American Oil and Gas Reporter - August 2023 - 54

SpecialReport: Natural Gas Playmakers
an investor base that is very supportive of
that business model, and we have shown
the ability to successfully execute this
plan over and over again. "
A year ago, EnSight sold a 5,000 netacre
package with 42 MMcf net daily
production in the core of the Haynesville
Shale in Louisiana's DeSoto, Bossier,
Caddo and Webster parishes to Houstonbased
Tellurian Production LLC for $125
million. Included were high-quality, derisked
drilling locations.
After the sale, EnSight set out to repeat
its success and established EnSight Haynesville
Partners II to fund more work,
Baldwin says. The fund closed in October
with $92.3 million in commitments,
mostly from existing investors happy
with the earlier results, he updates.
" We are growing and improving our
Haynesville/Bossier acreage position
through leasing and trades, and are always,
always, always looking for more to do, "
Baldwin says.
The company is actively developing
4,500 Haynesville/Bossier acres in
Louisiana's Bossier, Webster, Bienville,
DeSoto, and Red River parishes it kept
from a position initially put together in
2020-21, he explains.
Ongoing projects also include continued
development in Sligo Field in Bossier Parish
with approximately 200 conventional wells
mostly productive of gas and some liquids
around Barksdale Air Force Base east of
Shreveport. The position helped EnSight
springboard into the Haynesville early on
and includes behind-pipe opportunities in
the Cotton Valley and Pettet and has 15 potential
additional Haynesville locations, says
Executive Vice President Chris Singletary.
Two DeSoto Parish Bossier Shale
wells were being completed in July, and
the company continues to search for more
Haynesville and Bossier acreage to extend
the play, according to Singletary.
EnSight has drilled nine wells so far
this year and is in the planning stages for
a 2024 program that may include 12-15
wells, he adds. Attractive initial production
rates from the Haynesville include almost
23 MMcf/d from its Kervin well, he says.
EnSight's net production is already back
up to 90 MMcf/d since the sale to Tellurian
and may eclipse 100 MMcf/d by year's
end, Baldwin reports. The company also
is considering offering another package of
assets this year or early next as additional
LNG infrastructure to the south opens up
more takeaway capacity and opportunity
to Haynesville Shale players.
" We believe the globalization of the
natural gas market is good for the domestic
industry in general and the Haynesville/Bossier
play in particular, " Baldwin
says.
Extending The Boundaries
Presently running 11-12 rigs throughout
the Haynesville Shale, Aethon Energy
continues to prove up its 350,000-acre
position to extend the play's boundaries,
with already prolific deep Bossier wells
northwest of Houston.
Founded in 1990 with an initial focus
on enhanced oil recovery, the Dallas company
repositioned and embarked on the
Haynesville as an operator in 2012, explains
President Gordon Huddleston. Since then,
Aethon has made 16 acquisitions and
bolt-ons and remains interested in other
growth opportunities. This year, the company
has focused on growing production
into its vertically-integrated midstream
system, advancing its carbon capture initiatives
and permitting projects on its
Wind River Basin acreage in Wyoming.
" We focus on where can get the
right value proposition and where we
will be able to generate the type of returns
we have generated historically, "
Huddleston says.
Aethon is excited about its results in
Robertson County, Tx., which now has
three wells producing and two active rigs
in the area. These wells continue to flow
up to 30 MMcf/d, with little pressure
loss after initial production of about
double that, he acknowledges. Aethon
places less emphasis on 24-hour IP rates,
with a practice of tightening chokes to
restrict flowback that has produced flatter
declines and greater EURs, Huddleston
reports.
Altogether, the company has more
than 20 years of drilling inventory, and
this year also is delineating its position
in the Shelby Trough.
By mid-year, the company has drilled
more than 40 wells as part of a 2023
capital budget of more than $1 billion.
Overall production is 3 Bcfe/d gross and
2 Bcfe/d net.
" Our plan was to reduce our rig count
Aethon Energy is running two rigs in Robertson County, Tx., where it has brought three
wells on line producing as much as 30 MMcf/d with minimal pressure loss after initial
production at double that rate. The company says its practice of tightening chokes to
restrict IP flowback has produced flatter declines and greater EURs.
54 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER
this year, and then move to more of a stable
production profile, " Huddleston explains.
With a commitment to continually assessing
and improving completion designs,
the current standard is about 4,500 pounds
of sand a lateral foot with cluster spacings
varying according to the target, he says.
Standardized designs " in the fairway " that
constitute 80% of its Haynesville position
can be updated as the company integrates
successful completion experiments on the
other 20%, Huddleston adds.
When eying expansion possibilities,
Aethon weighs whether it can integrate
new properties into its own extensive midstream
gathering system that helps buttress
cash flow in volatile cycles, he says.
The company indicates it gathers about
85% of its operated production, relying
on other midstream players to accommodate
the remainder of its output.
Aethon consistently works to reduce
emissions and has lowered them 75%
from 2016 to 2021, Huddleston says, and
anticipates another 85% cut by 2031. ❒
American Oil and Gas Reporter - August 2023

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