Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Skip Peel - Mineral Consultant on January 25, 2012 at 5:07

Drilling to HBP has declined to a very low point.  This can be confirmed by a simple once a week search of permits in the Haynesville Shale parishes.  From the SONRIS Lite Main Menu choose the search option, Permitted Wells By Date/Parish.  Input the dates you wish to search.  All the "HA" wells permitted as "alternate" are the wells drilled after the first unit well and will be designated with a number, "alt-2" for example.  Those wells that are not unit wells should have a "#1" in the name designating them as unit wells.  Going back many weeks, if not months, the majority of HA wells permitted are alternates.  This makes sense in regard to the lack of leasing.  When no, or few, new leases are being taken the requirement to drill a unit well goes down in conjunction.  And operator avoids the expense of expanding infrastructure by ceasing to drill new unit wells.  Drilling alternate wells where infrastructure is in place allows an operator to produce an mcf for the lowest cost.

Permalink Reply by cocodrie man on January 26, 2012 at 0:07

Thank you, Skip, for your reply.  I have been checking the "Permitted Wells by Date/Parish" on Sonris but I was unaware of the designation of #1 or #2.  This information is helpful indeed. 

My uninformed and perhaps overly hopeful view for the long term future is good.  If there is a national and international shift towards the utilization of natural gas then perhaps in time some of the areas that are today considered marginal will again enter into the play.  In the meantime, I remain thankful for what has happened and is happening now. 

You are kind to share your knowledge with us. 

Permalink Reply by Les Bamburg on January 28, 2012 at 3:24

CM, most of the HBP drilling in the Louisiana portion of the Haynesville Shale has been completed and the majority of current drilling is for the purpose of growing revenue/earnings.  The lower NYMEX futures natural gas prices have reduced operators ability to hedge their production at higher prices.  Most operators have positions in rich gas/oil plays (Eagle Ford, Granite Wash, Bakken, Marcellus, Barnett) that is allowing them to redeploy capital and rigs and still grow earnings.  Expect to see rig count in the Haynesville Shale continue to decline thru 2012 into 2013.

 

An increase in natural gas prices in the 2nd half of the decade has the potential to re-energize the Haynesville/Bossier Shale plays depending on the inventory of drillable locations in other plays and their relative economics compared to the Haynesville/Bossier Shale.  Examples of emerging alternative plays are the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale and Lower Smackover Brown Dense.