Chevron preparing to ramp up projects in the Permian Basin
Oil giant Chevron is preparing for a large round of drilling in the Permian Basin of West Texas.
The California oil company filed 12 drilling permit applications with the Railroad Commission for horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing projects on its DR State Wise Unit lease in Culberson County.
Located off FM 652 between Guadalupe Mountains National Park and the town of Orla, all 12 drilling projects target the Ford West field of the Wolfcamp geological formation down to a depth of 9,000 feet.
Chevron closed 2018 with a nearly $14.9 billion profit on $166.3 billion of revenue. The company attributes part of those profits to a production increase in the Permian Basin where it holds more than 2.2 million acres of leases.
With a large presence in Houston, Chevron filed for 124 drilling permits in Texas last year. The company’s nearly 2,300 Texas leases produced nearly 28.9 million barrels of crude oil, more than 116.6 billion cubic feet of natural gas and nearly 5.4 million barrels of condensate during the first 11 months of 2018.
Permian Basin
The recently formed saltwater disposal operator Waterfield Midstream is getting busy in the Permian. Waterfield plans to develop five saltwater disposal wells spread throughout Martin County. The leases for the saltwater disposal wells are named after the Mediterranean islands of Sicily, Corsica, Elba, Capri and Corfu. All five injection wells target the Devonian geological layer at depths varying from 13,000 to 14,800 feet.
Eagle Ford Shale
Tulsa oil company Protégé Energy III is preparing to drill three wells in Karnes County, the most prolific crude oil producer in the Eagle Ford shale of South Texas. Protégé plans to drill three horizontal wells on its Littlepage-McBride lease about 13 miles southwest of Karnes City. Two of the wells target the Eagleville field of the Eagle Ford formation and the other targets the Sugarkane field of the Austin Chalk formation.
Haynesville Shale
Only three drilling permit applications were filed for horizontal wells in the Haynesville Shale of East Texas. Tanos Exploration, a Tyler oil and gas company, plans to drill a pair of gas wells on its Blocker-Sanders-Moore-Underwood lease in Harrison County. Houston oil company Rockcliff Energy plans to drill a gas well on its McLofflin HV Unit D lease in Harrison County. All three projects target the Carthage field of the Haynesville Shale down to total depths varying from 11,183 to 12,000 feet.
Barnett Shale
Only one drilling permit application was filed for a horizontal well in the Barnett Shale of Texas. Montague operating company Bra-De Oil & Gas Operating LLC is seeking permission to drill an oil well on its Orton A Unit lease in Clay County. The horizontal drilling project targets the Newark East field of the Barnett Shale down to a total depth of 7,000 feet.