In today’s Permian Basin, drilling success is no longer defined by isolated wells or individual rigs — it is defined by repeatability.
Exxon’s development of the RICHARDS-GRISHAM lease in Martin County, Texas provides a clear, data-driven example of how large operators have transitioned to a factory-style manufacturing model, where permitting, drilling, facilities, and completions operate on a predictable cadence.
By analyzing permit filings, drilling activity, air permit timing, and subsurface design, a consistent development blueprint emerges — one that can now be used to forecast future activity on adjacent acreage such as the EPLEY-GLASSCOCK lease within the same block.
Step 1–2: Permitting Establishes the Factory Clock
The RICHARDS-GRISHAM development consists of twelve horizontal wells permitted within a highly compressed timeframe.
- First license date: October 16, 2025
- Last license date: October 23, 2025
- Permit window: 7 days
- Average license date: October 17, 2025
This tight approval window confirms the project was designed as a single pad development, not a series of incremental drilling decisions.
In Exxon’s factory model, the average license date becomes Day 0 — the starting point for predictable execution.
Step 3: Drilling Execution Follows a Repeatable Pattern
Drilling activity began roughly two and a half months after permits were approved:
- First activity date: December 30, 2025
- Last activity date: January 21, 2026
- Total drilling window: 22 days
- Average drilling pace: ~2.4 days per well
Ten of the twelve wells were drilled during this window, with two permits remaining undrilled at the time of reporting.
This cadence reflects a classic walking-rig manufacturing approach:
- Continuous operations
- Minimal downtime
- High-spec rig utilization
- Predictable spud spacing
Once drilling begins, the factory line is effectively “on.”
Step 4: Completions Lag — By Design
At the time of analysis:
- No completed well dates had yet been reported
This is not a delay — it is intentional.
In large-scale Permian development, completions and regulatory reporting typically trail drilling by 30–90 days, allowing operators to:
- Batch frac multiple wells simultaneously
- Optimize sand, water, and logistics
- Align facilities readiness with flowback
The absence of completion dates confirms the project is positioned between drilling execution and frac deployment.
Step 5: Facilities Timing Confirms Production Intent
Surface infrastructure provides one of the most reliable cadence signals.
For RICHARDS-GRISHAM:
- Tank battery air permit received: January 20, 2026
This occurred:
- ~21 days after drilling began
- One day before final drilling activity concluded
This timing is critical. It signals the moment Exxon transitions from drilling execution to production readiness — when volumes, pad design, and flowback requirements are sufficiently defined to permit permanent facilities.
Step 6–8: Surface Location Persona
The surface footprint reinforces the factory model.
Geographic concentration
- County: Martin County, Texas
- Block: 36T1N
- Abstract: 913
- Section: 24
All twelve permits are confined to a single surveyed section, eliminating infrastructure sprawl and enabling centralized facilities.
Lease structure
Each well carries a distinct lease designation (24A–24L), yet all originate from the same surface development — a naming convention that reflects lateral organization rather than physical separation.
Play identification
- Permian Basin — Midland Basin
- Spraberry Trend Area (core fairway)
This is not frontier acreage; it is premium, fully delineated inventory.
Step 9: Sub-Surface Persona — Manufacturing, Not Exploration
The subsurface data removes any ambiguity.
- Field: Spraberry (Trend Area)
- Drilling operation: 100% horizontal
- Substance: Oil or gas well
- Projected depth:
- Min: 10,240 ft
- Max: 10,240 ft
- Average: 10,240 ft
- Total footage drilled: 122,880 ft
Every well shares the exact same projected depth.
This uniformity indicates:
- Single landing zone
- No pilot wells
- No bench switching
- No geological testing
Importantly, there is no evidence of multi-bench co-development.
True co-development would exhibit depth variance across Upper Spraberry, Lower Spraberry, and Wolfcamp targets — which is absent here.
Instead, RICHARDS-GRISHAM represents single-bench batch development executed at scale.
Factory Prediction: EPLEY-GLASSCOCK
With RICHARDS-GRISHAM establishing the template, development on the adjacent EPLEY-GLASSCOCK lease can be forecast with high confidence.
Because it shares:
- The same block (36T1N)
- The same geological setting
- The same operator
- The same surface layout logic
Exxon is unlikely to alter a proven formula mid-block.
Predicted EPLEY-GLASSCOCK Sub-Surface Persona
- Field: Spraberry Trend Area
- Well type: Horizontal
- Projected depth: ~10,200–10,300 ft
- Bench strategy: Single bench
- Co-development: No
- Development style: Manufacturing mode
Expected well geometry, drilling cadence, facilities timing, and completion sequencing should closely mirror RICHARDS-GRISHAM.
Bottom Line
The RICHARDS-GRISHAM lease illustrates how Exxon has transformed Permian development into an industrial process:
- Tight permit batching
- Predictable drill timing
- Early facilities submission
- Uniform subsurface design
- Repeatable execution
This factory approach removes uncertainty from both capital deployment and development timing.
As a result, EPLEY-GLASSCOCK is not a geological question — it is a scheduling one.
The subsurface has already been answered.
What remains is simply when the next factory line starts.
