The Niobrara formation
Geology, footprint, and mineral-owner context for the Niobrara, drawn from public USGS and state survey sources. Resource figures describe the play as a whole and are not a per-acre value. Every figure on this page is an estimate subject to verification of your specific interest.
Last updated June 2026.
What is the Niobrara?
The Niobrara is the Upper Cretaceous chalk and marl interval of the Denver-Julesburg (DJ) Basin, the oil play centered on Weld County, Colorado and extending into Laramie County, Wyoming, that is developed alongside the Codell sandstone directly below it. It is oil-weighted in the DJ Basin core, a shallow biogenic gas play in the chalks of eastern Colorado, and a target in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming.
The Niobrara is the formation that defines the DJ Basin oil play. It is an Upper Cretaceous sequence of chalk and marl benches that source and hold the oil, and across the Denver-Julesburg Basin it is developed together with the Codell sandstone that sits directly below it, so a single Weld County tract often produces from both intervals. The oil-rich core is concentrated in Weld County, Colorado and runs north into Laramie County, Wyoming. Away from the oil core, the same Niobrara chalk becomes a shallow biogenic dry-gas play in eastern Colorado around Yuma County, and the formation is also a target in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming. For a mineral owner, a Niobrara royalty is valued on the income the wells actually pay, on the standard income multiple, with the oil versus gas mix and the basin position influencing where the interest lands in the range.
Niobrara geology
- Age and lithology
- Upper Cretaceous chalk and marl, with alternating chalk benches and marl members that serve as both source rock and reservoir. Source: USGS Denver Basin Province assessment and Colorado Geological Survey.
- Paired with the Codell
- In the DJ Basin the Niobrara is stimulated and produced together with the underlying Codell sandstone, so one tract often pays from both benches.
- Where it produces
- Oil-weighted in the DJ Basin core of Weld County, Colorado and Laramie County, Wyoming; shallow biogenic dry gas in the chalks of eastern Colorado near Yuma; also a target in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming.
How much oil and gas the Niobrara holds
The USGS has assessed the Niobrara Total Petroleum System of the Denver Basin Province, reporting undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas across the Niobrara and associated Cretaceous reservoirs. These are undiscovered play-wide estimates for the whole petroleum system, not proven reserves and not a measure of any individual property.
Source: USGS Denver Basin Province (Niobrara Total Petroleum System) assessment; Colorado Geological Survey.
What the Niobrara means for your minerals
A resource estimate for a play is not the value of your acreage. Your mineral and royalty interest is valued on the income your wells actually pay, roughly 36 to 72 times your average monthly royalty check, the same as 3 to 6 times your annual royalty. Where you land in that band depends on your wells decline, the operator, your royalty rate, and any undeveloped drilling upside. For the full method and a free on-screen estimate, see what are my mineral rights worth.
The Niobrara is part of the DJ Basin. For the basin-wide value bands and the counties we buy in, see the DJ Basin page.
Niobrara questions
- What is the Niobrara formation?
- The Niobrara is an Upper Cretaceous chalk and marl interval. In the Denver-Julesburg Basin it is the oil play centered on Weld County, Colorado and Laramie County, Wyoming, developed together with the Codell sandstone below it. The same chalk is a shallow biogenic gas play in eastern Colorado and a target in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming.
- Is the Niobrara an oil play or a gas play?
- It is both, depending on location. In the DJ Basin core it is oil-weighted, while in the chalks of eastern Colorado it produces shallow biogenic dry gas. The oil versus gas mix of your production affects where your interest lands in the valuation range.
- How are Niobrara minerals valued?
- A Niobrara interest is valued on the income it pays, roughly 36 to 72 times your average monthly royalty check. USGS resource figures describe the whole play, not your property. This is an estimate, subject to verification, not an offer.
Sources
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