by Jack Z. Smith
Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas
But there's still some debate as to whether Haynesville is the clear-cut No. 1.
Among those wanting further clarification and more detailed confirming data Monday were Steven Grape, the Dallas-based domestic reserves project manager for the EIA, and Gene Powell, publisher of the Fort Worth-based Powell Shale Digest, widely considered an authority on U.S. shale-gas plays and especially the Barnett Shale, which underlies more than 20 North Texas counties.
The EIA had posted on its website Monday an item headlined "Haynesville surpasses Barnett as the Nation's leading shale play," based on "reported pipeline flows" of natural gas from the two regions.
It cited as its source Bentek Energy of Evergreen, Colo., a well-known energy consulting firm.
The EIA website included a Bentek chart showing that the Haynesville Shale area had production of an estimated 5.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day, compared to 5.25 billion for Barnett. It said Haynesville surpassed Barnett in output even after the North Texas field had recovered fully from "freeze-offs" at wellsites that had briefly reduced production during bitterly cold weather in early February.
Matt Marshall, a senior energy analyst for Bentek, told the Star-Telegram in a telephone interview Monday afternoon that company estimates, updated through Sunday, showed output in the Haynesville production area in Louisiana had jumped to 5.6 billion cubic feet per day.
However, that number includes an estimated 950 million cubic feet of output that, while in the general Haynesville production area, actually comes from geological formations other than the Haynesville Shale itself, Marshall said. But the 5.6 billion does not include roughly "several hundred million" cubic feet of daily gas production from the East Texas portion of the Haynesville Shale, he said.
Marshall said Bentek's latest estimates show that production in the Fort Worth Basin, home to the Barnett Shale, is 5.44 billion cubic feet per day. But that figure includes about 790 million cubic feet that actually is from formations other than the Barnett, he said.
Actual production from the entire Barnett Shale per se and the Haynesville Shale per se in Louisiana is virtually tied at about 4.65 billion cubic feet per day, Marshall said. But if you add in the Haynesville Shale production from East Texas, Haynesville is the clear-cut leader, based on estimates of flows through gas pipelines, Marshall said.
Both Powell and Grape said Monday that they want more information about the Bentek analysis before they can be assured that Haynesville is the new No. 1 shale play in gas production.
Powell said the most-accurate measurement of production from each shale play is actual well production data, rather than estimates based on reported pipeline flows. But there can be a time lag of several months before firm well-production data can be assembled. Grape, the EIA official, stressed that the Bentek information represents "estimates" based on pipeline flows. He said he needed more information before being able to say firmly whether Haynesville or Barnett is now the top producer.
EIA data for 2009, based considerably on natural gas reserves, showed the Barnett Shale as the leading gas-producing area in the nation, with nearly 1.8 trillion cubic feet of output. Grape said earlier this month that he thought Barnett also was the leading producer last year, although the EIA hasn't published final 2010 figures.
It cited as its source Bentek Energy of Evergreen, Colo., a well-known energy consulting firm.
The EIA website included a Bentek chart showing that the Haynesville Shale area had production of an estimated 5.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day, compared to 5.25 billion for Barnett. It said Haynesville surpassed Barnett in output even after the North Texas field had recovered fully from "freeze-offs" at wellsites that had briefly reduced production during bitterly cold weather in early February.
Matt Marshall, a senior energy analyst for Bentek, told the Star-Telegram in a telephone interview Monday afternoon that company estimates, updated through Sunday, showed output in the Haynesville production area in Louisiana had jumped to 5.6 billion cubic feet per day.
However, that number includes an estimated 950 million cubic feet of output that, while in the general Haynesville production area, actually comes from geological formations other than the Haynesville Shale itself, Marshall said. But the 5.6 billion does not include roughly "several hundred million" cubic feet of daily gas production from the East Texas portion of the Haynesville Shale, he said.
Marshall said Bentek's latest estimates show that production in the Fort Worth Basin, home to the Barnett Shale, is 5.44 billion cubic feet per day. But that figure includes about 790 million cubic feet that actually is from formations other than the Barnett, he said.
Actual production from the entire Barnett Shale per se and the Haynesville Shale per se in Louisiana is virtually tied at about 4.65 billion cubic feet per day, Marshall said. But if you add in the Haynesville Shale production from East Texas, Haynesville is the clear-cut leader, based on estimates of flows through gas pipelines, Marshall said.
Both Powell and Grape said Monday that they want more information about the Bentek analysis before they can be assured that Haynesville is the new No. 1 shale play in gas production.
Powell said the most-accurate measurement of production from each shale play is actual well production data, rather than estimates based on reported pipeline flows. But there can be a time lag of several months before firm well-production data can be assembled. Grape, the EIA official, stressed that the Bentek information represents "estimates" based on pipeline flows. He said he needed more information before being able to say firmly whether Haynesville or Barnett is now the top producer.
EIA data for 2009, based considerably on natural gas reserves, showed the Barnett Shale as the leading gas-producing area in the nation, with nearly 1.8 trillion cubic feet of output. Grape said earlier this month that he thought Barnett also was the leading producer last year, although the EIA hasn't published final 2010 figures.
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