For the past two years, oil and natural gas producers have been developing the Merge, a relatively young oil and natural gas play that sits in the middle of the Eastern Anadarko Basin.
As the name suggests, the Merge sits right between the prolific STACK and SCOOP fields, essentially tying the two together to create one contiguous formation. Because of this location, the Merge represents the best of the SCOOP’s Upper Woodford extension and the STACK’s Meramec extension.
Despite only being in development for a few years, the Merge is growing rapidly. In September 2017, there were 23 active rigs in the Merge—more than the SCOOP had at the time.
The development is coming from several oil and natural gas producers. As of September, Marathon Oil had four rigs, Citizen Energy and Cimarex Energy Co. had three, and Linn Energy and Newfield Exploration Co. each had two.
Jones Energy owns about 21,000 net acres on 35 operated sections in the Merge. The company’s first well in the Meramec section of the Merge reached a peak production rate of 650 barrels of oil per day and 6.3 million cubic feet of natural gas per day, making it one of the top Merge wells to date.
The Merge is still relatively young, especially when compared to the established SCOOP and STACK. But at the rate it’s currently growing, the Merge will no doubt become one of Oklahoma’s major plays, bolstering the state’s energy economy.
Keep up with news on Oklahoma energy, including the latest on the Merge, at EnergyHQ.com.
Sources
- O&G Investor, Jones Energy Year of the Merge
- Jones Energy, Capital One Securities 12th Annual Energy Conference