BENTEK Top Stories

01/22/2015 –
Northeast Observer

Antero expecting production growth in 2015 despite lower prices

Antero Resources announced plans to make cuts to capex in 2015, reducing it by 33% compared wit 2014. However, despite the cuts, Antero expects to grow year-over-year production, which is in line with Bentek's expectation for the entire Northeast. Antero has plans to operate 14 rigs between the Marcellus and Utica plays in 2015, down from 21 at the end of 2014. According to Bentek's Northeast Oil and Gas Production Monitor, there are currently 95 active rigs in the Wet Marcellus and Utica, of which Antero possesses the most rigs with 15. Antero also announced it plans to complete 130 horizontal wells in 2015, down from 179 in 2014. Although a lower price environment has incentivized capex and rig reductions, Bentek expects Northeast production to continue to grow in 2015, paced by a backlog of wells that is just shy of 2000 between the dry and wet windows of the Northeast. Bentek's latest Northeast Market Call report expects production to grow 3.5 Bcf/d in 2015 to 20 Bcf/d.