of Testimony, House of Representatives, Subcommittee on Energy and Environment, Committee on Energy and Commerce. Wednesday, January 20, 2010. 122 pages.
This merger heralds a fundamental long‐term shift in U.S. energy markets and one that deserves our close attention. Over the last decade, a small group of companies that most Americans have never heard of has been developing huge deposits of natural gas in deep shale formations across America."
-Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Chair of Subcommittee on Energy and the Environment.Tillerson testimony on p. 52.
