Bring It On! 40-Stage Fracturing in North Dakota -- Another First! -- September 2, 2010

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Back in October, 2009, I linked a story from "Next Big Future" about 60-stage fracks in the near future.

Well, it looks like the future just got a bit closer (production data might be updated).

Slawson's 40-stage fracturing of the Atlantis Federal 1-34-35H in the Van Hook oil field (file number 18595) resulted in an IP of 1,131, but produced almost 40,000 barrels in the first 30 days [cum 369K 8/17;]. The average amount of oil produced per day almost equaled the initial 24-hour production, something heretofore unseen. (I assume there are some exceptions to that statement.)

• 18595, 1,131, Slawson, Atlantis Federal 1-34-35H, t7/10; cum 369K 8/17;

A sister well, file number 18331, QEP, running parallel to and north of the Atlantis Federal in the same section is producing but the numbers have not yet been reported. That well is the FED 1-34-35H-152-92.  Hopefully we will get some information on this well shortly. [Update: IP of 1,575, cum 249K 9/14]

The 40-stage fractured well (the Atlantis Federal) is in a very good field, the Van Hook field. This particular well is a long horizontal and almost all of it under the river (which of course makes no difference; the well sits on land alongside the river).

This validates my often-expressed feeling that fracturing is very, very local. Fracturing doesn't go out very far. Fracturing doesn't have an effect farther out than about 400 feet at most, in my humble opinion, to coin a phrase. Which leads to two things: 1) they're going to increase the number of stimulation stages if it's cost effective; and, b) there are going to be a lot more wells running parallel to each other in each section in the better Bakken areas.

For newbies, some have opined that it costs about $200,000 for each additional stage of fracturing, but I don't know if that number decreases a bit per stage after you get above 30 stages. It probably doesn't take much longer to do 40 stages than to do 30 stages, and if it doesn't take much longer, then the personnel costs aren't much of an additional factor. Water and sand is fairly inexpensive except for the transportation, but ceramics are very, very expensive in comparison.

So, we'll see. I would like to see a) press release from Slawson talking about this well; and, b) expert opinion from some geologists.

The important point here is that back in October, 2009, experts said we were headed for 60-stage fracturing. Most people did not believe that. I questioned it.

And this is why I love following the Bakken. By the way, technology advances in the Bakken are being taken overseas and to other shale fields in the US, for example the Eagle Ford in Texas.

Yup, another first for North Dakota: 40-stage fracturing. Bring it on!