It was a project a year in the making when Consol Energy Inc., along with Pennsylvania government officials, first announced in 2013 a detailed five-year plan to construct gas wells on the Allegheny County Airport Authority’s 9,263 acres at the Pittsburgh International Airport through 2018.
Drilling began at the airport in late August, with the first well pad located in a remote wooded area about a mile from the runways.
The project, according to Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald, would ultimately bring more than $500 million in royalties to the Allegheny County Airport Authority.
Consol, which is based in nearby Cecil, Pa., plans to drill a total of 45 wells from six pads over the next few years. Some of the future wells will be only about a quarter mile away from the runways, according to officials.
The money is already starting to roll in for the airport authority and it doesn’t look like a bad deal so far – Consol paid a $50 million signing bonus to drill on the airport site and the money has already helped airport finances, Fitzgerald says.
Airport finances have suffered in recent years because of a significant reduction in flights. Officials say they will use royalties to lower airline costs in hopes of attracting more flights, and it’ll also be used for capital improvements.
Allegheny County will also receive an 18 percent cut of all gas sales, according to the agreement. The county estimates those royalties will yield another $450 million in the next 20 years.
While there were obstacles to overcome at first – neighbors opposing the plan for instance – both sides talked it over and came to an agreement that benefits everyone. Communication is key if gas and oil companies want to keep expanding into new areas. There are plenty of people out there who don’t know a lot about this industry and are scared of some of the things they read or see in the news.
This is a great example of how a big gas company can continue to develop resources while also benefiting the community and government.
Another large company that’s helping communities and the environment is featured in this month’s issue of Gas, Oil & Mining Contractor. CETCO Energy Services began with a focus on wastewater treatment, and 20 years later that remains the core of its business as it finds new, better ways to treat and reuse valuable wastewater.
While CETCO has grown and expanded, the company is still committed to the environment and expects to see continued growth as a result.
Expansion is a recurrent theme in this month’s issue. In our Bakken Extra feature, we show you how one North Dakota health care group is bringing health care to oilfield workers.
Sanford Health recently put two mobile health units, called O.P.C. mobileMED, into service throughout the Bakken. These semi-trailer units will travel the oilfields helping companies that request their services. The units will provide drug testing, X-rays and a host of other services when and where the companies and their employees need them.
As the oil and gas markets grow and companies expand to better serve their clients and customers, it would be great to see more of these companies finding ways to help their communities in other ways, too. The latter will make the former far more feasible.
I hope these stories can provide some inspiration to help strengthen this industry and make the communities in which you work better places.
