The Barnett Shale in North Texas is one of many tight shale plays across the country, however, over the last two years the Newark East (Barnett Shale) field has been the most active field in the United States. With an average of 35 drilling rigs running in the Fort Worth Basin, over 2000 wells have been drilled in Wise, Denton, and Tarrant counties for the ultra tight gas. The Barnett Shale is present in most of North Texas and has been tested in more than 12 counties by more than 50 operators.

How has the Barnett Shale play developed from a 1 rig uneconomic program to a stable, growing, gas producing field? Why has the light sand stimulation technology developed by Mitchell Energy been so successful here? Using microseismic and tiltmeter technology, an insight to the complexity and geometry of the created fracture is developed. Potentially some of the reasons why the LSFs are so successful are addressed as well.

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