American Oil and Gas Reporter - January 2015 - 180

ConventionSection: Independent Oil & Gas Association of West Virginia

IOGAWV Desires Horizontal Pooling
CHARLESTON, W.V.-Appalachia
continues to evolve. Economically, historically and even physically, it has changed
considerably since the onset of the recession
that began in 2008. Part of that, industry
leaders say, is because of increased oil
and natural gas exploration and production
in the Utica and Marcellus shale plays.
But, as the industry and the shale
plays it pursues change Appalachian communities, the communities also are changing the industry and its processes. But
industry leaders question to what degree
it is reasonable for a community and its
laws to influence or even impede oil and
gas development.
The Independent Oil and Gas Association of West Virginia is asking the state
legislature to pass legislation authorizing
pooling for horizontal wells. According
to IOGAWV President David Haney,
president of E&H Manufacturing in
Charleston, a horizontal pooling bill was
introduced during the 2014 session, but
never received a committee vote. Since
the end of last year's session, the association has been educating legislators and
stakeholders on the benefits of a fair
pooling bill, Haney confirms.
"Basically, it would bring West Virginia
up to speed with the states around us, as
far as being able to take oil and gas
leases in an area and pool them to form a
drilling tract," he comments. "That West
Virginia cannot do that for the Marcellus
and Utica formations puts us at a disadvantage to nearby states. The big companies put together drilling tracts and complete horizontal wells with 5,000- to
10,000-foot laterals. The smaller leases
in our state get passed over because companies cannot measure out a sufficiently
long lateral.
"This state needs a way for operators
to pool their leases to create enough
length to get these long horizontal wells
in place," he continues.
Without a horizontal pooling policy,
the association president says he fears
operators will pass over West Virginia
and set up operations in other states. "If
we cannot do that, companies operating
in Appalachia will invest their money
and time elsewhere," he warns.
West Virginia already has a pooling
system for deep vertical and coalbed
methane wells, Haney affirms, and those
wells have been operated safely and suc-

cessfully for all involved parties. "There
is precedence both within our own state,
and within other states in Appalachia, so
it is not totally foreign to this area," he
says. "It's only that these are formations
that have had reason to allow pooling in
the past. But the Marcellus and Utica
formation are in the middle, and we
never have had a reason to worry about
pooling until horizontal drilling came
into play."
Haney remarks that, since many legislators are better educated on the issue
now, IOGAWV intends to work with
them to reintroduce a horizontal pooling
bill, and hopes that it will be more successful this year.
Association Executive Director Charlie
Burd says IOGAWV will partner with
the West Virginia Oil & Gas Association
to draft and help introduce this legislation
during the 2015 session, which was scheduled to begin Jan. 14.
"The operators in our state want to be
able to drill better horizontal wells more
easily," Burd reports. "Considering there
is precedence for this with CBM and
vertical deep-well pooling, I hope it will
not take the legislature long to realize
the benefits of applying similar guidance
to horizontal formations."
Educating West Virginia
IOGAWV has continued its community
outreach and educational efforts through
its Energy Speaks program, Burd indicates.
Coordinated in conjunction with public
relations firm Charles Ryan Associates,
Energy Speaks has reached several thousand
community leaders, high school teachers
and students, and legislators.
According to IOGAWV, the Energy
Speaks program is a collaborative effort
started by the Just Beneath the Surface
Alliance-a group consisting of oil and
gas companies, the American Petroleum
Institute, West Virginia Chamber of
Commerce, the West Virginia Manufacturers' Association, the Chemical Alliance
Zone, and more than 30 other organizations.
The program has hosted three "teach
the teacher" events, where Energy Speaks
hosts a workshop to provide oil and gas
related educational materials and curricula
for high school teachers to incorporate
into their math, science and social sciences
courses. Charles Ryan Associates is re-

180 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

sponsible for developing the classroom
materials, Burd says.
Energy Speaks also has coordinated
several high school career days for students
interested in the oil and gas industry,
which Burd estimates have drawn 3,500
participants. He reports that IOGAWV
also continues to partner with various
vocational-technical schools, community
colleges, and universities around the state
to promote industry-related fields and
program opportunities.
The Energy Speaks program was
very active during 2014, Haney observes,
organizing six legislative luncheons
where oil and gas leaders could meet
with state lawmakers to talk about industry issues and possible legislative
solutions. This has helped IOGAWV
greatly concerning the Aboveground
Storage Tank Act passed during the
2014 legislative session, Haney suggests,
which the association is trying to amend
(see accompanying story).
According to Haney, one of the program's most successful events has been
the Tom Dunn Leadership and Energy
Academy, which held its second annual
session in summer 2014. High school
students were invited to participate in
field trips to rig sites and see various
service providers, Haney describes.
"Every one of the students, parents
and company leaders I have talked to
about the academy has raved about it,"
Haney states. "The students and parents
in particular were really excited to learn
about all the jobs in West Virginia's oil
and gas industry. They would say, 'I did
not know this was available.'"
The academy was named after Tom
Dunn, an IOGAWV member who invested
much of his personal time and capital in
educating students, Burd says. During
its first two years, the academy hosted
approximately 45 students each year, and
offered them opportunities to learn about
leadership and interact with "all types of
energy," he describes.
IOGAWV is planning to continue that
success when it hosts its third academy
in summer 2015, Haney relates. "We
want these young people to see the potential we see in our own industry," he
remarks. "There are so many opportunities
for advancement, good starting salaries
and benefits with most oil and gas companies. But, more than that, we need

American Oil and Gas Reporter - January 2015

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