Hanna Oil & Gas
60 South 6th Street , Fort Smith, Arkansas, United States

“A family of entrepreneurs and innovators” is more than a lofty vision. The phrase is felt with our supportive working relationships, our friendly and fun outings and of course, the Friday morning breakfasts! Our patriarch and founder, Jim Hanna started his family enterprise in Crawford County, Arkansas in the early 1970’s. What followed were more drilling, employees and added generations of Hanna’s.  Today the company is lead by Bill Hanna (2nd generation) and 3rd generation of Hanna’s now working for the company. With operations in the mid-continent and Canada, Hanna Oil and Gas is preparing for the next chapter. The company operates 350 wells in the Arkoma basin and has working interest in another 2000 wells in the midcontinent area. The company has also diversified in commercial real estate and healthcare. Hanna Oil and Gas has approximately 40 employees with several being with the company for 10, 20 and over 30 years. It is family owned, family operated and family strong.

History

Hanna Oil and Gas was the creation of Jim Hanna in the early 1960’s. He grew up in Wichita Falls, Texas and was the son of hard working parents who were good providers. The best lessons he learned from his parents was to work hard and treat people fairly. He did those things very well.  THE EARLY DAYS IN THE ARKOMA BASIN After working through college he graduated and went to work for rancher turned driller, J.S. Bridwell. Mr. Bridwell wanted a presence in the emerging Arkoma Basin in the late 50’s and early 60’s. Jim moved to Fort Smith, Arkansas in 1960 and opened an office for Bridwell. He worked hard for two years to establish a presence. Mr. Hanna started his own company. He bought and sold leases and kept overrides. It was an existence, but not very profitable. He worked for 10 years doing this and was slowly going broke. He was however building a reputation as a man of his word and a work ethic that would carry him past his meager existence.

THE HALE ZONE “DOWNDIP” 

In 1970 he bought a deal from JM Huber Company that would take him to the next level. The unit he bought had potential for a well in the risky Hale Zone, which was “downdip”. For others this would have been “not drillable”. Regardless, he sold the deal to investors (put his own money in the well) and drilled. It was the biggest well ever drilled at the time. The open flow was calculated at 165mmcf/d. To date the Lincoln #2 well has produced approximately 15 bcf of natural gas and is still producing after 43 years.

ARKOMA BASIN PRODUCTION

Beneath the surface of the Arkansas River valley sits a 20 to 50 mile wide arcuate shaped basin that is estimated to contain 40,000 cubic miles of primarily Pennsylvanian aged sediments ranging in thickness from 3,000 feet on the northern shelf bounded by the Boston Mountains and the Ozark Dome to a probable 30,000 feet to the south along the leading edge of the Ouachita Mountains.  Stretching approximately 250 miles from near McAlester, Oklahoma to near Russellville, Arkansas, the dry methane natural gas producing Arkoma Basin is one of several foreland basins associated with the fronts of the Ouachita and Appalachian Mountain systems of the eastern and southeastern United States. The first discovery of natural gas in the Arkoma Basin occurred in Fort Smith in 1887, but it wasn’t until two wells discovered natural gas about 20 miles south of Fort Smith in Mansfield in 1902 that commercial development began. Following those discoveries development was sporadic, but in 1959 several large reservoirs of natural gas were discovered in Latimer County, Oklahoma, about 23 miles east of McAlester, kicking off a vigorous leasing and drilling campaign that still continues today.

LEASE WITH HANNA

If utilized commercially, oil and gas have the potential to add much to their owners. By leasing to Hanna, you place your minerals in the hands of proven oil and gas finders. When you consider the years of experience at Hanna, our proven track record in finding reserves and the fact that we shoulder all of the costs of developing and drilling geologic ideas, it is easy to see why leasing with Hanna has much upside. Our constant goal is to discover and produce oil and gas reserves in the best and most profitable manner possible, while being ever cognizant of the need to balance our efforts with the needs of the landowners we drill for and the need to protect our environment.  Many people lease to Hanna on a repeated basis because they have learned in their dealings with Hanna that we purpose to be fair and forthright. Being landowners ourselves, we understand land is valuable. We take pride in our efforts to work with our landowners in all aspects of drilling and producing wells to assure the landowner is treated in a fair and reasonable manner.

In the Arkoma Basin, our roots are deep. We have been active for 45+ years. Our employees live in various towns across Arkansas and Oklahoma. Above and beyond our business efforts, we are active in our communities and state. There are many good companies that work the Arkoma Basin, but not many are “hometown” companies. When leasing, consider leasing to Hanna first and foremost, because we live here with you and our efforts in business and all other aspects of life make this a better place to live.  For all other areas we work and lease, our purpose remains identical to the model we have established in the Arkoma Basin. Do your best, strive to be profitable without sacrificing your character and integrity or the environment you work in, be as fair and reasonable as possible with those whom you associate, give back to your community as much as possible and remain ever optimistic!