Haynesville Shale

SM Energy Sets 2011 Haynesville Shale Capital Budget

SM Energy (SM) has established a drilling capital budget of $830 million to develop oil and gas properties in 2011, with $35 million, or 4% devoted to the company’s properties in the Haynesville Shale.  The company has 22,000 net acres in the Shelby Trough area of Texas.

SM Energy will use this capital for five gross operated horizontal wells in 2011, and another 20 gross horizontal wells operated by its partner in the Haynesville Shale. This will not be enough to hold its acreage in the play as twelve additional gross wells would have to be drilled in 2011 and eight gross wells in 2012 to convert the company’s Haynesville Shale acreage from term to held by production.

St. Mary Land and Exploration Signs Haynesville Shale Agreement

St. Mary Land and Exploration Company (SM) issued an operational update on its activities in the Haynesville Shale, where the company entered into a carry and earning agreement with a third party on 32,000 net acres in East Texas.

The agreement allows the third party to earn 95% of St. Mary’s interest in 8,400 net acres in Shelby County, Texas, and 5% in 23,400 net acres in Shelby and San Augustine Counties. The third party will carry development costs up to $87 million to earn its interest in the Haynesville Shale properties.

St. Mary Land And Exploration Company To Spend $89 Million In Haynesville Shale in 2010

St. Mary Land & Exploration Company (SM) announced a capital budget of $725 million for 2010, with an exploration and drilling budget set at $561 million or 77% of the total.

St. Mary Land & Exploration Company’s has allocated $89 million to develop its properties in the Haynesville Shale in 2010. This development plans includes drilling 6 horizontal wells and 1 vertical well in 2010, on the company’s acreage in San Augustine and Shelby counties in Texas.

If the development and drilling program is executed as planned in 2010, St. Mary Land & Exploration Company will grow production by 20% year over year, from 242-257 million cubic feet equivalent per day (MMCFE) in the fourth quarter of 2009 to 266-288 MMCFE per day in the fourth quarter of 2010.