Marcellus Shale Northeastern Pennsylvania’s New Frontier
Theta plays high stakes drilling
Company linked to developer DeNaples would plan on drilling more
wells,” Rice said.
Attempts to reach DeNa-
proposes gas well in Plains Twp. ples and Theta president Rob-
ert McNichols were unsuc-
By Patrick Sweet cessful. A call to Theta’s
Staff Writer MORE ONLINE office at One Public Square
Find information on more than 6,000 i n Wi l k e s - B a r r e w a s
A Washington County answered with an automated
natural gas leases in Luzerne,
energy company has plans Lackawanna and Wyoming counties and message saying the number
to drill a natural gas well more than 3,600 drilling sites around the would not accept voicemails.
in Plains Township on state in our natural gas databases. Along with the Encana
property owned by Theta
wells, Theta’s will help paint
Land Corp., a firm linked [Link]/DRILLING the Marcellus gas-drilling
to landfill/casino developer
landscape in Luzerne County.
Louis DeNaples. ing site on The for mer hotbed for
It is the third proposed Theta’s hold- anthracite coal mining could
COVER
exploratory well in ings. see the next rush of gas com-
Luzerne County. Toby Rice, panies, including further
Rice Drilling B
STORY
chief operat- development of the Theta
LLC, a subsidiary ing officer of property.
of Rice Energy Rice Energy, The Theta well will be the
LLC, applied for a said his com- MARK MORAN / THE CITIZENS’ VOICE first that Rice has drilled in
permit with the state Depart- pany has not
DeNaples A portion of land owned by Theta Land Corp. is seen from the end of Bal- Luzerne, but the company
ment of Environmental Pro- leased the timore Drive in Plains Township. Rice Drilling B LLC, a subsidiary of Wash- has drilled several other
tection on June 24 to drill and mineral rights from Theta,
operate a well on Theta’s
ington County-based Rice Energy LLC, has applied for a permit to drill and wells farther north, Rice said.
but has been contracted by operate a gas well on Theta-owned property in Plain Township. Rice Energy has leases to the
property just east of Inter- the company to drill an mineral rights of roughly
state 81 and south of Jumper exploratory well. He declined County, was involved in the Rice’s permit to drill on What the well will mean to 25,000 acres in Pennsylvania.
Road, according to the comment on the details of sale, but he has never acknowl- Theta land would be its first the area though, may not be
department’s website. The The company does not have
the deal, citing a nondisclo- edged ownership. In 2008, a in Luzerne County. Encana determined until much later, any leases in Luzerne Coun-
department may take up to 45 sure agreement. Dauphin County grand jury Oil & Gas USA Inc. is set to when or if the well begins
days to grant or deny the ty, though, according to
Pennsylvania Gas and that indicted DeNaples on drill the first two wells in the producing gas. records from the Recorder of
application. Water sold Theta and its land charges that he lied to state county in Fairmount and “This well, it’s going to be
Theta, a former subsid- Deeds office.
to unnamed buyers in 2000 gaming regulators about ties Lake townships this summer. tough,” Rice said. “People “We’ve already drilled in
iary of the now-defunct shortly after the company to organized crime figures Encana also has DEP permits start (drilling) in areas where
Pennsylvania Gas and (Northeastern Pennsylva-
merged with another utility. reported that a DeNaples com- to drill at another site in Lake they know it works and slow- nia),” Rice said. “We’re famil-
Water Co., holds tens of Information in government pany owned Theta. The perju- Township and one in Lehm- ly start to explore.”
thousands of acres of unde- iar with the regulations up
documents indicated DeNa- ry charge was later dropped an Township. It could take anywhere
veloped land in Luzerne here. … We’re experienced
ples, the owner of the Key- after DeNaples transferred According to Rice, his com- from six to 12 months before
and Lackawanna counties. up here. We know what we’re
stone Landfill in Dunmore ownership of the casino to a pany is poised to begin con- they have an idea of the
The Plains Township prop- doing.”
and developer of Mount Airy trust controlled by members struction of the well not long well’s potential, Rice said.
erty would be the first drill- Casino Resort in Monroe of his family. after the permit is granted. “If we are successful, we psweet@[Link], 570-821-2117
Public vents opposition to utility status for gas pipeline companies
THURSDAY, JULY 8, 2010
By David Falchek Susquehanna County. “I don’t want a private com- pate in the natural gas rush. local quasi-judicial board of reap royalties.
Staff Writer All but a few were opposed pany to tell me when and how She said eminent domain view, just compensation, and Barbour reminded people
to the petition, which would I can use my land,” said would force her to turn over an appeals process. that the U.S. has hundreds of
A bid by natural gas gath- set a statewide precedent Michael J. Giangrieco, a her land for something she Beyond that, condemna- thousands of miles of natural
ering company Laser North- granting natural gas pipeline Susquehanna County com- believes is wrong. tion is something Laser gas pipelines that operate
east Gathering Co. LLC to companies public utility sta- missioner. “They say it’s a While principals of Laser Northeast wants to avoid safely.
become a regulated utility tus and give them the contro- last resort, but it will become Northeast, Scranton native because of the expense and “I don’t know anyone who
and earn the power of emi- versial power of eminent one of the first resorts. Our Tom Karam and Texan Chip bad feelings it engenders, cares about the environment
nent domain faced vocal domain for the project. experience shows that this Berthelot, were in the hall, Karam said. more than I do,” he said.
opposition at a public hearing Some speakers cited envi- industry views landowners they did not testify. They The only positive com- “Laser was very cooperative
in Great Bend on Wednesday. ronmental concerns with the as an inconvenience.” defended their plans with ments came from landowners and catered to my wishes.
4 – THE CITIZENS’ VOICE
More than two dozen peo- natural gas extraction pro- Patrick Walker of Facto- some attendees during breaks who negotiated agreements They are going to do this in
ple, including a county com- cess. Other property owners ryville called eminent domain in the hearing, which with Laser Northeast, includ- an environmentally-friendly
missioner, spoke before said use of eminent domain “corporate welfare.” stretched on for three hours. ing Liberty Township farmer way.”
Administrative Law Judge to put a pipeline on their Environmental consultant Karam said eminent Jim Barbour. He focused on Mike Fiorentino, an attor-
Susan D. Colwell and an property would violate their Nancy Wottrich of New Mil- domain is not an unfettered the employment and invest- ney for the Silver Lake Asso-
audience of nearly 200 at the rights. Many focused on emi- ford lives in a solar-powered power that negates property ment the natural gas industry ciation, an official intervenor
state Public Utility Commis- nent domain, the process of home, grows her own food owners’ rights and interests, has brought to the county and in the case, said his group
sion hearing at the Great taking property through con- and works to maintain her but rather a due process that the need to move gas so that will put Laser Northeast
Bend Fire Department in demnation. land. She refuses to partici- includes a hearing before a mineral rights owners may application to the test.
WB_VOICE - CVDAILY - 4 - 07/08/10 WB_VOICE/PAGES [T04] | 07/07/10 22:56 | SUPERIMPWB
