Marcellus Shale Drilling Expands in Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
26 February 2012
By Richard Gazarik

Companies drilled 2,755 Marcellus shale gas wells in Pennsylvania in 2011, up from 1,386 in 2010, according to the state Department of Environmental Protection.

These companies are major players in the shale gas industry, based on earnings and production. Leasing, employee and production figures are for Pennsylvania only. Mcf stands for 1,000 cubic feet, a unit of measure for natural gas; 1,000 mcf is enough natural gas to heat an average home for four days, according to the American Gas Association, which put average daily home usage at 193 cubic feet in 2009, the latest figure available.


1. Chesapeake Appalachia (Chesapeake Energy)

Local office: Bradford
Corporate headquarters: Oklahoma City, Okla.
CEO: Aubrey Mclendon
Acres under lease: 401,000
Employees: 2,199
2011 Production: 3,329 mcf per day
2011 Earnings (by December): $879 million
2010 Earnings: $1.7 billion
Marcellus shale gas production July 1, 2009-June 30, 2011: 162,971,890 mcf

2. Talisman Energy USA

Local office: Cranberry
Corporate headquarters: Horseheads, N.Y.
President: Rob Broen
Acres under lease: 233,000
Employees: 140
2011 Production: 315 mcf per day
2011 Earnings (by December): $165 million
2010 Earnings: $347 million
Marcellus shale gas production July 1, 2009-June 30, 2011: 147,971,631 mcf


3. Cabot Gas & Oil

Local office: Susquehanna, Susquehanna County
Corporate headquarters: Houston, Texas
CEO: Dan Dinges
Acres under lease: 253,000
Employees: 400
2011 Production: 100 mcf per day
2011 Earnings (by December): $106.6 million
2010 Earnings: $100 million
Marcellus shale gas production July 1, 2009-June 30, 2011: 120,445,695 mcf


4. Range Resources Appalachia LLC

Local office: Canonsburg
Corporate headquarters: Fort Worth, Texas
COO: Jeff Ventura
Acres under lease: 1.1 million
Employees: 400
2011 Production: 400 mcf per day
2011 Earnings (by December): $221 million
2010 Earnings: $89.3 million
Marcellus shale gas production July 1, 2009-June 30, 2011: 109,562,831 mcf


5. EQT Production

Local office: Pittsburgh
Corporate headquarters: Pittsburgh
CEO: David Porges
Acres under lease: 530,000
Employees: 1,800
2011 Production: 558 mcf per day
2011 Earnings (by December): $178.9 million
2010 Earnings: $470.5 million
Marcellus shale gas production July 1, 2009-June 30, 2011: 48,918,016 mcf


6. Chevron Appalachia (Atlas Energy)

Local office: Moon
Corporate headquarters: San Ramon, Calif.
COO: Bruce Niemeyer, vice president
Acres under lease: 228,000
Employees: 350
2011 Production: 244 mcf per day
2011 Earnings (by December): $94.3 million
2010 Earnings: $278.6 million
Marcellus shale gas production July 1, 2009-June 30, 2011: 30,164,456 mcf


7. Shell Appalachia

Local office: Warrendale
Corporate office: Houston, Texas
CEO: Marvin Odum
Acres under lease: 700,000
Employees: 185
2011 Production: 50 mcf per day
Earnings: Information not available for Shell Appalachia; earnings listed under Shell, a global group of energy and petrochemical companies.
Marcellus shale gas production July 1, 2009-June 30, 2011: 40,398,211 mcf


8. Seneca Resources (National Fuel Gas Co.)

Local offices: Oil City and Erie
Corporate headquarters: Houston, Texas
President: Matthew D. Cabell
Acres under lease: 745,000
2011 Production: 50.4 mcf per day
2011 Earnings (by December): $258.4 million
2010 Earnings: $225.9 million
Marcellus shale gas production July 1, 2009-June 30, 2011: 28,554,724 mcf


9. CNX Gas (Consol Energy)

Local office: Cecil
Corporate headquarters: Cecil
CEO: J. Brett Harvey
Acres under lease: 633,000
Employees: 2,476
2011 Production: 500 mcf per day
2011 Earnings (by December): $167 million
2010 earnings: $239.1 million
Marcellus shale gas production July 1, 2009-June 30, 2011: 21.415.752 mcf


10. Anadarko E & P Co.

Local office: Renovo, Clinton County
Corporate headquarters: The Woodlands, Texas
CEO: James T. Hackett
Acres under lease: 330,000
Employees: 2,200
2011 Production: 556 mcf per day
2011 Earnings (by December): $274 million
2010 Earnings: $1.6 billion
Total Marcellus shale production July 1, 2009-June 30, 2011: 20,459,645 mcf

Sources: Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources; company reports and filings with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

Richard Gazarik can be reached at rgazarik@tribweb.com or 724-830-6292.