Multiple Wells Per Section

I remember three or four years ago all the excitement when the Bakken boom was moving from the Elm Coulee oil field in Montana to North Dakota. We, in North Dakota, were hearing stories that someday there would be a well in every section in the Williston Basin.

Wow, were we wrong!

Not one well in every section. It will be more like three or four wells in every section before it's all over.

I was just looking at the September NDIC hearing dockets in anticipation of the October schedule now starting to be released.

I was traveling at the time and didn't have time to make many comments on the September dockets, but I had a chance to take a look at the cases over the weekend. This is the trend: a) 1280-acre spacing; and, b) multiple wells on spacing units.

Here's an example:

CLR: seven (7) wells on each 1280-acre unit and multiple units

• 13334: CLR, 7 wells, 1280-acre, Dunn, 2 units; 14 wells total
• 13335: CLR, 7 wells, 1280-acre, Dunn; 2 units; 14 wells total
• 13336: CLR, 7 wells, 1280-acre, Dunn; 1 unit; 7 wells total
• 13337: CLR, 7 wells, 1280-acre, Dunn; 4 units; 28 wells total
• 13338: CLR, 7 wells, 1280-acre, Dunn; 8 units; 56 wells total
• 13339: CLR, 7 wells, 1280-acre, Dunn; 9 units; 63 wells total
• 13340: CLR, 7 wells, 1280-acre, Dunn; 5 units; 35 wells total 
• 13341: CLR, 7 increase density wells, 1280-acre unit, Divide; 7 wells total
• 13342: CLR, 7 increase density wells, 1280-acre unit, Divide; 7 wells total
• 13343: CLR, 7 increase density wells, 1280-acre unit, Divide, Burke, Williams; 7 wells total

EOG: multiple wells on smaller units

• 13274: EOG, multiple wells on a 320-acre unit in Squaw Creek, McKenzie
• 13275: EOG, 2 wells on one 640-acre unit, McKenzie
• 13277, EOG, multiple wells on a 320-acre, Squaw Creek, McKenzie

Squaw Creek oil field:

By the way, Squaw Creek is a small oil field, comprising most of one township, T149N-R94W. It is only 23 sections located on the east side of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, south of Spotted Hawk (also a very interesting play) and west of Mandaree. I have to go back and check, but I believe this area is not too far away from the Arrow Pipeline initiative. Currently there are two rigs on site in this very little oil field, one well nearing completion, and several wells still on the confidential list. Interestingly enough, there are a few sections with 320-acre spacing in this oil field, and the rest is split evenly between 640-acre and 1280-acre spacing.