Marcellus Shale Conference and Expo

Today's Marcellus Shale Conference and Expo attracted about 1500 people when only two or three-hundred were expected, so it moved to larger quarters at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

EQT Chairman and CEO Murray Gerber says the Marcellus Shale is a resource that could replicate Pennsylvania’s economic boom times, with the possibility of 500,000 jobs—half of them in Western Pennsylvania.

PA could, however, chase investors and drillers away with bad policy, so Gerber calls for a comprehensive solution to combine a severance tax with all the other development questions.

Environmental issues have been solved with technology in other places, says Gerber. The state should accept that and hold people accountable for their actions. Gerber says a hillside full of natural gas wells still looks like a beautiful hillside.

Gerber says the Marcellus Shale provides an opportunity the state should not miss.
Speakers’ topics range from actual drilling to ancillary services, SEC regulations, and Wall Street attitudes.