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COUNTIES · BARNETT SHALE AND NORTH TEXAS · DISTRICT 09 · CODE 121

Denton County, Texas

The RRC's county figures put Denton County at 136,222 bbl of oil and 129,119,359 Mcf of gas in the twelve months through August 2026; gas is up 2% on the twelve months before.

2,443 leases under 35 operators had production in those months.

Denton County permitting is running 2.0 permits a month over the trailing 90 days (6 total, versus 4 in the prior quarter).

BKV Barnett, LLC leads with 12 permits in the past 12 months, one of 2 operators active in the county.

Median permitted depth over the past year is 12,091 ft (prior year: 16,515 ft); 100% of the past year's permits are horizontal.

The county has 6 active disposal and injection permits of 37 on file, with 5.2M barrels injected in the 12 months reported through September 2025.

4,414 drilling permits have been issued in Denton County since 1977.

4,414 permits on file since 1977 · last issued Oct 27, 2026

Email me new permits

Also: every Denton County well in the statewide list, searchable → · a year of permits on the map →

2,493
active wells · 4,594 on file
35
producing operators, 12 months
2,443
producing leases, 12 months
136,222
bbl oil, 12 months through Aug 2026 · −43%
129M
Mcf gas, same 12 months · +2%

RRC COUNTY FIGURES · NO. 145 IN OIL AND NO. 26 IN GAS OF 219 PRODUCING TEXAS COUNTIES

Denton County oil and gas production

RRC COUNTY FIGURES · THROUGH AUG 2026

Texas operators report production by lease, and the Railroad Commission totals it by county. Where a lease lies in more than one county, the split between them is the RRC's. Oil includes condensate; gas includes casinghead gas. Leases are still filing for Aug 2026, so that month and the twelve-month totals will rise.

12 months through Aug 2026 129,119,359 · prior 12 126,987,057(+2%)

010M20M2017201820192020202120222023202420252026

Latest months

MonthOilGas
Aug 2026still arriving2,453 bbl9,043,665 Mcf
Jul 202610,337 bbl11,022,267 Mcf
Jun 202611,473 bbl10,564,908 Mcf
May 202612,480 bbl10,966,785 Mcf
Apr 202611,518 bbl10,869,718 Mcf
Mar 202612,185 bbl11,082,402 Mcf
Feb 202613,225 bbl10,050,983 Mcf
Jan 202612,479 bbl10,606,395 Mcf
Dec 202513,238 bbl10,976,040 Mcf
Nov 202511,981 bbl10,960,241 Mcf
Oct 202512,722 bbl11,565,730 Mcf
Sep 202512,131 bbl11,410,225 Mcf

Operators by production

12 MONTHS THROUGH AUG 2026

  1. BKV Barnett, LLC1,370 leases

    16.8K bbl · 83.2M Mcf

  2. Lime Rock Resources IV-a, L.P.345 leases

    88.7K bbl · 13.1M Mcf

  3. Eagleridge Operating, LLC369 leases

    14.2K bbl · 12.6M Mcf

  4. BKV Barnett II, LLC178 leases

    8.21K bbl · 8.93M Mcf

  5. Diversified Production LLC112 leases

    0 bbl · 5.86M Mcf

  6. BKV North Texas, LLC40 leases

    376 bbl · 2.3M Mcf

  7. Lakota Energy, Ltd.13 leases

    0 bbl · 1.08M Mcf

  8. Hillwood O & G Operating Co LP12 leases

    0 bbl · 714K Mcf

35 operators had production here in the twelve months. Each month is credited to the operator that reported it; ranked by barrels of oil equivalent, 6 Mcf to the barrel.

Every operator in Denton County →

Largest leases

2,443 LEASES WITH PRODUCTION · 12 MONTHS THROUGH AUG 2026

LeaseOperatorFieldOil, 12 moGas, 12 mo
Nicholson 17 (AW)Gas 300840BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl1,916,533 Mcf
Nicholson 16 (AW)Gas 301034BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl1,485,324 Mcf
Carl McCurley 4 (AW)Gas 300870BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl1,271,734 Mcf
Smith, H. A. 12 (AW)Gas 300440BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl1,153,853 Mcf
Carl McCurley 2 (AW)Gas 300869BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl1,143,893 Mcf
Nicholson 15 (AW)Gas 300544BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl1,012,976 Mcf
Smith, H. A. 11 (AW)Gas 300439BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl986,465 Mcf
Cole Frazier 4 (AW)Gas 298818BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl918,628 Mcf
Cole Frazier 3 (AW)Gas 298817BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl810,144 Mcf
Pool B 12 (AW)Gas 299089BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl697,329 Mcf
Dcco 3 - J H Riggs 11 (AW)Gas 299929BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl695,243 Mcf
RCB Ltd 3 (AW)Gas 295635BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl688,269 Mcf
Carl McCurley 3 (AW)Gas 300761BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl679,677 Mcf
Dcco 3 - J H Riggs 14 (AW)Gas 299934BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl652,468 Mcf
Dcco 3 - J H Riggs 13 (AW)Gas 299926BKV Barnett, LLCNewark, East (Barnett Shale)0 bbl640,027 Mcf

Ranked by barrels of oil equivalent, 6 Mcf to the barrel. A lease in two counties is listed with its share in this one.

Every lease in Denton County →

Wells by status

4,594 WELLBORES ON FILE

  1. Producing

    2,478

  2. Plugged

    970

  3. Not on schedule

    708

  4. Temp Abandoned

    378

  5. Shut In

    23

  6. Spudded

    16

  7. Gas Strg-Injection

    7

  8. Injection

    5

From the RRC wellbore file and the permit record. Other sites count the RRC's map locations, which include dry holes and locations this file does not hold, so their totals differ.

Wells spudded, by year

HorizontalVertical and directional

02004006002002200420062008201020122014201620182020202220242026

Drilling permits

Window30 days90 days180 days365 days
6
permits issued, 90d
+50%
vs prior 90d (4)
1
operators filing
100%
horizontal
11,623
avg permitted depth, ft

WINDOWS ON THE RRC ISSUE DATE · COMPUTED NOV 11, 2026 · WHY ISSUE AND SEEN DATES DIFFER

Permits issued by month

LAST 120 MONTHS · BY ISSUE DATE

Last 12 months 14 · prior 12 17(-18%)

0510152017201820192020202120222023202420252026

Operators by permits, last 12 months

By permits issued. Wells are the operator’s current inventory here from the RRC wellbore file.

OperatorPermitsWells
BKV Barnett, LLC121,542
BKV Barnett II, LLC2232

Full operator directory: 188 operators have filed a permit here since 1977 →

New entrants, last 12 months

Operators whose first permit in Denton County came in the last year. None.

Permit types, 90d

TypeWindowPriorAll time
Drill324,258
Recompletion32112

What the types mean →

Formations in completed wells

RRC WELLBORE FILE · ≥10 WELLS

Tops reported on completion filings for wells in Denton County. A well counts for every formation it reports, so this reads as the county's stratigraphic column. About tops →

In Denton County the Base Cretaceous (marker) is reported in 46 wells, median top 1,350 ft, highlighted below. Back to the formation →

FormationWellsPermitted last 3 yrsMedian top, ftP10–P90
Barnett3,091327,6077,192–8,007
Marble Falls2,348307,2306,832–7,631
Caddo1,441274,6013,697–5,529
Viola1,01108,5707,813–8,976
Forestburg95347,7957,346–8,198
Atoka45235,5604,021–6,460
Strawn22203,3841,630–4,884
Bend11006,4226,088–6,567
Base Cretaceous (marker)4601,3501,005–1,600
Mississippian2707,7517,249–8,092
Ellenburger1508,5805,030–8,995

Beyond the permit record

RRC UIC permits · H-10 reported volumes

Disposal and injection

6
active UIC permits of 37
40.4K
permitted bbl/day, active
5.2M
bbl injected, last 12 reported months
Sep 2025
reported through

Every active well, operator, and daily reporter in Denton County →

Permitted volume is a ceiling, not throughput. How to read it →

USGS catalog, Texas

Seismicity, last 2 years

0
M2+ events in the area
—
largest

Monthly counts, magnitudes, and every recent event in the area →

Events are not tagged with a county; this counts M2+ events inside the bounding box of the county’s located permits, padded 0.1°. About TexNet →

Latest permits

NEWEST FIRST BY ISSUE DATE

PermitSeenIssuedOperatorLease / wellDepthAPI
919522Oct 29, 2026Oct 27, 2026BKV Barnett, LLCJE Day Heirs 3 (AW) #3HH5,97612134617
919210Oct 16, 2026Oct 14, 2026BKV Barnett, LLCBiltmore 4 (AW) #4HH12,18212132379
919080Oct 15, 2026Oct 13, 2026BKV Barnett, LLCDay Heirs J E 6 (AW) #6HH14,05512134667
919079Oct 15, 2026Oct 13, 2026BKV Barnett, LLCDay Heirs J E 5 (AW) #5HH13,12312134666
919078Oct 15, 2026Oct 13, 2026BKV Barnett, LLCDay Heirs J E 4 (AW) #4HH15,90012134665
918558Sep 20, 2026Sep 18, 2026BKV Barnett, LLCAdams-Day Heirs (SA) #1HH8,50012133869
917578Aug 8, 2026Aug 6, 2026BKV Barnett, LLCHardeman, Dorothy Jean 11 (AW) #11HH8,50012134664
917487Aug 6, 2026Aug 4, 2026BKV Barnett, LLCDcco 2 - Dcco 4 (SA) #1HH10,53512133120
916437Jun 16, 2026Jun 16, 2026BKV Barnett, LLCHardeman, Dorothy Jean 10 (AW) #10HH13,10012134663
916435Jun 16, 2026Jun 16, 2026BKV Barnett, LLCAdams, Corinne 8 (AW) #8HH9,50012132214

All Denton County permits →

Questions about Denton County

How many drilling permits were issued in Denton County in the last 12 months?

14 permits were issued in Denton County in the last 12 months, down 18% from 17 in the 12 months before. 100% were for horizontal wells. The most recent was issued Oct 27, 2026. 4,414 are on file since 1977.

Every Denton County permit →

Who is the most active operator in Denton County?

By drilling permits filed in the last 12 months, BKV Barnett, LLC is the most active operator in Denton County, with 12 of 14, followed by BKV Barnett II, LLC (2). 1 operator filed permits here in the last 90 days.

Operators in Denton County →

How many oil and gas wells are in Denton County?

4,594 wells are on file in Denton County, including 2,493 active, 970 plugged, and 4 permitted and not yet drilled. 1,636 are horizontal. The active wells are under 36 operators.

Every well in Denton County →

How much oil and gas does Denton County produce?

The Railroad Commission's county figures show 136,222 barrels of oil and 129 million Mcf of gas in Denton County in the 12 months through August 2026, from 2,443 leases under 35 operators. Texas operators report production by lease; where a lease lies in more than one county, the split between them is the RRC's.

Production by month in Denton County →

Who are the largest producers in Denton County?

By oil and gas produced in Denton County in the 12 months through August 2026, the largest operator is BKV Barnett, LLC, with 16,847 barrels of oil and 83.2 million Mcf of gas from 1,370 leases, followed by Lime Rock Resources IV-a, L.P. and Eagleridge Operating, LLC. 35 operators had production here in those months.

Operators in Denton County →

How much water is injected in Denton County?

5.2 million barrels of water were injected in Denton County in the 12 months through September 2025, reported on form H-10. 6 of the county's 37 disposal and injection permits are active.

Disposal and injection in Denton County →

What formations are drilled in Denton County?

Completion filings for wells in Denton County report tops for 11 formations in at least ten wells each. The most reported are the Barnett (3,091 wells, median top 7,607 ft), the Marble Falls (2,348 wells, median top 7,230 ft), and the Caddo (1,441 wells, median top 4,601 ft).

Formations in Denton County →

What basin is Denton County in?

Petrora lists Denton County in the Barnett Shale and North Texas. It is in the Railroad Commission's District 09.

The Barnett Shale and North Texas →

Have there been earthquakes in Denton County?

No earthquakes of magnitude 2 or more were located in the area of Denton County's permitted wells in the last 2 years.

Earthquakes in Denton County →

About this data

Oil and gas are the Railroad Commission's county figures from its Production Data Query, through Aug 2026: Texas files production by lease, and where a lease lies in more than one county the split is the RRC's. Nothing here is estimated by Petrora. Wells from the RRC wellbore file and the permit record. Drilling permits from the RRC OGA049M master and daily daf420 files, rebuilt nightly into per-county figures; windows are on the date issued. Disposal from UIC permits and H-10 reports at the last settled month; earthquakes from the TexNet catalog inside the county's located-permit footprint.

Developers: this page as JSON is GET /v1/data/counties/tx/denton?days=90, documented in the API reference.