American Oil and Gas Reporter - October 2015 - 114

task force is going," he remarks. "There
are some possible positive outcomes, but
it still remains to be seen what will come
of it. We are viewing it with an open
mind, and seeing how it all plays out. We
choose at this point to hope for the best,
participate, and see what happens."
Slagel says he is wary of the task
force and doubts that it will be of benefit
to the industry. He explains that he was a
member of the Marcellus Shale Advisory
Commission in 2011, and that within
eight months, the commission put forth
several recommendations that were adopted either by the industry or the Pennsylvania Legislature.
"I am not sure whether this group will
be able to do work similar to the MSAC
in the environment that now exists in
Harrisburg, with the new governor, who
claims this is a more transparent option,"
Slagel opines. "Quite frankly, I don't
know what benefit it will provide. The
other stakeholders likely won't agree
with what the industry perceives its needs
moving forward, and that will bring this
whole group to a neutral point."

Creating Markets
According to Slagel, despite the tough
market conditions, PIOGA's midstream
companies are seeing a good volume of
activity. However, one of the association's
main concerns for the long term is finding
new markets and creating more end-uses
for natural gas, Slagel and D'Amico state.
"We definitely are not in a utopic environment, either economically or politically," Slagel assesses. "With President
Obama's Clean Power Plan, the bridge
between fossil fuels and renewables is
getting shorter and shorter, and it sounds
like federal regulators want to cut natural
gas out of the picture sooner than we had
anticipated. But we at PIOGA have faith
that gas is a viable alternative for electric
generation, transportation, and many other
uses."
Out of all the participants in Pennsylvania's oil and gas sector, Slagel says
conventional gas producers are at the
greatest disadvantage, as gas from shale
wells is commanding most of the area's
pipeline capacity.
"There are conventional operators basically making pennies on the Mcf because
there is so much dry gas in the pipelines
from shale wells," he notes. "However,
we are hoping that will be alleviated,
once these upcoming midstream lines are
in place and on line."
D'Amico confirms there are several
pipeline projects scheduled to be built
and operating within the next five years
in Pennsylvania and other parts of Appalachia. However, until those pipelines

are on line, he says there will be a severe
bottleneck between Appalachian producers
and East Coast markets.
"Next year is going to be very challenging for the industry in general and
PIOGA members," he comments. "Right
now, though, the association is trying to
focus on a 10-year time frame. We are
expecting it will take three-five years to
build up pipeline carrying capacity, but
probably more than five years to increase
demand for natural gas as a feedstock."
D'Amico reiterates that while PIOGA
is supporting outlets for natural gas, it
also is committing its resources to find
more ways to utilize natural gas.
"PIOGA has one staff member dedicated to finding more end uses for natural
gas," he says. "Whether that is compressed
or liquefied natural gas for the transportation industry, exporting it to other
countries, using it for electric generation,
or having it for the manufacturing sector
. . . natural gas is a very versatile energy
source, and the United States needs to
take advantage of that.
"We are so close to the New England
and East Coast markets, there are an infinite number of ways natural gas can be
used," he adds. "It is not a matter of
building only the supply or only demand;
it is both."

EOGCTS
According to D'Amico, PIOGA's 2015
Eastern Oil & Gas Conference and Trade
Show will explore the questions, "Where
are we?" and "Where are we going?"
with a lineup of speakers offering their
perspectives on the industry at present
and their expectations for the future as
the Northeast's shale plays continue to
have a tremendous impact on the energy
market.
The event is Oct. 27-28 at the Monroeville Convention Center, just outside
Pittsburgh, and will feature a day-and-ahalf conference, a two-day trade show,
and networking events.
"Our industry is in a painful state of
flux, pressured by persistent low product
prices and new government-imposed
costs, while looking for relief in the form
of pipeline expansions and other new
market opportunities for our abundant
natural gas," D'Amico remarks. "We expect our program will offer unique insights
into how and when things will turn around,
as well as strategies companies can employ
to get them through these tough times."
D'Amico says the conference's presentations will include:
* Addresses by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf, who has been invited,
and State House Speaker Mike Turzai,
R-Allegheny;

114 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

* A natural gas producing company
panel headlined by EnerVest Operating
LLC and CNX Gas Company executives
who will consult their personal "crystal
balls" on the industry's future;
* A presentation on the benefits of
Pennsylvania oil and gas by Dr. Bernard
Weinstein of Southern Methodist University;
* A discussion on mergers and acquisitions, and an analysis of Marcellus
and Utica wells by Timothy S. Knoblock
of James Knoblock Petroleum Consultants
Inc.;
* An overview of natural gas supply
and demand by BTU Analytics' Matthew
Hoza;
* "Natural Gas Migration Incidence
and Mitigation," by Timothy Erikson of
Moody and Associates Inc.;
* An in-depth look at Pennsylvania's
pooling and unitization policies by John
Carroll and Justin Weber from Pepper
Hamilton; and
* Direct Energy's Tim Bigler on
"Market Dynamics Influencing Future
Pricing of Natural Gas and Oil."
Trade show hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
on Tuesday, Oct. 27, and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
on Wednesday, Oct. 28, leaving plenty of
time for conferees to visit the show floor,
D'Amico says. Conference registrants also
can participate in Monday evening's exhibitor appreciation reception, and are
welcome to attend a networking reception
at the close of Tuesday's program, followed
by a Halloween-themed mixer.
Slagel encourages all Appalachian operators and industry members to attend
the event, and says he hopes all attendees
will find "little nuggets of encouragement
and hints at what they can do to improve
their situations" within the conference
program.
"The point of this show, and PIOGA
in general, is to provide encouragement
and support for the industry," he says.
"We want to look for new markets together, because there is such an abundance
of natural gas in Appalachia."
Slagel says he is looking forward to
the natural gas producer panel in particular,
as he anticipates the executives will have
"great insight into industry conditions,
and what is on the horizon in the years to
come."
"EOGCTS always has been a great
venue for making new connections and
building new relationships with other
members across the industry," he concludes. "Our show this year will offer
great opportunities for learning and connecting, hopefully not only with fellow
Pennsylvanians, but with industry members
from across Appalachia and the country."
❒

American Oil and Gas Reporter - October 2015

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