UPDATED | Shale expo under way at the Covelli Centre

The Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber’s Youngstown, Ohio, Utica and Natural Gas 2012 Conference and Expo is under way.

By early morning, the parking lot at the Covelli Centre was near capacity.

Vindicator reporters Burton Speakman, Jamison Cocklin and Danny Restivo are covering the event and will bring updates to Vindy.com and our Facebook page today as well as full coverage in Friday's newspaper.

Right now, they report there are hundreds in attendance to the second annual event and an exhibit floor that is packed with local and even global vendors.

Chamber spokesman Tony Paglia said the conference has been "beyond our expectations " with 1,500 registered attendees today and 450 tomorrow.

Officials with event sponsor the Youngstown Warren Regional Chamber are already billing it as a success. Unlike last year, the expo cost attendees $100 for access to 115 exhibitors and vendors, and a series of keynote speakers. "Considering it's a paid gig, this is way beyond out expectations," said Paglia.

He said the focus of this year's expo revolves around connecting local businesses with global business, and further establishing Youngstown as a hot spot for Utica shale activity.

Last year the conference attracted 1,800 attendees; this year, 1,500 paid participants, Paglia said.

The natural gas supply chain is on full display. Hundreds surveyed a variety of services offered by companies as far away as Texas and Colorado.

Local banks, contractors and engineering firms also were busy swapping ideas with globally-integrated companies.

Representatives with Pennsylvania-based FMC Technologies, which offers fracking support services, said they took one look one look at the fracking map in Northeast Ohio -- and knew they had to have a presence at this year's expo.

"Youngstown and Canton are so well located that you can't ignore their place in the Utica Play," said FMC regional manager Xavier Tyson.

Meanwhile, at the HBK Energy booth, executive assistant Kristina Kay said her accounting firm had seen interest from a number of area landowners. "We spoke with one gentlemen that has about 40,000 acres of land, some of which is already leased. We'll definitely be in touch with him."

HBK has offices in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida.

Continue to watch Vindy.com and our Facebook page for updates.