Ohio DNR Releases 2012 Utica Shale Production Report

After over a month of high anticipation, the Utica shale production figures for 2012 are now available.

Companies reported data for 87 wells.  The totals:  635,896 barrels of oil;  12,836,662 MCF of gas; 688,458 barrels of brine;  a cumulative total of 7,979 days that all of the wells were producing.

Chesapeake accounted for 53 of the 87 wells reported.  Consequently, Chesapeake also reported well over half of the production:  372,212 barrels of oil, 10,092,701 MCF of gas.

41 of the 87 wells on the report are in Carroll County.  If my math is correct, those wells accounted for over 352,000 barrels of oil and 7,750,000 MCF of gas.

There are a variety of resources related to the big release of information from the Ohio DNR after the jump, including video of today's "State of the Play" event and the actual production report.  Check it out now by clicking on "read more" below!


Watch the "State of the Play" event here.


Here is a note from the ODNR about the 2012 Utica shale production report:

The 2012 production reports have been received for all horizontal wells drilled and completed in the Utica/Point Pleasant formation(s).

Production reports were submitted for 87 wells in 2012. Of these, 65 were commercial producing wells, 19 were tested and shut-in and 3 were dry and abandoned. None of the wells were produced for the entire year. As you review the attached production summary, please note oil and brine are reported in barrels (42 U.S. gallons) and gas is reported in MCF (1,000 cubic feet).

Of the 19 wells that have not been placed into commercial production, 17 did report incidental volumes of crude oil and natural gas that were recovered during flowback of hydraulic fracturing fluids.

The column labeled Days reflects the actual number of days a well produced. This does not necessarily indicate consecutive days of production. Further, it is very unlikely that the wells are being produced at anything near full capacity. Wells produced at high initial rates have the potential of being permanently damaged.

Brine

For the most part, the reported volumes of brine are barrels that were recovered during flowback after hydraulic fracturing.

Oil

The reported volumes of oil are lower than initially estimated, but higher than conventional non-shale oil wells. Oil production will be incidental to gas production in much of the Utica/Point Pleasant play. Reported oil volumes likely include condensate volumes. Overall shale oil production from 82 wells represents approximately 12% of the total oil produced in 2012.

Gas

Reported gas volumes likely include both “dry” and “wet” gas. Markets and pipeline capacity are limited so production is likely choked back. Once processing plants are up and running, the produced “wet” gas volumes will dramatically increase. Gas production is significant, even with the early production numbers from wells that are restricted due to market conditions. Overall shale gas production from 82 wells represents approximately 16% of the total gas produced in 2012. Total gas production is based on production from about 50,000 conventional wells and the horizontal shale gas wells.

And here is the actual report (it can also be downloaded in Excel format here):


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