Chesapeake Awarded 9 Utica Permits, Makes New Cuts
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- Chesapeake Exploration LLC, a division of Chesapeake Energy Corp., has secured nine new permits to drill in eastern Ohio's Utica shale, even as the Oklahoma City-based company continues to shake up its management ranks.
An undisclosed number of top-tier executives were told Tuesday that their positions had been cut, according to NewsOn6.com, the CBS affiliate based in Tulsa, Okla.
Chesapeake confirmed in a statement that it is "transitioning key leadership positions and making adjustments to its organization to properly align resources, reduce expenses, and improve its operating and competitive performance. The company's focus remains on financial discipline and profitable and efficient growth from captured resources."
In an email to employees, Chesapeake’s CEO, Doug Lawler, said additional cuts are likely within the next several weeks.
Meantime, Chesapeake continues to aggressively permit well sites in the Utica, where it holds more than one million acres under lease.
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources issued nine new horizontal drilling permits to Chesapeake last week, according to records. Five of these permits were awarded to sites in Carroll County, three were issued for Chesapeake holdings in Harrison County and one was issued for a new Chesapeake well in Guernsey County.
ODNR issued 14 new permits during the week spanning Sept. 1 through Sept. 7.
In addition to the nine Chesapeake wells, ODNR awarded two permits for R. E. Gas Development LLC, a division of Rex Energy in Carroll County; two to Antero Resources Corp. in Noble County; and a single permit for Eclipse Resources in Monroe County.
No new well permits were issued last week for sites in Mahoning, Columbiana or Trumbull counties.
In Mercer County, Pa., the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection issued a single permit to Chevron Appalachia LLC for a new horizontal well in Jefferson Township.
No new permits were issued for neighboring Lawrence County, Pa., records show.
Copyright 2013 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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