Natural Gas Doors Open Across Country, NY Watches Through Peephole

On the same day the Independent Democrat Caucus in New York announced another piece of proposed legislation to delay development of the Marcellus Shale in New York, two representatives from a premiere energy conference in New Mexico heralded success on the radio and praise for energy operators.

The San Juan Basin Energy Conference, (www.sanjuanbasinenergy.org) happening in Farmington, NM on March 18 and 19 is already sold out, with operators traveling to northwest New Mexico from all over the country and beyond. According to the website, this conference will bring together parties interested in Mancos Shale development, considered the next significant oil and gas shale play in that region. Developing this play is heralded as a renaissance for this region after nearly a century of petroleum geology and activity.

Interest in this conference has come from as far away as Bulgaria. Last June, Bulgarian Parliament eased its ban on hydraulic fracturing, to take advantage of its natural gas reserves and lessen the country’s dependency on Russian resources.

“It’s a real opportunity to bring everyone together,” Randy Pacheco, dean of the San Juan College School of Energy (http://www.sanjuancollege.edu/energy) said on The Scott Michlin Morning Show, at KSJE.com in Farmington, NM. Hear the entire program here: http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/ksje/.jukebox?action=viewMedia&mediaId=1024511.

Full disclosure: program host Michlin is a native New Yorker who has lived in New Mexico for 22 years. He sees the economic impact a robust energy industry has in a community. He teaches at San Juan College, where the School of Energy is a national leader in educating tomorrow’s energy professionals. He also lived in New York’s struggling Southern Tier for several years and knows the region needs an economic boost.

The focus of this conference will be the game-changing activity of the Mancos Shale play, anticipated to be rich with oil reserves. This area of New Mexico has traditionally been the place for natural gas development. Hydraulic fracturing, however, is opening the door to oil production here, which was previously limited to southeast New Mexico. “It’s going to be important for oil production. It’s a new venture and it’s welcomed here,” said Dean Pacheco.

Dean Pacheco spoke words that would endear New Yorkers in the Southern Tier, if only they were spoken here. “It’s a very interesting time here in the San Juan Basin because we’re starting to see an evolution of energy. Not only have we produced trillions of cubic feet of natural gas and millions of gallons of oil and terawatts of electricity. As you start to see natural gas and how we use natural gas, the San Juan Basin will continue to be a major player in energy production in the US. We need to come together as a community – education, government and business – to insure that we can position this for our local residents.”

He sees the economic impact a robust energy industry has in a community. He teaches at San Juan College, where the School of Energy is a national leader in educating tomorrow’s energy professionals. He also lived in New York’s struggling Southern Tier for several years and knows the region needs an economic boost.

They could bring fracking to New York. But the local politicians would see to it that it will not bring an economic boost by saddling it with so many taxes and regulations. Same as they did with many other companies in the past.

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