德州页岩天然气之殇
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切萨皮克和XTO等钻探公司也砍掉了大量租约。对于少数仍在吃进土地的公司来说，每亩5000元的签约奖金已经是高端合同了。被Vantage和切萨皮克等公司砍掉租约的居民在愤怒之余，纷纷将这些公司告上了法庭，希望强制他们执行原来的协议，但是结果并不成功。 已经签订了租约的土地所有人也失望地发现，钻探带来的后续分红远没有当初想象得那样多——平均到每户也就是每月25到50美元。有些在当地比较有地位的土地所有者，包括市政府、校区、沃斯堡机场、亿万富翁艾德•巴斯和《电讯报》都纷纷状告切萨皮克公司，称对方亏欠分红。（2012年，切萨皮克公司向沃斯堡机场支付了530万美元钻探费，双方达成和解。目前这家公司仍在就其他案件进行争辩，坚称它已经支付了每起诉讼中应付的分红。） 与此同时，德克萨斯州交通部门的一名官员称，要修复钻探业的重型卡车导致的路面破损可能需要最高20亿美元的费用。当地居民也经常抱怨地下水和空气遭到的污染。（钻探行业则表示没有证据表明钻探导致了污染问题。） 5月23日，在一起当地居民状告切萨皮克公司的油气井扰民的案件中，当地法院的陪审裁定这位居民胜诉，并获得2万美元赔偿。其它类似案件仍在审理中。 最后还要说说地震——近年来当地发生的几十起小型地震让居民深感恐慌。已经有专家表示，这些地震与钻井公司用来向地下注入液态废弃物的废液处理井有关。虽然能源公司和该州官员表示，目前还没有确切的证据表明导致这些地震的具体原因是什么，但是就在沃斯堡机场附近的两口废液处理井关闭后，这座机场2009年以来发生的一连串地震的确停止了。现在专家们仍在对沃斯堡西北部几口处理井附近接连发生的一连串小型地震进行研究。 这些日子以来，切萨皮克公司在沃斯堡的出镜率远远没有以前高了。它已经卖掉了巴奈特页岩田的很多土地，裁掉了很多当地员工，并且在2012年将那座20层的区域总部大楼送上了拍卖台。2013年1月，随着这家公司在天然气上的豪赌遭遇巨额亏损，加上天然气价格达到接近历史新低，再加上CEO麦克兰登与公司的私下交易被公布于世，这位高调的CEO只得宣布辞职。媒体上也很难再寻觅到切萨皮克公司的踪影。2008年，切萨皮克公司基本上每天都会在《电讯报》上露面——全年总共见报309次。但到了2014年，这家公司只见报了21次。目前，它在巴奈特页岩田只剩两套钻井设备。 切萨皮克公司也不再冠名沃斯堡的灯火节了。2014年，这项活动将由XTO公司赞助（现已被埃克森美孚控股）。（财富中文网） 研究助理：马蒂•琼斯 译者：朴成奎 |
Chesapeake, XTO, and the other drillers also yanked big bonus deals off the table. The new high-end offer (from the few companies still signing leases): $5,000 an acre. Angry residents who were shut out by Vantage, Chesapeake, and other companies filed dozens of suits against the drillers, seeking to force them to honor the original deals for them, too. But the litigation was unsuccessful. Homeowners who had signed leases were also disappointed to discover that drilling would provide only a modest ongoing windfall—for owners of an average residential lot, perhaps $25 to $50 a month. Several prominent landowners—including the city of Fort Worth, the school district, DFW Airport, billionaire Ed Bass, and the Star-Telegram—sued Chesapeake, accusing it of shorting them. (In 2012, Chesapeake paid $5.3 million in back royalties to settle with the airport. It continues to contest other cases, insisting it has paid what it owed in each instance.) Meanwhile, a state transportation official announced that repairing road damage throughout Texas caused by heavy drilling-industry trucks would cost as much as $2 billion. Residents have complained of groundwater pollution and contaminated air. (The industry has said there is no proof that drilling caused pollution problems.) On May 23, a local jury awarded $20,000 in damages to one Fort Worth man who filed suit against Chesapeake complaining that a well site behind his home was a nuisance. Other similar suits are pending. And finally there are the earthquakes—dozens of small localized rattlers that have frightened residents. Experts have linked them to disposal wells used to inject liquid fracking wastes deep underground. Although energy companies and state officials say there’s no firm proof of what causes the quakes, a string of temblors at Dallas-Forth Worth Airport lasting through 2009 ended after two disposal wells were shut down. An ongoing string of quakes near disposal wells northwest of Fort Worth remains under study. Chesapeake is far less visible around Fort Worth these days. It has sold off much of its Barnett acreage, cut back its local staff, and, in 2012, put its 20-story regional headquarters building—purchased just four years earlier—on the block. (It still hasn’t sold.) The company’s highly visible CEO, McClendon, announced his resignation in January 2013, amid big losses from the company’s huge bet on natural gas—then at near-record-low prices—and revelations about his sweetheart deals with the company. And Chesapeake has receded from the press. In 2008, Chesapeake was the subject of almost daily mentions in the Star-Telegram—309 in all. So far in 2014, it has been mentioned only 21 times. The company’s now down to just two Barnett Shale drilling rigs. Chesapeake also no longer has its brand on the big downtown Fort Worth holiday festival of lights. For 2014, that event will be sponsored by XTO (now owned by ExxonMobil) instead. Research associate: Marty Jones |
