The Haynesville Shale is a geologic formation of sedimentary rock that contains natural gas in the North Louisiana Salt Basin in northern Louisiana and eastern Texas. It is located between 10,500 and 13,500 feet below the surface and covers an area of approximately 9,000 square miles with an average thickness of 200 to 300 feet.
In 2008 Chesapeake announced its discovery of the Haynesville Shale, which has the potential to become the largest natural gas play in the U.S. by 2012, with technically recoverable resources estimated at 251 trillion cubic feet.
Natural gas drilling in the Haynesville Shale became economically feasible for development when advanced drilling and completion techniques, such as horizontal drilling coupled with hydraulic fracturing, were developed.
Chesapeake Energy Corporation
Chesapeake Energy Corporation is the second-largest producer of natural gas, the 11th largest producer of oil and natural gas liquids and the most active driller of new wells in the U.S. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, the company's operations are focused on discovering and developing unconventional natural gas and oil fields onshore in the U.S. Chesapeake owns leading positions in the Eagle Ford, Utica, Granite Wash, Cleveland, Tonkawa, Mississippi Lime and Niobrara unconventional liquids plays and in the Marcellus, Haynesville/Bossier and Barnett unconventional natural gas shale plays. The company also owns substantial marketing and oilfield services businesses through its subsidiaries Chesapeake Energy Marketing, Inc. and Chesapeake Oilfield Services, L.L.C.​
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