Jul 26, 2018 4 min read

CNX Gas is being required to plug 327 abandoned conventional natural gas wells in Western Pennsylvania, nearly half of which are located in Greene and Washington counties.

The state Department of Environmental Protection ordered the Southpointe-based driller on July 20 to plug the wells before it will allow CNX to formally transfer those and other wells in a sale announced earlier this year.

In total, CNX, Ohio-based Alliance Petroleum Company and XTO Energy of Warendale, must secure a combined 1,058 wells in the state that have been idle for at least 12 months, in accordance with the state’s 2012 Oil and Gas Act.

“We already have a significant issue with abandoned and orphaned wells in Pennsylvania,” DEP spokeswoman Lauren Fraley said. “They pose a significant environmental and public safety hazard.”

CNX must close 144 vertical wells in Greene County – 74 are in Wayne Township and another 25 are in Gilmore Township – along with another 18 in Washington County.

CNX and XTO have 60 days to provide the DEP with a “plugging schedule” and complete the work by the end of 2020, according to the order. Alliance has until the end of 2023 to complete the process for its 638 abandoned wells, including seven in Washington County. The three companies must also seal 98 wells in Westmoreland County, including two in Rostraver Township.

The companies have 30 days to appeal the order.

Fraley said the DEP stepped in when it received a large amount of well transfer requests from CNX, XTO and Alliance. All of the wells included in the three orders were idle in 2017, prompting the DEP to take action beginning earlier this year.

“When we start getting transfer requests, we perform reviews and we’ve seen them coming through with these larger amounts,” Fraley said of the transfer requests in 2017. “We didn’t approve the transfer request when we noticed the significant number of abandoned wells and then pursued the orders for them to plug the wells. We said, ‘You need to plug the abandoned wells. We’re not going to allow you to transfer them to another entity, because by regs, you should have plugged them or given DEP a schedule on when it would be done.'”

The number of transfer requests came in tandem with the February announcement much of CNX’s shallow well assets were being sold to Diversified Gas & Oil of Birmingham, Ala., for $85 million. Diversified also acquired much of Alliance’s conventional well assets for $95 million in the transaction.

CNX spokesman Brian Aiello said they are reviewing the order and believe that 190 of the wells involved were a part of the company’s recent sale of nearly all of its shallow oil and gas assets. He contended that the buyer is responsible for those wells.

“As for the balance of the wells, we have always worked cooperatively with the DEP to meet our well plugging obligations and we expect to continue to do so going forward,” he said.

The DEP estimates there could be 100,000 to 560,000 orphaned and abandoned oil and gas wells in the state. The DEP-approved method of plugging conventional wells, which are typically 2,000 to 3,000 feet deep, includes removing the old well casing, filling that void with cement to seal it and prevent freshwater from penetrating the hole and then pouring a nonporous material into the rest of the well.

“With Pennsylvania’s legacy of oil and gas extraction, DEP has an inventory of thousands of abandoned oil and gas wells,” DEP Secretary Patrick McDonnell said in a written statement. “It is critical that all operators adhere to state laws to mitigate the environmental and public health and safety hazards and not add to the costly orphaned and abandoned well inventory that would otherwise fall on the shoulders of Pennsylvania citizens.”

Greene County – 144

Aleppo – 7

Center – 10

Franklin – 3

Freeport – 5

Gilmore – 25

Jackson – 9

Jefferson – 1

Morgan – 1

Morris – 2

Perry – 4

Richhill – 2

Wayne – 74

Whiteley – 1

Washington County – 18

Carroll – 4

Centerville – 2

Deemston – 1

Fallowfield – 2

Hanover – 1

Nottingham – 2

Smith – 1

South Franklin – 1

South Strabane – 1

West Pike Run – 2

Washington County – 7

Beallsville – 1

Carroll – 1

Nottingham – 1

Union – 4