Eagle Ford Regional Rig Count at 238 on March 29, 2013

March 30, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count fell two rigs to 238 units running this past week. The region had an average of 247 rigs running throughout the first quarter. 252 were running in January, 249 in February, and an average of 241 ran throughout March.

Happy Easter! He is risen, he is risen indeed.

The highlight of the week was from a new economic impact study released by UTSA. You can read more about the study in our article UTSA Eagle Ford Study Touts Oil & Gas Benefits. A few highlights from 2012 include:

$61 Billion economic impact
116,000 jobs supported
Almost $5 Billion paid in salaries last year
$3 Billion paid in royalties

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

[ic-l]The natural gas rig count fell three to a new low of 20 running this past week. Natural gas prices traded up during the week to more than $4/mmbtu. That's a significant milestone and one that will be welcomed by operators with significant natural gas production. Note the natural gas rig count continues to fall even though prices are improving. Remember, capital budgets are set annually and it will take a few months for operators to respond to improving prices.

A total of 217 oil rigs are running in the region. That's one more than last week. WTI crude futures were up almost $4 to more than ~$97/bbl Friday afternoon. Eagle Ford light traded at $93.75/bbl on March 28th.

There are 205 horizontal rigs running in the region. An injection well is being drilled in Webb County.

La Salle County continues to lead development with 31 rigs running. See the full list of drilling by county at the bottom of the page.

South Texas Oil & Gas News:

Be sure to visit our South Texas Oilfield Job Listings to search openings and come back weekly for updates.

Eagle Ford 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 formation. 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 Drilling by County

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Eagle Ford Regional Rig Count at 240 on March 22, 2013

March 22, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count fell four rigs back to 240 units running this past week. We're beginning to work on a more detailed rig analysis that we'll publish in the coming weeks. We're seeing larger operators lower their rig count as drilling speeds improve, but others are stepping up to the plate and the overall rig count hasn't changed much. Our question is this - What will the rest of the year look like? We plan to share our findings soon. Thank you to Joshua Creek Ranch who hosted the EagleFordShale.com team for an upland bird hunt and a sporting clays shoot. We'll have more details about the ranch soon, but we have to agree that it's the "best quail hunting in Texas".

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

[ic-l]The natural gas rig count fell one to 23 running this past week. That represents a NEW record low. Natural gas prices traded up during the week to $3.93/mmbtu late Friday. Trading above $4 will be a significant milestone if it is achieved in the coming weeks.

A total of 216 oil rigs are running in the region. That's three less than last week. WTI crude futures were literally flat on the week at ~$93.50/bbl Friday afternoon. NOTE - Eagle Ford crude prices are a little harder to track these days. Plains All American has stopped posting Eagle Ford prices except Eagle Ford light crude prices. Eagle Ford light traded at $90.25/bbl on March 22nd. The majority of Eagle Ford crude is very light or condensate. Those that produce a crude close to 40 degrees API gravity will continue to fetch a premium.

There are 208 horizontal rigs running in the region. That is two more than last week. An injection well is being drilled in Webb County.

La Salle County continues to lead development with 33 rigs running.

South Texas Oil & Gas News:

Be sure to visit our South Texas Oilfield Job Listings to search openings and come back weekly for updates.

Eagle Ford Rig Count by Operator

What is the Rig Count?

Eagle Ford Shale Drilling by County

Eagle Ford Regional Rig Count at 240 - March 8, 2013

March 8, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count settled at 240 units running this past week. La Salle County is leading the way with 34 rigs running.

We spent most of the week at IHS CERAWeek, where the industry's top executives converge to talk about the future of the energy industry. We came away even more convinced that plays like the Eagle Ford are the building blocks for a very bright future in the US.

While at the conference, we wrote on the breakeven oil price needed in the Eagle Ford. A representative from Baker Hughes noted that an oil price of $50-57 is needed to sustain a reasonable rate of return for operators. That number varies substantially across the play, but it's one more vote of confidence in South Texas.

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

[ic-r]The natural gas rig count was 24 this past week. That's a NEW record low. Natural gas prices traded up during the week to $3.63/mmbtu on Friday afternoon. Cooler weather and the chance of US gas production actually declining have supported prices...

The oil rig count fell one to 215 running in the area. WTI crude futures traded below $90 per barrel during the week, but recovered to more than $91/bbl Friday afternoon. Eagle Ford crude prices are a little harder to track these days. Plains All American has stopped posting Eagle Ford prices except Eagle Ford light crude prices. Eagle Ford light traded at $88/bbl on March 7th. The majority of Eagle Ford crude is very light or condensate. Those that produce a crude close to 40 degrees API gravity will continue to fetch a premium.

There are 197 horizontal rigs running in the region. This marks the first time we've had less than 200 horizontal rigs running since June of 2011 and is likely the result of operators pulling back their rig count as drilling speeds have improved. An injection well is being drilled in Karnes County.

La Salle County leads development with 34 rigs running. DeWitt (30), Karnes (26), Webb (24), Gonzales (23), McMullen (23), Dimmit (17), Live Oak (14), Atascosa (11), Leon (7), Madison (5), Wilson (5) and Frio (4) round out the top counties in the region.

South Texas Oil & Gas News:

Be sure to visit our South Texas Oilfield Job Listings to search openings and come back weekly for updates.

Eagle Ford Rig Count by Operator

What is the Rig Count?

Eagle Ford Shale Drilling by County

Eagle Ford Rig Count at 245 - Mar 1, 2013

March 1, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count settled at 245 units running this past week. La Salle County still leads with 33 rigs running.

Judging by announcements from operators, we should expect to see the rig count decline throughout 2013. Operators have dropped the average drilling time from 33 days to just 16 days currently. That would indicate the same number of wells could be drilled with less than half the number of rigs that were active at the peak (260+). To date, smaller operators have stepped in and increased their drilling efforts as the largest players have dropped rigs. We'll see more of the same in 2013, but I suspect we'll see a rig count closer to 200 than 250 in the coming months.

The biggest announcement of the week came from Net Midstream. The company plans to build a 124-mile, 42-inch natural gas pipeline from the Agua Dulce Hub in Nueces County to the border near Rio Grande City in Starr County. The pipeline will potentially export up to 2.1 Bcf/d, which would more than double current exports to Mexico. Read more in the article Net Midstream Plans Eagle Ford Pipeline to Mexico.

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

[ic-r]The natural gas rig count was 28 this past week. That's one above the Eagle Ford record low set last week. Natural gas prices traded up during the week to $3.47/mmbtu on Friday afternoon. Colder weather and more recent outages at nuclear plants have helped support natural gas prices.

The oil rig count fell three to 216 running in the area. WTI crude futures traded down on the week to a little more than $90 per barrel. Eagle Ford crude prices traded at $101.12/bbl on the 28th of February. Eagle Ford light crude and condensate in the area traded at $88.50 and $87.50, respectively.

There are 201 horizontal rigs running in the region. Ten rigs in Webb County were reclassified this week from horizontal to directional. That change almost accounts for the entire drop in horizontal drilling this past week.. An injection well is being drilled in Karnes County.

La Salle County leads development with 33 rigs running. DeWitt (26), Gonzales (25), Karnes (25), Webb (25), McMullen (24), Dimmit (21), Live Oak (15), Atascosa (9), Leon (7), Wilson (7) and Lavaca (5) round out the top counties in the region.

South Texas Oil & Gas News:

Be sure to visit our South Texas Oilfield Job Listings to search openings and come back weekly for updates.

Eagle Ford Rig Count by Operator

What is the Rig Count?

Eagle Ford Shale Drilling by County

Eagle Ford Regional Rig County Flat at 252 - Feb 8, 2013

February 8, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count held flat this past week at 252. "Consistent" might be the best way to characterize the rig count during the first six weeks of the year. The rig county has been 252 three times and has averaged 252 during the first month and a half of 2013. We spent most of the week in Houston at Winter NAPE. Lots of insight to share from the ~18,000 attendees. We'll have a summary of the show for you on Monday February 11th.

Highlights from the past week included production milestones for Anadarko, Marathon, and Murphy. That's just the start of it. All three companies expect significant growth in 2013.

Development is fueling the need for new housing like Sendero Ranch in Dilley, TX. The gated community includes 85 two bedroom cottages. Sounds like a nice upgrade in "workforce housing".

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

[ic-r]The natural gas rig count fell 3 to 37 running this week. Gas prices held reasonably flat - trading near$3.26/mmbtu on Friday afternoon.

The oil rig count added 3 units to reach 213 running in the area. WTI crude futures were trading close to $96 per barrel to end the week. Eagle Ford crude priced at $104.87/bbl on the 8th of February. Eagle Ford light crude and condensate in the area traded at $92.25 and $91.25, respectively.

There are 228 horizontal rigs running in the region. A disposal well is being drilled in Frio County and an injection well is being drilled in Karnes County.

La Salle County leads development with 35 rigs running. Karnes (27, Webb (26), Gonzales (24),McMullen (24), DeWitt (23), Dimmit (21), Live Oak (19), Atascosa (10), Leon (7), Lavaca (6), and Frio (5) round out the top counties in the region.

South Texas Oil & Gas News:

Be sure to visit our South Texas Oilfield Job Listings to search openings and come back weekly for updates.