American Oil and Gas Reporter - June 2023 - 51

SpecialReport: Permian Basin Playmakers
" You are drilling in the Fort Worth
Basin? " is the frequent response. " No, I
tell them, our Barnett play in the Permian
Basin, " says Pruett, who is also chairman
of the Independent Petroleum Association
of America. " We drilled the Barnett discovery
well in 2016. "
Elevation previously held acreage in
Lea and Eddy counties in New Mexico
and Reeves and Ward counties on the
Texas side of the Delaware Basin, as
well as assets in the southern Midland
Basin. But then it drilled the discovery
well in Andrews County, Tx.
" We had enough encouragement from
a vertical test and a core that we decided
to give the Barnett a try. We sold our
other assets, and now we are operating
exclusively in Andrews County, " recalls
Pruett, who reports that Elevation Resources
is drilling its 52nd Barnett Shale
well in Andrews County.
So what is the Barnett Shale?
" It is silty shale interbedded with siltstone
and limestone layers, " Pruett explains. " It
is a Mississippian-aged rock. It is the same
formation that is called the Meramec in the
SCOOP and STACK plays in Oklahoma.
It is deeper than the Wolfcamp, Bone Spring
and Spraberry formations being developed
in the Delaware and Midland basins. "
The Barnett is only the latest in the
stacked pays that have made the Permian
Basin the nation's most prolific oil-producing
province, accounting for 40% of
the nation's oil and 15% of its natural gas.
Drilling Down
" We drill through the Wolfcamp, San
Andres, Atoka, Strawn and Upper Barnett
before we finally get into the Meramec, "
Pruett states. " Below the Barnett is the
Woodford and the Devonian carbonate,
which Elevation previously developed horizontally. "
It
took Elevation Resources several
years to de-risk the play, Pruett says, but
its success has brought a number of other
companies into the Central Basin Platform
to exploit the Barnett Shale.
Elevation Resources is drilling its Barnett
wells to an average vertical depth of
10,500 feet with one- to two-and-onehalf-mile
laterals, according to Pruett.
He notes that the Barnett is as deep as
11,000-12,000 feet in the Midland and
up to 13,000 feet in the Delaware Basin.
Elevation's Barnett wells initially produce
70%-80% oil, although over time,
the ratio averages out to about 50/50 oilgas,
Pruett continues. He says the company's
production averages 56% oil and
79% percent liquids with 1,350 Btu gas.
Pruett notes that all liquids are not
created equal, however. He says NGL
prices are currently $22 a barrel, while
oil is bringing prices in the low $70 range.
One advantage to Elevation's current
play is a " plethora of gas processors and
plenty of pipeline takeaway capacity. Between
Odessa and Andrews, there is great
service and infrastructure, " Pruett contends.
" It is a good place to operate. "
Elevation's game plan for the rest of
the year is to keep running one rig and
half a frac spread, he reports. One concern,
of course, is declining natural gas prices,
which currently nets " near zero " when
paying compression and processing fees.
Pruett adds that he is proud of his
team in getting ahead of the curve in exceeding
anticipated U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency rules regarding carbon
dioxide and methane emissions, including
investing in thermal-imaging cameras.
" We have done a lot of good housekeeping
and use third-party certification, "
he points out. " We are also converting
gas pneumatic valves to air pneumatic
valves. That essentially eliminates any
methane emissions. We are not flaring
any gas on a normal basis. Normally, the
only time you see flaring in the Permian
these days is when gas gatherers are
having trouble with compression. I encourage
everyone to get ahead of the
methane emissions rules. "
Multiple Stacked Pays
Nowhere are the opportunities for multiple
stacked pays more prevalent than
the Delaware Basin, which straddles several
counties in West Texas as well Lea
and Eddy counties in New Mexico.
The primary zones are the Avalon
(Leonard), Bone Spring and Wolfcamp,
according to John Raines, vice president
for Devon Energy's Delaware business
unit. But he notes there are multiple landing
zones within each formation. In fact,
he says there can be as many 44 wells
per section.
Devon announced in the first quarter
that its Delaware Basin production had increased
5% year-over-year to an average
415,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day
(51% oil). During the quarter, Devon operated
16 rigs and four completion crews, resulting
in 42 gross wells placed on line across the
company's 400,000 net acres in the basin.
No doubt, the headline for Devon in
the first quarter was its Exotic Cat Raider
development in the Todd area in Lea
County. " That is the best rock in North
America, " Raines proclaims.
Elevation Resources LLC is drilling its 52nd Barnett Shale well in Andrews County on
the Texas Central Basin Platform. Elevation Resources' Barnett wells typically average
56% oil and 79% liquids with 1,350 Btu gas.
JUNE 2023 51
American Oil and Gas Reporter - June 2023

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