Permian Basin Shale Leads In Texas' Oil Resurgence

Oil coaxed from the rapidly developing Eagle Ford and Permian Basin production areas recently lifted the state's output back above 3 million barrels per day (bpd) for the first time in more than three decades. That put the Lone Star state at more than a third of total U.S. oil production, vs. about 12% for No. 2 North Dakota. Texas is on track to outpace Iraq, which, at 3.2 million bpd in April, is the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' second-largest producer, behind Saudi Arabia.

Texas' resurgence stems from capital spending that is expected to top $44 billion in the Eagle Ford area and Permian Basin this year, says research firm Wood Mackenzie. Effectively all of those dollars are developing means to reach oil held in shale reservoirs, part of the shale oil and gas revolution that has altered not just the U.S., but the global energy landscape.

Despite growth in capital spending, the Eagle Ford's production takes a back seat to the Permian Basin. The Permian is a century-old oil play covering much of west Texas and southwest New Mexico. The area is stitched with tens of thousands of vertically drilled wells. But players led by Pioneer, Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) and Apache (NYSE:APA) are rapidly ramping up spending as they explore the use of horizontal drilling techniques to exploit the Permian Basin's complex of multilayered reservoirs.

In the most recent Baker Hughes rig count, more than 900 rigs were working in Texas at the start of August. That's more than four times the 209 rigs in No. 2 Oklahoma.

This is a good read..should send it to OBAMA..how poor people become rich.. and rich people go broke..

The Frackers: The Outrageous Inside Story of the New Billionaire Wildcatters

MEET THE FRACKERS

GEORGE MITCHELL, the son of a Greek goatherd, who tried to tap rock that experts deemed worthless but faced an unexpected obstacle in his quest to change history.

AUBREY McCLENDON, the charismatic scion of an Oklahoma energy family, who scored billions leading a historic land grab. He wasn’t prepared for the shocking fallout of his discoveries.

TOM WARD, who overcame a troubled childhood to become one of the nation’s wealthiest men. He could handle natural-gas fields but had more trouble with a Wall Street power broker.

HAROLD HAMM, the son of poor sharecroppers, who believed America had more oil than anyone imagined. Hamm was determined to find the crude before others caught on.

CHARIF SOUKI, the dashing Lebanese immigrant who saw his career crumble and his fortune disintegrate, leaving one last, unlikely chance for success.

MARK PAPA, the Enron castoff who panicked when he realized a resurgence of American natural gas was at hand, one that his company wasn’t prepared for.

Another advantage of the Permian Basin are the thousands of vertical wells drilled in the past. From these vertical wells we have very detailed information about the structural geology. We have always known about these shale plays but our technology in the past could not produce them economically. We can now and we know where the oil is.

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