Note: I remain inappropriately exuberant about the Bakken.
I can't recall if I have ever posted this note on the blog, but I have off-line conversations with readers about the one operator and one non-operator who probably know more about the Bakken than any of the others: CLR and NOG.
CLR: because it literally has wells throughout the Basin and Harold Hamm started accumulating acreage years (decades?) before the boom began.
NOG: because it literally participates, as a non-operator, in wells across the Basin and works with almost every operator in the play. I've blogged about this aspect of NOG before; it was a good post; if I can find it, I will link it. NOG is yet to report 4Q18 earnings; I always enjoy their earnings conference call (via SeekingAlpha).
CLR said that 2018 was a transition year for them. They turned "cash flow positive" and began paying down debt.
CLR will report some very good wells this next week. Here are a few of the best. Pop quiz: when you scroll through this very, very short list (only five wells), what other bit of trivia do you notice that is not trivial?
The wells:
- 32815, conf, CLR, Brandvik 9-25H, Corral Creek, a huge well, #16510, in the neighborhood was off-line for several months; now back on line; #29555, #23785, #23786, also all in the neighborhood, two of the three remain offline; #29555 has come back on line;
| Date | Oil Runs | MCF Sold |
|---|---|---|
| 12-2018 | 70516 | 72086 |
| 11-2018 | 24742 | 21086 |
| 8-2018 | 1005 | 0 |
- 32816, conf, CLR, Brandvik 10-25H2, Corral Creek, a huge well;
| Date | Oil Runs | MCF Sold |
|---|---|---|
| 12-2018 | 47686 | 53394 |
| 11-2018 | 24469 | 27641 |
| 8-2018 | 1330 | 0 |
- 32817, conf, CLR, Brandvik 11-25H, Corral Creek, a very nice well;
| Date | Oil Runs | MCF Sold |
|---|---|---|
| 12-2018 | 36723 | 31900 |
| 11-2018 | 31529 | 28772 |
| 9-2018 | 1535 | 0 |
- 34591, conf, CLR, Pasadena 4-11HSL, Banks, a huge well; #21148, #23790, #23791, all in the neighborhood; the latter two were recently fracked for the first time; #21148 fracked back in 2012, showed a huge jump in 10/18; FracFocus does not show data to suggest #21148 was recently fracked; see this post (#21148);
| Date | Oil Runs | MCF Sold |
|---|---|---|
| 12-2018 | 63786 | 17628 |
| 11-2018 | 42513 | 38023 |
| 10-2018 | 7161 | 6928 |
| 9-2018 | 928 | 0 |
| 8-2018 | 244 | 0 |
- 32818, conf, CLR, State Weydahl 10-36H2, Corral Creek, a huge well;
| Date | Oil Runs | MCF Sold |
|---|---|---|
| 12-2018 | 39302 | 44687 |
| 11-2018 | 23213 | 26259 |
| 9-2018 | 948 | 0 |
Corral creek, mountain gap, whitman, and Jensen wells all close together. Pipelined oil and produced water to their swd on 3rd Street lead to efficient wells at lower cost and generate more free cash flow for growth Capex and reducing debt.
ReplyDeleteThank you, much appreciated. And you know, I had not thought about that, but if worried about free cash flow, operators will drill will there is good infrastructure already in place.
DeleteDeep pockets will prevail in these tightening times. Big Texas players (Marathon, ConocoPhillips, XTO, EOG?) have the size for free cash flow and lower debt ratios to get wall street funding. Maybe lump Continental in with them. Smaller and higher debt bakken players like Oasis, Whiting, and Hess going to higher well pads to get efficiencies up to stay in the game.
ReplyDeleteAgree 1000%. I think the mainstream media posts these stories about every three years ... we went through a lot of restructuring a few years ago when the price of WTI plummeted but it seems we are in better shape today than then.
DeleteI didn't read the article closely so I can't say for sure, but my hunch is that much of this is written based on what is going on in the Permian (yes, I know CLR is mostly in the Bakken and Oklahoma; no Permian) but the Permian is still in the boom / early stages whereas the Bakken is in the more stable, "manufacturing" stage. Big difference.