There are plenty of reasons a shale well may be drilled, but not completed and producing, according to Farm and Dairy.

• The well’s operator could be waiting for a pipeline to be connected, a crew to complete it or better markets.
• Maybe the well was drilled to hold a lease and never put into production.
• Maybe it was a test well.

Any new well that’s been drilled, but has not been fracked, is considered a drilled but uncompleted well. There’s value in tracking these wells as they are an indicator of the overall economic health of the oil and gas producers and the future production potential in a shale play. When the market is favorable, operators turn to these wells to quickly put more wells into production.

Find more information on drilled but uncompleted wells in the Appalachian Basin here.

Learn more: Farm and Dairy > They’ve drilled a well on my property, but never finished it. Why?