The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count increased by 1 this past week and we're getting a lot of movement between counties. La Salle County added another rig to hit 40, while Karnes (35) and Webb (31) counties fell. The natural gas rig count fell 4 rigs to 79 this week, while we added 5 oil rigs (176). Natural gas prices remained flat at ~$2.50/mmbtu and the natural gas storage glut grew to more than 700 Bcf year over year. It's hard to imaging gas prices improving substantially until a substantial number of natural gas rigs across the country are laid down. March WTI oil prices increased to almost $99 per bbl. Horizontal wells account for activity from 237 rigs and we have 1 disposal well being drilling in Leon County (not a core Eagle Ford area).
La Salle County expanded its lead in drilling with 40 rigs running in the area. Karnes (35),Webb (31), DeWitt (25), McMullen (23),Gonzales (23), and Dimmit (18) set the bar as core development areas in the Eagle Ford. This week, Live Oak County jumped to 10 rigs to join the pack of counties with double digit rig counts.
It was a busy week for news with a couple of major midstream announcements and several updates from operators:
Midstream News
- Boardwalk Adding 150 mmcfd of Processing
- Southcross Energy Adding Eagle Ford Fractionation Plant
- Copano Energy Announced an Expansion of the DK Pipeline
Operator News
- BP Announced it's Eagle Ford Position is 450,000 Net Acres
- Anadarko Added 50,000 boe/d of Eagle Ford Production in 2011
- Pioneer Taps the Brakes in the Eagle Ford
- Comstock Is Moving Rigs to the Eagle Ford and West Texas
- Shell's Production Growth Will Have a North American Focus
Come back weekly for updates on the South Texas drilling 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 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.
Drilling Rigs by County
