Oil and gas producers drilled over 50% more US exploratory wells in second-quarter 2008 than a year earlier, reported the American Petroleum Institute in its latest quarterly estimate of domestic well completions.
Exploratory wells, which accounted for nearly 17% of total wells drilled, grew 53% year-to-year, it said. Oil well completions rose 49%, while gas well completions jumped 99% from their level in 2007’s second quarter, API said.
API said an estimated 14,289 oil wells, gas wells, and dry holes were drilled domestically during the 3 months ended June 30—8% more than a year earlier.
A resurgence of US oil well completions that began in 2000 has continued. An estimated 5,219 wells were drilled during second-quarter 2008, 17% more than in the comparable 2007 period and the highest second quarter estimated oil activity since 1986, API said.
Gas remains the primary domestic drilling target, with an estimated 7,561 wells completed during the 2008 second quarter, a level 3% higher year-to-year and more than double the level 10 years ago.
API also reported that total estimated footage drilled this past quarter reached 89,947,000 ft, 14% higher than a year earlier and the greatest second-quarter footage drilled ever.
