HOUSTON County
District 6 · East Texas · Permits since 1977-06-10 · Data through 2026-08-03
Houston County permitting is running 2.7 permits a month over the trailing 90 days (8 total, versus 1 in the prior quarter). EMPIRE TEXAS OPERATING LLC leads with 5 permits in the past 12 months, one of 7 operators active in the county. 5 operators filed a first Houston County permit in the past year. Median permitted depth over the past year is 11,165 ft (prior year: 7,125 ft); 8% of the past year's permits are horizontal.
Permits (90d)
8
vs Prior
+700%
Operators (90d)
3
Avg Depth (90d)
9,688
Hz % (90d)
0%
All Time
1,656
Depth Range: 300 - 25,000 ft
SWD wells in HOUSTON County → 42 active injection & disposal wells · full UIC inventory
Permit Activity
Permit Types (90d)
RECOMP
6
NEW vs prior
DRILL
2
+1 vs prior
Top Operators
by permits, trailing 12 mo View All
| OPERATOR | PERMITS 12MO | WELLS |
|---|---|---|
| EMPIRE TEXAS OPERATING LLC | 5 | 42 |
| MAXIMUS OPERATING, LTD. | 2 | 3 |
| WALKER OPERATING COMPANY | 2 | 0 |
| PARTEN OPERATING INC. | 1 | 43 |
| EXPAND OPERATING LLC | 1 | 1 |
| MAGNETAR OPERATING LLC | 1 | 0 |
| BKV DCARBON VENTURES, LLC | 1 | 0 |
Recent Permits
View All| PERMIT | LEASE | TYPE | ISSUED |
|---|---|---|---|
| 917346 | FT TRINIDAD UPPER GLEN ROSE UNIT | RECOMP | 2026-08-03 |
| 917343 | FT TRINIDAD UPPER GLEN ROSE UNIT | RECOMP | 2026-08-03 |
| 917358 | SHELLY D | RECOMP | 2026-07-31 |
| 916528 | BUTLER-MAPLES D UNIT | RECOMP | 2026-06-22 |
| 915460 | T.A. LITTLE | RECOMP | 2026-06-19 |
| 916023 | PATRICK | DRILL | 2026-06-03 |
| 916023 | PATRICK | DRILL | 2026-06-03 |
| 915910 | HUNT D | RECOMP | 2026-05-29 |
| 914952 | ROADRUNNER | DRILL | 2026-04-21 |
| 911722 | RBM | DRILL | 2025-12-09 |
New to HOUSTON County
first county permit, past 12 mo| OPERATOR | FIRST PERMIT | PERMITS | BACKGROUND |
|---|---|---|---|
| EMPIRE TEXAS OPERATING LLC | 2026-05-29 | 5 | active elsewhere in TX |
| WALKER OPERATING COMPANY | 2026-06-03 | 2 | active elsewhere in TX |
| BKV DCARBON VENTURES, LLC | 2026-04-21 | 1 | active elsewhere in TX |
| EXPAND OPERATING LLC | 2025-10-08 | 1 | first TX permits |
| MAGNETAR OPERATING LLC | 2025-09-25 | 1 | active elsewhere in TX |
Formations Beneath HOUSTON County
from RRC completion filings| FORMATION | WELLS | MEDIAN TOP (FT) |
|---|---|---|
| Woodbine | 259 | 8,210 |
| Buda | 238 | 9,299 |
| Glen Rose | 186 | 10,390 |
| Edwards | 173 | 10,088 |
| Austin Chalk | 171 | 7,512 |
| Wilcox | 146 | 1,606 |
| Carrizo | 139 | 1,546 |
| Georgetown | 136 | 9,440 |