Consol, EQT submit bids for drilling

Consol, EQT submit bids for drilling

PITTSBURGH

Consol Energy and EQT Production Co. have submitted bids to drill for natural gas and oil at Pittsburgh International Airport.

The Allegheny County Airport Authority on Wednesday said EQT bid $4,750 per acre at the 9,263-acre airport, or roughly $44 million. Consol bid $20.8 million — but also included a $2.1 million check as a deposit. Both bids also include ongoing 18 percent royalties to the airport authority.

Authority spokeswoman JoAnn Jenny says she didn’t know if a lack of a deposit would disqualify EQT’s bid. Both must be reviewed before the authority picks one.

The authority wants to use drilling revenue to reduce gate fees that airlines pay. That could help passengers see more and cheaper flights.

The authority got no bids when it sought them four years ago before the Marcellus Shale boom.

Dominion: Turn thermostats down, if it’s possible

CLEVELAND

Because of the extreme cold weather forecasted for next week, Dominion East Ohio asked its customers to voluntarily turn down their thermostats and lower the settings on their water heaters if they can do so safely.

The company said that conservation next week would help lower bills and keep natural gas available for all customers.

Sam’s Club plans to cut 2,300 workers

NEW YORK

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said it’s eliminating 2,300 workers at its Sam’s Club division as it reduces the ranks of middle managers in a bid to be more nimble.

The layoffs, which cut 2 percent of the membership club’s U.S. employee count of about 116,000, mark the largest since 2010 when the Sam’s Club unit laid off 10,000 workers as it moved to outsource food demonstrations at its stores.

The cuts come as Sam’s Club strives to compete better with Costco Wholesale Corp. and online players such as Amazon.com’s Prime membership service.

Union membership holds steady at 11.3%

WASHINGTON

The nation’s union membership held steady at 11.3 percent last year, but losses among state and government workers suggest an ominous trend for the future of organized labor.

In a turnabout, there are now slightly more union members working for private firms than in government, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. That reverses a five-year trend.

Although the rate of membership among all workers didn’t budge, the overall number of union members grew slightly, rising about 162,000 to nearly 14.5 million.

Unions added about 282,000 new members in the private sector as the economy improved.

But that was partly offset by the loss of 118,000 members in the public sector, as state and local governments and public school districts continued to face financial pressure from shrinking budgets.

Vindicator staff/wire reports

Selected local stocks

STOCK, DIVIDENDCLOSECHANGE

Aqua America, .61, 23.46 —.31

Avalon Holdings,5.46.09

Clear Channel, .61 21.31 —.45

Cortland Bancorp, 10.70.00

Farmers Nat., .126.85 —.07

First Energy, 2.20, XXXX

FirstMerit Corp., .64,XX XX

First Niles Financial, .32,31.07.1

First Place Fin., .00.00

FNB Corp., .48,12.37—.27

General Motors,36.83—1.59

General Electric, .76,24.95—.87

Huntington Bank, .20, 9.42—.33

JP Morgan Chase, 1.52,55.09—1.38

Key Corp, .22,12.93—.75

LaFarge, 18.11 —.99

Macy’s, 1.00, 54.42—.63

Parker Hannifin, 1.80, 114.63—4.12

PNC, 1.76,81.03—1.63

RTI Intl. Metals,31.96—.53

Simon Prop. Grp.,4.60,153.19—2.94

Stoneridge 11.01 —.63

United Community Fin. 3.55—.04

Selected prices at 4 p.m. Friday. Provided by Stifel. Not to be construed as an offer or recommendation to buy or sell any security.