From his home in Giddings, Texas, in the heart of the Eagle Ford play, geologist Ray Holifield has a unique vantage point. He has been drilling in South Texas since the 1970s, primarily for the Austin Chalk, and he has been a leader in each of the booms seen in the Chalk since then. He was one of the very first practitioners of horizontal drilling there.

In 1987, he and Bechtel created Becfield Horizontal Drilling Services Co., which developed many of the tools now used to re-enter medium-radius horizontal wells. In fact, the company drilled the world's first horizontal re-entry well, in the Austin Chalk in Fayette County. Becfield began consulting all over the world and Holifield worked in Russia, Colombia and the Middle East. At one time he had two oilfields in Russia and more than 85 wells there.

Today Holifield is still riding the Austin Chalk to success, but now he's adding the Eagle Ford and Buda formations to his plate. As president and chief executive of Holifield Energy Co., he oversees about 20 employees and relies on outside consultants liberally as well. But at age 76, his main love—generating prospects and drilling them—has not waned. “There's nothing like the Austin Chalk and Eagle Ford,” he says, claiming he still has a 20-year business plan ahead of him, focused on the two plays.

Investor Were you surprised by the rapid rise of the Eagle Ford?

Holifield Yes, I couldn't believe it! We used to get gas kicks when drilling right through it to the Austin Chalk, and it wasn't commercial back then. This was an absolute shock, but horizontal drilling and fracturing have made all the difference.

Investor Are you still experimenting with horizontal techniques?

Holifield No; I don't need to. My specialty is re-entry short-radius wells above 3,000 feet, and they do so well there's no need to experiment. These are lower-risk wells in the Chalk. Giddings Field is not over with—the field is expanding by going deeper. It's got good porosity, good faulting. In central Lee County, where I concentrate, the Chalk is almost 800 feet thick, then below that is the Eagle Ford and below that, the Buda.

My database in the Chalk is so complete, and I've been working here for so long, I can just work up a prospect in a few days, where it might take other people weeks and weeks.

Investor Is this Eagle Ford activity level sustainable?

Holifield Yes, for sure; it will go another 20 years. I have no reason to believe I won't be working on it in 10 years. I am really sky-high on the Eagle Ford; I like the results we're seeing there. In Gonzalez County, I have seen some spectacular Eagle Ford results. I have small interests in many wells covering much potential Eagle Ford acreage. Now I'm able to work on my own projects, and someone else in the joint venture works on the operations side.

I'm still generating prospects. I've been at this for so long and I have so many in my head, that my projects and ideas are basically unlimited. I just go do it. But multiple parties all have input to a project. I love geology and I still work 80 hours a week, even though I try to have more joint ventures with other people. Part of my problem has always been that I'm a workaholic, but when you work a lot of long hours, good things do come your way.

Investor What advice would you give to a budding young geologist?

Holifield I've made a lot of oil wells in my career, and I can say that when you do find oil, your career is much more pleasant!

As for advice, I would say, Make sure you don't make any mistakes. I think people tend to rush these days and have sloppy work habits. I tell people to work something over and over and over again. You're going to make dry holes sometimes anyway, no matter what you do, but don't let that happen because you did sloppy work. You've got to work hard and if something doesn't make sense, sometimes you have to make your best guess and just go for it. At some point you've got to make a decision and go for it—get the lease, get the rig, get the people.

Investor Given your experience in South Texas, what is your thinking about the Buda formation?

Holifield It's there but it doesn't have the porosity the Austin Chalk has, so overall it's not quite as good. The Eagle Ford is making my income right now, but I am going to start drilling more Chalk wells again. I have been drilling into the Buda here and there, but so far, it is just not as good.

Investor What is your plan for 2014?

Holifield I am going to try to drill four Eagle Ford wells in Lee County in the first six months and work over some Chalk wells also. I am drilling under the name Holifield Engineering Co., but I also plan to work with other companies, and will propose that they take large interests in the four wells.

Investor Now, along with the Eagle Ford, the Austin Chalk is being revived, isn't it?

Holifield Actually, I've been in the revision phase on that since 1986! I started in the Chalk in 1975, when I potentialed a good well there, and I've just never stopped.

—Leslie Haines

For archives of interviews with industry legends, see OilandGasInvestor.com.

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