Drought Over? Don't bet on it!

A very hot, humid day in Whitney finally gave way to some light showers that produced a rainbow in the southern Hill county skies.
What a day of contrasts! An ominous sky filled with lightening and loud claps of thunder produced only a few light sprinkles. Maybe we are finally beginning to see a small taste of some much needed rain. However, I'm afraid that the drought we are stuck in is FAR from over. Pray for RAIN!

Felderhoff Drilling at Grace Lease

Have never heard of this drilling company, but if it's the same one that DTE is using to drill the Hook's lease units, then WATCH out!
Apparently these guys have been around for over 50 years, so they must be doing something right.

Amazing GRACE!

DTE Gas Resource's crew was pushing pipe tonight at the Grace lease in Whitney. Come on 'GRACIE', show us what you've got!

Can you say GRACE?

The 'Gracie' well is up in Hill county! I hope the success that DTE has had with the Hooks wells continues in Whitney with this major development. The Grace spud will give Whitney it's first well of the Barnett era. I am praying for a monster! It's about 3.5 miles NW of my property. (Photo courtesy of Kent Eubanks). Check the title link above the photo for RRC/TX info.

Forest Oil's Upcoming 3-D Seismic

Forest Oil has a 3-D seismic shoot scheduled for sometime in Sept-Oct. Aquilla Lake will roughly be the center of the action. The boundaries of the seismic (in white), are taken from a seismic survey map and are approximate, but not exact. If you own property within this area you may soon be contacted by the permit agent, if not already.

Blum, TX USA

They really roll out the 'red carpet' for you in Blum. No seriously, I love this small, quaint old Hill county town.
I believe that the city has let jackrabbit park his classic Chevy Impala ragtop right in the downtown area as kind of a 'welcome mat' gesture.

Click on the caption link above the photo for more about Blum, Tx.

Infinity's Taylor # 1-H Wellhead - Erath Co.

Denver driller's production up 60%
By DAN PILLER
STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER
Infinity Energy Resources of Denver reported Thursday that it has drilled 16 wells in the Barnett Shale natural gas formation in Erath County, achieving initial production rates averaging 1.3 million cubic feet per day.
"We're into serious field development," Infinity President James Tuell told investors and analysts. Infinity reported that its Barnett Shale production increased by 60 percent in the past three months.
The company says that it has permits to drill 30 more wells in Erath County and has identified up to 200 well sites, with emphasis on the southern half of the county.
Infinity has been one of several companies testing the western boundary of the Barnett Shale, focused on Wise, Denton, Tarrant, Johnson and Parker counties. Until now, industry opinion has been split about the viability of the Barnett Shale around Stephenville where Infinity, EOG Resources of Houston and other operators have begun to sink wells.
Tuell acknowledged that the gas yields from Erath County wells and those that Infinity is beginning to drill in Comanche County won't be as prolific as those in Johnson and Tarrant counties but that the Erath and Comanche county wells are shallower and less expensive to drill.
He said Erath County wells could be brought in for as little as $1.7 million, including fracturing and tie-ins to pipelines, versus $3 million and up for the deeper wells in the so-called "core area" of the Barnett to the east.

Forest Oil increases Barnett holdings in Hill and Erath Counties to 20K Acres

Forest Oil getting ready to hit Hill and Erath counties HARD!
Forest Oil Announces Operatorship of the Katy Field and Acceleration of Barnett Shale Program
DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 2, 2006--Forest Oil Corporation (NYSE:FST) (Forest or the Company) today announced two transactions which will comprise additional building blocks of Forest's 2007 capital program beyond the "Big Three" properties. On August 1, 2006, Forest assumed operatorship of the Katy Field, located in Waller, Fort Bend and Harris Counties, Texas from Exxon Mobil and, separately, executed an exploration joint venture agreement with a third party increasing Forest's current gross acreage to 20,000 in the prolific Barnett Shale primarily in Hill and Erath Counties, Texas.
Katy Field (52% Working Interest)

Barnett Shale (48-100% Working Interest)
Forest has recently increased its gross acreage position to approximately 20,000 acres in the Barnett Shale play in North Texas through the execution of an exploration joint venture agreement with a third party for its acreage in Hill County which covers approximately 14,000 acres as well as ongoing leasing activity. The acreage is located primarily in Hill and Erath Counties with 3-D seismic over a portion of the acreage. The first horizontal well in Hill County was spud in July, 2006. After this initial well and further evaluation of the acreage, Forest anticipates developing an active drilling program in this area in 2007.

Drillers plan to increase Barnett rigs

By DAN PILLER
STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER
Two major producers in the Barnett Shale natural gas field said Wednesday that they plan to expand operations in the field adjoining Fort Worth despite a slump in gas prices this year.
Devon Energy of Oklahoma City, already the largest producer in Texas and in the Barnett Shale, said it would add at least five more rigs to its current fleet of 25 drilling rigs in the Barnett Shale.
Devon Chairman Larry Nichols said the recent purchase of Chief Oil & Gas of Dallas will add 70 million cubic feet to Devon's current daily production of 640 million cubic feet. Devon has drilled more than 2,500 wells in the Barnett Shale and has expanded beyond its original base in Wise and Denton counties to drill heavily in Johnson County south of Fort Worth.
Operators have continued to lease and drill in the Barnett Shale this year despite a retreat in natural gas prices from highs of $12-$14 per thousand cubic feet late in 2005 to less than $6 per thousand cubic feet a month ago. The price has strengthened this week on the news of heavier demand from utilities during air-conditioning season, rising to close at $7.80 per thousand cubic feet in trading Wednesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Devon President John Richels said the company has seen "encouraging results" from its experiment of drilling wells as close together as 20 acres, as now allowed under new Texas Railroad Commission rules. Under the old rules, wells had to be at least 300 acres apart.
"We were getting 2.4 million cubic feet of initial production from the 20-acre wells," Richels said.
Devon on Wednesday announced a 32 percent increase in its second-quarter profit, to $859 million, or $1.92 per share. The company has 137 rigs drilling in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, the Caspian Sea, China and the Gulf of Mexico.
Another Barnett Shale driller, Quicksilver Resources of Fort Worth, plans to add six new rigs to the 10 already working in Hood, Parker, Somervell and Bosque counties. President Glenn Darden said Quicksilver will drill 100 wells in the Barnett Shale this year, 15 more than originally planned.
Darden said Quicksilver recently brought in a well in north central Hood County with initial production of 5 million cubic feet per day. He said two wells spaced at 55 acres apart in southern Hood County recently had combined initial production of 6 million cubic feet.
"We're seeing consistent performance in our wells," said Darden, whose company has 285,000 acres under lease south and west of Fort Worth and has also built a processing plant near Granbury served by a 120-mile pipeline gathering system.
Darden said the processing plant, which opened late in 2005, will be expanded in capacity from the current 75 million cubic feet per day to 200 million cubic feet per day.

No Slowdown on Barnett Shale

Natural gas prices have fallen more than 50 percent in the last six months.
But you wouldn't know it from watching the new "Flex 4" drilling rig that EnCana Oil & Gas is operating in the Barnett Shale on a picturesque rise on the Bonds Ranch overlooking Eagle Mountain Lake northwest of Fort Worth.
The Flex 4, built and leased by Helmerich & Payne of Tulsa, has its own tracks that allow it to move around on a drilling site without the expensive and time-consuming process of disassembly and truck shipment.
The Flex 4 also has a hydraulic-powered "V-boom" that lifts pipe into place, eliminating one of the more dangerous tasks performed by roughnecks.
The new rig also has a state-of-the-art communications system that better controls both the drill bit and the mud flows as the drilling proceeds more than 7,000 feet into the Barnett Shale below the North Texas prairie.

Gerik Trust - Drill Still in Progress 8/5

Although seemingly slow, there was still activity at the Gerik Lease south of Aquilla on 8/5. Maybe it takes longer to drill a vertical well, or in this case a 'data' well. The only 'worker' I saw was sitting in the shade of a large umbrella on the platform.

High Above Gerik Trust

Aerial view of the Gerik Trust lease just south of Aquilla. This was taken before Aspect Energy set their rig back in June. Picture courtesy of Google Earth.

Barnett Thickness County by County

Article from Republic Energy, quite lengthy but lots of interesting info on the Barnett Shale thickness in the Fort Worth Basin, karsting and faulting, the Ellenburger and Viola formations and more. Click on title link above this map for more.