It remains there today as a new natural gas and oil technology has emerged: the capability of opening tight rock formations or shale through hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling.
Why is North Carolina not yet a site for drilling rigs, mud and service companies? Why is there shale gas exploration and production in the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and on different rock formations in Arkansas, Texas and in the Rocky Mountains?
The answer is political. North Carolina has been in self-imposed isolation from the industry that invests and operates oil and gas exploration. Until now, it has not been worth the airfare for a company to send an exploration geologist from Denver to Raleigh. North Carolina law prohibited hydraulic fracturing.
New state political leadership is prepared to change this......
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