Austin Chalk Formation
The Austin Chalk overlies the Eagle Ford Shale in South and East Texas, experiencing a renaissance with horizontal drilling applied to the naturally fractured carbonate formation.
Formation Type
Tight Oil
Depth Range
5,000–7,000 ft
Basin(s)
Eagle Ford
States
TX
Geology & Formation Overview
The Austin Chalk is an Upper Cretaceous chalky limestone deposited in a shallow marine carbonate ramp setting. Natural fractures are key to productivity — where open fractures intersect horizontal wellbores, IPs can be exceptionally high. The overlying nature relative to Eagle Ford allows some operators to drill both formations.
Top Operators Targeting the Austin Chalk
EOG Resources
Active in Eagle Ford
ConocoPhillips
Active in Eagle Ford
Murphy Oil
Active in Eagle Ford
Kosmos Energy
Active in Eagle Ford
Magnolia Oil & Gas
Active in Eagle Ford
* Operator list based on industry data. Real-time operator permit counts available via API.
Geographic Extent
States
Access This Data via API
Access Austin Chalk formation well permit data. Filter by state, operator, and date. Source-data freshness varies by state.
/v1/drilling-intelligence/well-permits?formation=austin-chalkcurl -X GET "https://api.oilpriceapi.com/v1/drilling-intelligence/well-permits?formation=austin-chalk"
Sample Response
{
"data": {
"formation": "Austin Chalk",
"type": "Tight Oil",
"basins": [
"Eagle Ford"
],
"states": [
"TX"
],
"depth_range": "5,000–7,000 ft",
"top_operators": [
"EOG Resources",
"ConocoPhillips",
"Murphy Oil"
]
},
"meta": {
"source": "OilPriceAPI Drilling Intelligence",
"note": "Static sample response — the live endpoint returns current data"
}
}Austin Chalk Formation FAQs
The Austin Chalk is a Tight Oil play located in the Eagle Ford at depths of 5,000–7,000 ft. The Austin Chalk overlies the Eagle Ford Shale in South and East Texas, experiencing a renaissance with horizontal drilling applied to the naturally fractured carbonate formation.
The Austin Chalk formation spans TX within the Eagle Ford basin. The Austin Chalk is an Upper Cretaceous chalky limestone deposited in a shallow marine carbonate ramp setting. Natural fractures are key to productivity — where open fractures intersect horizontal wel
Major operators targeting the Austin Chalk formation include: EOG Resources, ConocoPhillips, Murphy Oil, Kosmos Energy, Magnolia Oil & Gas. These companies have significant acreage positions and active drilling programs in the play.
The Austin Chalk formation is found at depths of approximately 5,000–7,000 ft. This varies by location within the basin, with deeper sections generally requiring more drilling days and capital per well.
OilPriceAPI provides well permit data filtered by formation, state, and operator. Use the drilling intelligence endpoint: GET /v1/drilling-intelligence/well-permits with formation parameters. Sign up free at oilpriceapi.com to start querying formation-level data.
Get Austin Chalk Well Permit Data via API
Query well permits filtered by formation, operator, state, and date range. Track Austin Chalk drilling activity in real-time.
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