Consol Energy became the only company in the Pittsburgh region to bar reporters from attending its annual meeting, shutting the press out of a gathering on Wednesday that attracted about five shareholders.

The Cecil-based coal and natural gas producer closed its doors to the media for the second year in a row, saying the secret proceedings allow executives to focus on business, and that the company is transparent throughout the year.

"We're pretty open all the time," said J. Brett Harvey, Consol CEO and president, in an interview held after the meeting had adjourned.

The decision to keep the press out is unusual, even in an economic climate that has inspired some raucous shareholder affairs, corporate governance experts say.

The practice is not illegal, but "it's not appropriate," said Lev Janashvili, managing director at GMI Ratings, a corporate governance research firm in New York. "What does that decision reveal and suggest about the quality of leadership at the company?"

Shareholder meetings in Pittsburgh and across the country have taken on a charged tenor since the recession compelled many investors to raise questions about executive pay and corporate governance.

The other driller with headquarters in the region, EQT Corp., had security guards located inside the Downtown conference room that held its shareholder meeting in April, and had all attendees wanded with metal detectors.

Last month, shareholder activists at PNC Financial Services Group disrupted the annual meeting by shouting questions about the company directors' stance on mountaintop removal mining, prompting CEO Jim Rohr to rush through the agenda and cut the event short.

But Consol's private meeting on Wednesday was characterized as such a placid affair that Mr. Harvey said he would be ribbing Mr. Rohr on how much smoother Consol's meetings go.

Expanding on its strategy of focusing on natural gas drilling, EQT Corp. on Friday announced a deal to bolster its local Marcellus Shale holdings.

The Downtown-based energy company, which is in the process of selling its Equitable Gas utility to Peoples Natural Gas, said it was buying roughly 99,000 net acres in southwestern Pennsylvania plus 10 horizontal Marcellus wells in Washington County from

Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake Energy Corp. and its partners for about $113 million.

Three of the Marcellus wells are currently producing, with the remaining seven expected to be by the end of the year, the company said.

The acreage includes 67,000 Marcellus acres and 32,000 Utica Shale acres. Of the total purchase price, $60 million is for the undeveloped acreage and $53 million is for the Marcellus wells, EQT said.

The acquisition, which is expected to be completed May 30, includes some 25,000 acres within EQT's core Marcellus development areas of Allegheny, Washington and Greene counties. The company anticipates drilling four wells on the newly acquired land late this year.

The remaining 42,000 Marcellus acres are unlikely to be developed because of near-term lease expirations or a scattered footprint, EQT said.

The deal to sell Equitable Gas to North Shore-based Peoples is awaiting approval from the state Public Utility Commission and various other agencies, which is expected to take until the end of the year.

Patricia Sabatini:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  or 412-263-3066.

A discount superstore and a large vacant tract of land on a bluff overlooking the Parkway West could become the latest symbols of the region's growing energy identity.

Global energy giant Chevron has reached agreements to acquire 61 acres of land in Moon, including a Kmart targeted for closing in July, as a potential site for a regional headquarters.

The San Ramon, Calif.-based company made the announcement Wednesday, only days after Sears Holdings Corp. confirmed it would be closing the Kmart. It made no mention at the time that the store was closing to make room for the first major global driller to build a regional campus.

In its statement, Chevron said it expects to close on the acquisitions in the next few months. No terms were disclosed. It said a decision on the use of the properties would be made later this year.

PG graphic: Map of 61 acres purchased by Chevron
(Click image for larger version)

"Chevron is pleased to have been offered the opportunity to acquire this land, which provides us with a potential location as we continue to evaluate our options for a regional headquarters facility," said Bruce Niemeyer, Chevron's regional vice president. "We are committed to this community, to contributing to a vibrant regional economy, and to producing energy supplies that will fuel this region and our nation for generations."

The company has been scouring the region for a potential site for a regional headquarters for at least a year. It now leases space in two buildings in Moon, including one in the Cherrington office park.

In addition to the Kmart site, Chevron is acquiring a 43-acre parcel of land behind it known as Marketplace Landing, owned by Roy F. Johns Jr. Associates. Both sites sit on a bluff above the Parkway West and can be seen from the highway and the giant retail complexes nearby. Pittsburgh International Airport is about five miles away.

Chevron provided few details on the size of the development Wednesday, but one local real estate broker said he had heard the company was considering a campus as large as 350,000 square feet -- enough room to house 1,750 employees in a traditional office setting.

Nathan Calvert, a Chevron spokesman, said the firm could not confirm information on square footage, the number of buildings or how many employees it might hold. A timeline on groundbreaking and construction was not given.