(Source: Business Wire)U.S. Drilling Capital Management LLC (U.S. Drilling) announced that it entered into a well-bore participation agreement with SandRidge Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SD) to invest up to $75 million in SandRidge's development drilling activities in the Piñon Field, located in the West Texas Overthrust (WTO). The agreement calls for an initial $15 million commitment, and, subject to a mutual option, could aggregate $75 million of invested capital in SandRidge's drilling over the next 12 to 18 months.

The Piñon Field

The Piñon Field, discovered in 1983, is SandRidge's primary core area of interest. Located along the leading edge of the WTO in Pecos and Terrell Counties in West Texas, the geologic structure allows for multiple completions. The primary reservoirs are the Tesnus sands (depths ranging from 3,500 to 5,000 feet), the Upper Caballos chert (depths ranging from 5,000 to 8,000 feet) and the Lower Caballos chert (depths ranging from 7,000 to 10,000 feet). The area is associated with the Marathon-Ouachita fold and thrust belt that extends east-northeast across the United States into the Appalachian Mountain Region.

"U.S. Drilling is pleased to invest with SandRidge in a drilling joint venture in the Piñon Field, which represents one of America's world class natural gas fields," said U.S. Drilling Partner Philip A. Epstein. "U.S. Drilling seeks opportunities to participate with strong operating companies with demonstrated expertise in their core areas. We believe this is an excellent opportunity to launch U.S. Drilling's new fund and look forward to the success of this venture in the coming years."

About U.S. Drilling

U.S. Drilling was founded in November 2008 by Philip Epstein, Jonathan Feldman and Bill Cassidy. Prior to initiating the fund, the three principals have provided operations, financing and advisory services and private equity to the oil and gas sector with more than 40 years of cumulative industry experience.

"U.S. Drilling Capital Management looks for unique investment opportunities across the E&P sector. We created the fund as an avenue for publicly traded companies to maximize the value of their assets by accelerating the development of their reserves while sharing the risk with a drilling partner," explained Bill Cassidy, partner and chief financial officer of U.S. Drilling.