By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, May 5 -- Pioneer Natural Resources Co., Dallas, said it is pursuing a joint venture in the South Texas Eagle Ford shale play and expects to reach agreement by midyear.
The company’s latest completion, its fifth successful well in the shale, made an initial 14.1 MMcfd of gas and 255 b/d of condensate with 5,600 psi wellhead flowing pressure on a 24/64-in. choke. Gas is 1,200 btu/Mcf.
The Chesnutt Gas Unit-1 in Karnes County had a 12-stage frac in a 4,100-ft lateral at 13,300 ft true vertical depth. Production is to start in this year’s third quarter after completion of a Pioneer-operated condensate separation facility.
Pioneer has identified 1,750 potential development locations on its 310,000 acres, 70% of which are in the play’s condensate window. It estimated the play’s gross resource potential at more than 11 tcf of gas equivalent.
Pioneer has more than 2,000 sq miles of 3D seismic data, logs from more than 150 operated wells, proprietary core samples, and microseismic results.
It has two rigs drilling horizontal wells in Karnes and Dewitt counties and one well awaiting completion. It plans to hike activity to six or seven rigs by yearend, ten rigs by the end of 2011, and 14 rigs by the end of 2012.