Facts & Rumors # 588
March 8, 2025
Methane Rule Is Dead. Biden’s methane rule is dead. Oil and Gas 360. Oil and gas producers in the United States will no longer be obliged to pay a fee for the methane they emit in the course of their operations after Congress voted to axe one of the most celebrated moves of the Biden administration in the energy space. “The Biden administration and Democrats in Congress passed the methane tax to single out and punish the oil and natural gas industry despite its already burdensome EPA regulatory framework,” said the president of the Independent Petroleum Association of America, Jeff Eshelman. Once the methane rule is officially scrapped after President Trump signs the bill, the reaction that would be interesting to see would be that of the European Union.
U.S. Energy Chief Will Seek $20 Billion to Refill Oil Reserve. Bloomberg. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright plans to seek up to $20 billion to accomplish President Donald Trump’s goal of refilling the nation’s depleted oil reserve to its maximum capacity. The initiative, which may take years, would restore holdings “just close to the top” to maintain efficient operating status, Wright said in an interview on Thursday in Louisiana after touring a natural-gas export plant.
NatGas Rigs Decrease for Second Year. U.S. natural gas-directed rigs decreased for second consecutive year in 2024. Energy Information Administration. The number of rigs deployed to drill for natural gas in the United States decreased over the last two years. U.S. natural gas-directed rigs decreased 32% (50 rigs) between December 2022 and December 2024. This decline has been concentrated in the natural gas-rich Haynesville and Appalachia regions, where the combined natural gas rig count declined by 34% during 2023 (43 rigs) and by 24% during 2024 (21 rigs).
Gulfport 4th Qtr. Results. Thanks, MDN. Gulfport Energy, the third-largest driller in the Ohio Utica Shale (by the number of wells drilled), reported its fourth quarter and full-year 2024 numbers last week. The company drills Utica and Marcellus wells in Ohio. It also has an active drilling program in the Oklahoma SCOOP shale play. Gulfport’s net daily production in 4Q24 averaged 1,055.5 MMcfe/d (1.06 Bcfe/d), down slightly from 4Q23’s average of 1,063.3 MMcfe/d. Gulfport’s net daily production for the full year of 2024 averaged 1.05 Bcfe/d, consisting of 841.7 MMcfe/d in the Utica and Marcellus and 212.4 MMcfe/d in the SCOOP. Put another way, the M-U produced 80% of the company’s production. For the full year of 2024, Gulfport’s net daily production mix comprised approximately 92% natural gas, 6% NGLs, and 2% oil and condensate. According to the 4Q update, Gulfport plans to boost liquids production by 30% in 2025.
How Much Longer Can the Good Times Roll? How much longer will the good times roll for fossil fuel companies? Financial Times. The latest long-term forecast from Opec, the club of petroleum exporting nations, predicts that the world will use 120mn barrels of oil per day in 2050 — up from 104mn barrels today. Oil companies from ExxonMobil to BP to Equinor are ramping up their fossil fuel investments in anticipation of strong demand for decades to come.
CAT Announces New Equipment Utilizing 100% NatGas. Caterpillar Oil & Gas announces development of gas mechanical system for 100% gas-powered completions operations. Oilfield Technology. Caterpillar Oil & Gas has announced the development of the Caterpillar® Gas Mechanical System (GMS), a fully integrated power solution for frac operations, utilizing 100% natural gas. Engineered for high-horsepower pressure pumping applications, the GMS features the 3600 hp Cat® G3520 engine and the new TH55G-E90 transmission. Cat Oil and Gas said its scalable design requires fewer trailers on-site, increases the power density per trailer, and decreases fuel consumption, compared to alternative frac operation methods.
KY to Build 2 NatGas Power Plants. Thanks, MDN. Kentucky has seen unprecedented economic growth in recent years, like other southern states. Data centers are looking to Kentucky for future expansion. Last fall, Louisville Gas and Electric Company (LG&E) and Kentucky Utilities Company (KU), both part of PPL Corporation, forecasted in their Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) the need for additional power generation due to the expected influx of data centers and economic development across their service territories (see Kentucky Utilities Want to Build 2 New NatGas Power Plants). The companies floated a plan to build two new natural gas combined-cycle generation units—one in 2030 and another in 2031. Those plans just got very real.
DOE Ditches Export Rule for LNG Shipping Fuel. E&E News. The Department of Energy will not regulate liquefied natural gas bunkering under export laws, unless transfers take place in foreign territorial waters or ports. The DOE in a press release Friday said it is “withdrawing the exercise of its jurisdiction under the Natural Gas Act for ship-to-ship transfers of LNG for marine fuel use at a U.S. port, in U.S. waters, or in international waters.”
TX Congressman Looks to Block Future Presidents Attack on Domestic Energy. Texas Rep unveils bill to block future Presidents from launching an ‘assault on domestic energy’. TampaFp. Republican Texas Rep. Jodey Arrington introduced a bill Wednesday aimed at restricting future U.S. presidents from imposing an export ban on crude oil without first providing valid reasoning.
The bill, known as the Continuing Robust and Uninhibited Drilling and Exporting (CRUDE) Act, would prevent future U.S. presidents from imposing export bans on crude oil unless the restrictions were enacted due to reasons of national security, according to a copy of the legislation first obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Shell May Sell Monaca Petrochemical Plant. Thanks, MDN. According to the Wall Street Journal, Shell is “exploring a potential sale of its chemicals assets in Europe and the U.S.,” according to “people familiar with the matter.” The review and potential sale are part of a continuing drive to refocus the company’s business on its most profitable operations. One of the PetChem assets that may be on the auction block is the recently completed Monaca (Beaver County, PA) ethane cracker complex. Our heads are officially exploding.
EOG OH Update. Thanks, MDN. EOG Resources, one of the largest oil and gas drillers in the U.S. (with international operations in Trinidad and China), owns nearly a half million acres of leases in the Ohio Utica (~460,000 acres). EOG calls its position the “Ohio Utica combo play” and now considers it one of the company’s “premium plays.” EOG concentrates on oil drilling in the Utica. During the company’s fourth quarter and full-year update, we learned that EOG has fully committed to operating two rigs and one frac crew in the Ohio Utica in 2025. Looking back at 2024, the company drilled and completed 25 Utica wells. Looking forward to 2025, the plan is to drill and complete another 30 new Utica wells.
DOE Approves Extension for Texas Gas Export Permit. E&E News. Energy Secretary Chris Wright approved a permit extension Wednesday for the Golden Pass LNG export terminal that’s under construction in Sabine Pass, Texas. The move by the Department of Energy extends — from Sept. 30, 2025, to March 31, 2027 — the deadline to begin commercial exports to countries that lack a free trade agreement with the U.S. Golden Pass LNG, a joint venture company formed by Exxon Mobil and QatarEnergy, is aiming to start producing LNG around the end of this year, with commercial export operations “following thereafter,” according to a statement Wednesday.
VA Approves LNG Production and Storage Facility. Thanks, MDN. In November 2023, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) agreed with a petition from Dominion Energy subsidiary Virginia Electric and Power Company that requested a planned LNG production, storage, and regasification facility in Greensville County, VA, should be exempt from FERC jurisdiction under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act (see Dominion LNG Storage for Va. Power Plant Exempt from FERC Regs). The FERC decision cleared the way for the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) to make a final decision on whether or not the project should get built. The SCC recently approved the project.
PA February 24, to March 6, 2025
County Township E&P Companies
1. Armstrong Manor Snyder Bros.
OH February 23, to March 1, 2025
County Township E&P Companies
1. Guernsey Londonderry Ascent
2. Guernsey Londonderry Ascent
3. Guernsey Londonderry Ascent
4. Tuscarawas Perry EAP OH
5. Tuscarawas Perry EAP OH
6. Tuscarawas Perry EAP OH
7. Tuscarawas Perry EAP OH
WV Permits February 24 to February 28, 2025
1. Marshall SWN
2. Marshall SWN
3. Marshall SWN
4. Marshall SWN
5. Marshall SWN
6. Marshall SWN
