EPA’s Efforts Could Hurt the Eagle Ford

If the EPA gets its way, the boom in the Eagle Ford might slow down. Here are a few good statistics from the Seguine Gazette:

Development of the Eagle Ford shale, a vast oil and gas region, shows promise of being the most important economic generator South Texas ever has seen, a recently released study indicates.

Since the first well was drilled in the Eagle Ford in 2008 until 2010, oil and gas drilling has directly supported about 6,800 full-time jobs in the region, paid $311 million in salaries and benefits to workers and generated almost $2.1 billion in total economic output.

When other spin-off jobs were tallied, the numbers jumped to 12,600 jobs, $512 million in salaries and $2.9 billion in economic output.

Drilling jobs account for about half of the jobs so far in the Eagle Ford, and the jobs pay well, starting from about $12 to $17 an hour for an entry-level drilling job, and $13 to $18 an hour for truck drivers.

Read the full news release at seguingazette.com

BHP - Petrohawk's Red Hawk Zavala County Acreage Abandoned

Petrohawk has terminated any further investment in Zavala County's Red Hawk field. We've heard this was a possibility. Eagle Ford Shale Oil wells in the county have not outperformed expectations like many other areas of the play and Petrohawk has now stepped away from the asset. BHP is not expected to continue drilling, but I'm sure the company will consider whether or not the Zavala County Eagle Ford assets fit the company's overall portfolio. Watch for well results from Chesapeake in the eastern part of the county. It will be interesting to see if Chesapeake's acreage provides better returns. Petrohawk and Chesapeake were two of the earliest movers in the county.

Petrohawk announced Results in the Red Hawk prospect in Zavala County, Texas, failed to meet minimum expectations during the quarter. As a result, capital spending at Red Hawk will be terminated and capital budgeted for 2011 will be reallocated to other operating areas.