Wexpro, Piceance Energy form drilling JV for gas development

Wexpro Co., a subsidiary of Questar Corp., Salt Lake City, has entered into a joint venture with Laramie Energy II LLC subsidiary Piceance Energy LLC to develop natural gas-producing assets in western Colorado’s Piceance basin.

Wexpro expects to spend $60-70 million on an 80-well drilling program targeting the Mesaverde formation. The partners will begin drilling in the Collbran Valley in Mesa County in early October, and continue through early 2017.

The joint-development agreement also provides Wexpro options to acquire development rights for deeper formations and, with mutual consent, to extend and expand the drilling program by as many as 300 wells, contingent on commodity prices.