Hess Corp. reported Friday that it has agreed to sell its joint venture interests in the Utica shale play in eastern Ohio to Ascent Resources – Utica, LLC. “We continue to focus our portfolio by divesting lower return, non-core assets as part of our strategy to deliver long term value to shareholders,” Hess Corp. CEO John Hess said in a written statement. Under its approximately $400 million net cash deal with Ascent, Hess will divest roughly 39,000 net Utica acres. Hess, which pointed out that 26,000 net acres are undeveloped, added that net production for full year 2018 is forecast to average 14,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day – approximately 70 percent of which should be residue gas. In a joint venture with CNX Resources, Hess holds a 50-percent working interest in the acreage, the company stated. Production from the liquids-rich Utica assets – located in Belmont, Harrison […]