More than half of Permian wells were completed simultaneously last year

More than half of Permian wells were completed simultaneously last year. U.S. operators in the Permian region of Texas and New Mexico completed ~3,600 wells in 2025 using simultaneous hydraulic fracturing (simul frac), a technique that minimizes completion crew time on well pad sites by completing two wells simultaneously. 

Well completion occurs after a well is drilled, when operators bring the well to production by injecting water, sand, and chemicals at high pressure to stimulate the rock and allow hydrocarbons to flow to the surface. Simul frac well completions surpassed those completed via zipper frac, a technique when operators complete two different wells in alternating stages. Both techniques result in significant time savings compared to fracking a single well during completion.

Operators are completing more wells while keeping crew counts the same, tracking with the increase in simul frac completions. The frac spread count measures the number of completion crews actively fracturing a well. In the Permian, the frac spread count averaged ~100 crews in 2025, 3% higher than the 2024 average. Yet operators completed a total of ~6,800 wells, 13% more than in 2024, likely due to increased simultaneous completions. These increased efficiencies in hydraulic fracturing contributed to oil production in the Permian increasing 280 kb/d (4%) from 2024 to 2025.