This is an excerpt of the U-Turn wells in the Haynesville Shale.  To view the entire article along with graphics, click the link below.

Let's Twist Again - Oil and Gas Companies Experiment With Twisty New Well Designs to Boost Output

Monday, 08/11/2025  Published by: Lisa Shidler  https://rbnenergy.com

https://rbnenergy.com/lets-twist-again-oil-and-gas-companies-experi...

The oil and gas industry is always working to develop the most efficient methods for unlocking more hydrocarbons. To cut costs and maximize output from their acreage, some companies are rolling out more creative well designs, such as U-turn (aka “horseshoe”) and J-hook wells, which use dramatic, 180-degree underground turns to access more oil and gas from each location. In today’s RBN blog, we’ll discuss the benefits of these approaches and the technical hurdles associated with drilling these deep bends underground. 

In Part 1 of this blog series, we discussed how the Shale Era was made possible by unprecedented advancements in drilling and completion technology, especially in horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing. The combination of the two, along with other basin-specific techniques, has significantly increased the efficiency of oil and gas recovery, as evidenced by, among many things, higher initial production (IP) rates, lower decline rates and higher EURs (estimated ultimate recovery numbers). We also detailed how the industry has increasingly utilized much longer laterals and how the choice of well tubing — coiled or stick pipe — plays an important role.

At the beginning of the drilling process, a crucial decision must be made regarding how the well will be designed. Typically, in horizontal drilling, it starts by drilling a vertical section from the surface down to the targeted rock formation. Then, the directional drilling will steer the wellbore into a horizontal path, which can extend for one, two or three miles, and even longer in some cases. This can increase the amount of hydrocarbons that can flow into the well and boost production rates. Once the well is at the desired depth, the wellbore is lined with steel casing and cemented in place to prevent collapse. Then, the well is hydraulically fractured, and finally, pumps are installed to bring oil or gas to the surface.

While the horizontal well is the go-to design in most popular shales in the U.S., a few E&Ps have started pushing boundaries in the last few years with new twists on the horizontal well design. The first we’ll discuss is the U-turn or horseshoe well. This is a more complex technique often used where space is tight, or the geology is challenging (more on that below). It starts with the drill path going down vertically from the surface, just like a typical horizontal well. Once it reaches the target depth, it turns and drills horizontally, usually about a mile out. Here’s where the twist comes in. Rather than stopping or branching straight out, the drill bit makes a tight 180-degree or U-turn underground and heads back in the opposite direction. This creates a second horizontal leg parallel to the first, as shown in the graphic to the right in Figure 1 below.

Figure 1. Comstock Haynesville Horseshoe Test. Source: Comstock 

The purpose of the horseshoe well approach is to increase contact with the oil or gas source rock, and it comes with some unique advantages and challenges.

Horseshoe Advantages

• Lower cost: Drilling two laterals from one pad can eliminate the expense of building a second pad (left graphic in Figure 1). Pad construction can often cost several hundred thousand dollars.
• Less surface footprint: Horseshoe wells are popular in areas where lease boundaries and surface-use restrictions are common.
• Extended lateral lengths: Instead of drilling two short laterals, the horseshoe combines two laterals into one wellbore from a single pad, often with each lateral extended up to a few miles if possible.

Horseshoe Challenges

• Complexity: Drilling requires navigating 180-degree turns, which increases the risk of wellbore instability because such sharp directional turns can cause stress on the rock and the wellbore walls. The curved section could be prone to mechanical failure and collapse due to these stresses. When a problem occurs, fixing it can be time-consuming and costly.
• Drill string fatigue: The drill string, a long steel pipe assembly used to rotate the bit and circulate drilling fluids, faces major mechanical bending and torsion when being maneuvered through a 180-degree curve. The repeated flexing and twisting can cause the metal to develop microcracks, which can lead to pipe failure over time.
• Torque and drag issues: The torque and higher friction in the curve can increase the chance of the pipe getting stuck.

This well design is being tested out in areas such as the Permian, Haynesville and Bossier, which are popular drilling areas for firms challenged with legacy acreage positions that might not have room for modern, 2-mile laterals or face other surface constraints restricting the number of locations they can build. Our friends at Novi Labs, which specializes in upstream oil and gas data and analytics, said the main challenge for these operators is that they can’t always drill longer laterals because they either don’t have all the necessary acreage leased or there are existing wells in the way. As a result, companies are having to get creative and find new ways to maximize production in tighter, restricted spaces.

Horseshoe wells are gaining more attention but remain relatively uncommon. From 2023 to 2025, there were 74 horseshoe wells completed in the Lower 48 compared with 35,344 vertical and horizontal oil and gas wells completed in the same period.

While this is still a new technique, there are some trailblazers who have begun testing out these twisty new well designs with positive results.

Comstock Resources was an early adopter of the design and completed its first horseshoe well, named Sebastian, in DeSoto Parish, LA, in the Haynesville. Turned to sales in October 2024, it features a 9,382-foot lateral and an initial test rate of 31 MMcf/d. According to Enverus data, Sebastian produced 28.7 MMcf/d in its first full month, making it a standout compared to the DeSoto Parish average IP rate of about 23 MMcf/d for the first full month of new wells in 2022 and 2023.

The horseshoe well design enables Comstock to access the same reservoir area that would have otherwise required drilling four separate 4,450-foot laterals on two well pads. Instead, the company drilled just two longer laterals, each exceeding 9,200 feet, from a single pad using a U-turn wellbore. Comstock reports that drilling and completing two horseshoe laterals cost $32 million — or $1,740 per lateral foot — resulting in a cost savings of $530 per foot (23%) compared to the alternative of drilling four shorter laterals at about $10 million each, or $2,270 per foot.

 Dan Harrison, CEO of Comstock, said during the company’s Q1 2025 earnings call that this strategy will help Comstock avoid drilling numerous short laterals. The company has identified 113 future horseshoe well locations in areas with limited space and plans to drill eight horseshoe wells this year. While Harrison didn’t specify what “short” areas meant, Novi Labs explained that these are typically narrow or restricted parcels of acreage where longer wellbores aren’t feasible. Comstock’s future horseshoe well inventory is evenly split between the Haynesville and Bossier formations. According to the company, this inventory represents more than 30 years of drilling opportunities at the current pace.

These new well designs are innovative and creative, but we must note that the number of completed wells so far is relatively small and it’s too soon to tell if the positive responses will occur consistently over the long term in a majority of these wells. While some technologies make substantial differences, others don’t and fall out of favor or get replaced by an even newer technique. The results so far seem to be positive. But as with all new designs, they’re going to be situationally dependent. Those companies that employ the right technologies at the right time will be best positioned to squeeze the most out of each well.