Marcellus and Utica shale permit update: Harrison County leads in October

SALEM, Ohio — October appears to have been a slower month for the number of shale drilling permits issued by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

Harrison County

Harrison County led the state in the number of permits issued during October, with a total of nine permits granted. Five of those permits were issued in Athens Township to Hess Ohio Developments. Three permits were issued in Short Creek Township to American Energy Utica, and one in German Township to Chesapeake Exploration.

In Harrison County, there are 123 wells in some sort of drilling phase as of Oct. 31, according to the ODNR.

Noble County

The ODNR issued seven permits in Noble County during October. All seven of the permits were issued to PDC Energy for a well site in Seneca Township. Four of the well holes are already being drilled.

The ODNR reported there are 44 producing wells in Noble County and 65 remain in some form of drilling phase.

Monroe County

In Monroe County, the ODNR issued five new permits to Antero Resources Corporation for a well site in Seneca Township.

To date, there are 27 producing wells in Monroe County and 68 remain in the drilling phase.

Guernsey County

Four permits were issued in Guernsey County. The four permits were issued in Wills Township to Eclipse Resources.

The ODNR reported there are 65 other wells in some sort of drilling stage and 34 producing wells.

Three permits

The ODNR issued three permits each in Carroll, Belmont, Columbiana and Jefferson counties.

In Columbiana County, the permits were issued in Salem Township to the Hilcorp Energy Corporation. The ODNR reported 41 producing wells and 26 drilled wells.

In Carroll County, two of the permits were issued in Harrison Township to RE Gas Development, and one in Perry Township to Chesapeake Exploration.

So far, there are 439 total permits issued in Carroll County. Of those 439, there are now 282 producing wells and 96 either being drilled or having been drilled waiting for pipeline construction.

In Belmont County, the ODNR issued three new permits in three separate townships — one in Smith Township to Rice Drilling, one in Richland Township to XTO Energy Inc. and one in Somerset Township to Gulfport Energy Corporation.

There are 32 producing wells now in Belmont County and 50 drilled wells, according to the ODNR.

In Jefferson County, the ODNR issued three permits in Wayne Township to American Energy Utica.

The ODNR reported there are 17 wells either having been drilled and awaiting pipeline construction or being drilled. There are now 14 wells producing in Jefferson County.

Tuscarawas County

Two permits were issued in Tuscarawas County to Chesapeake Exploration. The permits were issued for a well pad in Perry Township.

According to the ODNR, there are four producing wells in Tuscarawas County and one wells is being drilled by Enervest Operating LLC.

So far, 1,581 horizontal drilling permits for Utica shale wells have been issued by the ODNR and 1,148 have been drilled.

Marcellus shale

The ODNR didn’t issue any new permits for Marcellus shale wells in October. There are now six producing wells in Monroe County, three producing wells in Belmont County and one producing well in Carroll and Jefferson Counties.

In addition, there are 14 wells in some sort of drilling phase in Monroe County and one in Belmont County.

The ODNR has issued 44 horizontal permits and a total of 27 Marcellus shale wells drilled.

Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection issued a total of 263 unconventional well permits during October. Of those 263 wells, there were 204 permits issued to drill new wells and 55 were to drill deeper.

Most permits

The counties with the most permits issued were Greene and Washington, where 47 permits were issued in each county. One of the permits issued in Washington County was issued for a multiple well types.

The DEP has issued 399 permits in Greene County so far in 2014. In Washington County, the DEP has issued 345 permits since Jan. 1, 2014.

The DEP also reported there were 39 permits drilled in Washington County in October and 31 in Greene County.

Bradford County

The drilling is clearly not slowing down in Bradford County where the first Marcellus shale was drilled in 2008. The DEP issued 30 new permits during October and 492 permits have been issued in 2014. The DEP reported there were five wells drilled in October in Bradford County.

Beaver County

Three permits were issued in Beaver County in October by the DEP.

The DEP has issued 39 total permits during 2014. There were no wells drilled in October, according to the DEP.

Butler County

The DEP issued 10 permits during October in Butler County. So far, the DEP has issued 160 permits since the beginning of 2014.

A total of six shale wells were drilled in the county during October.

Lawrence County

In Lawrence County, the DEP issued four new permits during October. The DEP reported there were 86 permits issued since Jan. 1, 2014.

Meanwhile, The DEP reported there were four unconventional wells drilled since Oct. 1.

Mercer County

The DEP issued four new permits for new wells during October. So far, the DEP has issued 41 permits here since the beginning of 2013. There were no wells drilled during October.

West Virginia

The West Virginia DEP issued several Marcellus shale permits during October.

In the Farm and Dairy circulation area, permits were issued in Marshall, Wetzel, Tyler, Monongalia, Doddridge, Harrison and Marion counties.

In Marshall County, the West Virginia DEP issued nine permits. Seven of the permits were issued to Chevron Appalachia, one to Chesapeake Appalachia and one to Noble Energy Inc.

Wetzel County

In Wetzel County, there were nine permits issued during October. Four of the permits were issued to Stone Energy Corporation, four to Gastar Exploration Inc. and one to Chesapeake Appalachia.

Tyler, Monongalia

The DEP issued a total of four permits for Tyler County sites in October. Two of the permits were issued to Antero Resources Corporation and two to Noble Energy Inc.

Two permits for new Marcellus shale wells were issued in Monongalia County. The permits were issued for the same property to Northeast Natural Energy.

Doddridge County

Drilling is heating up in Doddridge County, where the DEP issued a total of 21 new permits last month. A total of 15 permits were issued to Antero Resources Corporation on seven different properties. Another six permits were issued to the CNX Gas Company on two different properties.

Harrison County

The West Virginia DEP has issued seven new permits in Harrison County during October. The permits were issued to XTO Energy Inc. for wells to be drilled on one single property.

Marion County

In Marion County, the West Virginia DEP has issued five new permits for new Marcellus shale wells. Three permits were issued to XTO Energy, Inc. for wells on three separate properties. In addition, two new permits were issued to Trans Energy, Inc. on the same property.