In this video CONSOL Energy CEO, Brett Harvey, talks about the company’s purchase of natural gas assets from Dominion Resources. He seems to think highly of the potential for natural gas. A quote: “Natural Gas will be the chosen fuel.” (Consol already owns a lot of coal mines between the surface and the Marcellus Shale which create conflicting land use problems when drilling for natural gas.)

A free webinar titled: “The Impact of Marcellus Shale: What Do the Economic Impact Studies Imply?” is scheduled for Thursday, March 18th at 1:00 PM and hosted by the Penn State Cooperative Extension. You can register on their website.

An article in Reuters explains that Statoil has a deal with Tennessee Gas Pipeline to transport Marcellus Shale natural gas from Pennsylvania to New York City and parts of New Jersey. This connection to cities on the east coast is part of what makes the Marcellus Shale gas play so important.

An article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that the Pennsylvania Department of Natural Resources is going to increase the number of inspectors assigned to oversee natural gas drilling by 50%. Fees paid by companies who want to drill in the state will also be will also be significantly increased.

An article on the Syracuse.com website reports that Chesapeake Energy wants to store 663 million (??) gallons of hydrofrack water produced in Pennsylvania in a well about a mile from Keuka Lake.

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is looking to the Marcellus Shale for revenues and lawmakers are considering a severance tax on natural gas. The gas companies say that a tax would slow development of the resource. More in an article on the Reuters website.

Some legislators in Harrisburg are trying to raise more revenue from the Marcellus Shale while others are trying to put on the brakes to reduce environmental impacts. More in an article at Philly.com.

An article on the Oil and Gas Journal website reports that the Sumitomo Corporation of Japan is considering a stake in the Marcellus Shale gas play. Last year they invested in Barnett Shale acreage.

An article on the Oil and Gas Journal website gives a detailed presentation on the huge number of opportunities that still exist in the Marcellus Shale gas play.

An opinion column in The Philadelphia Inquirer questions why Pennsylvania has not instituted a severance tax on natural gas produced from the Marcellus shale similar to the taxes on gas levied in other states. Pennsylvania is having budget problems and some view the tax as a deserved form of revenue.

An article on the PennLive website reports that a landowners group has negotiated a lease agreement in which they will be paid $5750/acre for their acreage above the Marcellus Shale.

Cabot Oil and Gas is in trouble with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection over two well site chemical spills with a combined volume of 8,000 gallons. The spills were a result of contractors working with a lubricant used in hydraulic fracturing. More in a Reuters article.

An article on the Pittsburgh Live website reports that 1067 Marcellus Shale drilling permits were issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection between January 1 and August 21 of this year compared to 476 permits for all of 2008. Low gas prices have not slowed permitting activity.

An article in the Calgary Herald reports that Talisman Energy plans to drill more wells this year in the Marcellus Shale of Pennsylvania. Their horizontal wells in the Marcellus Shale have cost an average of $4 million each.

In a news release, Chesapeake Energy says that they are the largest leaseholder in the Marcellus Shale play with 1.45 million acres net. They are the most active driller in the play with 15 rigs and they expect to be the largest natural gas producer from the play by the end of 2009 with 80 mmcfe net per day. And they have increased their average per well yield projection from 3.75 bcfe to 4.2 bcfe.