Oklahoma is in the heart of the U.S. Mid-Continent oil region that had 620 wells drilled in 2021. The U.S. Mid-Continent oil region is a vast oil- and natural gas-producing area that also encompasses Kansas, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, and New Mexico and is flanked by the Mississippi River to the east and the Rocky Mountain states to the west.
Oklahoma’s proved natural gas reserves are the fifth-largest in the nation, after Texas, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Louisiana. The state has 7% of the nation’s total proved reserves and contains all or part of 14 of the 100 largest U.S. natural gas fields as measured by proved reserves.
Oklahoma has about 5% of the nation’s proved crude oil reserves. Between 2007 and 2019, the state’s proved crude oil reserves more than quadrupled. In 2020, Oklahoma was the fourth-largest oil producer among the states and accounted for 4% of the nation’s total annual crude oil production.
Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC), headquartered in Oklahoma City, was created to ensure responsible development of crude oil resources through the coordinated efforts of oil-producing states. The voluntary IOGCC has grown from an association of 6 oil-producing member-states in 1935 to 31 member-states and 7 associate member-states in 2021.
Oklahoma Wells Drilled 2021 Permit Report
Wells Drilled Oklahoma 2021 Map
Oklahoma Wells Drilled 2021 by Top 50 Operators
| Operators | Wells Drilled 2021 |
| OVINTIV USA INC. | 72 |
| Continental Resources | 57 |
| CITIZEN ENERGY III LLC | 55 |
| Devon Energy Corporation | 29 |
| CAMINO NATURAL RESOURCES LLC | 24 |
| HINKLE OIL & GAS INC | 20 |
| Marathon Oil Corporation | 13 |
| Mewbourne Oil Company | 13 |
| XTO Energy Inc. | 12 |
| KODIAK OIL & GAS INC | 11 |
| REACH OIL AND GAS COMPANY INC | 11 |
| TRAVIS PEAK RESOURCES LLC | 11 |
| CALYX ENERGY III LLC | 9 |
| GULFPORT MIDCON LLC | 9 |
| Mack Energy Co. | 9 |
| RED BLUFF RESOURCES OPERATING LLC | 9 |
| REVOLUTION RESOURCES LLC | 9 |
| Chaparral Energy, L.L.C. | 8 |
| WFD OIL CORPORATION | 8 |
| CANYON CREEK ENERGY ARKOMA LLC | 7 |
| CPRP SERVICES LLC | 7 |
| Stephens & Johnson Operating Co. | 7 |
| Tapstone Energy, LLC | 7 |
| TRINITY OPERATING (USG), LLC | 7 |
| CRAWLEY PETROLEUM CORPORATION | 6 |
| FULCRUM EXPLORATION LLC | 6 |
| PALOMA OPERATING CO INC | 6 |
| TRANS PACIFIC OIL CORPORATION | 6 |
| Cheyenne Petroleum Company Limited Partnership | 5 |
| Citation Oil & Gas Corp. | 5 |
| COMANCHE EXPLORATION CO LLC | 5 |
| Coterra Energy | 5 |
| GLB EXPLORATION INC | 5 |
| Sanguine Gas Exploration, L.L.C. | 5 |
| STAGHORN PETROLEUM II LLC | 5 |
| BCE-MACH LLC | 4 |
| Eog Resources, Inc. | 4 |
| KIRKPATRICK OIL COMPANY INC | 4 |
| OKLAND OIL COMPANY | 4 |
| PRAIRIE GAS COMPANY OF OKLAHOMA LLC | 4 |
| AC OPERATING COMPANY LLC | 3 |
| Banner Oil & Gas, LLC | 3 |
| BLAKE PRODUCTION COMPANY INC | 3 |
| Breitburn Operating L.P. | 3 |
| E2 OPERATING LLC | 3 |
| HOGBACK EXPLORATION INC | 3 |
| JONES, L. E. OPERATING, INC | 3 |
| PABLO ENERGY II LLC | 3 |
| REVOLUTION OPERATING | 3 |
| ROX EXPLORATION INC | 3 |
Oklahoma Wells Drilled 2021 by Top 30 Counties
| County | Wells Drilled 2021 |
| CANADIAN | 89 |
| KINGFISHER | 83 |
| GRADY | 74 |
| CARTER | 39 |
| BLAINE | 34 |
| MCCLAIN | 23 |
| GARVIN | 21 |
| STEPHENS | 20 |
| CREEK | 15 |
| HUGHES | 14 |
| LOVE | 14 |
| MAJOR | 14 |
| OKLAHOMA | 13 |
| SEMINOLE | 13 |
| DEWEY | 12 |
| ELLIS | 11 |
| COAL | 10 |
| CUSTER | 8 |
| PITTSBURG | 7 |
| JACKSON | 6 |
| KAY | 6 |
| ALFALFA | 5 |
| CADDO | 5 |
| NOBLE | 5 |
| POTTAWATOMIE | 5 |
| BECKHAM | 4 |
| CIMARRON | 4 |
| LOGAN | 4 |
| OKMULGEE | 4 |
| PONTOTOC | 4 |
| TEXAS | 4 |
Oklahoma Wells Drilled in 2021 by Drilling Contractor
| Drilling Contractor | Wells Drilled 2021 |
| Helmerich & Payne, Inc. | 115 |
| Power Rig, LLC | 63 |
| Cactus Drilling Company, LLC | 48 |
| Patterson-UTI Drilling Company, LLC | 43 |
| Unit Drilling Company | 42 |
| Atlas Drilling, LLC | 35 |
| Dan D Drilling Corporation | 32 |
| Cyclone Drilling, Inc. | 30 |
| Latshaw Drilling & Exploration Company | 20 |
| Kenai Drilling, Ltd. | 11 |
| United Energy Drilling, Inc | 11 |
| Nabors Industries, Ltd. | 10 |
| Duke Drilling Co., Inc | 7 |
| HWH DRILLING, LLC | 5 |
| L. E. Jones Drilling LLC | 4 |
| Quest Drilling Services, LLC | 4 |
| Ada Energy Services, LLC | 3 |
| Precision Drilling Corporation | 3 |
| Scandrill | 3 |
| Steinberger Drilling Company, Ltd. | 2 |
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