Eagle Ford Shale Rig Count - September 23, 2011

September 23, 2011 Kenny DuBose

The Eagle Ford Shale rig count is up six rigs to 239 active drilling rigs. The area has eclipsed the all time high from last week. The number of natural gas rigs working increased by five to a total of 121, while the oil rig count increased one rig to 118. Zero disposal wells or injection wells are being drilled. Horizontal rigs account for 209 of the 239 rigs drilling in the South Texas region. DeWitt, Dimmit, and Madison counties lost a total of seven rigs combined, while McMullen, Frio, and Robertson counties all increased by more than two rigs.

Chesapeake Energy (27) and EOG Resources (22) continue to work more than 20 rigs in the play. Six companies have more than 10 active drilling units. We had a well fire in Karnes County yesterday and we got updated well results from Magnum Hunter. Other notable news can be read through the following links:

Stay tuned each week for an update on the South Texas rig count.

Drilling Rig Count by Operator

What is the Rig Count?

The Eagle Ford Shale Rig Count is an index of the total number of oil & gas drilling rigs running across a 30 county area in South Texas. The South Texas rigs referred to in this article are for ALL drilling reported by SmithBits and not solely wells targeting the Eagle Ford Shale. All land rigs and onshore rig data shown here are based upon industry estimates provided by the Baker Hughes Rig Count and/or Smith Service Co's (Schlumberger) Smith Rig Count.

Drilling by County

Eagle Ford Shale Rig Count - September 16, 2011

September 16, 2011 Kenny DuBose

The Eagle Ford Shale rig count is up three rigs to 233 active drilling rigs. The area is now back to the high we hit at the beginning of August. For reference, anywhere from 30-40 of these rigs are likely targeting formations other than the Eagle Ford, but still contribute to drilling intensity in the area. The number of natural gas rigs working increased by five to a total of 116, while the oil rig count decreased two rigs to 117. Zero disposal wells or injection wells are being drilled. Horizontal rigs account for 209 of the 233 rigs drilling in the South Texas region. Karnes and La Salle counties lost a total of six rigs combined, while Dimmit, Gonzales, Leon, Zavala and Atascosa counties all increased by more than one rig.

Chesapeake Energy (25) and EOG Resources (21) continue to work more than 20 rigs in the play. Six companies have more than 10 active drilling units.

On the Eagle Ford News front - We were cited by the CBS Evening News yesterday in a story on the job boom in South Texas. Earlier in the week, the Caller, in Corpus, had a good article on Eagle Ford Economic Impacts and Threats. The influx of oil money can also cause a couple of unintended consequences:

Stay tuned each week for an update on the South Texas rig count.

Drilling Rig Count by County and Operator

What is the Rig Count?

Drilling by Operator

Drilling by County

Eagle Ford Shale Rig Count - September 9, 2011

September 9, 2011 Kenny DuBose

Rig CThis week the Eagle Ford Shale rig count is up eight rigs to 230 active drilling rigs. The number of natural gas rigs working decreased by three to a total of 111, while the oil rig count increased 11 rigs to 119. Zero disposal wells or injection wells are being drilled at this time. Horizontal rigs account for 208 of the 230 rigs drilling in the South Texas region. DeWitt and Webb counties lost a total of five rigs combined, while Karnes, Frio, and Atascosa counties all experienced an uptick in drilling activity. That's a good rebound in the oil rig count! Expect a softer gas price in the coming weeks as forecasters expect more gas to be injected than normal. That might put pressure on the gas rig count, but remember in the Eagle Ford operators need to hold leases by drilling and producing hydrocarbons. An operator can hold a 640 acre lease with one gas well and only 160 acres with one oil well. That is playing a factor in supporting the gas rig count even at sub $4. More acreage HBP'd is a win for the operators.

Texas fires and the Big 12 dominated the news, but on the Eagle Ford front:

Stay tuned each week for an update on the South Texas rig count.

Rig Count by County

What is the Rig Count?

Eagle Ford Shale Rig Count - September 2, 2011

September 2, 2011 Kenny DuBose

This week the Eagle Ford Shale rig count is down one rig to 222 active drilling rigs. The number of natural gas rigs working increased by six making a total of 114, while the oil rig count declined seven rigs to 108. Zero disposal wells or injection wells are being drilled at this time. Horizontal rigs account for 200 of the 222 rigs drilling in the South Texas region. The biggest loses occurred in Atascosa and Dimmit counties, which lost eight rigs combined. La Salle, Webb, and Zavala counties all experienced an uptick in drilling activity. We mentioned this last week, but we think it is worth stating again. You'll see operators move rigs to the most prospective areas of a play when commodity prices fall. If the commodity markets stay down, the rig count to lags but usually falls correspondingly. At play in the Eagle Ford, is the need to hold leases by drilling and producing hydrocarbons. An operator can hold a 640 acre lease with one gas well and only 160 acres with one oil well. That is likely playing a factor in supporting the gas rig count. More acreage HBP'd sooner.

It was a quiet week in terms of news, but we had a few noteworthy events:

Stay tuned each week for an update on the South Texas rig count.

Drilling Rig Count by County

What is the Rig Count?

All land rigs and onshore rig data shown here are based upon industry estimates provided by the Baker Hughes Rig Count and/or Smith Service Co's (Schlumberger) Smith Rig Count.

Eagle Ford Shale Rig Count - August 26, 2011

August 26, 2011 R.T. Dukes

This week the Eagle Ford Shale rig count is down four rigs to 223 active drilling rigs. The number of natural gas rigs working increased by two making a total of 108, while the oil rig count declined six rigs to 115. Zero disposal wells or injection wells are being drilled at this time. Horizontal rigs account for 204 of the 223 rigs drilling in the South Texas region. The biggest loses occurred in Gonzales and Dimmit counties, which lost eight rigs combined. DeWitt, Karnes, and Webb counties all experienced an increase in drilling in what might be an early indication of where rigs will move if oil prices trend lower. Often times, you'll see operators move rigs to the most prospective areas where commodity prices fall. If the commodity markets stay down, expect the rig count to lag by at least a few weeks and up to three months, but the rig count will be supported by the need for producers to hold lease.

Over the last week, Texon Petroleum reported a mid-year increase of 50% in its Eagle Ford Shale reserves bookings, we continued to hear good news from San Antonio's commercial real estate market, and Eagle Ford Shale jobs are in great supply.

Stay tuned each week for an update on the South Texas rig count. Better yet, Subscribe by RSS.

Drilling Rig Count by County

What is the Rig Count?

All land rigs and onshore rig data shown here are based upon industry estimates provided by the Baker Hughes Rig Count and/or Smith Service Co's (Schlumberger) Smith Rig Count.