Drilling Tool Rentals & Sales in Eagle Ford Shale

Drilling activity in the Eagle Ford

The Eagle Ford Shale stretches in a broad arc across South Texas, southeast of the San Antonio line, and is unusual for producing across three distinct hydrocarbon windows — a shallow-updip oil zone, a middle condensate (wet gas) zone, and a deeper dry gas zone downdip. That zonation lets operators target different products from the same regional play depending on depth and thermal maturity. The formation is a carbonate-rich shale that fractures well, making it a prolific unconventional target.

Development is led by operators including EOG Resources, ConocoPhillips and Marathon Oil, with a mature service infrastructure and short haul distances that support some of the fastest cycle times in U.S. unconventional drilling. Most activity is pad-based development and infill drilling with horizontal laterals commonly in the one-and-a-half to two-and-a-half mile range.

What that means for the drill string

Eagle Ford laterals put a premium on torque and drag management, so 5” and 5½” S-135 drill pipe is the standard workhorse, usually run with heavy-weight drill pipe to add weight-on-bit and smooth the transition into the horizontal section. Directional BHAs use non-magnetic drill collars to isolate MWD tools, along with stabilizers and jars. Fast cycle times mean tubular availability and quick turnaround are what keep a program on schedule.

• Drill pipe — 5” and 5½” S-135 for horizontal laterals
• Heavy-weight drill pipe — for the transition zone
• BHA components — stabilizers and subs for the directional assembly
• Fishing tools — overshots, jars and mills for stuck-pipe recovery

Logistics and standards

The Eagle Ford runs in imperial units with tubulars inspected to API manufacturing specifications and DS-1 used-pipe categories, under Texas Railroad Commission oversight. Drillstrings works through regional partners to inspect, serialize and truck tools to the pad quickly, taking advantage of the dense South Texas service base. Sour-service (NACE MR0175) material is available for intervals that require it — see our sour-service tubulars guide.

Whether you’re spudding a new pad or recovering from downhole trouble on the critical path, send us your string and we’ll quote within the hour.