For years, Harold Korell has been a fan of business management guru and author Peter Drucker. Korell, the CEO of Southwestern Energy Corp. (NYSE: SWN) says Drucker talks of innovation and looking for incongruities or unexpected occurrences that lead to new ideas.
Korell says the company’s discovery of the Fayetteville shale was just such an incongruity. It drilled gas wells to what it thought were traditional zones in northern Arkansas, but it encountered the Wedington Incongruity and the wells produced four to six times more gas than was expected. That led to more geological investigation—and the rest is history. Since then, Southwestern Energy has drilled more than 500 shale wells and is producing about 350 million cubic feet per day. Last year it drilled 116 wells with lateral legs longer than 3,000 feet.
Process improvements are the goal this year. “We know we need to drill longer laterals; we know we need to pump at a higher rate on our fracs. We know high-density well clusters work well.”
Southwestern’s budget this year calls for 475 horizontal shale wells and spending of about $1 billion.
“The Fayetteville is the coal car right behind the engine [Barnett] when you talk about shale plays,” Korell said at the 3rd annual Developing Unconventional Gas (DUG), hosted by Oil and Gas Investor in Fort Worth recently.
“Are we at the end of the road on shale projects? I don’t think so. In Washington, they think this industry is over…but we have lots of wells to drill. We are still leasing in the Marcellus shale and we are drilling our first well there now, so we’re excited.”
Recommended Reading
TGS, SLB to Conduct Engagement Phase 5 in GoM
2024-02-05 - TGS and SLB’s seventh program within the joint venture involves the acquisition of 157 Outer Continental Shelf blocks.
StimStixx, Hunting Titan Partner on Well Perforation, Acidizing
2024-02-07 - The strategic partnership between StimStixx Technologies and Hunting Titan will increase well treatments and reduce costs, the companies said.
Forum Energy Signs MOU to Develop Electric ROV Thrusters
2024-03-13 - The electric thrusters for ROV systems will undergo extensive tests by Forum Energy Technologies and SAFEEN Survey & Subsea Services.
Axis Energy Deploys Fully Electric Well Service Rig
2024-03-13 - Axis Energy Services’ EPIC RIG has the ability to run on grid power for reduced emissions and increased fuel flexibility.
TotalEnergies Rolling Out Copilot for Microsoft 365
2024-02-27 - TotalEnergies’ rollout is part of the company’s digital transformation and is intended to help employees solve problems more efficiently.