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U.S. rig count falls below 1,000 in April for first time since 2009
The Permian Basin lost six more drilling rigs in the past week, according to oilfield services firm Baker Hughes of Houston, and the rig count in the U.S. fell below 1,000 this month for the first time since 2009. For the week that ended April 17, the Permian Basin fell to 258 rigs from 264 the previous week, and the U.S. rig count dropped by 34 rigs to 954 from 988. On April 10 the U.S. rig count fell 40 units to 988 – the first time since Sept. 11, 2009, it was below 1,000.
Apache to defer completion on 200 wells in Permian Basin this year
Houston-based Apache Corp., one of several oil and gas exploration and production companies that have announced well completion deferrals, told the Midland Reporter Telegram it will defer 200 Permian Basin wells this year. That represents 123 percent of 163 wells it completed in the Permian Basin in 2013-14. A study by Genscape, a private and patented network of land, sea and satellite monitors that delivers market intelligence, said some companies are responding to low oil prices by drilling wells but deferring completions.
New study links wastewater injections wells with north Texas earthquakes
A new study published this week by researchers from SMU, University of Texas and the U.S. Geological Survey said wastewater injection wells and other processes in oil and natural gas drilling are the most likely cause of several earthquakes near Azle and Reno in north central Texas. The study, published Tuesday in the journalNature Communications, said 27 earthquakes in the region (including two magnitude 3.6 events) from November 2013 to January 2014 occurred in an area where none had been reported for 150 years. Matthew Hornbach, SMU professor and a lead author, said computer models show that high rates of wastewater flowing into the earth in hydraulic fracturing put strain on fault lines.
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