Devon

Devon Energy Corp. expects to achieve 14% more production this year than it did in 2013, a 3% higher forecast from a few months ago, after surpassing expectations from Texas oilfields during the third quarter.

Devon Energy Corp. in the final three months of 2013 increased proved oil reserves to the highest level ever in company history — mostly on results from the Permian Basin — and turned around year-ago losses to profits.

Devon Energy Corp. on Wednesday renewed its onshore North American exploration portfolio, dancing away from the one that brought it to the dance — unconventional natural gas — to marry crude oil, a big reason it agreed to spend $6 billion for oily land in the Eagle Ford Shale.

The Tuscaloosa Marine Shale (TMS) in Mississippi and Louisiana has the potential to “become the next best thing in U.S. oil production” due to its proximity to pipelines and refineries on the Gulf Coast, but exploration and production (E&P) companies will need to overcome the play’s challenges to be successful, according to a consultant.

After stumbling through some rough quarters as it reworked the portfolio toward North America’s unconventionals, Devon Energy Corp. this week reported improved profitability in the third quarter, and management said the gains offer opportunities that could provide the next leg of high margin growth.

Devon Energy Corp. has agreed to throw in an estimated $4.8 billion of U.S. midstream assets in Texas and Oklahoma and 800,000 net acres to form a partnership with Crosstex Energy Inc.’s assets in the Marcellus, Utica, Barnett, Eagle Ford and Haynesville shales, Permian Basin and the Gulf Coast, to create a fee-based service that initially would extend 7,300 miles and offer 3.3 Bcf/d net capacity.

Strong growth in oil production — especially in the Permian Basin — propelled Devon Energy Corp. to record the highest average daily production rate in its history during the second quarter of 2013, as the company also saw positive test results in the Woodford Shale.

A study of Barnett Shale region water wells has found elevated levels of heavy metals near natural gas extraction sites, but a link to drilling/production activity has not been determined and may not be, researchers from the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) said.

Enterprise Products Partners is considering repurposing a portion of its 1,373-mile Seminole pipeline, which currently transports natural gas liquids (NGL) from the Hobbs hub and the Permian Basin to markets in south Texas, including the Enterprise NGL fractionation facility in Mont Belvieu, TX.