Utica Shale

Chesapeake Energy - Utica Shale Summary

Chesapeake Energy (CHK) is the largest operator in the Utica Shale and has 1.3 million acres under lease.  The company is operating 10 rigs and plans to average 13 rigs in 2012 and 22 rigs in 2013.

Chesapeake Energy has drilled 59 wells into the Utica Shale:

Producing – 9 wells

Undergoing completion – 15 wells

Waiting for completion – 15 wells

Waiting on Pipeline – 20 wells

Chesapeake Energy’s most productive Utica Shale well is the Buell 8H well in Harrison County, Ohio, which produced at a peak rate above 3,000 barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) per day in September 2011.  The company estimates that the Buell 8H well will have an estimated ultimate recovery (EUR) of 575,000 barrels of liquids and 13 bcf of natural gas.

Gulfport Energy - Utica Shale Well Assumptions

Gulfport Energy (GPOR) estimates that wells into the Utica Shale will cost approximately $5 million and be drilled to a vertical depth of 7,500 to 9,500 feet.  The wells will require a 5,000 foot lateral, twelve hydraulic fracturing stages and be spaced 160 acres apart.

Gulfport Energy said that each section in the Utica Shale contains 36.4 million barrels of original oil in place, and each well will have an estimated ultimate recovery (EUR) ranging from 455,000 to 910,000 barrels of oil equivalent.

The Utica Shale is approximately 140 feet thick and has an average porosity of 8%.  The recovery factor is estimated to range from 5% to 10%.