Encana recently announced that they are finished drilling the Marcellus Shale in Luzerne and Columbia Counties, Pennsylvania. Other companies are still considering the area or trying to sell their leases. A geologist at the Pennsylvania Survey says that at least some of the rocks there have been heated enough to advance the coal seams to anthracite rank. The Marcellus Shale was buried deeper than the coal. More at CitizensVoice.com.
Encana Oil and Gas announced that their two Marcellus Shale wells in Luzerne County were not commercial and that they will immediately stop drilling in Columbia County and Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. They have 25,000 acres under lease in those counties. More at The Times Leader.
Columbia and Luzerne counties are in the eastern part of the state where the rocks have been metamorphosed to a level where much of the natural gas has probably been driven off or destroyed.
Encana has an informative video on their website that illustrates and explains the horizontal driling / hydraulic fracturing techniques used for many natural gas wells drilling in shale. Look for the video link on the right of the page – the video file is very large but worth waiting for the long download.
An article on The Motley Fool website reports that despite low natural gas prices Encana has a healthy cash flow and aggressive plans to double their gas production over the next five years.
Encana Corporation reports that they acquired a quarter million acres in Cheboygan, Kalkaska, and Missaukee Counties, Michigan for about $150/acre. They are reporting production from the Collingwood Shale (2.5 million cubic feet per day from one well), the rock unit immediately below the Utica and immediately above the Trenton. More at PennEnergy.com.
