Eagle Ford Shale drilling dropped 18 rigs to 248 running this past week. No single operator accounted for more than two of the rigs that were taken out of action during the week. ConocoPhillips, EOG, and Pioneer led the decline by dropping two rigs each.
Plains All American and Chesapeake dominated headlines. Chesapeake sold over $2 billion in midstream assets in a package that included pipelines and gathering in the Eagle Ford. Plains acquired an Eagle Ford rail facility and oil & condensate pipelines and facilities from Chesapeake.
NASAgave us a better feel for how big the Eagle Ford really is by sharing new satellite photos that show oil & gas development in South Texas is visible from space. Wow.
Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs
The natural gas rig count fell three rigs to 43 and prices fell further. NYMEX natural gas was trading ~$3.30 on Friday. Nice weather across the country has put a damper on demand and natural gas prices. Prices are down more than 15% since Thanksgiving. Ethane prices are not helping either. Prices for the natural gas component are low enough that gas is beginning to be rejected from plants- meaning natural gas that is usually taken out of the system and processed will remain in pipelines. It's not huge volumes, but it adds to the surplus.
The oil rig count fell 15 rigs to 200 running in the area. WTI crude futures were down slightly on the week. Oil was trading ~$87 per barrel on Friday. Eagle Ford crude priced at $98.25/bbl on the 14th of December. Eagle Ford light crude and condensate in the area traded at $83.25 and $82.25, respectively.
There are 239 horizontal rigs running in the region and one storage well is being drilled in Zavala County.
La Salle County leads development with 39 rigs running. Karnes with 33 rigs, McMullen (25), Dimmit (22), Webb (21), Gonzales (20), DeWitt (17), Live Oak (11), Lavaca (8), Atascosa (7), Fayette (7), Frio (7), and Madison (7) round out the top counties in the region. [ic-c] South Texas Oil & Gas News:
- Have you seen the Eagle Ford from Space?
- Access Midstream and Chesapeake Ink $2 Billion Deal for Midstream Assets
- DCP Plans New Processing Plant Near Goliad
- Plains All American Buying CHK Crude and Condensate Assets for $125 Million
- Plains All American Buying US Dev Groups Eagle Ford Rail Terminal
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
