Hilcorp Plans to Drill 3 Wells in Columbiana

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Houston-based Hilcorp Energy Co. has applied for three new permits for horizontal wells in Columbiana County, the first interest the company has shown in developing new wells in the Utica this year, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

Hilcorp has applied for three well permits in Elk Run Township, all of them at the Elk Run-Scheel well site along state Route 517, ODNR records show.

Hilcorp is among the few energy companies still prospecting the northern Utica, which encompasses Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties in Ohio, and neighboring Lawrence and Mercer counties in western Pennsylvania.

Hilcorp’s applications are not yet approved.

Last week, ODNR issued 10 new permits for horizontal wells across Ohio’s Utica. Gulfport Buckeye LLC received four permits in Belmont County, Ascent Resources was awarded three permits in Jefferson County, R. E. Gas Development secured two permits for wells in Carroll County, while Eclipse Resources LP secured a single permit for a well in Guernsey County.

As of May 20, the rig count in the Utica stood at 24, one rig more than a week earlier. To date, 2,515 permits have been issued in Ohio’s Utica, according to ODNR.

Meantime, the number of wells drilled across the Utica has surpassed the 2,000 mark. As of last week, 2,005 horizontal wells were drilled in the Utica and 1,558 of those are in production, ODNR reported.

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.