I had lunch yesterday with a friend in the oil business who told me he heard that leasing had slowed partly as the result of a few dry holes. I ask in what parish and he thought Red River. Has anyone heard this or am I way behind?
Caroline, the major players have slowed leasing because they have already built significant acreage inventories that will take several years to develop. Other players will enter as more information becomes available and the leasing activity cools down. Also, there needs to be commitments for the construction of additional gas pipeline takeaway capacity.
Yes, I understand that the major players have built significant acreage etc. I just know that my friend works for a company that services the oil companies and is in the "thick" of things. He had heard there were some dry wells and I had not read that anywhere. No one else seems to have heard it...my friend has no motivation to say something that's not true so I can't figure it out?
Caroline, the issue in drilling the Barnett Shale or Haynesville Shale is economic wells rather than dry holes. Most wells will find some thickness of gas pay but the flow rate and/or total gas recovered by the well may be sub-economic (ie never pay-out the cost of drilling). I can assure you there are many Barnett Shale wells that will never reach pay-out status and will be uneconomic to the operator but would not be classified as dry holes. This may be a function of local formation characteristics or a failed frac job.
Caroline, every well drilled to the Haynesville Shale in Red River Parish since 2006 has been completed and produced (ie no dry holes). Most people including your friend do not have access to sufficient information to make such a statement even though they may be in the oil business.
According to information received at the Bossier Bar Assoc meeting, there is presently a shortage of steel, and drilling (and therefore leasing) has slowed because of the steel shortage.