Chesapeake Puts Out Another For Sale Sign

Natural gas producer Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) has listed for sale leases on 28,360 net acres of its Granite Wash play in western Oklahoma. According to the listing, the company has drilled a total of 117 wells in the play, which includes producing zones in the Des Moines Granite Wash, Hogshooter Wash, Cottage Grove, Red Fork, Atoka, and Morrow areas.

According to the listing at Meagher Energy Advisors' website:

Chesapeake is offering this unique exploration and development opportunity because its current drilling budget is not sufficient to fully develop its leasehold in this area.

In June, Chesapeake CEO Aubrey McClendon said the company's discovery in Hogshooter Wash would have a "transformational effect" on the company' performance. A well in play yielded average daily production of 5,400 barrels of oil, 1,200 barrels of natural gas liquids, and 4.6 million cubic feet of natural gas, for a grand total of about 7,350 barrels of oil equivalent in its first eight days of operation. The assets for sale do not include any of the company's drilling sites in Hogshooter Wash.

Chesapeake's shares are up about 4.5% today at $20.22 in a 52-week range of $13.32 to $ 29.87.

Paul Ausick