WILLIAMSVILLE, N.Y., Jan. 10, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Seneca Resources Company, LLC (Seneca), the Exploration and Production segment of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE: NFG) (National Fuel), announced that it has attained an "A" letter grade under Equitable Origin's EO100™ Standard for Responsible Energy Development certification, covering 100% of its natural gas production, approximately 1 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day. To achieve this "A" grade, Seneca, as part of an annual verification audit, demonstrated scores of 98% or higher across all five principles of the EO100™ Standard, including corporate governance and ethics; social impacts, human rights and community engagement; Indigenous Peoples' rights; occupational health, safety and fair labor standards; and environmental impacts, biodiversity, and climate change.

Seneca has been certified under the EO100™ Standard since December 2021, following annual independent, third-party audits of Seneca's Pennsylvania operations by Geosyntec Consultants.

"We are thrilled to recognize the superb ESG performance Seneca has achieved as assessed by the expert team at Geosyntec. Three years in, Seneca's focus on improving its performance each year and on working collaboratively with key stakeholders has delivered one of the top scores yet attained under our system," said Jason Switzer, CEO of Equitable Origin.

"These accomplishments highlight Seneca’s dedication to ongoing improvement through the use of innovative technologies and processes, aimed at ensuring long-term sustainability and responsible energy production,” said Justin Loweth, President of Seneca. “Seneca is proud to provide safe, reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy for the benefit of Appalachia and beyond."

About National Fuel Gas Company:
National Fuel is a diversified energy company headquartered in Western New York that operates an integrated collection of natural gas assets across four business segments: Exploration and Production, Pipeline and Storage, Gathering, and Utility. Additional information about National Fuel is available at www.nationalfuel.com.

About Equitable Origin:
Equitable Origin is a non-profit organization that was founded with a vision to create a market-based mechanism to recognize and reward responsible energy producers and to empower energy purchasers through independent, site-level certification. The EO100™ Standard for Responsible Energy Development is grounded in a set of comprehensive, globally applicable ESG indicators developed with extensive stakeholder input. Certification against the EO100™ Standard promotes best practices and drives improvements in ESG performance while enabling a market for certified responsible energy with a premium price for differentiated production.

Cautionary Statements
Certain statements contained herein, including statements identified by the use of the words “anticipates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “predicts,” “projects,” “believes,” “will,” “may,” and similar expressions, and statements other than statements of historical facts, are “forward-looking statements” as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. While National Fuel’s expectations, beliefs, and projections are expressed in good faith and are believed to have a reasonable basis, actual results may differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements. In addition to other factors, the following are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements: (1) National Fuel’s ability to estimate accurately the time and resources necessary to implement new practices; (2) governmental/regulatory actions and/or market pressures to reduce or eliminate reliance on natural gas; and (3) the other risks and uncertainties described in (i) National Fuel’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K at Item 7, MD&A, and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q at Item 2, MD&A, under the heading “Safe Harbor for Forward-Looking Statements,” and (ii) the “Risk Factors” included in National Fuel’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K at Item 1A. National Fuel disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. Because of these risks and uncertainties, readers should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements or use them for anything other than their intended purpose.