South Texas Oil & Gas Job Fairs

More than 10,000 direct Eagle Ford jobs have been created in past two years and most expect that number will more than double over the next two. The play is entering a producing phase where more operations and maintenance personnel will be needed. That's in addition to the office managers and oilfield workers who are making sure wells are being drilled on schedule. With the influx of workers, we also have more resources at our disposal. There have been Eagle Ford related job fairs almost every week over the past couple of months. If you want to stay up to date, be sure to visit our new Eagle Ford Job Fairs page, where we'll be tracking all job fairs. Over the coming month, there's a job fair in Robstown on December 7, 2011, and another in Laredo on January 13, 2012. In addition, you can always search for jobs right now at our Eagle Ford Jobs page.

While big dollars have been invested by operators gaining positions in the play, now is the time real investment begins. Eagle Ford drilling has eclipsed 200 active rigs and best estimates peg a peak at 250+ rigs. If each rig employees 50 or more direct workers, we have at least 2,500 more rig hands coming to the area. Add ancillary services who benefit from an uptick in business and you very easily get to the job boom we're experiencing today.

Slow Permitting During Thanksgiving Week

Only one Eagle Ford well was permitted last week in the area surrounding Corpus Christi.  Pioneer Natural Resources permitted the 21,000 ft horizontal well in Live Oak County.  20,000 ft wells are becoming more common.  If economics are challenged by lower commodity prices, you can bet extending laterals on larger units will be a way operators increase reservoir drainage to improve economics. Read the full news release at caller.com

Magellan Midstream Expands Houston Ship Channel Pipeline - Eagle Ford Crude

Magellan Midstream plans to expand a Houston area pipeline to expand the company's Eagle Ford crude pipeline capacity. The six mile pipeline will help increase delivery of crude,  being brought into the area from South Texas, into Houston and Texas City refineries.

Magellan Midstream Partners, L.P. (NYSE: MMP) announced today that it is further expanding its crude oil pipeline distribution capabilities in the Houston area to deliver domestic crude oil and condensate transported via third-party pipeline systems from the Eagle Ford Shale production area directly to local refineries. The project includes the construction of a 6-mile, 24-inch diameter crude oil pipeline between the pipeline interchanges of Genoa Junction and Speed Junction, which will connect to the 24-inch diameter crude oil pipeline along the Houston Ship Channel that was previously announced as part of the partnership’s Houston-to-El Paso pipeline reversal project, allowing Magellan to further distribute product to the Houston-area refineries.

 

“Magellan’s crude oil infrastructure is strategically positioned to be the last leg distribution conduit to the Houston and Texas City refinery gate for growing domestic crude oil and condensate production,” said Michael Mears, chief executive officer.

 

Drilling Rig Count Falls 7 on Thanksgiving Week - November 25, 2011

Drilling Rig
Drilling Rig

The Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig count fell 7 rigs over Thanksgiving week to a total of 257 running. We're still running at a higher rate than any time before last weeks 264 number.  Approximately 210-215 rigs are targeting the Eagle Ford formation. Even with the dramatic drop in stock prices over the past week, oil prices have held relatively strong (WTI futures at $96 per barrel).  That bodes well for the Eagle Ford. Strong oil prices will help shield South Texas from any broader economic downfall. Natural gas prices rebounded a bit, but we expect continued weakness as gas will likely be injected into storage through the middle of December. The natural gas rig count held flat at 101. Oil rigs accounted for the entire drop this week with a loss of 7 bringing us to a total of 155.

One rig continues to drill a Webb County disposal well. Webb (41) still leads the region, while La Salle (34) , Karnes (30), DeWitt (20), Dimmit (20), and Gonzales (20) counties together account for two-thirds of Eagle Ford drilling. Chesapeake Energy (31) and EOG Resources (26) are 10 rigs are more ahead of the third most active driller, ConocoPhillips (16).

News highlighted throughout the play this past week included:

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

Drilling Rig Count by Operator

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 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.

Drilling Rigs by County

Bee County Adds 14 RV Parks in 2011 Alone

RV parks are the craze in South Texas. Man camps, rv parks, and everything else housing related is flourishing in the Eagle Ford. In Bee County, 14 rv parks have been built in 2011 alone. Add those being built outside the county and you can bet more than a couple of dozen rv parks have opened this year across the area. If you're looking for an RV or an RV Park, visit the Eagle Ford Shale MarketPlace. Specifically, the RV Category. If you'll be in South Texas for a while, you can also find hotels and other housing providers at our Eagle Ford Housing page. For the hotels, book your stay through the links and you'll get the Eagle Ford preferred rates. We've negotiated discounts of up to 20% for our audience.

This is up from, well, zero during the past few years.

“This is something new to Bee County,” Fritz said. “These things are popping up like mushrooms because of the people working in the Eagle Ford Shale kingdom.”

The county first began seeing the influx of people at the first of the year when the Eagle Ford drilling kicked into gear.

“The whole problem was the lack of housing in our area,” Fritz said. “Guys were staying all over and driving over here to work in the field.”

Read more at woodallscm.com