Consol Energy Announces Plans

{Benwood, West Virginia}...Canonsburg, Pennsylvania-based Consol Energy says it plans to spend $1.7 billion this year to develop coal and natural gas assets. Consol officials say more than 40 percent of that money will focus on growing its increasing stake in the Marcellus and Utica shale, with plans to drill 61 Marcellus wells and 11 Utica wells. Consol plans to use $575 million in 2012 to drill wells and develop assets in its Marcellus acreage across West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Company officials have estimated Consol holds about 663,350 acres of natural gas reserves across the two states. The company also has plans to eventually increase its drilling numbers to 158 new wells in the Marcellus field in 2014, and 33 new wells in the Utica formation that year. Consol also plans to spend $50 million for safety at coal mines this year, up from just $18 million spent last year.