Baytex: Eagle Ford Producing Best Well Results to Date

August 2, 2017 Elizabeth Alford

Baytex Energy announced a great second quarter, including outstanding results from its Eagle Ford operations.

Study: Oil and Gas Still Essential to Eagle Ford Shale Economy

For the second quarter of 2017, Baytex Energy focused 76% of its capital expenditures towards its Eagle Ford assets and they got a great payoff. Company executives credited their strong results to these assets during an earnings call this week, saying they have delivered some of the best well results to date in the Eagle Ford.

“Operationally, we have delivered outstanding results in the Eagle Ford. As I’m sure most of you are aware, our Eagle Ford assets are located in Karnes County, Texas, which ranks as one of the premier oil resources place in North America. It is the asset that generates our highest cash netback and contains over a decade of drilling inventory with new perspective trends and opportunities still emerging.”

— Edward LaFehr - President and CEO

Second Quarter Highlights in Eagle Ford

In the second quarter, Baytex earned a $9.3 million profit, compared with an $86.9 million net loss in 2016 Q2. The following are noted Eagle Ford results:

Production averaged 38,500 BOEs per day, a 7% increase over the first quarter of 2017
Averaged four to five drilling rigs and one to two completion crews
Commenced production on 35 gross wells with 30-day initial gross production rates of approximately 1,500 BOEs per day, per well
Costs to drill, complete, equip, and tie-in a well range from $4.7 million to $4.9 million, well below prediction of $5 million per well
Three recently completed current city pads totaling 11 wells

The negative economic impact felt throughout the Eagle Ford Shale after the oil price bust of 2014-2015 bottomed out last year, according to a new study. Though the region experienced significant losses, oil and gas activity is still essential to local county economies.

Eagle Ford Shale Rig Count Falls Back in the 80's

July 29, 2017 Elizabeth Alford

The Eagle Ford Shale rig count falls for the third week in a row, ending at 89 rigs running across our coverage area by midday Friday.

In recent Eagle Ford Shale news, a new study indicates that economic health of Eagle Ford counties turned a corner after bottoming out in 2016.

Study: Oil and Gas Still Essential to Eagle Ford Shale Economy

A total of 958 oil and gas rigs were running across the United States this week, eight more than last week. 192 rigs targeted natural gas (six more than the previous week) and 766 were targeting oil in the U.S. (two more than the previous week). The remainder were drilling service wells (e.g. disposal wells, injection wells, etc.) 462 of the rigs active in the U.S. were running in Texas.

Baker Hughes reports its own Eagle Ford Rig Count that covers the 14 core counties. 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 below.

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

10 rigs in the Eagle Ford region targeted natural gas this week with the commodity trading lower at $2.94/mmbtu.

79 Eagle Ford rigs were targeting oil with WTI oil prices at $49.71.

A total of 86 rigs are drilling horizontal wells, zero are drilling directional wells and three are vertical.

Karnes County lost 4 rigs but is still ahead of other counties with 16 rigs in production. See the full list below in the Eagle Ford Shale Drilling by County below.

Eagle Ford Shale Drilling by County

Eagle Ford Rig Count by County-July 28, 2017 — Eagle Ford Rig Count by County-July 28, 2017

Eagle Ford Shale News

Study: Oil and Gas Still Essential to Eagle Ford Shale Economy

Natural Gas Production Down in Texas

Bankruptcies Spike Across Texas; Shrink for Oil & Gas

Crude Oil Spill in Bastrop County

Eagle Ford Shale Counties Rank First in Oil, Gas and Condensate

Eagle Ford Oil Production Up

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 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.

Study: Oil and Gas Still Essential to Eagle Ford Shale Economy

July 27, 2017 Elizabeth Alford

Bankruptcies Spike Across Texas; Shrink for Oil & Gas

The 2017 Eagle Ford Shale Economic Impact Study, published in June, provides the most up-to-date data on the economic impact of the oil and gas activity over the region for 2014, 2015 and 2016.

A team of researchers led by Dr. Thomas Tunstall examined the 21-county area as a whole including Atascosa, Bee, DeWitt, Dimmit, Frio, Gonzales, Karnes, La Salle, Lavaca, Live Oak, McMullen, Maverick, Webb, Wilson, and Zavala, Bexar, Jim Wells, Nueces, San Patricio, Victoria, and Uvalde. Dr. Tunstall summed up the study by saying that the region's decrease in economic impact bottomed out in 2016 and appears to have turned the corner.

Highlights from the Study

Gross output from Eagle Ford activity jumped from $87 billion in 2013 to $123 billion in 2014
Gross output fell to $80 billion in 2015
Gross output fell again in 2016 to $50 billion
Jobs supported by the Eagle Ford fell from 191,153 in 2014 to 108,213 in 2016
Industry sectors have grown in the area that are associated with oil and gas activity

“Although we experienced a decrease in jobs and economic impact in 2015 and 2016, we continue to see that the oil and gas industry is essential to the livelihood of South Texas. With more than 100,000 jobs and $55 billion in economic output last year, the results of the UTSA study further illustrates the importance of the oil and gas industry to South Texans. ”

— Omar Garcia, President and CEO of STEER

The study was commissioned by the South Texas Energy and Economic Roundtable (STEER), The University of Texas at San Antonio's (UTSA) Center for Community and Business Research (CCBR). The research team plans a second phase of research for all 21 counties individually and compares inter- industry relationships from 2010-2015. The comparison of different multipliers demonstrates how employment and production have been affected in the area.

Natural Gas Production Down in Texas

July 24, 2017 Elizabeth Alford

Texas natural gas production has dropped by over 1 million mcf per day over the same time last year, according to the Texas Railroad Commission (RRC).

Eagle Ford Shale Counties Rank First in Oil, Gas and Condensate

In May, 93,397 natural gas wells in Texas averaged 18,079,106 mcf a day, compared to the 19,378,929 mcf daily average of May 2016. These are the preliminary numbers reported by the Texas Railroad Commission last week.

Webb County in the Eagle Ford continues to outproduce other Texas counties for natural gas, though it dropped from 61,866,541 in April to 39,627,806 for May.

Karnes County also lost ground for crude oil production moving behind MIdland County in May.

Texas Crude Oil Production by County | Source-Texas Railroad Commission

Total crude oil production for May 2017 averaged 2,463,933 barrels daily, compared to the 2,359,072 barrels daily average of May 2016.

Rig Counts Decline Across the Country and the Eagle Ford Shale

July 22, 2017 Elizabeth Alford

The Eagle Ford Shale rig count continues to struggle, falling by 2 this week to 91 rigs running across our coverage area by midday Friday.

The total rig count across Texas adn the U.S. also declined for the first time in months.

In recent Eagle Ford Shale news, the number of Texas oil and gas companies seeking debt relief decreased from 18 during the first four months of 2016 to four in 2017.

Bankruptcies Spike Across Texas; Shrink for Oil & Gas

A total of 950 oil and gas rigs were running across the United States this week, two less than last week. 186 rigs targeted natural gas (one less than the previous week) and 764 were targeting oil in the U.S. (one less than the previous week). The remainder were drilling service wells (e.g. disposal wells, injection wells, etc.) 463 of the rigs active in the U.S. were running in Texas.