Facts & Rumors # 542
February 10, 2024
Latest facts and rumors from the Marcellus, Utica, and Permian, Eagle Ford Plays
LNG PERMIT PAUSE.
I have never seen such blowback to a negative government decision regarding NatGas and/or oil. It seems Republicans and Democrats along with a number of business organizations and companies are pressuring Biden to lift the ban.
I do not think Biden will rescind his decision.
Rockefellers and Billionaire Pressure Biden on LNG Exports. How the Rockefellers and billionaire donors pressured Biden on LNG exports. WSJ. Charities controlled by members of the Rockefeller family and billionaire donors were key funders of a successful campaign to pressure President Biden to pause new approvals of liquefied natural gas exports from the U.S. The Rockefellers, along with other wealthy donors including the philanthropy of Michael Bloomberg, have provided millions of dollars in recent years to front-line environmental groups that are campaigning against fossil-fuel projects, including LNG terminals that have been proposed on the Gulf Coast, according to people familiar with the effort. Some green funders hadn’t given much attention to the LNG exports until recently, in part because of ambivalence about the role natural gas should play in the energy transition. Plus, some previous campaigns to kill LNG terminals had been unsuccessful, damping some donors’ and large environmental organizations’ appetite for taking on the industry. Grist similarly reports.
Crumbling NatGas Prices. Natural gas futures crumble to fresh lows amid storage overhang; cash retreats. NGI. March Nymex natural gas futures ended 5.0 cents lower Thursday as a widely anticipated storage withdrawal print from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) did little to quell bearish market sentiment. The front-month contract settled at $1.917/MMBtu after trading to a better-than-three-year low of $1.867.
Could Merger Boom Slow Production. U.S. merger boom could slow shale production growth. Oil Price. Opinion. Some private oil producers in the Permian will hit the brakes on output growth as they have been acquired by large publicly traded companies, which now value returns to shareholders more than production increases at all costs. The booming activity in mergers and acquisitions (M&As) from 2023 has led to a growing number of smaller privately held companies being absorbed into large corporations, which answer to shareholders and look to reward investors.
Big Oil Partnering with Corn Producers. Big oil embraces corn as former foes unite against EV threat. BNN Bloomberg. After decades of battling against more ethanol going into US cars, Big Oil is joining Big Agriculture in a push to expand use of the corn-based biofuel. The longtime foes are increasingly finding common ground as the growth of electric vehicles threatens to slash gasoline demand. Fossil-fuel giants are also ramping up investment in renewable fuels in a bid to capture government incentives aimed at cutting emissions and curbing climate change. The American Petroleum Institute — the powerful oil lobby — is uniting with the National Corn Growers Association and other groups to support a bipartisan measure from Republican Senator Deb Fischer of Nebraska that would allow year-round sales of E15 across the country. The legislation would also preserve access to lower blends. The collaboration is the biggest so far between the two sides, and is changing the face of energy lobbying on Capitol Hill as they fight for liquid renewable fuels.
TX Record NatGas & Oil Production. Texas hits record natural gas, oil production despite sharply lower prices. NGI. Texas achieved record natural gas and oil production in 2023 despite lower prices for both commodities, falling rig counts, and fewer drilling permits issued versus 2022, said the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers. The group, which represents the state’s independent exploration and production (E&P) firms, said its Texas Petro Index (TPI) fell in December for the 11th straight month to 154.4, down 13.4% year/year.
TX Production to Dim in 2024. U.S. Permian deal frenzy dims U.S. oil output growth prospects for 2024. Reuters. Oil production in the prodigious Permian shale basin in Texas and New Mexico this year will see the slowest annual growth since 2021, according to market participants, as a slew of acquisitions reduces activity among private drillers. Reduced growth in the Permian, the largest U.S. oilfield, will be a drag on overall gains in U.S. production. The slowdown comes even as output cuts from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) have supported prices, giving an incentive for non-OPEC+ producers to pump more.
Oilfield Technology Advances Exponentially. Odessa American. The Apache Corp. and the Permian Basin Petroleum and Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners associations say the United States and the world have benefited as a result. TIPRO President Ed Longanecker said from Austin that the oil and gas industry has long been at the helm of technology and innovation. “Through this innovation operators in the Permian Basin have made incredible strides forward in the last decade from reducing methane intensity to its lowest point during record production to implementing new technologies that modernized operations,” Longanecker said from Austin. “Importantly, our industry would not be able to make these leaps forward if it weren’t for the dedicated and essential workforce that has remained resilient in challenging environments and the record-breaking global energy demand that we are successfully meeting.”
Germany Sees the Light. Germany paves way for major expansion of gas power plants. Bloomberg. Germany approved plans to finance one of Europe’s biggest expansions of gas-fired power plants, on the condition that developers convert to hydrogen in future years. The government agreed to go ahead with four short-term tenders for up to 10 gigawatts, translating to about 15 to 20 new plants. It requires developers to upgrade stations to burn hydrogen sometime between 2035 and 2040, and also leaves open room for carbon capturing and storage technologies, according to a statement Monday. The decision — which comes almost a year after the proposal was first unveiled — follows weeks of intense talks between Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his two coalition parties. The measure will cost between €15 billion ($16.1 billion) and €20 billion over the next 20 years, according to people familiar with the matter, and includes subsidies for investment and operational costs.
TX Top Producing Counties. Martin, Midland counties again lead Texas oil production. Midland Reporter Telegram. The Railroad Commission has released its preliminary crude and natural gas production for November 2023. Production came from 162,789 oil and 86,491 natural gas wells. According to the commission, Texas produced 103,432,924 barrels for an average daily production of 3,447,764 barrels. Preliminary natural gas production was 859,711,071 thousand cubic feet for an average of 28,657,036 Mcf.
PA Permits January 29, to February 6, 2024
County Township E&P Companies
1. Greene Center EQT
2. Lycoming Lycoming Township Beech Resources
3. Lycoming Lycoming Township Beech Resources
4. Lycoming Lycoming Township Beech Resources
5. Susquehanna Auburn Coterra
6. Tioga Delmar Seneca
7. Tioga Westfield Seneca
8. Tioga Westfield Seneca
9. Tioga Westfield Seneca
10. Washington Donegal Range
11. Washington Donegal Range
12. Westmoreland Sewickley Apex
OH Permits January 28 to February 3, 2024
County Township E&P Companies
1. Belmont Wayne Gulfport
2. Belmont Wayne Gulfport
3. Harrison Cadiz Ascent
4. Harrison Cadiz Ascent
5. Harrison Cadiz Ascent
6. Harrison Cadiz Ascent
WV Permits January 29, 2024 to February 2, 2024
1. Harrison Diversified Prod.
2. Harrison Diversified Prod
