Anadarko to keep six rigs in Delaware basin of West Texas
Anadarko Petroleum Corp. plans to keep six rigs working in the Delaware basin, citing improved efficiencies and lower drilling costs. Previously, Anadarko executives had said they likely would cut the Delaware rig number from six to four this year.
“We’ve continued to significantly reduce our cost structure throughout the year,” said Al Walker, Anadarko chairman, president, and chief executive officer, during a second-quarter earnings and operational update conference call on July 27.
Anadarko achieved record production from certain Gulf of Mexico operations and onshore in the Delaware basin in West Texas and in the Denver-Julesburg basin in Colorado. Executives cited record sales volumes were reported from the Lucius and Caesar-Tonga offshore fields.
“Should the commodity-price outlook continue to improve, we will evaluate redeploying some of the additional cash generated via operations and asset sales toward our highest-quality US onshore opportunities,” Walker said.
He said he expects light, sweet crude oil futures to return to $60/bbl on a sustained basis in 2017. Walker expects total US oil production will “bottom” at 8 million b/d possibly in this year’s fourth quarter.
Anadarko’s second-quarter sales volumes of natural gas, oil, and natural gas liquids totaled 72 million boe for an average of 792,000 boe/d.
In the Delaware basin, Anadarko continues its delineation program, running six rigs to enhance its understanding of both the vertical and horizontal potential across its 600,000-gross-acre holdings.
In the Gulf of Mexico, Anadarko said the Lucius platform achieved a 24-hr gross production record and averaged sales volumes above the platform’s 80,000 b/d nameplate capacity. The Constitution spar achieved a production record of 65,000 b/d while Anadarko’s K2 complex also achieved an 8-year-high production rate of 28,000 b/d.
During the quarter, Anadarko continued to advance its understanding of the Shenandoah discovery in the gulf. Anadarko encountered more than 1,040 net ft of oil pay in the Shenandoah-5 appraisal well, expanding the eastern extent of the field.
Additionally, the company increased its working interest in Shenandoah to 33% and added several new exploration opportunities by participating in a preferential-right process.
Contact Paula Dittrick at [email protected].
Paula Dittrick | Senior Staff Writer
Paula Dittrick has covered oil and gas from Houston for more than 20 years. Starting in May 2007, she developed a health, safety, and environment beat for Oil & Gas Journal. Dittrick is familiar with the industry’s financial aspects. She also monitors issues associated with carbon sequestration and renewable energy.
Dittrick joined OGJ in February 2001. Previously, she worked for Dow Jones and United Press International. She began writing about oil and gas as UPI’s West Texas bureau chief during the 1980s. She earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in journalism from the University of Nebraska in 1974.