Texas Drilling Permits: Week of July 22–July 29, 2026 — RRC Activity Report

Texas Drilling Permits: Week of July 22–July 29, 2026 — RRC Activity Report

The Railroad Commission of Texas recorded 176 new drilling permits for the week of July 22–July 29, 2026, reflecting continued activity across the Permian Basin and surrounding plays despite softer crude pricing. WTI settled at $82.52/bbl, down $6.79 from the prior close, a pullback that operators appear to be watching closely without yet pulling back on permitting.

Eddy County led all counties with 85 permits, followed by Lea County with 41. Together these two counties accounted for nearly 72% of total activity for the week, underscoring the Permian's continued dominance in the current drilling cycle. Reeves County added 11 permits, Andrews County posted 7, and Webb County rounded out the top five with 4 permits. Basin-level totals confirm the trend, with the Permian Basin accounting for 126 of the 176 permits issued — roughly 72% of statewide activity.

On the operator side, XTO Permian Operating LLC. topped the list with 17 permits, followed closely by Kaiser-Francis Oil Co with 16. Longfellow Energy, LP filed 15 permits, OXY USA Inc. filed 14, and COG Operating LLC rounded out the top five with 11. These five operators combined for 73 permits, or roughly 41% of total weekly volume, signaling concentrated development activity among a relatively small group of active operators.

Several permits stood out for tracking purposes this week, including two filings from Burk Royalty Co., Ltd. in Wilbarger County (Permit #917333 and #917334), one from XTO Energy Inc. in Shelby County (#917338), one from Empire Texas Operating LLC in Houston County (#917343), and a New Mexico-side filing from XTO Permian Operating LLC. in Eddy County (#NM-30-015-58539). Spud dates for these permits remain to be determined, and current priority scoring places them at baseline levels — worth monitoring as operators finalize development timing.

For land teams, midstream planners, and oilfield service providers, this week's data points to sustained permitting momentum in the Permian even as crude prices soften. Eddy and Lea County activity in particular continues to signal where capital is being deployed, while operator concentration among names like XTO Permian Operating, Kaiser-Francis, Longfellow Energy, OXY, and COG Operating gives a clear picture of who's driving near-term rig demand and service contracts.

Tracking permit activity at this level of detail — county by county, operator by operator — is essential for teams making decisions on acreage positioning, crew scheduling, and supply chain planning. DownHole Digital monitors RRC permit filings in real time, giving E&P, land, and oilfield services professionals early visibility into where drilling activity is heading before it shows up in rig counts or production data.

Learn more at downhole.digital.