ODNR Issues 12 Permits, Rig Count Unchanged

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Twelve permits for new horizontal wells were issued throughout eastern Ohio’s Utica shale during the week ended Dec. 24, while the rig count remained unchanged from the previous week at 22, according to the latest data from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

Oklahoma City-based Gulfport Energy received six permits — five for wells in Belmont County and one for a well in Monroe County. Denver-based Antero Resources Corp. received four permits to drill in Monroe County, while Chesapeake Exploration LLC, also based in Oklahoma City, was awarded two permits for wells in Harrison County.

According to ODNR, 2,341 permits have been issued in the Utica since 2010 when energy companies started to drill in the oil and gas play. To date, 1,879 wells have been drilled and 1,472 are in production.

No new permits were issued for Mahoning, Trumbull or Columbiana counties in Ohio’s northern Utica, according to ODNR records.

Nor were any new permits issued in nearby Lawrence or Mercer counties in Pennsylvania’s northern Utica, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

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