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Monday, September 27, 2010

Six Vertical Wells and Three Horizontal Wells in One Spacing Unit

Any guess what Hess is up to with permits for six vertical wells and three horizontal wells in one spacing unit (two sections)? Case 13400, in Big Butte oil field, and case 13405, in Hawkeye oil field. See the October, 2010, NDIC hearings.

Certainly, Hess isn't going to drill six wells to monitor how the other three wells are doing, or are they? Targeting another formation vertically?

Does the seismographic data suggest there are natural fractures that might not require fracturing? It should be noted that water (which is used in fracturing) can disrupt natural fracturing.

*****

And while we're at it, how about that request by Zenergy to drill up to nine (9) wells in one 3840-acre unit in the Van Hook (case 13427)? (One 3840-acre unit equals six 640-acre units.)

And some people accuse ME of being inappropriately exuberant, which I admit I am. Smile.

NDIC Hearing Dockets, October, 2010

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

13356: NDIC, spacing in one McKenzie township
13357: BR, revoke North Plains Hellandsaas 16-8H well
13358: BR, up to 7 wells in each 1280-acre unit in the Keene-Bakken/TF Pool
13359: BR, pooling in Westberg
13360: BR, pooling in Elidah
13361: BR, pooling in Hawkeye
13362: BR, pooling in Clear Creek
13363: BR, pooling in Haystack Butte
13364: Oasis, development of Gros Ventre
13365: MRO, temporary spacing to develop Arvid Bangen USA 31-18H
13366: MRO, add sections to either Reunion Bay or Van Hook, as 1280-acre units
13367: MRO, establish 6 1280-acre spacing units; one well each
13368: MRO, up to 4 horizontal wells on one 1280-acre unit; 4 wells total
13369: MRO, up to 4 horizontal wells on two 1280-acre units; 8 wells total
13370: MRO, pooling in Murphy Creek
13371: MRO, pooling in Mruphy Creek
13372: Slover Minerals, legalese re MRO in Mountrail County
13373:  WLL, temporary spacing to develop Kubas 11-13TFH
13374: WLL, temporary spacing to develop Froelich 44-9TFH
13375: WLL, up to 6 wells in one 1280-acre spacing
13376: WLL, up to 6 wells in one 1280-acre spacing
13377: WLL, up to 6 wells in Zones VI, VIII, and IX in Mountrail. McKenzie
13378: WLL, establish five 1280-acre units in Sanish with one well each
13379: WLL, pooling in Mountrail
13380: WLL, to add 1280-acre spacing units to Bicentennial
13381: WLL, to add 1280-acre spacing units to Roosevelt
13382: WLL, to add 1280-acre spacing units to Roosevelt
13383: WLL, to add 1280-acre spacing units to Demores
13384: WLL, to add 1280-acre spacing units to Elkhorn or Ash Coulee
13385: WLL, to add 1380-acre spacing units to Ash Coulee
13386: SM, to establish two 1280-acre unit and one horizontal well each
13387: SM, to establish one 1280-acre unit and one horizontal well
13388: SM, to establish three 1280-acre units and one well each
13389: Petro-Hunt, temporary spacing to develop Forseth 157-100-25B-36-1H
13390: Petro-Hunt, up to 7 wells in one 1280-acre spacing unit, Stockyard Creek
13391: Petro-Hunt, one 1280-acre unit and one well
13392: BTA, to establish four 1280-acre units in Little Knife
13393: Cornerstone, to establish two 640-acre units and one well each
13394: Murex, up to 3 wells in one 1280-acre unit
13395: Murex, pooling in McGregor
13396: Murex, pooling in McGregor
13397: KOG, to establish one 1280-acre unit with up to 3 horizontal wells
13398: KOG, pooling in Moccasin Creek
13399: Hess, three 1280-acre units
13400: Hess, up to 3 horizontal wells and six vertical wells in one 1280-acre unit, 2/11-156-94, Mountrail, Big Butte
13401: Hess, to establish two 1280-acre units
13402: Hess, up to 3 wells in one 1280-acre unit, 3 wells total
13403: Hess, up to 3 wells in six 1280-acre units, 18 wells total
13404: Hess, up to 3 wells in two 1280-acre units, 6 wells total
13405: Hess, up to 3 horizontal wells and up to six vertical wells in one 1280-acre unit, 18/19-152-95, McKenzie, Hawkeye
13406: Hess, up to 3 horizontal wells in one 1280-acre unit
13407: Hess, up to 3 horizontal wells in one 1280-acre unit
13408: Hess, up to 3 horizontal wells in one 1280-acre unit
13409: Hess, extend Blue Buttes, and up to 3 horizontal wells on one 1280-acre unit
13410: Hes, pooling in Pleasant Valley
12396, cont'd: Hess, to establish one 2560-acre unit and allow up to six wells; establish two 1280-acre units and allow up to three wells; and a 640-acre unit with up to three wells; total 15 wells
13411: Ursa, to establish one 1280-acre unit and one horizontal well
13412: Ursa, to establish a 1280-acre unit
13413: Ursa, to establish one 1280-acre unit and one horizontal well
13414: Ursa, to establish one 1280-acre unit and one horizontal well
13415: Sequel Energy, enhanced recovery, North Branch 34-42F
13416: Sequel, enhanced recovery, North Branch 22-35
13417: Sequel, pooling in North Tioga
13418: Peak Grasslands, develop Wisness 21-34H
13419: North Plains, flaring
13420: North Plains, to create two 1280-acre units and one horizontal well each
13421: North Plains, pooling Eide 5-13H
13422: Petrogulf, revoking pooling of Anschutz Twist 31-4H and Neal 1-33-28H 144-95
13089, cont'd: Peak, realign two sections from Zone III to Zone II
13423: Peak, realign two sections from Zone V to Zone III
13090, cont'd: Peak, include 2 sections in Zone III and allow one horizontal well
13240, cont'd: Oasis, to establish four 1280-acre units and allow one horizontal well each

Thursday, October 21, 2010

13424: BR, to revoke WLL Tescher Ranch 11-9TFH
13425: EOG, QEP, Slawson, Zenergy, to redefine limits of Van Hook
13426: QEP, legalese re MHA 1-06-01H149-92 and MHA 2-06-01H-149-92
13427: Zenergy, extend the Van Hook and establish a 3840-acre unit and drill up to 9 wells on that spacing unit
13428: Slawson, extend the Bailey and establish a 1280-acre unit and one horizontal area
13429: EOG, temporary spacing for Boundary 4-27H
13430: EOG, to revoke Prima's Gunnison 34-35H permit (#19479)
13431: EOG, modify location of Liberty 3-14H
13432: EOG, establish two 1280-acre units and one well in each, Spotted Hawk
13433: EOG, establish a 1280-acre unit, one well, in Spotted Hawk
13434: EOG, establish three 1280-acre units and one well each, Squaw Creek
13435: Summit, redefine Beaver Creek-Stonewall Pool, Billings and Valley Counties; the Stonewall Formation is deeper than the Bakker but "above" the Red River
13436: Summit, redefine the South Boxcar-Bakken Pool
13437: Zavanna, redefine the Stockyard Creek-Bakken Pool
13438: BEXP, temporary spacing for Sedlacek Trust 33-4
13284, cont'd: BEXP, legalese for Abe Owan 21-16 1H
13439: XTO, modify one 1280-acre rules in MonDak field
13347, cont'd: XTO, pooling for the Sundhagen 31X-3
13348, cont'd: XTO, pooling for the Big Gulch Federal 41X-16
13440: Newfield, extend Fertile Valley to establish three 1280-acre units and one well each
13441: Newfield, extend Siverston and establish two 1280-acre units and one well each
13109, cont'd: Newfield, temporary spacing for Heidi 1-4H
13442: Hunt, extend the Bailey and establish a 1280-acre unit for one well
13443: Hunt, create two 1280-acre units with one well each
13444: Encore, legalese for Klamm 34-9NWH
13445: Encore, legalese for Lundin 14-33NEH
13446: CLR, extend Hebron to establish a 1280-acre unit and drill not more than seven wells on that unit
13447: CLR, amend Stoneview Pool to establish two 320-acre units and one well each
13448: CLR, extend Dolphin and Hamlet, to establish seven 1280-acre units and one well each
13449: CLR, extend Corinth to establish three 1280-acre units and one well each
13450: CLR, extend St Demetrius and establish seven 1280-acre units and one well each
13451: CLR, to extend the Dolphin and/or Hayland, to create one 1280-acre unit with not more than seven wells
13452: CLR, creat a 1280-acre unit and one well
13453: CLR, create a 1280-acre unit and one well
13454: CLR, creat five 1280-acre units and one well each
13259, cont'd: CLR, create a 760-acre unit in Cedar Creek-Ordovician Pool and two wells
12014, cont'd: CLR, temporary spacing for Traxel 1-31H
13114, cont'd: CLR, extending Camp and/or Banks to establish a 1600-acre unit and one well
13157, cont'd: CLR, pooling in Ranch Creek
13455: Abraxas, legalese regarding Ravin 26-35-1H
13456: Tracker, legalese for Kudma 10-1H
13457: Tracker, legalese for Olson 3-1H
13458: Fidelity, legalese for Domaskin 19-30-29H
13459: Fidelity, for Lynn 19-20-29H
13460: QEP, pooling in the Heart Butte
13461: EOG, three wells on two 1280-acre units
13462: EOG, three wells on a 1280-acre unit Clearwater
13463: EOG, two wells on a 640-acre unit in Spotted Horn
13464: EOG, two wells on three  640-acre units, Squaw Creek
13465: EOG, pooling in Van Hook
13466: EOG, pooling in Van Hook
13467: Sagebrush, modify production rules for Johnston 1-22
13468: Sagebrush, convert Cameron 1-14 into a saltwater disposal well
13469: XTO, three wells on a 1280-acre unit in Midway
13470: XTO, three wells on three 1280-acre units in Grinnel
13471: XTO, three wells on a 1280-acre unit in Sorkness
13472: Hunt, pooling in Clear Water
13473: Hunt, pooling in Ross
13474: Hunt, pooling in Ross
13475: Hunt, pooling in Ross
13476: Hunt, pooling in Parshall
13477: Hunt, pooling in Parshall
13478: Hunt, pooling in Parshall
13479: Hunt, Hunt, pooling in Parshall
13480, Hunt, pooling in Dunn County
13481: Hunt, pooling in Lake Ilo
13482: Hunt, pooling in Lake Ilo
13483: Hunt, pooling in Lake Ilo
13484: Encore, pooling in Siverston
13485: Encore, pooling in Siverston
13486: Encore, pooling in Siverston
13487: Encore, pooling in Siverston
13488: Encore, pooling in Siverston
13489: Anschutz, pooling in Little Knife
13490: Anschutz, pooling in Little Knife
13491: Anschutz, pooling in Hungry Man Butte
13492: Anschutz, pooling in Fayette
13493: Anschutz, pooling in Fayette
13494: Anschutz, pooling in Fayette
13495: Anschutz, pooling in Fayette
13496: Anschutz, pooling in Fayette
13497: Anschutz, pooling in Fayette
13498: Anschutz, pooling in Fayette
13499: Anschutz, pooling in Fayette
13500: Anschutz, pooling in Fayette
13501: Anschutz, pooling in Cabernet
13502: Anschutz, pooling in Murphy Creek
13503: Anschutz, pooling in Murphy Creek
13504: Anschutz, pooling in Willmen
13505: Anschutz, pooling Willlmen
13506: Anschutz, pooling Manning
13506: Anschutz, pooling in Manning
13507: Anschutz, pooling in Manning
13508: Anschutz, pooling in Manning
13509: Anschutz, pooling in Manning
13510: Anschutz, pooling in St Anthony
13511: Newfield, three wells in a 1280-acre unit, South Tobacco Garden
13512: Newfield, three wells on a 1280-acre unit, Fertile Valley
13513: Newfield, pooling in Siverston
13514: Newfield, pooling in Siverston
13515: Baytex, pooling in Ambros
13516: Slawon, two wells on a 640-acre unit in Alger
13517: Ballantyne, convert Aus 4-22 to saltwater disposal
13518: CLR, modify production rules for Dromedary 21-8SH, #16630
13519: CLR, pooling in Upland
13520: CRL, pooling in Hamlet
13521: CLR, pooling in Stoneview
13522: CLR, pooling in Johnson Corner
13524: CLR, up to seven wells on one 1280-acre unit in Corral Creek
13525: CLR, up to seven wells on 13 1280-acre units in Jim Creek, 91 wells
13526: CLR, up to seven wells on two 1280-acre units in Little Knife
13527: CLR, increae density wells, up to seven, on each 1280-acre unit in Temple
13528: CLR, increase density wells, up to seven, on each 1280-acre unit in Lindal
13529: CLR, increase density wells, up to seven, on each 1280-acre unit in North Tioga
13530: CLR, increase density wells, up to seven, on each 1280-acre unit in Sauk
13531, CLR, increase density wells, up to seven, on each 1280-acre unit in NW McGregor
13532: CLR, increase density wells, up to seven, on each 1280-acre unit in Battleview
13533: CLR, increase density wells, up to seven, on each 1280-acre unit in Hanson  
13534: CLR, increase density wells, up to seven, on each 1280-acre unit in Upland
13535: CLR, increase density wells, up to seven, on each 1280-acre unit in Squires
13536: Hess, modify production from EN-Abrahamson 155-93 3019H-1, 2, and 3
13537: Hess, modify production from EN-Fisher 157-94-2126H-1, 2 and 3
13538: Hess, modify production from EN-Heinle 156-94 2536H-1, 2 and 3
13539: Hess, modify production from EN-Will Trust A-157-94 2734H-1, 2, and 3
13540: Hess, modify production from RS-Nelson Farms A-156-90 2829H-1, 2 and 3
13541: Hess, modify production from RS-Shubart 156-90 2726H-1, 2 and 3
13542: Samson, saltwater disposal   


Thursday, October 21, 2010 -- Supplemental

13054, cont'd: EOG, Hess, proper spacing for Clear Water-Bakken
13097, cont'd: EOG, Fidelity, flaring in Cottonwood
13099, cont'd: EOG, temporary spacing for Kandyohi 2-20H
13100, cont'd: EOG, temporary spacing for Boundary 1-11H
13110, cont'd: CLR, temporary spacing for Brockmeier 1-1H
12886, cont'd: EOG, pooling for the Burke 24-08H in Stanley



Friday, October 22, 2010

13354: Ballantye, unitized management of Southwest Landa-Madison, Bottineau
13355: Ballantyne, unitized plan for case number 13354

Multiple (9) Wells in a Single Spacing Unit (Two Sections)

October NDIC dockets

For full summary, click here.


Multiple wells in one spacing unit
  • Case 13375: WLL, up to six (6) wells on one 1280-acre spacing unit.
  • Case 13390: Petro-Hunt, up to seven (7) wells on one 1280-acre spacing unit.
  • Case 13400: Hess, up to 3 horizontal wells and six vertical wells in one 1280-acre unit, 2/11-156-94, Mountrail, Big Butte
  • Case 13405: Hess, up to  3 horizontal wells and up to six vertical wells in one 1280-acre unit, 18/19-152-95, McKenzie, Hawkeye
  • Case 13427: Zenergy, extend the Van Hook and establish a 3840-acre unit and drill up to 9 wells on that spacing unit
  • Case 13434: EOG, establish three 1280-acre units and one well each, Squaw Creek
  • Case 13446: CLR, extend Hebron to establish a 1280-acre unit and drill not more than seven wells on that unit
  • Case 13448: CLR, extend Dolphin and Hamlet, to establish seven 1280-acre units and one well each
  • Case 13450: CLR, extend St Demetrius and establish seven 1280-acre units and one well each
  • Case 13451: CLR, to extend the Dolphin and/or Hayland, to create one 1280-acre unit with not more than seven wells
  • Case 13464: EOG, two wells on three  640-acre units, Squaw Creek
  • Case 13524: CLR, up to seven wells on one 1280-acre unit in Corral Creek (7)
  • 13524: CLR, up to seven wells on one 1280-acre unit in Corral Creek (7)
  • 13525: CLR, up to seven wells on 13 1280-acre units in Jim Creek, 91 wells
  • 13526: CLR, up to seven wells on two 1280-acre units in Little Knife (14)
  • 13527: CLR, increase density wells, up to seven, each 1280-acre unit, Temple (16 *7)
  • 13528: CLR, increase density wells, up to seven, each 1280-acre unit, Lindal (3 * 7)
  • 13529: CLR, incr density wells, up to seven, each 1280-acre unit, N. Tioga (30 * 7)
  • 13530: CLR, incr density wells, up to seven, each 1280-acre unit, Sauk (8 * 7)
  • 13531, CLR, incr density wells, up to seven, each 1280-acre unit, NW McGregor (5*7)
  • 13532: CLR, incr density wells, up to seven, each 1280-acre unit, Battleview (2 * 7)
  • 13533: CLR, incr density wells, up to seven, each 1280-acre unit, Hanson (6 * 7)
  • 13534: CLR, incr density wells, up to seven, each 1280-acre unit, Upland (5 * 7)
  • 13535: CLR, incr density wells, up to seven, each 1280-acre unit, Squires (32 * 7)
Of Interest
  • Case 13435: Summit, redefine Beaver Creek-Stonewall Pool, Billings and Valley Counties; the Stonewall Formation is deeper than the Bakken but "above" the Red River
 

Squaw Creek Oil Field

Note: with regard to the word "squaw," see this article.

Updates

August 18, 2019: The Rachel Wolf / Wolf wells are tracked here.

June 14, 2017: it was noted that production in Squaw Creek increased 141% month-over-month, March-to-April, 2017. Squaw Creek is noteworthy for the number of 320-acre drilling units it has:


Permits

2017 (as of 4/17)
None.

2016 (list is complete)
32514, 1,355, EOG, Mandaree 31-0706H, t12/16; cum 633K 5/20; off line 5/20;
32513, 1,910, EOG, Mandaree 24-0706H, t12/16; cum 546K 5/20; off line 5/20;
32512, IA/1,505, EOG, Mandaree 30-0706H, t12/16; cum 310K 9/19; remains off line 5/20;
32625, PNC, Petroshale, Petroshale 6

2015 (list is complete)
31942, 848, WPX, Rachel Wolf 27-34HS, Squaw Creek, t8/17; cum 250K 3/20; off line 4/20; remains off line 5/20;
31941, 1,891, WPX, Rachel Wolf 27-34HC, Squaw Creek, t8/17; cum 311K 320; off line 3/20; remains off line 5/20;
31940, 1,285, WPX, Rachel Wolf 27-34HY, Squaw Creek, t8/17; cum 247K 3/20; off line 3/20; remains off line 5/20;
31939, 2,106, WPX, Rachel Wolf 27-34HG, Squaw Creek, t8/17; cum 291K 3/20; off line 3/20; remains off line 5/20;
31938, 1,554, WPX, Rachel Wolf 22HC, Squaw Creek, t8/17; cum 271K 3/20; off line 3/20; remains off line 5/20;
30874, 779, Missouri River Resources ND, LLC, Nation 3W-4H-TF,  t7/15; cum 202K 5/20;
30873, 708, Missouri River Resources ND, LLC, Arikara 3W-3H-BK, t7/15; cum 178K 5/20;
30518, 392, Missouri River Resources ND, LLC, Hidatsa 3W-2H-TF, t7/15; cum 132K 5/20;
30517, 695, Missouri River Resources ND, LLC, Mandan 3W-1H-BK, t7/15; cum 186K 5/20;

2014 (list is complete)
28209, PNC, EOG,
27477, 1,328, WPX, Kale Bad Brave 19-18HB, t1/15; cum 238K 4/20; off line 5/20;

27480, 1,461, WPX, Kale Bad Brave 19-18HX2, t2/15; cum 244K 5/20; off line 5/20;

27478, 871, WPX, Kale Bad Brave 19-18HW, t1/15; cum 226K 5/20; off line 5/20;

27479, PNC, WPX,


2013  (list is complete)
26768, 2,054, EOG, Mandaree 28-05HH, t10/14; cum 245K 3/20; off line 3/20; remains off line5/20;
26779, 1,014, EOG, Mandaree 17-05H, t10/14; cum 184K 5/20; off line 5/20;

26778, 704, EOG, Mandaree 110-05H, t9/14; cum 162K 3/20; offline 4/20; remains off line5/20;

26777, 940, EOG, Mandaree 135-05H, t10/14; cum 158K 10/19; offline 10/19; remains off line 5/20;

26769, 526, EOG, Mandaree 134-05H, t10/14; cum 119K 2/20; off-line much of 2016; offline 2/20; remains off lin3 5/20;

Issued in 2012 (list is complete)
24351, 1,007, WPX, Stevenson 15-18HD, t4/13; cum 166K 5/20;
23934, PNC, EOG,
23216, 783, WPX, Corn Stalk 20HC, t1/13; cum 161K 9/19; erratic since 9/19; through 5/20;

23215, 637, WPX, Corn Stalk 20HD, t1/13; cum 175K 5/20; off line 5/20;

22233, PNC, EOG,
22232, PNC, EOG,
Squaw Creek Oil Field

Squaw Creek is an interesting field that got more interesting in late 2010, when I noted that at the September, 2010, NDIC hearings, EOG had requested permits for multiple horizontal wells on one 320-acre spacing unit, the east half of section, T149N-R94. See the original blog entry below. By the end of the year, there was still no activity in that section, but the field itself was fairly active.

Squaw Creek is another one of those typically small fields in the Williston Basin. It is composed of about 31 sections, not even a full township (as of December 30, 2010). For the most part, Squaw Creek field is T149-R94. It is on the west / south side of the river and not too far west of the very prolific Van Hook field in the reservation. Squaw Creek, itself, is a westernmost field in the reservation. Another field of interest is the Spotted Horn, just north of Squaw Creek, and also just as small (just one township, T150-R94), and also inside the reservation. The Mandaree field is east of Squaw Creek.

As of July 3, 2020,  this is the status of activity in Squaw Creek (some IPs updated:
  • 20033, 144, WPX, Rubia 16-24H, t11/11; cum 264K 6/19; offline 6/19; remains off line 5/20;
  • 20711, 341, WPX, Lucy Lone Fight 16-22H, t9/11; cum 107K 4/17; offline 5/19; remains off line 5/20;
  • 18411, 977, EOG, Mandaree 10-05H, t10/10; cum 216K 3/10; offline 3/20;
  • 19426: 1,207, 320-acre spacing; EOG, Mandaree 9-04H, t3/11; cum 185K 4/20; off line 5/20;
  • 18464: 1,424, EOG, Mandaree 1-10H, t9/10; cum 215K 5/20;
  • 18927: 815, EOG, Mandaree 2-09H, t98/10; cum 200K 5/20;
  • 19004: 1,440, EOG, Mandaree 12-07H, t11/10; cum 204K 5/20;
  • 18594: 105, EOG, Mandaree 7-17H, t9/10; cum 204K 5/20;
  • 18774: 526, EOG, Mandaree 5-16H, t10/10; cum 193K 5/20;
  • 15689: 47, vertical well, Madison, s12/04; t5/05; AL; cum 64K 5/20; struggling;
  • 18697: 927, short lateral, EOG, Mandaree 4-15H, t8/10; cum 280K 5/20; off line 5/20;
  • 19881: conf, Peak, Hall 23-21H; remains conf 5/20;
  • 18832: PNC, Denbury/Encore, Fettig 31-21H
  • 18908: 1,565, 320-acre spacing; EOG, Mandaree 6-20H, t9/10; cum 199K4/20; off line 5/20;
  • 19973: 141, WPX/Zenergy, Wolf 27-34H, Wolf 27-34H, t7/11; cum 351K 5/20;
  • 18766: 1,392, 320-acre spacing; Denbury/Encore, Fettig 24-22H, t11/10; cum 101K 4/20; see this post, July 3, 2020;
  • 20238, 180, WPX/Zenergy, Spotted Horn 26-35H, 26-149-94, t1/12; cum 252K 4/20; see this post, October 30, 2019; huge jump in production;
Note the "original blog entry" below which references 320-, 640-, and 1280-acre spacing.

Original Blog Entry

In the September NDIC docket, EOG requested multiple wells on 320-acre spacing in Squaw Creek oil field.

Maybe I'm just inappropriately exuberant, but I find "multiple wells on a 320-acre spacing" interesting, fascinating, and a bit nebulous, as in "inexact." It's been my experience EOG holds its cards very close to the chest, whereas CLR would have come right out and said, "x number of wells on each 320-acre unit." Idle chatter.

I can't wait to see how this plays out. This is near the best of the Bakken, and "they" say the EUR of a Bakken well is 700,000 bbls of oil, +/- a few hundred thousand.

Squaw Creek is a small oil field, comprising most of one township, T149N-R94W. It is only 23 sections in size. It is located on the west side of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, south of Spotted Hawk oil field  (also a very interesting play) and west of the Mandaree oil field.

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.

Am I Missing Something?

I think I do a pretty good job scouring news announcements regarding the Bakken. I know I miss a lot and I do make mistakes.

But in the process of re-looking at the September NDIC hearing docket, I noted the following:

  • 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 
In my original post, I had simply noted the case and the "7 wells, 1280-acre spacing" but did not look at the number of units involved. I went back to the dockets and updated that information, and the information above is what I noted.

That's 238 wells that CLR requested, and that's just a small part of the overall docket for September. Did I mis-read something; is that really accurate? Is that what the docket is saying? It just seems that with all the reporting that comes out of the Bakken, someone would have noted that, certainly by an analyst. But nothing.

So, let me know if I'm mis-reading this. This is absolutely incredible. It reminds me of the EOG request some months ago requesting in excess of 500 new wells in just a few cases.

[With a EUR of 700,000 barrels, at $50/bbl this works out to $8.3 billion over the lifetime of these 238 wells. CLR's market cap is $7.63 billion today.]

[I thought seven (7) wells on one spacing unit was a lot, now I see up to nine (9) wells on one spacing unit in the October dockets. More to follow.]

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.