Eagle Ford Regional Rig Count 264 on May 3, 2013

May 3, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count settled at 264 this past week. That is one more than last week when 263 rigs were running.

It was an event packed week, with companies reporting earnings and the Eagle Ford Conference & Expo in Robstown Wednesday and Thursday. We'll have more details from many Eagle Ford operators later next week.

Chesapeake reported this week and noted their drilling time had fallen to 18 days from 25 days at this time last year and that they believe the drilling time could fall to 13 days. They are also reducing their rig count to 13 in the second half of the year. That's down from 30+ just a year ago. It's a steep drop, but the improvement in drilling time decreases the impact substantially.

*Note* Now quoting Baker Hughes. Baker Hughes also releases its own Eagle Ford Rig Count that covers the 14 core counties (~230 rigs). Our numbers cover a 30 county area impacted by Eagle Ford development. A full list of the counties included can be found in the table at the bottom of this article.

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

[ic-l]The natural gas rig count settled at 29 rigs this past week. That is no change from one week prior.

Natural gas prices were down 10 cents on the week, but still holding above $4 at $4.05/mmbtu on Friday afternoon.

A total of 235 oil rigs are running in the region or one more than last week. WTI futures were trading at $95.75/bbl on Friday afternoon. Eagle Ford light crude traded at $90.50/bbl on May 2nd.

Karnes and La Salle counties lead development with 33 and 32 rigs running, respectively. See the full list of drilling by county at the bottom of the page.

South Texas Oil & Gas News:

Our friend Omar Garcia from STEER contributed an article this week - Ensuring The Future of South Texas

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

Eagle Ford Shale Drilling by County

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 Baker Hughes 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.

Baker Hughes Eagle Ford Rig Count 263 on April 26, 2013

April 26, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count settled at 263 this past week. That is the same as last week even though we reported 247 rigs running on April 19, 2013. The difference is a shift from SmithBits to BakerHughes for our rig count data. SmithBits has discontinued its rig count service. Going forward we will be reporting rig count numbers from Baker Hughes.

Due to differences in the census taken by the two companies there are slight differences in the numbers.

*Note* Baker Hughes also releases its own Eagle Ford Rig Count that covers just the 14 core counties (230 rigs). Our numbers cover a 30 county area impacted by Eagle Ford development. A full list of the counties included can be found in the table at the bottom of this article.

Eagle Ford Shale Conference & Expo

Don't forget about the Eagle Ford Conference & Expo coming up on May 1-2 in Robstown. If you haven't registered yet, you can do so here:

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

[ic-l]The natural gas rig count settled at 29 rigs this past week. That is several more than the 17 SmithBits reported last week, but still near a low. Even using Baker's numbers, we're down about 84% from the peak of natural gas drilling in the area.

Natural gas prices were down 25 cents on the week, but still relatively strong at ~$4.15/mmbtu on Friday.

A total of 234 oil rigs are running in the region or four more than last week. The WTI crude oil price gained ground after international turmoil in Syria. WTI futures were trading at $92.75/bbl on Friday afternoon. Eagle Ford light crude traded at $90/bbl on April 25th.

Karnes and La Salle counties lead development with 34 and 30 rigs running, respectively. See the full list of drilling by county at the bottom of the page.

South Texas Oil & Gas News:

Our friends from the Texas Oil & Gas Associate and STEER contributed an article this week - Driving Safety A Top Priority For The Oil & Gas Industry

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

Eagle Ford Shale Drilling by County

What is the Rig Count?

Eagle Ford Regional Rig Count at 247 on April 19, 2013

April 19, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count increased seven rigs to 247 running this past week. That's a welcome increase after settling near 240 rigs for the past two months.

The week was highlighted by several big announcements. Forest Oil is selling acreage for expertise and capital from Schlumberger. The deal also increases Forest's Eagle Ford production expectations in 2014.

Halcon has expanded Eagle Ford development into Brazos County and there were three midstream announcements worth well over $1 billion.

Eagle Ford Shale Conference & Expo

Don't forget about the Eagle Ford Conference & Expo coming up on May 1-2 in Robstown. If you haven't registered yet, you can do so here:

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

[ic-l]The natural gas rig count bounced off the low of 16 last week to 17 this week. We're still down about 85% from the peak of natural gas drilling in the area. Natural gas prices continued to show strength and traded up to ~$4.40/mmbtu on Friday. With oil prices declining, strength in natural gas prices is a welcomed sight.

A total of 229 oil rigs are running in the region or six more than last week. The WTI crude oil price lost further ground as it traded near $88/bbl Friday afternoon. Eagle Ford light crude traded at $84.25/bbl on April 18th.

There are 221 horizontal rigs running in the region and an injection well is being drilled in Webb County.

La Salle and Karnes counties lead development with 33 and 32 rigs running, respectively. See the full list of drilling by county at the bottom of the page.

South Texas Oil & Gas News:

Our friends from the Texas Oil & Gas Associate and STEER contributed an article this week - Driving Safety A Top Priority For The Oil & Gas Industry

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

Eagle Ford Regional Rig Count at 240 on April 12, 2013

April 12, 2013 R.T. Dukes

Kinder Morgan Galena Park Terminal Photo

The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count held flat at 240 running this past week. The region has averaged 240 rigs running for the past seven weeks.

This week, we highlighted Kinder Morgan's plans to expand condensate processing further at its Galena Park Terminal along the Houston Ship Channel. A supply agreement with BP will support development of the facility and expand ultimate processing capacity to 100,000 b/d.

The second facility and additional storage will come with a price tag of $170 million.

You can read more about the announcement in the article Kinder Morgan Plans Second Condensate Facility At Galena Park

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

[ic-l]The natural gas rig count fell four to 16 running this past week. That's down from a peak of 124 in October of 2011. Natural gas prices continued to show strength and traded up to $4.24/mmbtu on Friday. While the natural gas rig count and price are headed in two different directions, that won't be the case very long. I suspect we'll see more rigs enter the region targeting the Eagle Ford in areas that produce more natural gas during the summer.

A total of 223 oil rigs are running in the region or four more than last week. WTI crude oil price lost further ground as it traded near $91/bbl Friday afternoon. Eagle Ford light crude traded at $90/bbl on April 11th.

There are 215 horizontal rigs running in the region. An injection well is being drilled in Webb County.

La Salle and Karnes counties lead development with 34 and 31 rigs running, respectively. See the full list of drilling by county at the bottom of the page.

South Texas Oil & Gas News:

Devorah Fox contributed an article highlighting the need for GPS systems that take into account road hazards, as well as reporting weather and road conditions. Read the full article at Truck Drivers - Watch Where You're Going.

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

Eagle Ford Regional Rig Count at 240 April 5, 2013

April 5, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count increased two units to 240 running this past week. The rig count hasn't moved much over the past month, but I'd venture to say you might see a few rigs enter the play that weren't planned if natural gas prices stay near or above $4/mmbtu.

The week was highlighted by Penn Virginia's $401 million acquisition of properties from Magnum Hunter Resources in Gonzales and Lavaca counties. Read more in the article Penn Virginia - Magnum Hunter Deal Worth $401 Million.

The deal included 19,000 net acres, with 22.1 net wells producing 3,000 boe/d. Seven wells are waiting to be completed and four wells are currently drilling.

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

[ic-l]The natural gas rig count held at a low of 20 running this past week. Natural gas prices traded down, then back up to more than $4/mmbtu on Friday. Don't forget, natural gas was trading closer to $2 than four this time last year. The extra revenue will be welcomed by operators and we shouldn't be surprised to see small upticks in natural gas activity later in the summer.

A total of 219 oil rigs are running in the region or two more than last week. WTI crude futures lost the ground it gained last week to trade at $92.50/bbl Friday afternoon. Eagle Ford light traded at $89.75/bbl on April 4th.

There are 211 horizontal rigs running in the region. An injection well is being drilled in Webb County.

La Salle and Karnes counties lead development with 32 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 update

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.