Dallas-based Gulf Coast Western LLC is ready to take a new look at its Louisiana assets, including a recently acquired development area covering 1,000 square miles in Louisiana, the company said Jan. 14.

Gulf Coast said its subsidiary, Orbit Gulf Coast Exploration LLC, acquired Lafayette, La.-based Orbit Energy Partners LLC and will develop acreage in Acadia, Allen, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, Evangeline and St. Landry parishes, La.

The company also gained a library of proprietary 3-D seismic data for the acquisition as well as acreage it already operates.

Gulf Coast said it acquired working interests in 13 producing wells and 140 defined drilling locations with about 30 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMboe) of total reserve potential. It will establish an area of mutual interest (AMI) with Orbit.

Since October, subsidiary Orbit Gulf Coast Exploration has overseen production. Terms of the deal, which closed in December, were not disclosed.

The AMI includes 13 wells in production and another being placed into production. The wells are expected to produce more than 800 boe/d.

Gulf Coast plans 18 additional PUD-designated offset wells and two workover wells.

In 2012, Orbit marketed 30 producing wells in Acadia, Allen, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, Evangeline and St. Landry parishes, as well as Jefferson Davis Parish with total net proved reserves of 549 Mboe. Orbit, founded in 2005, is backed by private equity firm Energy Trust Partners.

Matthew H. Fleeger, Gulf Coast Western CEO, said empirical well data from producing wells in the trend and Orbit’s large library of 3-D seismic and well data will give the company a competitive advantage in further development.

“The transaction also included the contribution of certain proprietary 3-D seismic data for our 42-square-mile Bonanza Project in Evangeline and St. Landry Parishes, which is on strike with this trend and adjacent to the Orbit development area,” Fleeger said. “We have already initiated work with Orbit to analyze the data to help improve our development of this strategic acreage which will further strengthen our assets under development in the area.”

As part of the transaction, Gulf Coast Western secured an agreement from Louisiana-based Warhorse Oil and Gas to be the operator of many of the development wells, in addition to several other operators.

Orbit Energy Partners’ team was formed in 2005 and has developed the Southwestern Louisiana area for more than a decade. Orbit Energy will remain a minority member in Orbit Gulf Coast Exploration.

Gulf Coast Western, founded in 1970, is focused on the exploration, development, and acquisition of domestic oil and gas reserves in the Gulf Coast region, and has activities in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Colorado and Alabama.

Darren Barbee can be reached at dbarbee@hartenergy.com.