What's in Whiting's and Noble Energy's Secret Sauce?

The Niobrara formation has given energy companies a mixed bag of results so far. There have been failures like EOG Resources and Ultra Petroleum , which have both turned their attentions elsewhere because of less-than-stellar well performance. On the other hand, both Whiting Petroleum and Noble Energy have seen stellar returns on their acreage in the northeast part of Colorado. Whiting CEO James Volker has gone on record to say that Whiting can double its current size based on its acreage in the Niobrara formation alone.

So what does Noble and Whiting have that EOG and Ultra didn't? Like many of the shale formations in the U.S., it's all about location. Both Whiting and Noble eschewed the more traditional Wartenburg part of the Niobrara in Central Colorado and headed to the Northeast in what Whiting is calling the Redtail prospect. Tune into the video below to find out what makes this part of the play more attractive than those EOG and Ultra have given up on.

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The article What's in Whiting's and Noble Energy's Secret Sauce? originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Tyler Crowe has no position in any stocks mentioned. You can follow him at Fool.com under the handle TMFDirtyBird, on Google +, or on Twitter @TylerCroweFool. The Motley Fool recommends and owns shares of Ultra Petroleum. It also owns shares of EOG Resources and has the following options on Ultra Petroleum: long January 2014 $30 calls, long January 2014 $40 calls, and long January 2014 $50 calls. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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