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Section
A Section
B Section
C Section
D Section
E Section
F Section
G Section
H Section
I |
Section_B Drilling still intense, but it calms just a bit Interest in drilling oil and gas wells throughout Pennsylvania’s western counties remained intense in 2007, falling just short of a new record. Interest in drilling oil and gas wells throughout Pennsylvania’s western counties remained intense in 2007, falling just short of a new record. A total of 7,304 drilling permits were issued through the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) in 2007. The department’s regional office in Meadville handled 3,895 of those permits for acreage in 12 northwestern counties. The remaining 3,409 drilling permits were issued through the DEP regional office in Pittsburgh that covers southwestern counties. The 2007 figure is lower than the all-time record of 7,394 permits in 2006 but is significantly higher than the 2005 level of 6,094. There were signs at mid-year in 2007, though, that the dramatic spiral in the number of drilling permits may be calming down a bit. At the time, DEP official Bob Gleason said the numbers had gone up nearly 30 percent in each of the previous five years. Fueling the surge were record-high crude oil prices and strong natural gas prices. However, that growth slackened to about 5 percent for the first half of 2007. In July, about 2,000 permits were filed at the Meadville office A major factor in the slowdown involves an industry conundrum — oil and gas drilling companies can’t keep pace because of an insufficient work force and lack of materials and equipment Stymied by low prices and subsequent oil and gas field doldrums until the industry picked up four years ago, drillers and producers are now scrambling to entice workers to sign on, convince property owners to sign mineral leases and contract manufacturers for new equipment. “Their infrastructure is taxed and they’re having new rigs built. That is at a high cost and takes time. But, they are showing confidence that the market will stay up and so I think they’ll ramp up (the drilling) soon,” said Gleason. County-by-county drilling numbers are not yet available, said Gleason. Typically, the highest number of permits is tied to McKean, Warren, Forest and Crawford counties. There are usually a couple of hundred each filed for Crawford, Jefferson, Clarion, Elk and Venango counties. The rule of thumb means two-thirds of those permits are for natural gas, while the others are for crude oil. Pennsylvania boasts about 45,000 natural gas wells and an estimated 35,000 crude oil wells, according to the Independent Oil and Gas Association of Pennsylvania. |
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