455 MMBOPD so far this year
Oil production is having a record year in New Mexico, driven by booming activity in the Permian.
While the Permian is generally regarded as a Texas basin, it stretches up into southeast New Mexico. Wells in New Mexico can be just as productive as those in Texas, and some have set recent records.
In May EOG announced its 4-well Whirling Wind pad in Lea County, New Mexico, had set a new record for Delaware basin 30-day IP. Each well on the pad produced an average of 5,060 BOEPD, consisting of 3,510 BOPD, 700 BPD of NGLs, and 5.1 MMcf/d of natural gas. According to EOG, each of the 7,100’ lateral wells exceeded the prior all-time industry record for 30-day IP from Permian basin horizontal oil wells.
These wells, and others like them, have pushed New Mexican oil production to record heights, based on preliminary production data from the state’s Oil Conservation Division. So far this year, New Mexico has produced over 445 MBOPD, well over the previous record of 404 MBOPD.
The shale boom has been very good to new Mexican oil production, less so for gas output. After declining gradually since at least 1970, Oil production in New Mexico bottomed out in 2007 at 162 MBOPD. Since then, the rise of unconventionals has led output to nearly triple, as hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling opened up new areas for development.
While the Permian has become the most important oil basin in the U.S., New Mexican gas output has fallen. New Mexico produces large amounts of gas from the San Juan basin in the northwestern portion of the state, but competition from the Marcellus and other shale plays has left the field by the wayside.
