Halcon, the late comer company which has only been in Avoyelles Parish since May, has already obtained a permit to drill its first deep oil well in Rapides, not far from the Avoyelles border.

The permit from the state department of natural resources is dated August 3. The well is located about two miles west of Echo in section 028 township 02N range 02E, and is named the Broadway H well.

It will have a depth of 14,500 feet with a 5,000 foot horizontal leg for a total length of 19,500 feet.

The Tuscaloosa Marine Shale is an unproven oil field that oil companies are targeting in Central and East Louisiana. The first wells are considered experimental as oil engineers try to separate oil from dense shale deep beneath the parish. No company has been able to accomplish that yet in Avoyelles, at least yet.

A resident and landowner of Echo told Avoyellestoday that land men have been leasing minerals in the Echo area for about two months.

Halcon, has approached several landowners in Avoyelles and Rapides and was the first to offer $500 an acre with 25 percent royalty. Halcon began leasing three months ago where as other companies have been leasing for about two years in Avoyelles. However, Halcon is already prepared to drill. Halcon has officially announced it plans to drill exploratory wells in both of its two experimental oil plays, although they did not name the Tuscaloosa as one its plays.

The Oil and Gas Financial Journal obtained this answer about their possible involvement in the Louisiana and was published on the Halcon website:

OGFJ: Rumor has it that Halcón has been acquiring a leasehold position in the emerging Tuscaloosa Marine Shale in Louisiana. Would you care to comment on this?

HALCON: We’ve been acquiring land in four announced areas. We’re leasing purely oil-biased reservoirs, and those are very attractive to nearly everyone these days. So we’re just keeping quiet about those where we’re building our position. Other than that, I’m not really in a position where I can discuss those plays. However, we will be talking about them later this year. We’re well on the road toward our acreage target, and we are moving rigs in as we speak, so we’ll have a lot to talk about in a couple of months

Read more: AvoyellesToday.com - Halcon obtains state permit for well in Rapides