超级挖掘：Enerplus 银行对 Bakken、Refracs 的“低估”

Enerplus 首席运营官 Wade Hutchings 预计，该公司将在 2023 年产生 4.75 亿美元的自由现金流，计划在巴肯开展重复压裂工作，同时减少 Marcellus 页岩油产量。

詹妮弗
马丁内斯
哈特能源

德克萨斯州沃斯堡市“Enerplus Corp.”的未来与过去息息相关，很大程度上是因为威利斯顿盆地勘探与生产公司的过去是可预测的、有利可图的，而且其看似废弃的油井可能还剩下一些东西。

Enerplus 首席运营官韦德·哈钦斯 (Wade Hutchings) 在 Hart Energy 最近举行的 SUPER DUG 会议上表示，该公司正在开放原本表现不佳的老油井，并计划重新开发其 Bakken 租赁地上的数十口油井。尽管该公司将减少马塞勒斯页岩的活动，而天然气价格仍处于低谷，但该公司仍预计将向投资者返还大量自由现金流（FCF）。

Enerplus 2023 年完工计划的大约一半都集中在该公司在北达科他州贝特霍尔德堡印第安保留地 (FBIR) 的传统地位，管理层喜欢他们所看到的：一种“非常成熟、非常完善的开发模式” ，”哈钦斯说。

Enerplus 最初在大约 15 年前收购了这片土地，尽管监管环境有时很复杂，但仍在那里蓬勃发展。

FBIR 的监管和运营环境是独一无二的，州、地方和联邦层面的监管网络有时很复杂，”Hutchings 说。“但是，我们对该地区的长期承诺以及我们与社区的深厚关系是使我们能够在该环境中成功驾驭并蓬勃发展的几个关键因素之一。”

哈钦斯表示，在丹佛设有办事处的加拿大公司 Enerplus 在巴肯还剩下十多年的库存。其中包括该公司渴望尝试的一些新领域。

2021 年，Enerplus 通过收购 Little Knife、Murphy Creek 和 Williams 增强了其在北达科他州巴肯的地位。这三个领域的发展不如 FBIR 成熟，在开始大规模生产之前需要额外的设计元素，但哈钦斯表示，抵消结果很有希望。

“我们一直期待 2023 年，届时我们将能够首先展示我们拥有的土地的可行性和生产能力，”他说。“如果我们将面积图转化为库存，我们将拥有大约 655 个净剩余位置，我们将其定性为核心或扩展核心。”

Enerplus 巴肯概述
Enerplus 在北达科他州的 Bakken 区块包括 Berthold 堡印第安人保留地、Little Knife、Williams 和 Murphy Creek 的场地，总计约 236,000 英亩，在该州有 655 个净钻探地点。（来源：Enerplus）

Enerplus 被低估的提款机

哈钦斯指出，Enerplus 的 FBIR 和 Little Knife 的竞争力是为了对抗他所说的“巴肯未被充分认识的本质”。

尽管由于天然气价格下跌，马塞勒斯页岩的勘探与生产支出大幅减少，Enerplus 仍预计今年将产生 4.75 亿美元的“有竞争力的”自由现金流，基于 80 美元/桶 WTI 和 3 美元/百立方英尺 NYMEX。

哈钦斯表示，公司已承诺将至少 60% 的自由现金流返还给股东，在目前的情况下，管理层预计公司将在年底前基本摆脱债务。

部分原因在于该公司威利斯顿的库存。

根据 Enverus 对北美不同区块和子区块盈亏平衡的 WTI 油价排名，代表 Enerplus 巴肯钻井库存大部分的 FBIR 和 Little Knife 的油价高于特拉华盆地和米德兰盆地。

“在回报和盈亏平衡方面，ore Bakken、FBIR 和 Little Knife 在北美石油公司中非常有竞争力，”Hutchings 说。

巴肯 vs NA Plays
根据 Enverus 数据对北美各区块和子区块的盈亏平衡 WTI 油价进行排名，代表 Enerplus 巴肯钻井库存大部分的 FBIR 和 Little Knife 的 WTI 油价高于特拉华和米德兰。（来源：Enerplus）

Enerplus 预计 2023 年第二季度将在下半年实现强劲的石油增长。除了 FBIR 的一个新井和 Little Knife 的两个新井（这是他们在该地区的第一个井）外，他们还计划上线 19 至 22 个净作业井。

一切旧的又都是新的

除了新井和平台外，该公司还计划将第一套重复压裂投入生产，并最终计划进行 3 至 5 次重复压裂。Hutchings 表示，候选重复压裂来自 2021 年评估的一组油井。这些井几年前就已完工，但其采收率相对较低。哈钦斯认为，“这里”具有通过现代再刺激来提高恢复率的良好潜力。”

第二季度巴肯增长
Enerplus 计划在 2023 年第二季度上线 19-22 口井以及 3-5 口重复压裂。这包括 Little Knife 的前两个垫和 FBIR 的一个垫。（来源：Enerplus）

“对我们来说，对这个概念的可行性进行真正的测试非常重要，”哈钦斯说。“今天，我们在十多年的钻井库存中不包括重复压裂机会，但如果这些井成功，我们可以看到另外约 60 个创造额外价值的井重复压裂，我们可以将其添加到我们的库存中。”

原文链接/hartenergy

SUPER DUG: Enerplus Banks on ‘Underappreciated’ Bakken, Refracs

Enerplus COO Wade Hutchings expects the company to generate free cash flow of $475 million in 2023 with plans to launch refracturing efforts in the Bakken while easing down Marcellus Shale production.

Jennifer
Martinez
Hart Energy

FORT WORTH, Texas — Enerplus Corp.’s future is tied to the past — largely because the Williston Basin E&P’s past is predictable, profitable and its seemingly spent wells may yet have something left in the tank.

The company is opening up older wells, which originally underperformed, with plans to restimulate dozens of them on its Bakken leasehold, Enerplus COO Wade Hutchings said at Hart Energy’s recent SUPER DUG conference. And while the company will ratchet down activity in the Marcellus Shale while natural gas prices remain in the gutter, the company still expects to return plenty of free cash flow (FCF) to investors.

Roughly half of Enerplus’ 2023 completions programs are focused on the company’s legacy position in Fort Berthold Indian Reservation (FBIR), North Dakota, where management likes what they see: a development model that is “very mature, very well established,” Hutchings said.

Enerplus originally acquired the acreage almost 15 years ago and has thrived there despite a sometimes-complicated regulatory environment.

The regulatory and operating environment on FBIR is unique, with a sometimes-complex web of regulations at state, local and federal levels,” Hutchings said. “But our long commitment to the area and our deep relationships within the community are one of several keys that has given us the ability to successfully navigate and thrive in that environment.”

Hutchings said Enerplus, a Canadian company with offices in Denver, has more than a decade of inventory left in the Bakken. That includes some newer areas the company is itching to try out.

Enerplus augmented their North Dakota Bakken position in 2021 with the acquisition of Little Knife, Murphy Creek and Williams. These three areas are less developmentally mature than FBIR and require additional design elements before they start producing at capacity, but Hutchings says that the offset results are promising.

“We’ve been looking forward to 2023 when we will be able to first demonstrate the viability and productive capacity of the acreage that we have,” he said. “If we translate that acreage map into inventory, we have like 655 net remaining locations that we characterize as core or extended core.”

Enerplus Bakken Overview
Enerplus’ Bakken acreage in North Dakota includes sites on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, Little Knife, Williams and Murphy Creek, totaling about 236,000 acres and 655 net drilling locations in the state. (Source: Enerplus)

Enerplus’ underappreciated cash machine

Hutchings pointed out the competitiveness of Enerplus’ FBIR and Little Knife plays to counter what he called the “underappreciated nature of the Bakken.”

Despite significantly reduced E&P spending in the Marcellus Shale due to lower gas prices, Enerplus still expects to generate a “competitive” FCF of $475 million this year based on $80/bbl WTI and $3/Mcf NYMEX.

Hutchings said that the company has committed to returning at least 60% of that FCF to shareholders and, under current conditions, the management projects that the company will be essentially debt free by the end of the year.

Partly, that’s due to the company’s Williston inventory.

According to Enverus’ rankings of North American breakeven WTI oil prices in various plays and subplays, FBIR and Little Knife, which represent the majority of Enerplus’ Bakken drilling inventory, command a higher oil price than the Delaware and Midland basins.

“Core Bakken and FBIR and Little Knife are very competitive among North American oil plays in terms of returns and breakevens,” Hutchings said.

Bakken vs NA Plays
According to Enverus data ranking breakeven WTI oil prices of various plays and subplays in North America, FBIR and Little Knife, which represent the majority of Enerplus’ Bakken drilling inventory, have a higher WTI oil price than the Delaware and Midland. (Source: Enerplus)

Enerplus expects second-quarter 2023 to set up strong oil growth in the second half of the year. They plan to bring online 19 to 22 net operated wells in addition to a new pad in FBIR and two new pads in Little Knife — their first in the area.

Everything old is new again

In addition to the new wells and pads, the company also plans to bring online their first set of refracs on production and eventually are planning for 3 to 5 refracs. The refrac candidates came from a pool of wells that were evaluated in 2021, Hutchings said. The wells were completed years ago but they were determined to have relatively low recoveries. Hutchings believes that “there’s good potential to increase those recoveries with modern restimulation.”

Q2 Bakken Growth
Enerplus plans to bring online 19-22 wells, as well as 3-5 refracs, in the second quarter of 2023. This includes the first two pads in Little Knife and one pad in FBIR. (Source: Enerplus)

“That's really important for us to get a true test of the viability of that concept,” Hutchings said. “Today, we don't include refrac opportunities in our decade-plus drilling inventory, but if these wells are successful, we could see another approximately 60 additional value created well refracs that we can add to our inventory.”