The Van Hook field is a very good field, but some of it lies under the wide part of the lake (as does the Big Bend oil field). In most cases, the middle of the lake can be reached from the edge of the river with a "typical" long lateral. However, in three cases, the laterals are going to set new records in the Bakken.
18749, 502, Slawson, Osprey Federal 1-26-25-30H
This one is in Big Bend oil field, on the west side of the river. Looking at the GIS map server, it appears that it was set back quite a bit from the lake, resulting in a total depth of 21,910 feet. I think it set a record for total depth at the time it was completed. It was completed in September, 2010, and has produced 42K bbls to date.19720, EOG, Liberty LR 14-23H
This one, located in the Van Hook oil field, is being drilled and is almost complete. It is located on the east of the lake, almost directly across the river from #18749, described above. Based on the well file, it reached TD on January 1, 2011 (it was spud December 13, 2011). Its total depth is 22,212 feet, and thus, appears to hold the record for total depth for a Bakken well. The length of lateral was 12,221 feet (2.3 miles). It took 18 days from spud to total depth.19433, EOG, Liberty LR 17-11H
This one is also in the Van Hook field, on the east side of the lake, about a mile north of #19720 noted above. They've started drilling the well; it was spud January 25, 2011. The estimated total depth for this well is 24,496 feet, which would be the new record for a Bakken well. My original posting regarding this well is linked here.Again, these are not the "super laterals" folks talk about in deep water drilling, but we are seeing some new records set in the Bakken.
In fact, I think a better term for these longer laterals in the North Dakota Bakken is: "extended long laterals."
