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Permian Producers Drill Longer Wells as Output Surges, EIA Says

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Permian Basin oil and gas producers are drilling longer horizontal wells, including super-laterals exceeding 15,000 feet, supporting higher production while keeping the number of new wells relatively stable, the US Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

The Permian, spanning western Texas and eastern New Mexico, is one of the world's largest unconventional oil and natural gas producing regions.

Longer horizontal wells allow producers to access more reservoir rock from each well, increasing output while reducing the number of wells needed and helping contain overhead costs.

The shift has been significant over the past decade. Wells with lateral lengths of less than 5,000 feet accounted for 43% of Permian horizontal wells completed in 2015. By 2025, their share had fallen to 4%, EIA said, citing Enverus data.

Mid-length laterals, ranging from 5,000 to 15,000 feet, accounted for 57% of completions in 2015 and rose to a peak of 90% in 2021. Their share declined to 81% in 2025 as producers increasingly adopted longer wells.

Super-laterals, defined as wells exceeding 15,000 feet, were virtually nonexistent before 2020 but represented 15% of new Permian well completions in 2025. The wells extend about 3 miles horizontally, EIA said.

The move toward longer laterals has coincided with a sharp increase in regional production. Permian oil and natural gas output rose to 11.2 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2025 from 2.9 million boe/d in 2015, an increase of 284%, EIA said.

The number of new horizontal well completions, meanwhile, has remained broadly stable at about 6,000 annually since 2022, excluding the disruptions of 2020 and 2021, when the Covid-19 pandemic and unprecedented market volatility sharply reduced drilling activity.

The average lateral length of a new horizontal Permian well increased 77% over the past decade, reaching 10,867 feet in 2025 from 6,149 feet in 2015, according to Enverus data cited by EIA.

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