We wanted to share a few articles published over the past few weeks focusing on Oil and Gas development in Pennsylvania. Visit the link in the title to read the entire article.

Pennsylvania Legislature Considers Additional Requirements for Releasing Oil and Gas Leases

“Proposed Pennsylvania legislation would create additional requirements for oil and gas exploration and production companies when releasing oil and gas leases. Currently, there are no statutory duties for lessees regarding the documentation of released or cancelled oil and gas leases. Although, as a matter of industry practice, oil and gas leases are often released, terminated, or cancelled, and the lessor notified, there is no requirement to provide such notification to the lessor or the Recorder of Deeds. The proposed legislation would change that.”

Latest Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale Gas Well Production Data Shows Natural Gas and Oil Hot:

Marcellus Shale Play is continuing to be a major contributor to the nation’s natural gas production with 3,551 gas producing wells according to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Production, Office of Oil and Gas Management.  For more of a local view, Pennsylvania’s Susquehanna County contains 9 of the top 15 natural gas well locations.  Three of the top five oil producing wells from Chesapeake Energy are located in Washington County.

This information was compiled from Shalenavigator which is something we might want to subscribe to = A free 7 day account is available. To access the drawing and saving map tools and to have access to high value layers, subscribe for only $99/month, or $899 for an entire year. Group discounts are available.

Dennis Farm: Natural Gas Helping Preserve American History:

We hear about the negative side of drilling, and leasing often and this is a piece to remind you that last year alone we played a critical role in securing signing bonuses for thousands of landowners – sometimes a life altering amount of money which could drastically change a living situation.  Like most of the farmers throughout the Marcellus Shale who have had to decide whether or not to sign an oil and gas lease, Madam Dennis also had to determine what the best course of action for her land would be. The decision to lease such a rich piece of her family’s history, of African American history, of Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania, and America’s history, wasn’t something Dennis decided on a whim or jumped into head first. It was a decision she researched for years and one she never took lightly. Once she was able to sort through the misinformation she negotiated an agreement that would preserve property, and it’s legacy, for generations to come. In the end she found it to be in the best interest of her family farm to approve a natural gas lease with Cabot Oil and Gas, and she has no regrets about the decision she has made.

Gas leases quietly bring in millions for state’s conservation agencies (ran in Meadville Trib)

The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has made the biggest splash in leasing public lands to gas drillers but the two other agencies involved in protecting wildlife habitat in Pennsylvania have been quietly using gas leases to generate millions of dollars in revenue, as well. The Conservation Department and the Pennsylvania Game Commission — the two largest landowners in the Commonwealth, accounting for a combined total of 3.6 million acres of land — have leased more than 175,000 acres of land to gas companies for $438 million in one-time bonus payments, and an additional $106 million in royalty payments since 2008.