Cotton Valley — Eagle Ford Shale News

Austin Exploration drilled a well through both the Cotton Valley Taylor Sands and the Eagle Ford Shale in Burleson County, TX. The company was encouraged by gas shows in the Cotton Valley and oil & gas shows in the Eagle Ford. The company plans to complete the well as soon as possible and might commingle production from both zones. Very few Eagle Ford wells are producing in Burleson County, so this could be the first of many. Austin Exploration has 5,000 acres in the area and will continue drilling if production rates prove commercial.

The county is better known for production from the Austin Chalk. With successful Eagle Ford wells in Louisiana and possibly one in Burleson County, it sure seems as if the Eagle Ford is only going to get bigger.

The well encountered gas shows in the Taylor sand formation between 6594 and 6615 feet.
The well has since been drilled to a total depth of 9325 feet and further hydrocarbon shows were encountered in the final stages of drilling, including in the primary Eagle Ford formation target between 8829 and 9102 feet.

Read more at upstreamonline.com

Goodrich Petroleum diversifies outside of the ArkLaTex Basin. The company is very much gas weighted and this deal adds a liquids/oil component to the company's drilling inventory. Goodrich paid $59 million (~$1,700 per acre) for 35,000 acres in the Eagle Fors Shale in La Salle County and Frio County.

"The company plans to acquire an average 70% leasehold interest in roughly 50,000 gross (35,000 net) acres within the oil window of the Eagle Ford Shale play in La Salle and Frio Counties, Texas for roughly $59 million ($15mm cash, $44mm carry)."

"The company expects to spud its initial Eagle Ford Shale well later in the second quarter and run 1 - 2 rigs in the play during the second half of the year and currently expects to spud 7 - 8 Eagle Ford Shale wells during 2010. Jefferies & Co. believes this 'will come primarily at the expense of [Goodrich Petroleum’s] Cotton Valley program, which had $46 million earmarked for '10 for a seven well program.' ”

"Jefferies believes the company enters the Eagle Ford at an attractive price. The price 'comps well versus Petrohawk's recent acquisition in overpressured De Witt County at $3,000/acre, Petrohawk’s joint venture with Swiftin McMullen also at $3,000/acre as well as BP's JV with Lewis (private) estimated at $4-5,000/acre. On the other hand, HK also bought into their normally pressured Red Hawk position in Zavala County for $200/acre."

Read the full news release at ogfj.com