Forget North Dakota — There's A New Shale Oil Boom State In Town

You probably saw our big feature on reporter Robert Johnson's trip to Williston, North Dakota, the capital of the state's Bakken shale oil boom has led to defacto full employment.

But we may have journeyed to the wrong region.

A new report from IHS Global Insight (as noted by Professor Mark J. Perry) suggests the Eagle Ford play near San Antonio, Texas, is poised to overtake the Bakken as the country's most promising oil reservoir:

“Our analysis at IHS indicates that Eagle Ford drilling results to date appear to be superior to those of the Bakken,” said Andrew Byrne, director of equity research at IHS and author of the study. “Although the well counts aren’t nearly as high at this point in development of the Eagle Ford, the peak of the well-distribution curve compares favorably with the Bakken.”

http://www.petrolucrum.com/blog/2012/08/09/Forget-North-Dakota-Theres-A-New-Shale-Oil-Boom-State-In-Town.aspx

2 Eagle Ford Shale Plays Not Closely Followed

A few weeks back CNBC sent anchor and Mad Money host Jim Cramer up to the Bakken shale to get an on the ground view of the amazing changes taking place in the area. North Dakota is booming with an overwhelming demand for employees. The companies leading the drilling efforts such as Continental Resources (CLR) and Brigham Exploration (BEXP) have benefited handsomely from the massive growth in that area.

Though known by many industry experts and investors, another area exists in southern Texas that might match or exceed the oil produced from the Bakken. That area is called the Eagle Ford Shale.

With an estimated 25B boe, Eagle Ford has enormous untapped potential. Companies have in earnest only been drilling in the area for the last couple of years. Petrohawk (HK) was a leader in the area and BHP BIlliton (BHP) recently bought them out.

Under the radar companies Carrizo Oil & Gas (CRZO) and C&J Energy Services (CJES) have major exposure to Eagle Ford riches. CRZO is an oil exploration company with 63K acres in the area plus thousands of acres in the Marcellus, Niobrara, and Barnett. CJES is an oil services company that specializes in hydraulic fracturing with 3 of 5 fleets currently working in the Eagle Ford.

Both companies have tremendous growth opportunities ahead. CRZO just recently began drilling outside the Barnett shale with numerous wells going on line since June in both the Eagle Ford and the Niobrara. Analysts expect revenue to grow 54% this year and 108% next year. That growth is dependent on how fast companies like CJES can fracture wells and get them completed and producing. 


Source: Seeking Alpha 


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