Six New Drilling Permits in Utica, Rig Count Steady

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The Ohio Department of Natural Resources issued six new horizontal well permits in the Utica shale basin during the week ended Nov. 21, the agency reports.

All of the new permits are issued for prospective wells targeted for the central or southern tier of the oil and gas play, where wells have proven more productive than those drilled in the northern section, which includes the Mahoning Valley.

Gulfport Energy Corp. received four permits and XTO was awarded a single permit for wells in Belmont County, ODNR says. Chesapeake Exploration LLC received one new permit for a well in Carroll County.

The rig count in the Utica remained at 19 compared with the previous week, ODNR reports. To date, the agency has issued 2,085 permits, of which 1,645 are drilled and 1,118 are producing.

There were no new permits issued in Mahoning, Trumbull or Columbiana counties.

No new permits were issued as well for nearby Lawrence and Mercer counties in western Pennsylvania, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

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