The Eagle Ford Shale rig count stayed flat at 269 rigs running across our coverage area by the end of last week.

In recent Eagle Ford news, Houston-based Sabine Oil and Gas and Denver-based Forest Oil Corp announced in May of 2014 the two companies will merge in an all-stock transaction. At closing, which is expected some time during the fourth quarter, Sabine investors will hold 73.5% of the combined company's stock.

Read more: Sabine Oil & Gas Merger with Forest Oil Corporation

The U.S. rig count increased by 6 to 1,861 rigs running by the end of last week. A total of 326 rigs were targeting natural gas (3 more than the previous week) and 1,531 were targeting oil in the U.S. (3 more than the previous week). The remainder were drilling service wells (e.g. disposal wells, injection wells, etc.). 891or ~48% of rigs active in the U.S. were running in Texas.

Baker Hughes rig count is quoted here. Baker Hughes also releases its own Eagle Ford Rig Count that covers the 14 core counties (219 rigs). The rig count published on EagleFordShale.com includes a 30 county area impacted by Eagle Ford development. A full list of the counties included can be found in the table near the bottom of this article.

Eagle Ford Oil & Gas Rigs

The natural gas rig count stayed flat at 14 rigs running by the end of last week. Average rig counts for natural gas production in 2012 were around 82 and then dropped to around 41 in 2013. Natural gas prices stayed relatively flat from the previous week at $4.42/mmbtu on Friday afternoon.

The oil rig count increased stayed flat at 255 rigs running by the end of last week. WTI oil prices increased by $2, trading at $102.16/bbl on Friday afternoon. Eagle Ford light crude traded at $98.50/bbl on May 16th.

A total of 238 rigs are drilling horizontal wells, 16 rigs are drilling directional wells, and 15 rigs are drilling vertical wells. Karnes, La Salle, De Witt, and Webb counties each have at minimum 26 rigs running. Karnes County has the highest rig count this week at 36. See the full list below in the Eagle Ford Shale Drilling by County below

South Texas Oil & Gas News:

• Panhandle Oil and Gas Acquires Interest in Eagle Ford Acreage for $80 Million
• Sabine Oil & Gas Merger with Forest Oil Corporation
• ZaZa Energy Continues Laying Groundwork for Eagle Ford Growth
• Penn Virginia Seeks to Expand Eagle Ford Position

Be sure to visit our South Texas Oilfield Job Listings to search openings and come back weekly for updates.

Eagle Ford Shale Drilling 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 Baker Hughes and not solely wells targeting the Eagle Ford formation. 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.