Independent energy producer Goodrich Petroleum Corp. said Monday that it has acquired about 74,000 acres in leases in the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale, an oil-rich formation that straddles the middle of Louisiana and part of southwest Mississippi.
Houston-based Goodrich said it paid $13 million, or about $175 per acre.
Goodrich already is a major player in Haynesville Shale natural gas find in northwestern Louisiana and the Cotton Valley Trend, another gas find in eastern Texas. In April, the company obtained 35,000 acres in the Eagle Ford Shale of southern Texas, which is considered to potentially lucrative for both oil and natural gas.
The Tuscaloosa Marine Shale has been drawing more interest from petroleum explorers with rising oil prices and largely flat natural gas prices. Louisiana State University researchers have estimated that the Tuscaloosa holds 7 billion barrels of oil.
Oklahoma City-based Devon Energy Corp. has leased about 250,000 acres in the region and plans to drill two wells this year.
Dallas-based Denbury Resources Inc. announced a joint venture last month with an undisclosed partner to complete one well and drill another in the Tuscaloosa.
A third independent, Amelia Resources LLC, of The Woodlands, Texas, has signed a deal with an undisclosed partner to develop about 110 acres Amelia has under lease in the Tuscaloosa.
