Marathon Oil Reduces Budget Again

Marathon Oil
Marathon Oil

Marathon Oil reported last week it is reducing 2015 capital spending another 20 percent from their initial December forecast.

These cuts bring the projected capex to $3.5 billion, which is less than half of 2013 spending and includes exploration spending of $232 million.

Marathon Oil will continue to focus on activity in the Eagle Ford and plans to spend 41% of its 2015 in the Texas region. Of the $1.4 billion earmarked for the Eagle Ford, approximately $1.0 billion is dedicated to drilling and completions. The company will drill 141-152 net wells and bring 176-192 total wells to sale in the new year.

We’re also prepared to exercise further flexibility in our spend levels as pricing and the macro environment warrant. Our objective is clear—to deliver long-term shareholder value, regardless of the commodity price cycle, by focusing on those elements of our business which we control.
— CEO, Lee Tillman

Marathon Oil in the Eagle Ford

Marathon Oil has increased its acquisitions in the Eagle Ford over the last several years and now holds approximately 211,000 net acres in the Eagle Ford. has invested strategically to grow its presence in the formation’s highest value oil and condensate core areas. Activity is focused on Atascosa, DeWitt, Gonzales and Karnes counties.

Read more about Marathon in the Eagle Ford

Read more at marathonoil.com

Eagle Ford Counties See Sales Tax Receipts Rise Almost 10 Fold

Since Petrohawk's Eagle Ford discovery in 2008, sales tax receipts in local counties have boomed to the tune of almost ten times more than five years ago. The revenue has been more than welcomed in local communities. State Impact took a deeper look at a sample of five counties: Atascosa, Dimmit, Gonzales, Karnes, and Live Oak.

In 2008, the five counties collected an average of nearly $650,000 in sales taxes. But just four years after drilling started, the yearly average for those same counties jumped to over $5.8 million.

Read the rest of the story at stateimpact.org