November 9, 2011 - Gastar Exploration Ltd (GST) recently reported on their Marshall County, WV acreage in the
Marcellus Shale.
In Marshall County, West Virginia, we currently have two drilling rigs working in our Marcellus West area. By year-end 2011, we expect to have nine horizontal Marcellus wells on sales and 10 horizontal Marcellus wells drilled and awaiting completion. All of our Marcellus Shale wells drilled in Marshall County are part of our joint venture with Atinum Partners Co, Ltd. (the "Atinum Joint Venture"). After all drilling and completion costs have been incurred, our working interest in these wells will range from 40% to 50%.
In mid-August 2011, we began producing the Wengerd 1H and 7H horizontal wells at an initial combined 30-day average gross sales rate of approximately 7.1 MMcf per day of natural gas, 176 barrels of condensate and 347 barrels of natural gas liquids (“NGLs”). On September 23, 2011, the pipeline operator shut in the pipeline due to weather-related damage to the natural gas and condensate gathering system. While the pipeline was being repaired, we installed tubing into the two Wengerd wells that would enable us to improve NGLs and condensate recovery and returned them to production on October 21, 2011. Initially, production was restricted due to excessively high line pressures following the pipeline repair, but this matter was recently resolved. The two wells’ most recent combined four day average gross sales rate is 8.1 MMcf per day of natural gas, 200 barrels of condensate per day and 490 barrels of NGLs per day.
Also in Marshall County, we have completed fracture stimulation operations on the Corley pad (four horizontal wells), with first sales anticipated in mid-November 2011. Currently, we are commencing fracture stimulation operations on the three-well Simms pad with first production anticipated mid-December 2011. As of September 30, 2011, drilling operations have been completed on the Hendrickson 1H, 2H and 4H wells, and we completed drilling operations on the Hendrickson 3H and 5H wells in late October 2011. Fracture stimulation operations on all five Hendrickson wells are anticipated to commence in March 2012, and first sales are anticipated in the second quarter of 2012. Currently, we have commenced drilling operations from the Hall pad (three wells) and the Burch Ridge pad (five wells), and we expect to commence drilling operations on the Accettolo pad (three wells) prior to year end.
