California· County Detail
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By Brad James, Founder · Production data through Jul 2026
Production data through Jul 2026
as of Jul 2026
as of Jul 2026
as of Jul 2026
as of Jul 2026
as of Jul 2026
Over the twelve most recent reported months, Kern County wells produced about 68.7 million barrels of oil and 87.2 million Mcf of gas — an average of 188,118 barrels and 238,998 Mcf per day. That output comes from roughly 41,542 active wells, with 7,657 permitted locations on file. The latest six months are running below the prior six, the profile of a position weighted toward legacy production. Operators filed 7,606 drilling permits in the county over the trailing 24 months.
68,663,123 barrels of oil, Aug 2025 → Jul 2026
87,234,388 Mcf of natural gas, Aug 2025 → Jul 2026
Rates shown as barrels of oil per day and Mcf of natural gas per day, computed from monthly totals reported to CA CalGEM WellSTAR (monthly production CSV bulk export). Jan 2020 through Jul 2026. Download CSV · See methodology · All county data.
| Month | Oil (Bbl) | Gas (Mcf) |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 2020 | 8,998,900 | 9,993,652 |
| Feb 2020 | 8,700,385 | 10,554,649 |
| Mar 2020 | 8,236,797 | 10,105,738 |
| Apr 2020 | 8,797,868 | 10,642,146 |
| May 2020 | 8,637,103 | 10,119,268 |
| Jun 2020 | 8,550,361 | 10,228,805 |
| Jul 2020 | 8,717,151 | 10,481,843 |
| Aug 2020 | 8,493,471 | 10,168,967 |
| Sep 2020 | 8,501,582 | 10,417,443 |
| Oct 2020 | 8,441,309 | 10,245,155 |
| Nov 2020 | 8,350,344 | 10,582,638 |
| Dec 2020 | 8,619,800 | 10,710,089 |
| Jan 2021 | 8,253,072 | 8,794,303 |
| Feb 2021 | 7,493,184 | 7,908,329 |
| Mar 2021 | 8,246,133 | 8,690,266 |
| Apr 2021 | 7,935,550 | 8,484,321 |
| May 2021 | 8,182,889 | 3,780,456 |
| Jun 2021 | 8,011,625 | 8,589,311 |
| Jul 2021 | 8,224,310 | 2,810,539 |
| Aug 2021 | 8,210,396 | 8,734,167 |
| Sep 2021 | 7,973,237 | 8,616,984 |
| Oct 2021 | 7,891,990 | 8,679,040 |
| Nov 2021 | 8,028,990 | 8,455,571 |
| Dec 2021 | 8,103,220 | 8,466,333 |
| Jan 2022 | 7,793,980 | 8,767,821 |
| Feb 2022 | 7,396,552 | 7,434,603 |
| Mar 2022 | 8,110,143 | 8,999,962 |
| Apr 2022 | 7,868,491 | 8,892,701 |
| May 2022 | 7,151,325 | 9,071,279 |
| Jun 2022 | 6,934,007 | 8,839,902 |
| Jul 2022 | 7,891,755 | 9,234,579 |
| Aug 2022 | 7,166,171 | 9,010,900 |
| Sep 2022 | 7,476,071 | 8,731,809 |
| Oct 2022 | 6,359,565 | 8,542,210 |
| Nov 2022 | 6,610,641 | 8,533,519 |
| Dec 2022 | 6,769,669 | 8,650,120 |
| Jan 2023 | 7,332,826 | 8,683,030 |
| Feb 2023 | 6,718,482 | 7,872,819 |
| Mar 2023 | 7,440,429 | 8,589,654 |
| Apr 2023 | 7,333,164 | 8,444,148 |
| May 2023 | 7,600,039 | 8,863,195 |
| Jun 2023 | 7,438,221 | 8,525,032 |
| Jul 2023 | 7,599,367 | 8,917,096 |
| Aug 2023 | 7,531,699 | 8,943,959 |
| Sep 2023 | 7,362,454 | 8,579,118 |
| Oct 2023 | 8,690,988 | 9,179,081 |
| Nov 2023 | 7,245,523 | 8,202,023 |
| Dec 2023 | 7,353,903 | 8,408,483 |
| Jan 2024 | 7,193,706 | 8,304,210 |
| Feb 2024 | 6,778,122 | 7,810,994 |
| Mar 2024 | 7,185,536 | 8,405,401 |
| Apr 2024 | 6,789,049 | 8,050,162 |
| May 2024 | 7,114,482 | 8,304,410 |
| Jun 2024 | 6,559,283 | 8,092,823 |
| Jul 2024 | 6,839,063 | 8,291,929 |
| Aug 2024 | 6,956,624 | 8,171,723 |
| Sep 2024 | 6,778,613 | 7,808,112 |
| Oct 2024 | 6,967,279 | 8,039,943 |
| Nov 2024 | 6,768,702 | 7,866,572 |
| Dec 2024 | 6,856,043 | 7,715,417 |
| Jan 2025 | 6,769,252 | 7,692,816 |
| Feb 2025 | 6,135,496 | 7,233,152 |
| Mar 2025 | 6,656,437 | 7,676,775 |
| Apr 2025 | 6,522,265 | 7,568,931 |
| May 2025 | 6,643,676 | 7,825,937 |
| Jun 2025 | 6,375,703 | 7,601,530 |
| Jul 2025 | 6,512,887 | 7,804,932 |
| Aug 2025 | 6,439,865 | 7,780,794 |
| Sep 2025 | 6,280,390 | 7,451,984 |
| Oct 2025 | 6,374,863 | 7,597,834 |
| Nov 2025 | 6,070,998 | 7,358,937 |
| Dec 2025 | 6,313,160 | 7,497,802 |
| Jan 2026 | 5,523,203 | 7,339,328 |
| Feb 2026 | 5,008,644 | 6,573,819 |
| Mar 2026 | 5,648,789 | 7,263,742 |
| Apr 2026 | 5,241,020 | 6,934,434 |
| May 2026 | 5,483,953 | 7,382,923 |
| Jun 2026 | 5,346,117 | 6,977,527 |
| Jul 2026 | 4,932,121 | 7,075,264 |
Field names identify the producing area. The geologic formations they produce from are listed above.
Public-company tickers link to investor relations. Private operators are marked as such and do not carry a ticker.
Recent permit activity: 7606 new drilling permits in the last 24 months.
We also buy overriding royalty interests (ORRIs) and non-participating royalty interests (NPRIs) in Kern County — common for tracts under leases held by major operators with carried-out royalty structures.
Yes. Kern County is on our active buy list. We buy mineral interests, royalty interests, NPRI, and ORRI on both producing and non-producing tracts targeting the Monterey, Stevens, Belridge Diatomite, Kern River, and Tulare formations.
The most active operators we track in Kern County include Chevron, Aera Energy, Berry Petroleum, California Resources Corp. We regularly buy interests held under leases with these operators.
Kern County sits in the San Joaquin Basin, where the primary target is monterey / kern river. Here we underwrite the Monterey, Stevens, and Belridge Diatomite formations.
Last-six-month volumes in Kern County are running below the prior six months, which is typical of an area weighted toward legacy production rather than fresh drilling. Offer values still reflect the remaining decline curve and any nearby permits.
Yes — 7606 new drilling permits were filed in Kern County in the last 24 months. Recent permit activity is one of the inputs we weigh when sizing an offer on undeveloped or PDP-only acreage.
Yes. Kern County is on our active buy list. We respond to offer requests within 48 hours and underwrite producing tracts where the underlying decline curve and operator workover plans support a competitive offer.
Kern County is the largest oil-producing county in California, with a long history of heavy-oil production from the Kern River, Belridge, Midway-Sunset, and other legacy fields, plus selective Monterey Shale and other unconventional activity. Production is dominantly heavy crude (lower API) requiring steam injection (thermal recovery) and other enhanced recovery methods. Operator activity is steady but modulated by California regulatory and environmental policy.
Kern County heavy crude trades at a meaningful discount to WTI (often $10-$25/barrel below WTI) due to its lower API and the costs of refining heavy crude. Realized crude prices on Kern County royalty checks typically reflect this discount. The discount fluctuates with refinery economics and California-specific market conditions.
California has imposed increasing regulatory restrictions on oil and gas development, including setback requirements, well-stimulation restrictions, and proposed phase-down policies. The state has no traditional severance tax (a CalGEM regulatory assessment per barrel/Mcf substitutes), but local taxes and ad valorem on producing interests apply. Kern County mineral economics increasingly depend on continuing operator willingness to invest under the evolving regulatory regime. We continue to underwrite Kern County interests but with explicit attention to regulatory risk.
Closings on Kern County mineral rights typically take 7 to 30 days from the date you accept our offer, depending on title complexity. We handle county-level title work, PSA drafting, mineral deed preparation, and notary coordination at our expense.
Just a tract description (abstract or survey, section/township/range, or a legal description from your deed) and any recent royalty check stubs if the interest is producing. You do not need to gather deeds or title opinions up front.
Kern County sits in the San Joaquin Basin, where operators are targeting monterey / kern river. Activity is led by names like Chevron, Aera Energy, Berry Petroleum, and new drilling continues to shape the play across the Monterey, Stevens, Belridge Diatomite, Kern River, and Tulare formations.
If you hold mineral rights, royalty interests, NPRI, or ORRI anywhere in the county, we'd like to put a written offer in front of you. Every offer we send is funded from our own balance sheet — there's no auction, no broker markup, and no third-party capital waiting to approve the deal.
Kern County is an active buying area for us. The play is mature with significant legacy production rather than a fresh drilling wave, and we're prepared to make offers on producing tracts that other buyers overlook.
Production has softened over the last six months compared with the prior six — typical of a county with more legacy production than fresh drilling.