Are there any sweeter words for producers than hearing the USGS has confirmed massive, undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas reserves in your operating hood? Not if you’re a player in Wyo’s Mowry Shale. This news isn’t simply music to the ears of Powder River Basin operators but a full-blown symphony after years of political roadblocks that put 5,000 wells in legal limbo.

Reese Energy Consulting today is following the latest from the USGS and the Mowry Composite Total Petroleum System—a prolific geological grouping in Southwest Wyo., and parts of Colo and Utah. The new report estimates 473 MMBbls of oil and 27 TCF of natural gas still wait to be discovered. This, after yielding 90 MMBbls of oil and 7.3 TCF of gas since exploration of the stacked play began there in the ‘50s. The Mowry system includes the Dakota Sandstone, Muddy Sandstone, Mowry Shale, and Frontier formation. The Mowry’s largest producers include Continental Resources and EOG Resources.

USGS oil and gas assessments began 50 years ago following an oil embargo against the US which led to a mandate to use geologic science and data to assess undiscovered oil and gas resources.