Southwestern Energy has 40 Wells in Northeast PA

Southwestern Energy provides the following update of its Marcellus Shale activities in its recently released third quarter report. The update shows that Southwestern’s Marcellus activity is concentrated in Bradford and Susquehanna counties in PA.

Southwestern has participated in a total of 40 wells in northeast Pennsylvania, of which 18 were producing and 22 were in progress at September 30, 2011. The producing wells are all operated Marcellus Shale wells located in its Greenzweig area in Bradford County. Net production from the area was 7.4 Bcf and 15.2 Bcf for three months and nine months ending September 30, 2011, respectively, compared to 0.2 Bcf and 0.2 Bcf for the same periods in 2010, respectively. The company is currently running 2 drilling rigs in Susquehanna County.

The company is currently completing a five-well pad in its Greenzweig area in Bradford County which is expected to be placed on production in November. The company also noted that the Ball Myer 1H well which was placed on production on June 23, 2011 is currently producing at a tubing constrained rate of approximately 8.2 MMcf per day at a  flowing tubing pressure of 1,300 psi after 120 days of production This well had a completed lateral of 4,502 feet and was fracture stimulated in 19 stages. In total, the company’s 17 horizontal wells have average completed lateral lengths of approximately 3,849 feet and have averaged 10.8 stages of completion. Gross operated production from the area is currently approximately 110 MMcf per day and constrained by a temporary pipeline curtailment.

The graph below provides normalized average daily production data through September 30, 2011, for the company’s horizontal wells in the Marcellus Shale. The “red curve” indicates results for two wells with 15 or more fracture stimulation stages, the “purple curve” indicates results for eight wells with 10 to 14 fracture stimulation stages and the “green curve” indicates results for seven wells with 9 or less fracture stimulation stages. The normalized production curves are intended to provide a qualitative indication of the company’s Marcellus Shale wells’ performance and should not be used to estimate an individual well’s estimated ultimate recovery. The 4, 6 and 8 Bcf type curves are shown solely for reference purposes and are not intended to be projections of the performance of the company’s wells.*

*Southwestern Energy Press Release (Oct 27, 2011) – Southwestern Energy Announces Third Quarter 2011 Financial and Operating Results and Updates Production Guidance