What Diamondback’s 2025 drilling footprint really tells us
In the Permian Basin, Diamondback’s conversation has shifted. The next advantage isn’t about drilling faster or chasing the hottest single bench — it’s about how entire sections are developed. One phrase that keeps coming up in executive commentary is “co-developing, not just select benches.”
That phrase sounds technical, but the strategy behind it is simple — and powerful.
What co-developing actually means
Traditionally, Permian operators would cherry-pick the best bench (say Wolfcamp A or Lower Spraberry), drill it hard, and leave the rest of the stack for later. That approach optimized single-well returns, but it often came at a cost: pressure depletion, frac interference, and weaker performance for future wells.
Co-development flips that model.
Instead of developing one bench at a time, operators develop multiple benches together — Upper, Middle, and Lower Spraberry alongside Wolfcamp A/B (and increasingly additional zones) — within the same drilling window and surface footprint. The objective is no longer the best well on the pad, but the highest value per section (DSU).
The benefits are structural:
- Fewer child-well penalties
- Shared infrastructure and pads
- Shorter cycle times
- More recoverable oil per acre
- Lower capital required to hold production flat
In other words, co-development is how shale becomes manufacturing.
Why Diamondback is a clean example
Diamondback has been explicit that all zones in the Midland Basin are now co-developed, not selectively drilled. That strategy requires three things: contiguous acreage, confidence in the full vertical stack, and disciplined execution. Their 2025 drilling data shows exactly where that model is being applied.
Diamondback Energy — Wells Drilled (U.S. 2025)
Grouped by Basin (County-based)
| Basin | Wells Drilled |
|---|---|
| Midland Basin | 359 |
| Central Basin Platform | 208 |
| Delaware Basin | 1 |
| Other / Non-Core | 1 |
| Total | 569 |
What the basin mix tells us
This is not a diversified Permian program — it’s a deliberately concentrated one.
- Midland Basin (63%)
This is where co-development shines. Consistent geology, stacked pay, and large contiguous blocks allow Diamondback to develop entire DSUs at once and maximize value per section. - Central Basin Platform (37%)
Often misunderstood as secondary acreage, the Central Basin Platform in practice supports the same manufacturing model — helping Diamondback maintain production with lower capital intensity. - Delaware Basin (effectively zero)
The lack of activity here is intentional. Delaware inventory exists, but it sits lower in the development stack and doesn’t compete for capital against Midland-style full-section returns.
The bigger takeaway
Co-development isn’t about drilling more wells — it’s about ending the future tax that selective development creates. By developing the full vertical stack today, operators like Diamondback are:
- Reducing reinvestment rates
- Improving capital efficiency
- Extending inventory life without relying on price inflation
- Turning shale from a growth business into a durable cash-flow machine
In a market where capital discipline matters more than ever, co-development is quickly becoming the dividing line between operators who manage decline and those who compound value.
