Very interesting article re: Marcellus economics (Philadelphia, Pittsburgh: how much, contractors, maintenance)

[BrianTH]

Some more Marcellus-related news:

Pennsylvania may sit on bigger shale gas bonanza | Reuters

To summarize, there is another formation, the Utica Shale, underneath the Marcellus Shale formation that also appears to contain large quantities of gas. Because it is deeper it will be more expensive to obtain, but because it is under the Marcellus (at least in PA), it can be exploited using Marcellus infrastructure and thus would not be as costly as it would be if it was an independent play. Conversely, all this presumably makes Marcellus-related investments more valuable, since they have this possible secondary purpose as well.

Edit: Oh, and the recent PA budget agreement included a plan to pass a severance tax by October, to start generating revenues in January. The details will have to be worked out but I think this is good news.

[rugerjitsu]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Edit: Oh, and the recent PA budget agreement included a plan to pass a severance tax by October, to start generating revenues in January. The details will have to be worked out but I think this is good news.

This news should not be taken lightly...If you are currently recieving Royalties, or have a family member recieving Royalties, do your research and find out how this Severance Tax could affect you!

[jtpgh]

Originally Posted by rugerjitsu

This news should not be taken lightly...If you are currently recieving Royalties, or have a family member recieving Royalties, do your research and find out how this Severance Tax could affect you!

However if you are NOT receiving royalties and just happen to live in the western PA region ... think about how unregulated extraction and untaxed commerce could effect you

If there is the possibility that someone could make HUGE amounts of money from this as well as the possibility of HUGE environmental issues - there needs to be some tax revenue and oversight.

[BrianTH]

Regulation, supporting infrastructure, supporting services--Marcellus drilling definitely won't be costless for the state, so the tax does indeed make sense. The real issues are how to tax, how high to set the rates, and how to distribute the proceeds.

[jtpgh]

my only point was that the folks getting paid for their land are at least getting SOMETHING the rest of us are taking a risk with our region and should also be compensated for that risk (indirectly via taxation)

of course, the BP gulf issue speaks to the need for regulation

[creepsinc]

Originally Posted by jtpgh

my only point was that the folks getting paid for their land are at least getting SOMETHING the rest of us are taking a risk with our region and should also be compensated for that risk (indirectly via taxation)

of course, the BP gulf issue speaks to the need for regulation

Liberal hogwash. Let the people and companies from Texas in to make their billions. How dare we tax them? These resources are here to be exploited. What if there had been tree-huggers in West Virginia a century ago? Oh, wait. Maybe we'd have more mountaintops in West Virginia.

[BrianTH]

Incidentally, if you are against shale drilling in general, passing a severance tax probably isn't a good thing for your cause . . . it will give taxpayers in the state and relevant localities a financial incentive to approve more drilling. In fact I suspect that is a large part of why the industry backed off total opposition to a tax (to undermine the small but apparently growing opposition to drilling in general).

[rugerjitsu]

Originally Posted by jtpgh

However if you are NOT receiving royalties and just happen to live in the western PA region ... think about how unregulated extraction and untaxed commerce could effect you

If there is the possibility that someone could make HUGE amounts of money from this as well as the possibility of HUGE environmental issues - there needs to be some tax revenue and oversight.

these folks getting royalties are liable for paying taxes on that income. got that covered.

PA is also recieving plenty of income through permitting and more taxable income.

read the attached pdf and pass it on to friends and family...it's crucial that people plan for this kind of tax, otherwise, it could lead to a financial disaster.

[rugerjitsu]

Originally Posted by creepsinc

Liberal hogwash. Let the people and companies from Texas in to make their billions. How dare we tax them? These resources are here to be exploited. What if there had been tree-huggers in West Virginia a century ago? Oh, wait. Maybe we'd have more mountaintops in West Virginia.

great post.

[rugerjitsu]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Incidentally, if you are against shale drilling in general, passing a severance tax probably isn't a good thing for your cause . . . it will give taxpayers in the state and relevant localities a financial incentive to approve more drilling. In fact I suspect that is a large part of why the industry backed off total opposition to a tax (to undermine the small but apparently growing opposition to drilling in general).

even better post!