Italian energy firm, Eni SpA (E) said Tuesday it has signed an agreement with Quicksilver Resources Inc. (KWK) to explore and develop onshore unconventional oil reservoirs in the U.S.
Italian energy firm, Eni SpA (E) said Tuesday it has signed an agreement
with Quicksilver Resources Inc. (KWK) to explore and develop onshore
unconventional oil reservoirs in the U.S.
The deal will help Eni gain a bigger foothold in an industry that has
revolutionized the U.S. energy market due to abundant hydrocarbon supplies.
As part of the contract, Quicksilver and Eni will jointly evaluate, explore and
develop onshore shale oil, the Rome-based company said in a statement. Eni will
have half a stake in two Quicksilver acreages in the
Leon
Valley
, in
the
West Texas
county
of
Pecos
.
Eni said it will pay $52 million for the acreages.
The
Leon
Valley
is
located in the
Delaware
Basin
,
where current daily production is almost 500,000 barrels of oil equivalent from
conventional and unconventional reservoirs. Eni said it is estimated that
output from the
Delaware
Basin
will
double within five years.
The Italian energy firm is a relatively small player in the shale gas and oil
boom although it is planning to expand into the untapped Chinese market and is
looking to develop its prospects in
Algeria
.
Hydraulic fracturing--also known as fracking, a technique in which water,
chemicals and sand are injected at high pressure to fragment rock and release the
hydrocarbon trapped inside--has enabled companies to tap unconventional
resources that would have been unprofitable to extract with previous
techniques.
Tuesday's deal between Eni and the Fort Worth, Texas-based company follows a
2009 accord in which the Italian firm spent $280 million on a 27.5% stake in a
Quicksilver acreage covering the Barnett Shale, one of the first areas that
lead to the unconventional natural gas boom in the U.S.
Eni said its current daily production in the U.S. exceeds 90,000 BOE.
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