5,514 wells across 472 active operators, with 340 drilling permits filed in the last 24 months.
Refreshed monthly from CalGEM well-header records. Data current as of 2026-08-16.
Quick answer: The Coastal Basins formation in California has 5,514 wells on record across 472 active operators, with 340 drilling permits filed in the last 24 months (as of 2026-08-16). Its most active operators by well count are Chevron, Aera Energy, Sentinel Peak Resources Ca, Shell Oil Company and Phillips Petroleum Company. Compiled from California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM) well-header records, refreshed monthly.
The operators with the most well counts targeting the Coastal Basins formation in California:
| # | Operator | Wells in Coastal Basins |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chevron | 1,810 |
| 2 | Aera Energy | 1,532 |
| 3 | Sentinel Peak Resources Ca | 526 |
| 4 | Shell Oil Company | 193 |
| 5 | Phillips Petroleum Company | 70 |
| 6 | E & B Natural Resources Management | 65 |
| 7 | Calnrg Operating LLC | 59 |
| 8 | Exxon Mobil | 57 |
| 9 | Grace Petroleum | 53 |
| 10 | Arco Oil & Gas Company | 51 |
The California counties with the most Coastal Basins activity:
Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Kern, San Benito, Santa Barbara
The most recent 44 drilling permits filed for Coastal Basins wells in California:
| Permit Date | Well | API | County | Operator | Lateral (ft) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-08-07 | Ferrini 5102-11 | 04053213390000 |
Monterey | Aera Energy | — |
| 2026-08-05 | Orradre 1605-12 | 04053226440000 |
Monterey | Aera Energy | — |
| 2026-08-05 | Orradre 1597-12 | 04053226460000 |
Monterey | Aera Energy | — |
| 2026-08-05 | Orradre 5596-12 | 04053226420000 |
Monterey | Aera Energy | — |
| 2026-08-05 | Orradre 1604-12 | 04053226450000 |
Monterey | Aera Energy | — |
| 2026-08-05 | Orradre 1503-12 | 04053226490000 |
Monterey | Aera Energy | — |
| 2026-08-05 | Orradre 1546-12 | 04053226480000 |
Monterey | Aera Energy | — |
| 2026-08-05 | Orradre 1547-12 | 04053226470000 |
Monterey | Aera Energy | — |
| 2026-08-05 | Orradre 5505-12 | 04053226430000 |
Monterey | Aera Energy | — |
| 2026-07-31 | Hyla 16g-5a | 04079212490000 |
San Luis Obispo | Sentinel Peak Resources Ca | — |
| 2026-07-24 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) 191a | 04053223270000 |
Monterey | Chevron | 224 |
| 2026-07-24 | Orradre R11-11 | 04053217700000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-07-22 | Brinan A 3 | 04053211180000 |
Monterey | Fred Cagle | — |
| 2026-07-22 | Brinan A 5 | 04053211200000 |
Monterey | California Oil Company | — |
| 2026-07-07 | Doud 9 | 04053203830000 |
Monterey | California Oil Company | — |
| 2026-06-30 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) 173b | 04053207550000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-06-26 | Dudley 21b | 04053222000000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-06-26 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) 56 | 04053008070000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-06-26 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) 96a | 04053204690000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-06-18 | Hambey 803-17 | 04053213600000 |
Monterey | Aera Energy | 776 |
| 2026-06-12 | Lombardi 7-27 | 04053218840000 |
Monterey | Pacific Coast Energy Company | 156 |
| 2026-06-12 | Orradre T014-11 | 04053218410000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-06-12 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) To40 | 04053223550000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-06-12 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) To28 | 04053222060000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-06-12 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) To35 | 04053223500000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-06-02 | Hambey 801-17 | 04053213480000 |
Monterey | Aera Energy | — |
| 2026-05-15 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) To39 | 04053223540000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-05-15 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) To36 | 04053223510000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-05-15 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) 119a | 04053204710000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-05-15 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) To41 | 04053223870000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-05-15 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) To44 | 04053223900000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-05-14 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) Wi-12 | 04053212160000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-04-24 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) 64b | 04053220850000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-04-24 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) H13a | 04053223300000 |
Monterey | Chevron | 640 |
| 2026-04-23 | Orradre To-19 | 04053219190000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-04-22 | Dudley K15a | 04053223260000 |
Monterey | Chevron | 406 |
| 2026-04-21 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) 71 | 04053008230000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-04-21 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) To37 | 04053223520000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-04-17 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) 100a | 04053204680000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-04-17 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) To38 | 04053223530000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-04-17 | Rosenberg (Nct-1) To42 | 04053223880000 |
Monterey | Chevron | — |
| 2026-04-13 | Pulas 7 | 04079212020000 |
San Luis Obispo | Sentinel Peak Resources Ca | 125 |
| 2026-04-13 | Pulas 7 | 04079212020000 |
San Luis Obispo | Sentinel Peak | 125 |
| 2026-01-16 | Indian 1 | 04069200820000 |
San Benito | Citadel Exploration | — |
The Coastal Basins is one of California's active oil and gas plays, with 5,514 wells on file across 472 distinct operators of record. Operators have filed 340 drilling permits targeting the Coastal Basins in the last 24 months — a measure of how active the play is right now versus its historical baseline.
For mineral owners with interests in Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Kern, San Benito, Santa Barbara, knowing whether your tract sits within an active Coastal Basins footprint is a foundational valuation question. Active formations with consistent permit flow command premium pricing; legacy formations with steady but declining production are valued differently.
See all California oil & gas formations & plays · Download the California formations dataset (CSV)
5,514 wells target the Coastal Basins in California, worked by 472 active operators, per CalGEM well-header records (as of 2026-08-16).
By well count, the most active Coastal Basins operators in California are Chevron, Aera Energy, Sentinel Peak Resources Ca, Shell Oil Company and Phillips Petroleum Company. The full ranking is in the table on this page.
Operators filed 340 drilling permits targeting the Coastal Basins in the last 24 months — a live measure of current activity, per CalGEM records.
Operators filed 340 new drilling permits targeting the Coastal Basins in California over the last 24 months. New permits and spuds are the clearest signal of active Coastal Basins drilling, per CalGEM records (as of 2026-08-16).
Coastal Basins activity in California currently spans 5,514 wells on record and 472 active operators, led by Chevron, Aera Energy, Sentinel Peak Resources Ca, Shell Oil Company and Phillips Petroleum Company, with 340 drilling permits filed in the last 24 months — refreshed monthly from California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM) well-header records (as of 2026-08-16).
The most active Coastal Basins counties in California are Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Kern, San Benito, Santa Barbara.
Value depends on your net mineral acres or royalty decimal, the operator, the remaining drilling locations, and current oil and gas prices. Buckhead Energy checks your tract against current Coastal Basins well and permit data and puts a free, no-obligation written offer in writing — this page is informational only, not a valuation.
Cite this dataset
Permanently archived and citable via a DOI on Zenodo (CERN), under a CC BY 4.0 license. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.21442884 · View on Zenodo
License & attribution: This data is licensed CC BY 4.0. You are free to share and adapt it, including commercially, provided you credit “Buckhead Energy” and link back to this page or the DOI above.
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Formation: Coastal Basins
State: California
Total wells: 5,514
Active operators: 472
Permits 24mo: 340
Last refresh: 2026-08-16
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