NEW YORK (

TheStreet

) - New York State reportedly plans to lift a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing ("fracking"), the controversial process through which oil and gas exploration companies access resources in shale assets.

The Marcellus Shale, one of the most highly prized shale territories in the United States because of its size and proximity to Northeast markets with relatively higher gas prices, runs through a large portion of New York State.

A

New York Times

report on Thursday indicated that Governor Andrew Cuomo plans to lift the ban on fracking, though in a way that protects acreage close to New York City's upstate watershed and other sensitive water resources.

The energy market was abuzz with the news, but with reservations, as a spokesman for Governor Cuomo told the

New York Times

that the story was "baseless."

If it's true, energy market analysts say the news would be a a major boost for exploration and production companies active in the Marcellus.

In terms of the near-term impact of New York lifting the fracking ban, though, it might be limited. Curtis Trimble, analyst at MKM Partners, said that the E&P companies have been "on a run" in Pennsylvania, and given the political nature of the developments in New York, the companies would want a really firm commitment before devoting any capital to fracking in New York. He noted how quickly Governor's Cuomo's office came out and denied the report.

One analyst who did not want to be quoted on the development, given the anonymous sourcing in the

Times

report, and the fact that the news involved politics, said, "It's spiking interest. There's lots of chatter. It would be a new field. The Governor said it's baseless, but it's spiking interest."

As for the opportunity that would be presented by fracking in New York, a tentative case could be made that the news is bullish for the largest leaseholders in the Marcellus, and for those with assets close to the Pennsylvania-New York border.

"Geology doesn't care about state borders," said the energy analyst, and he added that the wells near the border of the two states have been good wells and the expectation would be for similar results on the New York State side of the border. "It's likely that the existing largest acreage holders in the Marcellus would benefit," the analyst added.

MKM Partners Trimble said, "The best places to find oil and gas are near where they have already been discovered, and given the success scene in Northern Pennsylvania, this would be an easy extrapolation."

Here is a list of the top acreage holders in the Marcellus ranked by net acres held (though not all hold acreage in New York State specifically):

Chesapeake Energy : 1.67 million acres

Range Resources : 1.2 million acres

ExxonMobil : 897,000 acres

National Fuel Gas : 745,000 acres

Consol Energy : 752,000 acres

Chevron : 714,000 acres

Royal Dutch Shell : 700,000 acres

EQT : 520,000 acres

Anadarko Petroleum : 355,000 acres

Cabot Oil & Gas

(COG) - Get Report

and

Carrizo Oil & Gas

(CRZO) - Get Report

also among holders of Marcellus acreage.

While there was some buzz in the energy markets, there was not a dramatic spike in the stocks on the news report. Chesapeake Energy was up 2.3% on Thursday, twice the energy sector gain of 1%, though Chesapeake also trailed the energy sector earlier in the week when another

New York Times

report referenced the company in making the case that natural gas shale plays could be "Ponzi schemes."

Many of the other stocks among the Marcellus acreage leaders, including Exxon, Consol, Chevron, Anadarko and Shell, had gains ranging from 1% to near 2% on Thursday. EQT, by contrast, was close to flat in trading.

-- Written by Eric Rosenbaum from New York.

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