American Oil and Gas Reporter - October 2017 - 62

SpecialReport: Eagle Ford Activity
the second quarter. The Cyclone 4H was
completed with a perforated interval of
8,706 feet and tested 741 boe/d (648 barrels of oil and 405 Mcf/d of gas) on a 22⁄64inch choke. The Cyclone 5H was completed with a perforated interval of 8,286
feet and tested 771 boe/d on a 22⁄64-inch
choke. Both wells were fracture stimulated
in engineered completions with an average
proppant concentration of 1,820 pounds
per foot over 30 stages per well and
utilized diverters. Both were placed into
flowback operations on July 1, he reports.
'Precision Targeting'
EOG Resources is the Eagle Ford's
top producer and acreage holder. About
two-thirds of the 7,200 total net identified
well locations across its 528,000 net acres
are yet to be drilled, and Wagner says the
company is employing a "precision targeting" strategy to optimize the development of each of those wells.
"Precision targeting starts with selecting
the best 10-20 feet of rock within the
vertical section of interest," he explains.
"This involves a detailed multidisciplinary
analysis that integrates electric logs, seis-

mic, completions data, drilling data and
well productivity data that helps our technical staff determine the most productive
zones.
"Once the optimal targets are mapped
out and new wells are planned, our operations teams must then execute on the highly
precise well plan and keep the lateral within
the target zone. This involves another multidisciplinary effort in which geosteering
specialists analyze log data in real time
and communicate directly with the drilling
team to keep the lateral in zone."
Wagner says precision targeting is
very important for well productivity because rock quality can vary considerably
within larger rock formations such as the
Eagle Ford and pinpointing the best target
can have large impacts on deliverability.
EOG was the pioneer of advanced,
high-density completions by switching
entirely to slickwater and small sand
sizes in 2013, Wagner points out. "We
continue to experiment with the optimal
completion design (cluster spacing, stage
spacing, sand loading and fluid loading),"
he continues. "Long laterals can increase
returns, but EOG strives to ensure that
the EUR per foot of lateral is equal or

The U.S Energy Information Administration estimates that operators will produce more
than 1.2 million barrels of oil from the 400-mile-long Eagle Ford Shale play in October,
making it America's second largest oil-producing basin behind only the Permian. While
drilling and completion activity is concentrated in the oil and condensate windows,
Texas Railroad Commission data show that the numbers of both oil and gas wells have
doubled over the past three years.

62 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

greater as laterals are extended. Laterals
tend to be longer in the western portion
of the Eagle Ford because of lease, geologic and productivity considerations."
Wagner also notes that well spacing-
both vertical and horizontal-is complex
and under frequent evaluation by EOG
Resources' Eagle Ford team.
"Our typical pads are drilled with 330foot spacing, but optimal spacing varies
by area," he holds. "Pad drilling fits
directly into this analysis, as the timing
of development is a crucial parameter in
any well spacing analysis."
Eagle Ford, Austin Chalk Wells
EOG completed 51 Eagle Ford wells
in the second quarter with an average
treated lateral length of 6,500 feet and
average 30-day initial production rates
per well of 1,930 boe/d, which included
1,520 barrels of oil, 225 barrels of NGLs
and 1.3 MMcf of natural gas a day.
In Karnes County, EOG completed a
three-well pattern, the Lynch Unit 2H4H, with an average treated lateral length
of 5,800 feet per well and average 30day initial production rates per well of
3,245 boe/d (2,555 bbl/d of oil, 350 bbl/d
of NGLs and 2.0 MMcf/d of natural gas).
In Gonzales County, EOG completed a
four-well pattern, the Olympic A 1H-4H,
with an average treated lateral length of
6,600 feet per well and average 30-day
IP rates per well of 2,910 boe/d (2,160
bbl/d of oil, 380 bbl/d of NGLs and 2.2
MMcf/d of natural gas). And in DeWitt
County, Wagner says EOG completed a
five-well pattern, the Dio Unit 11H-15H,
with an average treated lateral length of
5,100 feet per well and average 30-day
IP rates per well of 2,840 boe/d (2,135
bbl/d of oil, 355 bbl/d of NGLs and 2.1
MMcf/d of natural gas).
Long before the Eagle Ford Shale
play took flight, many independent operators found success targeting the Austin
Chalk formation in South Texas-the
granddaddy of horizontal tight oil resource
plays.
"The Austin Chalk lies above the Eagle
Ford, and various Austin Chalk plays
have existed throughout the industry's
history," Wagner relates. "We are taking
a different approach toward the Austin
Chalk than most have in the past and are
presently evaluating the extent of the
prospective Austin Chalk across our Eagle
Ford position."
EOG has 25 net Austin Chalk wells
planned for 2017, according to Wagner.
American Oil and Gas Reporter - October 2017

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