Eagle Ford Shale Rig Count - September 2, 2011

September 2, 2011 Kenny DuBose

This week the Eagle Ford Shale rig count is down one rig to 222 active drilling rigs. The number of natural gas rigs working increased by six making a total of 114, while the oil rig count declined seven rigs to 108. Zero disposal wells or injection wells are being drilled at this time. Horizontal rigs account for 200 of the 222 rigs drilling in the South Texas region. The biggest loses occurred in Atascosa and Dimmit counties, which lost eight rigs combined. La Salle, Webb, and Zavala counties all experienced an uptick in drilling activity. We mentioned this last week, but we think it is worth stating again. You'll see operators move rigs to the most prospective areas of a play when commodity prices fall. If the commodity markets stay down, the rig count to lags but usually falls correspondingly. At play in the Eagle Ford, is the need to hold leases by drilling and producing hydrocarbons. An operator can hold a 640 acre lease with one gas well and only 160 acres with one oil well. That is likely playing a factor in supporting the gas rig count. More acreage HBP'd sooner.

It was a quiet week in terms of news, but we had a few noteworthy events:

Stay tuned each week for an update on the South Texas rig count.

Drilling Rig Count by County

What is the Rig Count?

The Eagle Ford Shale Rig Count is an index of the total number of oil & gas drilling rigs running across a 30 county area in South Texas. The South Texas rigs referred to in this article are for ALL drilling reported by SmithBits and not solely wells targeting the Eagle Ford Shale.

All land rigs and onshore rig data shown here are based upon industry estimates provided by the Baker Hughes Rig Count and/or Smith Service Co's (Schlumberger) Smith Rig Count.