May 20- Chesapeake Energy Corp said it hired Robert Douglas Lawler of rival Anadarko Petroleum Corp as chief executive, filling the post vacated by co-founder Aubrey McClendon. Lawler, who is senior vice president of international and deep-water operations at Anadarko Petroleum, will join Chesapeake on June 17, the company said.
HOUSTON/ NEW YORK, May 20- For the past three years, the boom in the U.S. shale oil industry has outstripped all expectations. News from two of the country's less developed shale plays in Colorado and Ohio last week offer a reality check for the wave of euphoria that has washed across the industry.
HOUSTON-- Southwestern Energy has closed on the purchase of about 162,000 acres of land in Pennsylvania. The Marcellus Shale, a massive underground gas reserve stretching from New York across Pennsylvania and West Virginia to Ohio. Southwestern Energy Co., based in Houston, financed the deal with existing debt.
*Oil output from Ohio's Utica shale to be dwarfed by gas. NEW YORK, May 16- Oil output from the Utica shale in Ohio was less than expected last year, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources said on Thursday, denting the Utica's image as America's next oil-producing frontier.
*Oil output from Ohio's Utica shale to be dwarfed by gas. NEW YORK, May 16- Oil production from the Utica shale in the U.S. state of Ohio was lower in 2012 than first anticipated and in much of the play it will be dwarfed by "significant" gas output, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources said on Thursday.
News Corp is set to report quarterly earnings, but the focus will be on the company's impending spin-off of its publishing assets as separate company. (NEWSCORP-RESULTS/, expect by 2030 GMT/ 4:30 PM ET, by Lisa Richwine, 500 words). From Europe's fringe, Romania and Bulgaria seek acceptance.
May 8- A federal judge on Wednesday ruled in favor of Chesapeake Energy Corp in a dispute with Bank of New York Mellon Corp over the natural gas company's effort to buy back $1.3 billion of notes early.
*Concho Resources: ISI Group starts with neutral-. Theflyonthewall.com* EOG Resources Inc: ISI Group starts with neutral- Theflyonthewall.com* Chesapeake Energy: ISI Group starts with cautious- Theflyonthewall.com.
May 3- Chesapeake Energy Corp said on Friday that director Louis Simpson has resigned from the U.S. oil and gas company's board of directors and he will be replaced by an executive who was recommended by a top shareholder.
May 3- Chesapeake Energy Corp said on Friday that director Louis Simpson has resigned from the U.S. oil and gas company's board of directors and he will be replaced by an executive who was recommended by a top shareholder. Simpson, who has served on Chesapeake's board since 2011, is replaced by Thomas Ryan, chief executive officer of Service Corp International.
*Board accepts resignation of Louis A. Simpson; elects Thomas L. Ryan to board. *Says Ryan replaces R. Brad Martin on the audit committee. *Source text for Eikon* Further company coverage ().
May 3- Natural gas company EQT Corp said it would buy some properties in Marcellus and Utica shale fields in Pennsylvania, including 10 wells, from Chesapeake Energy Corp. The transaction, expected to close on May 30, involves 99,000 net acres in southwestern Pennsylvania, including 67,000 acres in Marcellus, EQT said.
**Verizon Communications would like to buy out Vodafone from their Wireless joint venture but will not do so at any cost, its chief executive has told JP Morgan analysts.
*SandRidge shares are down 20 percent this year. *SandRidge reports Q1 results May 7. While natural gas prices have risen from last year's 10- year lows, they remain depressed, adding pressure to SandRidge and peers like Chesapeake Energy Corp and Hess Corp to cut costs and improve well efficiency.
*Canaccord Genuity cuts target price to $26 from $27; rating buy. Reuters Station users, click. 1568. Reuters Station users, click. 4899.
**MERCK& CO INC, $45.95, down 2 pct. **TITAN PHARMACEUTICALS INC, $0.46, down 73 pct. **NEUTRAL TANDEM INC, $4.57, up 53 pct.