Mark G. Papa: The differentials will play a part of it but we are assuming that when Rockies Express starts up there is not a huge basis flow out between the Rockies and the rest of the country. We are saying that if Henry Hub is $8 or $7 depending on the case that we are assuming some differentials between there and Rockies and Canada and so on and so forth but everything is predicated on the Henry Hub numbers.
Joe Allman (JP Morgan): If you get a spike in prices you will hedge some more and then you might be in a midpoint of the 13% or 17% increase. Is that correct?
Mark G. Papa: Yes. If gas prices are $7.50 we would do 15% production growth.
Joe Allman (JP Morgan): What are you pursuing in your Northwest territories?
Loren M. Leiker: Northwest territories was not a shale play at all. It is more of a conventional structural play involving Paleozoic carbonate reservoirs, and Paleozoic shale source rocks in conventional trusted traps. We drilled a total of about four wells out there; found two traps one gas, oil one plus common well. We appraised one of those and felt like the results were not sufficient to make us go forward.
Joe Allman (JP Morgan): Are there other plays in Canada or West Texas?
Mark G. Papa: There are none in Canada. There is one play which is heavily competitive vis-ŕ-vis acreage. We are not going to comment on it. On West Texas we did announce on last quarter earnings call that we had exited from the Culberson county play which was a much hype play. We have no position in Culberson County.
Joe Allman (JP Morgan): Do you plan any basis hedges at this point for 2008?
Mark G. Papa: No, we have no basis hedge taking place.
Joseph Magner (Tristone Capital): There is a need for a gas gathering system in Bakken. Is there a gathering system plan and if so when will that be complete?
Mark G. Papa: There is not a gas gathering system in place. We are building our own gas gathering system and it should be in place by the end of this year. It is not curtailing any current production right now and the gas should be going for sales by the end of the year.
Joseph Magner (Tristone Capital): Could you comment on full production growth estimates factor that completion in for next year?
Mark G. Papa: Not that much. It is called casing gas. It is just a gas like 2 million to 3 million cubic feet a day. It will contribute but that is factored into our 2008 production growth estimate, it will contribute some natural gas liquids and natural gas.
Joseph Magner (Tristone Capital): On the Barnett there were a couple of pipelines that were expected in the southern and western extension areas, are those complete or what is the timing and what impact will those have on the Barnett activity next year?
Gary L. Thomas: They are going to be in place for us next year. We got waste pipeline procuring gas through it. We are expanding it and the Hill county or South extension will be completed there next year.
Richard Tullis (Capital One Southcoast): Could you review the shut-ins?
Mark G. Papa: The shut-ins are for the months of September, October and the first half of November. We have had or we will have on a daily basis between 50 million and 140 million net cubic per day curtailed in the Rockies because of this whole gas price. The effect of that if you look at our actual production for the third quarter in U.S. gas, and the guidance that we have given for the fourth quarter in U.S. gas, the numbers are lower than any other fourth quarter guidance we had previously issued. We are currently estimating 10.5% production growth, whereas we have previously indicated 11.5% production growth, and 100% of that 1% lower production growth is due to the production curtailment we have voluntary done in the Rockies due to low gas prices.
Richard Tullis (Capital One Southcoast): In the Bakken you are planning to run 8 rigs starting early 2008. Do you have any plans to expand that higher particularly as the expansion play continues and given the higher crude prices?
Mark G. Papa: It is possible in the second half of 2008 that we could step it out another rig or two. It will depend on the stepout drilling that we do. Most of those 8 rigs we will be drilling in that box that we described which is 20 mile long, but 7 mile wide, sweet spot that we have now well defined. We will be drilling some stepout wells, particularly in the fourth quarter and first quarter next year trying to expand that box to make it bigger. If we successfully make that box bigger, it is possible in the second half 2008 that we will ramp up drilling more. |