An Eagle Ford Rig Adds 400 Barrels of Oil Production Per Month

October 23, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The EIA published it’s first “Drilling Productivity Report” for six major producing regions in the U.S. earlier in the week.

The EIA found the Eagle Ford and the Bakken account for approximately 75% of oil production growth in the U.S. each month.

Highlights from the Eagle Ford include:

The average rig drilling in the area adds ~400 b/d of oil production each month and just over 1 mmcfd.
The EIA also shows the play is producing more than 1 million b/d of oil (likely includes more than just Eagle Ford "oil" production).

EIA New Eagle Ford Production and Legacy Declines

Quick observation - I didn't read through the complete methodology, but I assume the EIA is looking at the entire area and making estimates for Eagle Ford production. They are the first to show "oil" production from the play at more than 1 million b/d. My guess is the number includes condensate and possibly other liquids.

Also, I find it interesting the group has the ability to predict the average Eagle Ford rig added 396 b/d in October and will add 404 b/d in November. The state is just now beginning to report August production figures.

Read the full report at www.eia.gov/petroleum/drilling

How Deep Is the Eagle Ford?

October 22, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The Eagle Ford has been drilled at depths that range from a few thousand to 14,000+ ft in South Texas.

How Deep is the Eagle Ford Formation Found?

The fairway of the play is found at approximate depths of 8,000-12,000 ft below the surface.

Oil gets heavier and harder to produce in the more shallow portions of the play and dry gas is found in deeper portions of the play. It's the sweet spot between the heavy oil and dry gas where operators get high volumes of natural gas and condensate or oil wells.

Eagle Ford Depth Map

Share your thoughts - Be sure to comment below

Schlumberger's HiWay Frac Design Improves Eagle Ford Well Performance

October 21, 2013 R.T. Dukes

Schlumberger's (SLB) HiWay flow channel frack design has been most successful in the Eagle Ford. The company has completed a significant number of wells in the basin and has shown the design increases production while utilizing less proppant.

The production response has not been as positive in other plays, but the company generally sees flat to higher production with lower well costs. The advantage where production isn't higher is the cost savings realized by using 40% less sand/proppant.

Paal Kibsgaard, CEO, stated "We believe its (HiWay Frac's) applicable in every basin"

Also read: Forest - Schlumberger JV Allows Forest to Drill More With Less

Record North American Revenue

Schlumberger reported strong results in the third quarter. The company's North American revenue was up 7% and set an all time high at $3.6 billion.

The company did see downward pricing pressure, but less than it has experienced in prior quarters.

Schlumberger also discussed ongoing tests to increase the utilization of perforation clusters in completions. Prior tests have shown that 30-70% of perforation clusters do not contribute to production. The company is testing a diversion technology that is employed during the completion. Watch for future announcements from Schlumberger and other oilfield service providers.

If possible, it's in everyone's best interest to increase well performance by 30-70%.

Eagle Ford Regional Rig Count 255 - Play Record for Well Spuds - Oct 18, 2013

October 18, 2013 R.T. Dukes

The Eagle Ford Shale rig countdecreased by 1 rig from 256 to 255 running this past week. We're in the fourth quarter of the year, so operators who have exhausted budgets are scaling back. We're 10 rigs below the average of 265 that have been running in the region this year.

Baker Hughes released third quarter well spud numbers and to no surprise the Eagle Ford is still setting records. The play saw drilling start on more than 1,100 wells during the quarter in a 14-county area. Add the other counties where there is Eagle Ford activity and that number likely stretches above 1,200 well starts. Read more in the article: Eagle Ford Record Set for Well Spuds

The U.S. rig count decreased 4 rigs from 1,743 to 1,739 running over the past week. A total of 372 rigs are targeting natural gas (3 more than last week) and 1,361 are targeting oil in the U.S. The remainder are drilling service wells (e.g. disposal wells, injection wells, etc.). 817 rigs are running in Texas.

Baker Hughes rig count is quoted here. Baker Hughes also releases its own Eagle Ford Rig Count that covers the 14 core counties (221 rigs). The rig count published on EagleFordShale.com includes a 30 county area impacted by Eagle Ford development. A full list of the counties included can be found in the table near the bottom of this article.

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

[ic-l]The natural gas rig count fell by one from 36 to 35 rigs running over the past week. Natural gas prices held steady during the week and were trading around $3.77/mmbtu on the afternoon of Oct 18th.

The oil rig count increased by one rig from 219 to 220. WTI oil prices were trading around $101/bbl on Friday afternoon. Oil prices have been above $100 for 15 weeks, but have come off almost 10% from highs near $110/bbl. Eagle Ford light crude traded at $97.25/bbl on Oct 17th.

A total of 226 rigs are drilling horizontal wells, 18 rigs are drilling directional wells, and 11 rigs are drilling true vertical wells. Karnes, DeWitt, Gonzales, La Salle, and McMullen counties all have between 26-29 rigs running. See the full list of drilling by county below.

South Texas Oil & Gas News:

Be sure to visit our South Texas Oilfield Job Listings to search openings and come back weekly for updates or sign up for alerts -

Eagle Ford Shale Drilling by County

Eagle Ford Operated Rig Count By Company

SmithBits no longer reports its operated rig count, but we'll have updated number for you from a new source soon. Until then, you can reference our numbers from mid-April. There has not been a significant change in the overall rig count since this date:

tWhat 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.

Southcross Energy's Eagle Ford Project Is Nearing Completion

October 18, 2013 R.T. Dukes

Southcross Energy's Eagle Ford Projects & Assets

Southcross Energy is expected to complete a natural gas pipeline lateral into McMullen County later in October. The pipeline is expected to add 15 mmcfd of rich natural gas supply to the company's South Texas processing and fractionation complex.

The company's South Texas Eagle Ford region experienced processing volume growth of 9% and NGL sales volume growth of 17% in the third quarter. Small expansions like the McMullen County pipeline lateral should continue to support growth in volumes for Southcross.

“We are expanding our pipeline network in the Eagle Ford to capture processing volumes and to meet growing demand for the integrated services that we offer.
”

— David Biegler, Chairman, CEO of Southcross’ general partner

Southcross has completed three expansions recently:

3.5 mile lateral in McMullen County
9.5 mile, 16-inch pipeline in Karnes County
A new propane pipeline connected to the Bonnie View fractionator

Read the full McMullen County expansion press release at southcrossenergy.com