Articles, Alerts & Perspectives

The Wildcatter

(by Nikolas Tysiak)

Cavallo Mineral Partners LLC v. EQT Production Company, 2025 WL 800433 (Pa. Super., March 13, 2025). In this case, landowner Des Moine Field conveyed his 200 acre tract in Washington Twp., Greene County, PA to the McChesneys in 1990, using the following language: “ALSO EXCEPTING AND RESERVING, for the benefit of Grantees, his heirs and assigns, all oil and gas not previously excepted, reserved or conveyed, together with the right to mine and operate for the same . . .” (emphasis added). Field eventually purported to convey his oil and gas rights to Cavallo Mineral Partners. The McChesneys leased their oil and gas rights to EQT, which eventually included these interests in an oil and gas production unit. Cavallo eventually brought a quiet title declaratory action suit, alleging ownership of the oil and gas rights. EQT (and other co-defendants) eventually won on procedural grounds following competing motions for summary judgment, and the suit was dismissed without prejudice. In that decision, the court pointed out that Cavallo still had claims that could be made regarding the apparent Scrivener’s Error regarding the use of the term “grantees” in the reservation, and Cavallo was instructed to amend its complaint accordingly, which it failed to timely do. Instead, it further appealed the underlying case on procedural grounds. The Superior Court found that Cavallo could only succeed on its procedural claims if it were likely to succeed on the merits of its case. The court determined, based on the existing claims and record, that Cavallo was unlikely to succeed on the merits because the deed from Fields to the McChesneys did not properly except or reserve the oil and gas rights for the benefit of Fields or his heirs, successors and assigns. …

Charleston, WV, Pittsburgh, PA

Pittsburgh Business Times

(by Moore Capito featuring Matt Smith)

With the surge of artificial intelligence, the demand for data centers to support that computing power is growing fast. “One of the challenges is that we as human beings and as businesses require so much more computing power than we ever have,” said A.A. Moore Capito, a shareholder specializing in energy and emerging technologies with the law firm Babst Calland. “That growth has continued consistently over the past 50 years, but at this current moment, we are seeing an exponential increase in demand.”

Yet, with this rapid growth comes significant challenges as businesses compete for power and land. With a wealth of energy resources, affordable land, and proximity to densely populated areas, this region is right in the thick of the trend.

Capito recently joined Allegheny Conference on Community Development Chief Growth Officer Matt Smith in the Pittsburgh Business Times offices for a conversation about the opportunities and challenges for the region, when it comes to data center growth.

Surging demand for power

Data centers are energy giants. They require a massive amount of power to process information, particularly as artificial intelligence capabilities expand. In February, Goldman Sachs Research predicted global power demand from data centers will increase 50 percent by 2027 and up to 165 percent by the end of 2029.

This spike in demand is forcing businesses and industry to rethink how to power their operations. Traditional reliance on the energy grid alone may no longer suffice.

“What I would consider the biggest challenge today is providing the power to sustain the growth that we need,” Capito said.

“A lot of these folks in the tech sector are saying we can’t rely on the grid anymore. …

Pittsburgh, PA

FNREL Mineral and Energy Law Newsletter

Pennsylvania – Oil & Gas

(by Joe Reinhart, Sean McGovern, Matt Wood and Alex Graf)

On April 8, 2025, the Pennsylvania Environmental Quality Board (EQB) tabled consideration of the Clean Air Council (CAC) and Environmental Integrity Project’s (EIP) petition for a rulemaking seeking to amend 25 Pa. Code ch. 78a to increase required minimum setbacks from unconventional oil and gas wells from 500 feet to 3,281 feet. During the meeting, Public Utility Commission (PUC) Commissioner Kathryn Zerfuss moved to table the petition, stating that the members of the EQB need more time to consider materials submitted by industry members and others prior to the meeting, which the EQB approved. Tabling the petition followed a Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) presentation recommending that the EQB accept the petition for further study, with the caveat that the recommendation was not an indication of PADEP’s substantive position on the petition. See PowerPoint Presentation, PADEP, “Petition for Rulemaking: Unconventional Gas Well Setbacks” (Apr. 8, 2025). CAC and EIP also presented their argument for why the EQB should accept the petition for further study at the meeting, which largely focused on the positions taken in their petition regarding potential adverse health and environmental consequences to people and resources located near unconventional oil and gas wells.

Procedurally, an EQB member would have to motion to un-table the petition to advance the petition for consideration, which could occur at the earliest at EQB’s next regularly scheduled meeting, currently set for June 10, 2025. The April meeting featured much debate by the EQB as to the exact timeline of events if the petition is un-tabled and considered during the June meeting. …

Pittsburgh, PA and Washington, DC

FNREL Mineral and Energy Law Newsletter

Pennsylvania – Mining

(by Joe Reinhart, Sean McGovern, Christina Puhnaty and Ethan Johnson)

On February 15, 2025, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) announced that the inflation rate for calculating anthracite and bituminous coal and industrial mineral mining water supply operation and maintenance bond amounts for replacement water supplies will be 3.80% and the interest rate for the 20-year Treasury bill will be 3.08%. 55 Pa. Bull. 1603 (Feb. 15, 2025). The rates became effective on April 1, 2025, and will be in effect until the new rates are published in February 2026.

Copyright © 2025, The Foundation for Natural Resources and Energy Law, Westminster, Colorado

Pittsburgh, PA and Washington, DC

FNREL Mineral and Energy Law Newsletter

Pennsylvania – Mining

(by Joe Reinhart, Sean McGovern, Christina Puhnaty and Ethan Johnson)

In a February 25, 2025, Mining and Reclamation Advisory Board and Aggregate Advisory Board Joint Regulation, Legislation, and Technical Committee Meeting, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) presented its plans to rescind two technical guidance documents (TGDs) and revise two others due to the TGDs being inaccurate and out of date after changes to Pennsylvania’s coal regulations and noncoal regulations. See PowerPoint Presentation, PADEP, “Water Supply Replacement TGDs” (Feb. 25, 2025).

PADEP plans to rescind its Water Supply Replacement and Permitting TGD (TGD 562-4000-101) but to convert some of its sections into standard operating procedures. PADEP also plans to rescind the Insurance Requirements and Water Supply Replacement Assurance TGD (TGD 562-2500-702) due to its inaccuracy following PADEP’s 2023 revisions to 25 Pa. Code ch. 77 regarding liability insurance rates. Any information still needed from the WSR and Permitting TGD and the Insurance Requirements and Water Supply Replacement Assurance TGD will be incorporated into a revised Water Supply Replacement and Compliance TGD (TGD 563-2112-605).

PADEP plans to make minor revisions to its Increased Operation and Maintenance Costs of Replacement Water Supplies (on All Coal and Surface Noncoal Sites) TGD (TGD 562-4000-102). PADEP will also revise its Water Supply Replacement and Compliance TGD (TGD 563-2112-605), which PADEP will rename as Water Supply Replacement, Permitting, and Compliance. In the revised TGD, PADEP will incorporate background information from the rescinded Water Supply Replacement and Permitting TGD (TGD 562-4000-101), remove requirements that are now in regulations, remove attached forms, and include relevant information from the rescinded Insurance Requirements and Water Supply Replacement Assurance TGD (TGD 562-2500-702). …

Pittsburgh, PA and Washington, DC

FNREL Mineral and Energy Law Newsletter

Pennsylvania – Mining

(by Joe Reinhart, Sean McGovern, Christina Puhnaty and Ethan Johnson)

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP), on March 22, 2025, announced the 2025 land reclamation bond rate guidelines for coal mining operations, and on March 29, 2025, announced the land reclamation bond schedule for noncoal mining operations. The coal mining operations bond rate guidelines became effective on April 1, 2025, and are available at 55 Pa. Bull. 2392 (Mar. 22, 2025). The noncoal mining operations bond schedule became effective March 29, 2025, and is available at 55 Pa. Bull. 2576 (Mar. 29, 2025).

Copyright © 2025, The Foundation for Natural Resources and Energy Law, Westminster, Colorado

Pittsburgh, PA

FNREL Mineral and Energy Law Newsletter

Pennsylvania – Oil & Gas

(by Joe Reinhart, Sean McGovern, Matt Wood and Alex Graf)

On February 26, 2025, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) announced it had begun accepting grant applications for the Reducing Industrial Sector Emissions in Pennsylvania (RISE PA) Program. See Press Release, PADEP, “Shapiro Administration Launches RISE PA Initiative to Create Energy Jobs, Cut Costs, Grow Pennsylvania’s Energy & Manufacturing Industries, and Lower Toxic Air Pollution” (Feb. 26, 2025). The RISE PA Program is funded by a $396-million award under the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act for projects that will reduce carbon emissions from the industrial sector, including from fuel combustion, industrial process emissions, natural gas and oil systems, coal mining, and other electricity usage.

As previously reported in Vol. 42, No. 1 (2025) of this Newsletter, President Trump’s Executive Order No. 14,154, “Unleashing American Energy,” created uncertainty around RISE PA’s future by pausing clean energy and climate-related funding under the Inflation Reduction Act. Exec. Order No. 14,154, § 7, 90 Fed. Reg. 8353 (Jan. 20, 2025). The Shapiro administration, however, sued the federal government and the funds were unfrozen on February 24, 2025.

The RISE PA Program awards are tiered based on project size: up to $40 million for small-scale projects; up to $100 million for medium-size projects; and up to $220 million for large-scale projects. Small-scale awards are administered by the Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program (PennTAP), while medium- and large-scale awards are administered by PADEP.

The Shapiro administration offered examples of eligible projects, including, “installing energy-efficient heat recovery systems to reduce the energy required to heat or cool an industrial facility, electrifying an industrial plant by swapping out diesel-powered generators with equipment that runs on electricity, and capturing coal mine methane from mining operations.” Press Release, supra. …

Pittsburgh, PA

FNREL Mineral and Energy Law Newsletter

Pennsylvania – Oil & Gas

(by Joe Reinhart, Sean McGovern, Matt Wood and Alex Graf)

On March 31, 2025, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) entered a settlement agreement with the Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association (PIOGA), PA Independent Petroleum Producers (PIPP), and PA Grade Crude Oil Coalition (PGCC) (collectively, Petitioners) pertaining to the Control of VOC Emissions from Conventional Oil and Natural Gas Sources pursuant to 25 Pa. Code ch. 129.

The settlement arises out of a December 5, 2022, petition for review of the emergency-certified final-omitted Control of VOC Emissions from Conventional Oil and Natural Gas Sources by the Petitioners in the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania. PIOGA, PIPP and PGCC Petition (Dec. 5, 2022) (Petition). Petitioners challenged the rule on the grounds that (1) the regulation did not meet the requirements to be issued as a final omitted rulemaking; and (2) PADEP did not develop the regulation for conventional oil and gas wells separately and independently from those regulations developed for unconventional oil and gas wells, as required by Act 52 of 2016. The rule was adopted by the Environmental Quality Board (EQB) through an emergency certified final-omitted rulemaking approved by the Governor, without notice and comment, which adopted reasonable available control technology standards (RACT) to control volatile organic compound (VOC) and methane emissions from existing and future conventional oil and gas operations and unconventional oil and gas operations, respectively. PADEP contended that the emergency certified final-omitted rulemaking process was appropriate pursuant to the PA Commonwealth Documents Law because notice and comment from the public was unnecessary, impractical, and contrary to the public interest. …

Pittsburgh, PA

FNREL Mineral and Energy Law Newsletter

Pennsylvania – Oil & Gas

(by Joe Reinhart, Sean McGovern, Matt Wood and Alex Graf)

On January 14, 2025, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) launched a new webpage to track the progress of permit applications. See Commw. of Pa., “Track Your Permit Application” here (Permit Tracker). The Permit Tracker allows interested parties to search permits by program area (e.g., oil and gas, by county, permit type, and other details). Applicants can also check the status of a permit application, including which step of the review process the permit is in, the target date for completing that step, and contact information for the permit reviewer.

According to an accompanying press release, PADEP co-developed the Permit Tracker with the Commonwealth Office of Digital Experience (CODE PA) to modernize the permitting process, and in response to requests from the business community. Press Release, PADEP, “Shapiro Administration Launches New Permit Tracker; Businesses Applying for DEP Permits Can Now See Progress in Real-Time” (Jan. 16, 2025). PADEP said that it continues the agency’s “commitment to transparency and improving the user experience for applicants working with us to build a better Pennsylvania.” Id. In addition to PADEP’s efforts to reduce its permit application backlogs, the agency said the Shapiro administration has been hiring staff to improve operational efficiency. Id.

Implementation of the Permit Tracker follows CODE PA’s October 2024 launch of another website to educate stakeholders about state grant opportunities and assist applicants through the application process. That tool, available here, covers multiple grant categories, including energy and oil and gas. …

Pittsburgh, PA

FNREL Mineral and Energy Law Newsletter

Pennsylvania – Oil & Gas

(by Joe Reinhart, Sean McGovern, Matt Wood and Alex Graf)

On April 5, 2025, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) issued the General Plan Approval and/or General Operating Permit for Gaseous Fuel-Fired Spark Ignition Internal Combustion Engines (BAQ-GPA/GP-16). 55 Pa. Bull. 2680 (Apr. 5, 2025).

A General Permit is a plan approval and operating permit for a specific category of sources that PADEP has determined can be adequately regulated under standardized conditions. Section 6.1(f) of the Air Pollution Control Act (35 Pa. Stat § 4006.1(f)) and 25 Pa. Code ch. 127, subch. H (relating to general plan approvals and operating permits) authorize PADEP to develop General Permits.

PADEP is also authorized to require new sources to control air pollution through the use of best available technology (BAT) under section 6.6 of the Air Pollution Control Act. In developing General Permits, PADEP establishes BAT for new sources, which can include equipment, devices, methods, or techniques to control air emissions to the maximum degree possible utilizing technologies that are available or may be made available. 25 Pa. Code § 121.1.

GP-16 sets BAT emission limits for certain new gaseous fuel-fired spark ignition internal combustion engines that are more stringent than the applicable New Source Performance Standards for these engines in 40 C.F.R. pt. 60, subpt. JJJJ, and 40 C.F.R. pt. 63, subpt. ZZZZ. GP-16 includes standardized requirements related to BAT and additional terms including recordkeeping and reporting requirements, a compliance certification, source testing requirements, and compliance with applicable New Source Performance Standards. The use of the GP-16 is restricted to facilities that are minor sources. …

Charleston, WV

West Virginia Executive

(by Moore Capito)

As the “backbone” of digital infrastructure, data centers are becoming more and more critical in meeting the demands of the modern digital world. With advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and the increased reliance on computing by people all over the world, demand for data centers is outpacing supply.

We are in a global modern-day gold rush to build data centers. And just as the 49ers faced infrastructure challenges of the day, data center developers are facing a critical infrastructure obstacle: energy.

A data center is a physical facility that houses servers that manage, store, and process data. There are several types of data centers, and while all do not require the same prerequisites to develop, they all require vast amounts of electricity. According to the United States Department of Energy, data centers account for two percent of the electricity usage in the country consuming 10 to 50 times more electricity per floor space than a typical commercial structure.

The electricity required to power data centers is adding stress on grids that are already pushing the limits. Utilities are having difficulty guaranteeing the level of power required to sustain current demand and meet projected future demand. As a result, developers are evaluating alternative ways to power their projects.

Recently, Amazon Web Services (AWS) purchased Talen Energy’s 1,200 acre data center campus which provides direct power from the Susquehanna Steam Electric Station. Tech companies and developers are no longer waiting on the utilities and are trending toward establishing dedicated power sources. This trend provides energy rich states an incredible opportunity.

Energy companies are actively exploring how to provide direct power ranging from laying additional pipelines to evaluating construction of new power plants dedicated to powering data centers. …

Pittsburgh, PA

TEQ Hub

(by Kristen Petrina)

On May 19, 2025, President Trump signed into the law the “TAKE IT DOWN Act (the “Act”). The Act includes data privacy, digital protections, and AI governance requirements of companies to remove deepfakes from “covered platforms”, particularly with a focus on nonconsensual intimate imagery (“NCII”).

The Act, whose acronym stands for “Tools to Address Known Exploitation by Immobilizing Technological Deepfakes on Websites and Networks Act” includes both criminal and civil elements; however, it does not create a new private right of action, rather provides the Federal Trade Commission with the enforcement authority over failures to comply with the notice and removal obligations, which would constitute an unfair or deceptive act or practice under the Federal Trade Commission Act.

Criminal and Civil Liability

The Act criminalizes the publication of an authentic or computer-generated NCII and outlines penalties for when the images of “intimate visual depiction” as defined in 15 USC 6851(5)(A), of an adult or minor and imposes new obligations on social media and online platforms to respond to requests to promptly remove unlawful NCII. Synthetic or computer-generated NCII, includes the term “digital forgery” meaning “any intimate visual depictions of an identifiable individual created through the use of software, machine learning, artificial intelligence, or any other computer generated or technological means, including by adapting, modifying, manipulating, or altering an authentic visual depiction, that, when viewed as a whole by a reasonable person, is indistinguishable from an authentic visual depiction of the individual.” An identifiable individual includes someone “(i) who appears in whole or in part in an intimate visual depiction; and (ii) whose face, likeness, or other distinguishing characteristic (including a unique birthmark or other recognizable feature) is displayed in connection with such intimate visual depiction.”

Criminal Liability for “Knowingly” Publishing NCII

1. Involving Adults.

…