Haynesville Shale pure-play Comstock Resources is focused on drilling optimizations, larger lateral designs and midstream partnerships to manage development costs as lower natural gas prices persist.
Production was up 16% sequentially at 1.2 Bcfe/d in the second quarter and up slightly on last year’s second quarter, supported by output from both its legacy and Western Haynesville plays. Management said lower benchmark natural gas prices squeezed margins, resulting in an average realized gas price of $2.54/Mcf before hedging.
Management said, however, there was significant progress in driving down operational and drilling and completion costs.
Efficiency gains were from expanded adoption of rotary steerable technology and “horseshoe” well designs.
In the emerging, deeper Western Haynesville play, second quarter drilling costs rose due to severe downhole temperatures and steering challenges. However, management expects costs to decline through new technical approaches, including big-hole long laterals and high-temperature drilling motors.
CEO Jay Allison said the Western Haynesville would be key to meeting future demand. He said “we are, as a group, as an oil and gas sector, we are trying to de-risk because we do need another major gas field in Texas, near the LNG corridor, near the data center demand. I think we're going to deliver that.”
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The emerging Western Haynesville in East Texas is seen helping to meet gaps in Gulf Coast natural gas supplies in the coming years, according to Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. The firm expects supply growth of 4 Bcf/d from the Western Haynesville by 2040.
Analysts have warned, however, that the play would need higher prices to sustain drilling costs.
The Western Haynesville would “also serve the recently announced Texas Power Generation Hub in Anderson County, Texas,” Allison said. Management previously said the company could supply up to 1 Bcf/d of natural gas by 2031 to the 5.2 GW data center project.
In the Western Haynesville, four rigs are active and the company plans to drill 22 wells and turn 21 to sales in 2026. In the legacy Haynesville, Comstock has five rigs active and plans to drill 48 wells and turn 48 to sales in 2026, including 17 horseshoe completions.
Net income was $15 million in the quarter, down from $130 million in 2Q2025.