SilverBow Resources has put a horseshoe lateral in South Texas’ Austin Chalk, turning a one-miler around for a total 8,900-foot, U-shaped hole, it reported Wednesday.

The U lateral is the Chalk's first, according to Enverus data, while other operators have made U laterals in the underlying Eagle Ford formation, Jeff Magids, SilverBow vice president of finance and investor relations, told Hart Energy.

The well, in Live Oak County, Texas, came in with a 25% lower price tag than two one-mile wells, the company reported.

An IP rate wasn’t reported. 

The well, HP Chapman 201H, is in northwestern Live Oak near its border with Atascosa and McMullen counties at the intersection of the Eagle Ford’s volatile oil and condensate phases.

“The successful … approach will be deployed to develop additional targets in the immediate area,” SilverBow reported.

SilverBow has identified more than 30 locations in “complex, stranded acreage configurations” where the U shape may “unlock potential significant value,” it added.

Among them, seven are planned in the area of HP Chapman 201H.

SilverBow Horseshoe well graphic
SilverBow has identified additional candidates for a U-shaped well in the area of its first. (Source: SilverBow Resources)