PITTSBURGH -- “Game-changing” technology has had a major – and growing – impact on drilling in the Marcellus and Utica shale plays, a Baker Hughes Inc. executive told attendees at Hart Energy’s recent DUG East conference in Pittsburgh. The result has been that attractive Appalachian resource plays have become even more rewarding, since time is money when it comes to drilling a well.

Robin Robinson, vice president of U.S. drilling, land, for Baker Hughes, said that multiple technologies have come together to cut drilling time and costs. But in particular, the use of steerable rotary bits significantly reduces drilling time.

“What we’ve seen, even though there was fairly good drilling performance, is two factors: The time drilling these wells is just about cut in half, and the range for the times to drill these wells has closed significantly,” Robinson said.

That has created a deceiving trend in one closely watched industry trend – rig count.

“We saw an increase over the early years and then a drop-off recently in rig activity,” he said. “They don’t anticipate drilling efficiency is in place. Technology is a key driver.”

Robinson provided statistics to show it took 14 to 18 days to drill the typical Marcellus well a year ago. Now, comparable wells go down in six to 10 days. Couple that speed with the increased use of pad drilling, where multiple wells go down from one location, and the results are impressive.

“The wells-per-rig-per-month number is way up. Operators move very efficiently from well to well,” Robinson said, adding that approximately two-thirds of the wells drilled in the plays are now pad drilled and that “the number is growing.

“Another thing that we see in technology is that it’s one thing to drill fast, but how accurate we are able to drill is critical. And operators have become much more precise in hitting the targets that they want to reach,” he added.

Steerable bits offer other opportunities, such as back-build wells where drillers kick off in the opposite direction from the target, then turn the lateral portion of the well toward the target, thus increasing surface exposure within the producing formation.

“They can not only drill fast but accurately,” Robinson said of the area’s drillers, adding that technology has allowed drillers to now keep the rig within a 3-foot radius of the desired location from a 10-foot radius.

Although drilling time and accuracy has improved substantially, challenges remain in the speed and cost of Marcellus and Utica well completions, he said. Completions are comparatively faster now but there remains potential for improvement. Customizing completion programs for each well has the potential to increase production, but that’s offset by higher costs, he said