Thursday, May 27, 2010

XTO With New Permits for Two Wells on One Pad

XTO was granted new permits today (May 27, 2010) for two wells on one pad in Dunn County, Haystack Butte oil field, section 16: Big Gulch 41X-16 and Dakota Federal 41X-16, # 19072 and # 19073, respectively, in the NENE subquadrant.

Again, I have to credit Harold Hamm, CLR/CEO, for being such an advocate for placing multiple wells on one pad. The laterals could be targeting different formations (stacked dual laterals) or they could be going in opposite directions, targeting different sections (unstacked dual laterals).

The Fine Print: This Time It's Good for CLR

Continental Resources has a new presentation out today.

Check out slide 20.  CLR says it has a "plenty of running room."

CLR estimates it has 800 unbooked wells in the middle Bakken (500) and the Three Forks Sanish (300), with an additional reserve potential of 210 million barrels of oil equivalent in the middle Bakken and 125 million barrels of oil equivalent in the Three Forks Sanish.

This is what caught my eye, the small print: CLR's internal economic model is based on gross reserves per well of 518,000 barrels oil equivalent for the North Dakota Bakken and assumes one (1) well per section for the North Dakota Bakken.

When I look at the GIS map server, I don't see many sections in the "older" producing areas with only one well. Many sections will have at least two wells, one targeting the middle Bakken and one targeting the Three Forks Sanish. In addition, the 518,000 boe seems to be very conservative.

Fallout: No New Drilling in Alaska

For those wondering if North Dakota could overtake Alaska in oil production, this will add fodder to the discussion: the Federal government halts all new drilling in Alaska until oil spill in the Gulf is resolved.

I seriously didn't think that North Dakota can out-produce but this certainly has to be good news for those concerned with recent "free fall" in price of oil.

And indeed it is: I just checked -- price of oil up significantly in last 12 hours.

By the way, isn't this a great way for the her "enemies" to get back at former governor of Alaska? Just saying. Maybe we won't need that pipeline after all.

Update, four hours later, May 27, 2010: the more I see of this, the better I feel about the Bakken. Already the price of oil is up (mostly due to news out of China and its support of Europe, but I can't but think that removing deepwater drilling will keep oil prices trending higher in the out years.  Yup, the knee-jerk response to put a moratorium on more deep water drilling is about par for the course. I assume the hole is plugged or nearly plugged now that the Administration has taken credit for stopping the leak.

Update, five hours later, May 27, 2010: Obama -- "go to the beaches; most open; most clean."  This sounds like a former president telling folks to go shopping during the recession following 9/11 terrorist events. Also, which is it: worse than the Exxon Valdez or "most beaches clean?"


North to Alaska, Johnny Horton