Diversified Energy, a cryptocurrency mining company, has left a natural gas-powered mining site in Elk County, Pennsylvania, without properly closing the wells.
Longhorn Pad A had been inactive for nearly ten years before Diversified restarted it in 2022. The company used the gas to power generators that ran cryptocurrency mining computers.
However, this work began without securing the required air quality permit from Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).
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Though the permit was eventually granted in December 2023, an inspection in March 2025 showed that Diversified Energy had already removed the mining equipment.
As a result, the DEP issued a formal notice to warn that the company had left the wells without proper care. Diversified Energy disagreed with this view and stated that gas production might continue at the site in the future.
However, the DEP and environmental groups argue that Diversified Energy has not followed through on its responsibilities. In a 2021 agreement, the company promised to plug Longhorn Pad A and 13 other wells once they were no longer producing. So far, this work has not been completed.
Environmental advocates have long criticized Diversified Energy’s business model. The company often buys older, low-output wells and continues production without strong plans for closing them later. Plugging a single well can cost more than $100,000, and Pennsylvania already has about 350,000 wells that have been abandoned or left unsealed.
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