CANTON: Gov. John Kasich on Wednesday put on his cheerleader hat to boost drilling for natural gas, oil and other liquids from the Utica shale formation under eastern Ohio.“We feel very good,” he said in a 20-minute talk at the first Oilfield Expo staged by the Ohio Oil and Gas Association at Canton’s Memorial Civic Center. “This is fantastic. … It is a pretty amazing story.”Preliminary tests indicate that drillers might be able to tap into tens of billions of dollars of natural gas, oil and other liquids in Ohio in coming years.Ten test wells have been drilled into the Utica shale and perhaps another 90 wells are needed before Ohio and the drillers can fully assess the potential, Kasich said.That, he said, is forcing him to temper his enthusiasm for drilling — at least a little.Ohio has studied what has happened in other states and wants to avoid what’s occurring in New York and Pennsylvania, Kasich said.New York has not approved any wells, and Pennsylvania has encountered problems, including contaminated drinking water wells and frightened residents. Ohio wants to be somewhere between those two extremes, the governor said.Ohio expects to impose impact fees that would be assessed on drillers to correct any problems that arise, Kasich said, but those plans are incomplete. The state is confident its laws on drilling are strong enough to minimize problems.Kasich said drilling could create jobs directly, and companies that serve the drilling operations might add jobs, too.The daylong Canton expo, billed as a business-to-business showcase, included 150 firms with displays. By early afternoon, more than 1,500 people had visited, said spokeswoman Kristy Hawthorne of the Granville-based Ohio Oil and Gas Association.The event was organized because many out-of-state drilling companies are coming into Ohio. The event gives them a chance to meet and interact with Ohio firms, said Tom Stewart, executive vice president of the statewide group.Companies on hand ranged from law firms to uniform companies. There were firms offering trucks, engines, hydraulics, pipes, welding, water treatment, pumps and tanks. A grass seed company also attended.Sponsors included Chesapeake Energy and Ergon Oil Purchasing Inc.Bob Downing can be reached at 330-996-3745 or bdowning@thebeaconjournal.com.