On November 8, 2011, three municipalities in western Pennsylvania put direct democracy to the test with referendums that would essentially ban natural gas drilling in their communities. Two of the referendums were overwhelmingly defeated while one succeeded with overwhelming support ...
On November 15, 2011, the Pennsylvania Senate passed S.B. 1100, a fairly comprehensive legislative effort aimed at increasing governmental oversight of the development and production of Marcellus Shale resources ...
I- Major Innovation - The new framework Law on Crude Oil Refining, Storage, Transport, Distribution and Trade of Petroleum Products was approved (“LCOR”) was enacted by Law no. 28/11, of 1 September 2011. This law was preceded by the Strategy for liberalisation of the fuel sector and the schedule for its implementation set forth in 2009 by means of the Council of Ministers’ Resolution no. 105/09, of 19 November ...
The cost of energy—particularly the cost of electricity—comprises a significant portion of the total cost of production for industrial and manufacturing companies ...
Mining companies investing for the first time in Canada’s North may find the experience unlike any other. This holds true not only for foreign corporations, but also for companies familiar with mining in the Canadian south. This article provides an orientation around some of these unique challenges. Aboriginal groups and mining companies in the North – A multi-faceted relationship The relationship between Aboriginal groups and mining companies in Canada’s North has many facets ...
Canada is uniquely positioned to provide an abundance of secure and reliable energy. With conventional oil supply declining, the need for unconventional resources, like oil sands and shale gas, will increase. Alberta and British Columbia, Canada’s two western-most provinces, house the vast majority of Canada’s oil and natural gas deposits, making both provinces key players in the push to develop resources sufficient to meet growing energy demand in North America and beyond ...
The Federal Circuit recently resolved two issues of first impression as to how patent reexamination proceedings affect related patent infringement litigation. These two cases, Marine Polymer1 and Bettcher Industries,2 are likely to have a significant impact on both litigation and reexamination-proceeding practices, as well as the strategic interplay between them ...
Despite complying with conditions attached to planning permission for an onshore wind farm development, developers, landowners and operators may find themselves defending an action for nuisance if the noise from the wind turbines unreasonably interferes with the use of another's land ...
Is the Marcellus shale that underlies a significant part of western and central Pennsylvania itself a “mineral”? Is Marcellus shale gas the type of natural gas contemplated in prior Pennsylvania case law, or something different? Is the Marcellus shale similar to coal, so that whoever owns the shale owns the gas that is embedded in that shale? In reversing and remanding the decision by the Susquehanna County Court of Common Pleas, a three judge panel of the P
In a somewhat surprising turn of events in the question of potential Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission ("Pa. PUC" or "Commission") regulation over midstream Marcellus Shale development entities, on September 8, 2011, Laser Northeast Gathering Company, LLC ("Laser") petitioned the Pa. PUC to withdraw its pending application for Certificate of Public Convenience to act as Public Utility ...
Activists opposed to natural gas drilling are taking a unique approach in an attempt to ban hydraulic fracturing in Peters Township, which is located in Washington County, Pennsylvania. The Peters Township Marcellus Shale Awareness group is attempting to have township residents vote on a referendum that amends the home rule charter to ban hydraulic fracturing ...
As leases are negotiated, permits are filed and shales are fractured across America, energy companies encounter the public. Some of these interactions are direct, while others are through the actions of a contracted service provider or partner. Still, the vast majority of first impressions will be presented to the public through the lens of the media, whether traditional or social ...
In an Order entered on June 14, 2011, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission ("PUC") remanded to the administrative law judge a request for a Certificate of Public Convenience filed by Laser Northeast Gathering Company, LLC ("Laser") to act as a "public utility" within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. With the order, however, the PUC did find that Laser may be subject to PUC jurisidction ...
On July 22, 2011, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett’s Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission in Harrisburg, Pa. forwarded to the Governor several recommendations to allow Pennsylvania to develop a comprehensive, strategic proposal for the responsible and environmentally sound development of the Marcellus Shale. Back in March 2011, the Governor created the Commission to address changes to the laws and rules for gas drilling in Pennsylvania ...
The 2011 Texas Legislature adopted broad changes to eminent domain laws that take effect on September 1, 2011. Under the new law, public and private entities that hold condemnation power face important new requirements and deadlines ...
Chile Rafael Vergara and Juan Francisco Mackenna Carey y Cía Ltda Mining industry Carey | September 2011
New regulations on Air Pollution and Primary Standard on breathable particulate matter PM2.5 emision standard for thermoelectric power plants. One of the most groundbreaking legal innovations that have occurred during 2011 is the enactment of the regulation that contains the Primary Standard on Fine Inhalable Particulate Matter PM 2.5 and the Emission Standard for Thermoelectric Power Plants. Both regulations will enter into force on January the 1st of 2012 ...
A recent decision in the Full Federal Court has shown that while manufacturers are generally free to make goods according to a design that is not registered, care must be taken to ensure that those products are branded in a way that distinguishes them from the market leader ...
In order to comply with a court-ordered schedule, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson on July 28 signed a 604-page package that proposes to subject additional oil and gas operations to regulation under the New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) and National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAPS) programs and to impose new and amended requirements under both programs. This proposed rulemaking has significant ramifications for the oil and gas industry ...
The past year has seen a significant rise in the uptake of mediation as an alternative means of dispute resolution and this is a trend which is likely to continue. Designed to resolve disputes to the (relative) satisfaction of both parties at an early stage, mediation uses an independent, specially trained third party mediator to facilitate private and confidential settlement discussions between parties ...
While water resource management can, ironically, be one of the driest of topics in mixed company, thefuture supply of fresh water is becoming an increasingly critical global issue. This week experts from around the globe are converging on Dundeefor an international conference, discussing security and sustainability issues around water ...
Law No. 20,500 about Associations and Community Participation in Public Management was published on the Official Gazette on February 16th, 2011, and it is a great progress in order to materialize the right of free association and the participatory principle, both established in the Chilean Political Constitution ...
According to the Mexican Constitution (the "Constitution"), the Nation has direct ownership of subsoil, as well as the exclusive right to develop and use petroleum and gas. Therefore, private ownership of hydrocarbons is forbidden and ownership of reserves of petroleum and gas belongs to the Nation.As a result, the Nation may not grant oil exploration and user rights to private entities ...
Last week, in conjunction with the Queensland Resources Council, Minter Ellison hosted a presentation by one of the world's leading carbon market experts. Her topic was the European Union's Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) and what Australia can learn from it in the context of the current debate around a carbon pricing mechanism for this country.Jill Duggan works for the EU ...
