Shale Gas News – October 31, 2020

Bill desRosiers
External Affairs Coordinator, Cabot Oil & Gas

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The Shale Gas News, heard every Saturday at 10 AM on 94.3 FM, 1510 AM, 1600 AM, 104.1 FM and Sundays on YesFM, talked about a methanol plant, Diversified Oil & Gas, Gulfport Energy and much more last week.

The Shale Gas News has grown again to the Williamsport area on stations WEJS 1600 AM & 104.1 FM. The Shale Gas News is now broadcasting in Bradford, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Lebanon, Luzerne, Lycoming, Pike, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Tioga and Wayne Counties, as well as in greater central PA and now the Williamsport area. The Shale Gas News is aired on Saturday or Sunday depending on the station.

Every Saturday Rusty Fender, Matt Henderson and I host a morning radio show to discuss all things natural gas. This week, as a guest, we had Timothy DeFoor, Candidate for Pennsylvania Auditor General.

In this week’s Shale Directories meet a member segment we were joined by Luke Diserio, President of American Energy Fabrications.

The Shale Gas News, typically, is broadcast live. On the October 31st show (click above), we covered the following new territory (see news excerpts below):

Trump considers ordering government analysis on fracking economics: report. President Trump is weighing whether to issue an executive order requiring an economic analysis of fracking, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing unnamed senior administration officials. Hydraulic fracturing, commonly known as fracking, is a method of extracting oil and gas from rocks. It’s controversial because it has been linked to water contamination. Trump has been a vocal supporter of fracking and has attempted to make it part of his campaign messaging in states like Pennsylvania where it’s used by industry.
U.S. oil producers bet on $42 oil prices in 2021. U.S. oil producers are betting that crude prices will stay low well into next year, hedging some of their production at around $40 a barrel in 2021. Exploration and production companies have so far hedged 41 percent of their forecast 2021 oil output at an average West Texas Intermediate price of $42 a barrel, 25 percent lower than this year’s hedged price floor of $56 per barrel, according to Rystad. The hedge is in line with current crude prices, which are hovering around $39 a barrel as of Tuesday morning.
Republicans vie for powerful energy spending post. One of Capitol Hill’s most powerful energy and environment positions will open up next year for the first time in nearly a decade. And how the GOP performs in next week’s elections will influence the jockeying over who will take on the leadership slot. The top Republican position on the Senate Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee, which determines funding for the Department of Energy, Army Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation, is available for the first time since 2011.
API sets the record straight on Biden’s energy tax claims. When asked during the final presidential debate if he’d “close down the oil industry,” Vice President Joe Biden initially responded that he would “transition from the oil industry” but soon clarified that he meant “getting rid of the subsidies for fossil fuels” and his campaign specified he meant “ending oil subsidies.” While Biden’s quick clean up indicates he understands how important the natural gas and oil industry is to America, it also reveals a misunderstanding about how the tax code treats the industry. To help clear up the confusion, here are five things to know about how tax policy treats the natural gas and oil industry.
WV Announces New $350M Methanol Plant in Pleasants County. Some exciting news to share! A company called West Virginia Methanol Inc. has selected a site in Pleasants County, WV to develop to build a $350 million methanol plant. Methanol plants convert natural gas into methanol, used as a chemical feedstock (raw material) to create other things, like gasoline, antifreeze, plastic bottles–even LED and LCD screens. Methanol plants use a LOT of natural gas.
Gulfport Energy Misses Debt Payment, in “Restructuring” Talks. According to paperwork filed by Gulfport Energy last Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the company skipped making a scheduled interest payment on its 6% senior unsecured notes due 2024. Which means the clock starts ticking (for 30 days) in which the company either must make that payment, or get an agreement in place with creditors (or file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy).
Diversified Gas & Oil Employs 425, Spends $100M per Year in WV. Diversified Gas & Oil (DGO) is a fascinating company. DGO’s strategy is to seek wells in “the long tail.” That is, wells already drilled with production along the decline curve. DGO CEO Rusty Hutson, a West Virginia native, recently wrote a column for the Charleston Gazette-Mail expressing his company’s love for and investment in the Mountain State. DGO’s commitment to WV is extensive.