Pages

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Update on Three SuperLongLaterals -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

Technically these are not the "super long laterals" that folks talk about in deep water drilling, but they are longer than the typical long laterals in the Bakken, and in one case, significantly longer.

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."

5 comments:

  1. Interesting info.I own a very small interest in Osprey-Federal and it made me curious as to why Slawson's activity is relatively slow.Some oil people have told me that this well,as well as others,are among the first to be drilled in that spacing unit.However,no sign that Slawson is going to increase it's activity.Any ideas why? BTW,always a good read here Bruce,thanks for the info!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I don't know if I can answer your question, but I can provide some data.

    Van Hook, as you know, is a very good field.

    Slawson, as you probably know, has a very good reputation based on those who write to me, and based on what I've seen. Unfortunately, it is privately held.

    According to NDIC, Slawson has 47 permits/wells in the Van Hook.

    In the immediate area of this particular Slawson well (#18749, Osprey Federal) there are two other Slawson wells (#19000, Goblin 1-26H with an IP of 1,048; and #19047, Revolver 1-35H, with an IP of 1,770). Both of these wells have only been completed in the last two or three months. Goblin runs north; Revolver runs south; and, of course, Osprey Federal runs east under the river.

    All three wells sit in the same section: 26-151-92.

    The spacing units are different for all three wells (I believe I have this correct): Goblin, 320 acres (unusual but necessary); Revolver, 640 (old standard); and Osprey Federal, 1600 (to allow it to reach under the river).

    So, it appears to me that Slawson controlled the entire section, but to reach that far under the river, Slawson requested the section to be divided in half. One half (320 acres for Goblin; a short lateral) and one half to be added to the 1280-acres for an extended long lateral.

    Now to answer your question. You must have information I don't have with regard that Slawson doesn't plan to put any more wells in this spacing unit.

    If that is correct, my hunch is that Slawson is following its own "business model" or approach to site selection. I've talked about the various "business models" in other postings comparing NOG, KOG, WLL, BEXP, and CLR.

    Slawson seems to use their dollars very, very well. If that is true, that they are not going to put another well into this spacing unit, it tells me they are holding these sections under the river by production (HBP) and are using their rigs and dollars to drill elsewhere before losing other leases.

    If the three wells end up being as good as they appear to be, it's just a matter of time before we see infill wells. Several companies are now talking about infill wells in their corporate presentations: WLL, BEXP, KOG, for example.

    I don't know if this answers your question, but I've provided enough background, I may make this a stand-alone post since I know a lot of folks don't read the comments. Had you not asked, I never would have looked at the specifics of this area. Thank you.

    Thank you for you kind comments; I hope this is somewhat helpful.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Re-reading your comment, I did not know whether by "slow" you meant "overall" -- or, just in this immediate area.

    If you mean the immediate area, my comment above, I think makes sense. If you mean "overall" in the Bakken, I can't comment because Slawson is a privately held company and I can't compare past activity to future plans.

    However, in a general sense, I can say that it is very, very expensive to drill a Bakken well, and in some cases it's just a matter of cash flow and credit access determining how fast a company can drill. You have no doubt noticed the cash that has been recently raised by OAS, KOG, and others.

    CLR has 22 rigs and talks of increasing that number significantly; on the other hand, BEXP has been "slow" to move from five or six rigs to eight rigs this year. KOG has had two rigs for the longest time but is finally adding a third this year. So, the pace of drilling by company across the Bakken, varies from driller to driller.

    Oh, I almost forgot. The biggest choke point is access to frac crews. The bigger producers have an advantage; they are now employing their own dedicated frac crews. The smaller the company, the fewer the wells, the more problematic for scheduling a frac crew, I would imagine. It would not be good to have spent $4 million reaching total depth and then have no frac crew to frac it -- $4 million tied up on a well.

    Also, the number of active rigs has stayed constant (160 - 165) for the longest time, even though I know there is the potential for as many as 175 active rigs. Something tells me there is just not enough manpower to operate all those rigs.

    In addition, at one time there was a severe backlog in determining mineral rights owners -- that is very, very labor intensive -- and that will slow things down, also.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks Bruce,although I may have mis-stated my meaning in the post.I have been told by a couple of people in the business that the Osprey-Federal well is the first of hopefully a few more wells to go in there.My intent of thought was that it seemed Slawson's activity had slowed there.I was hoping you had some insight as to why,even though I realize that info is hard to come by from Slawson.I have asked questions of their division order department and they simply don't give out details,even to interest owners.As for the backlog of interest owners,I can tell you first hand it's true.Without mentioning specifics,Slawson has had a devil of a time getting the succession of heirs lined out to start royalty payments.My family is among them.My interest is almost miniscule,but it has been fun to learn more about the process,even if there is very little money for me personally. That's why I'm very happy to have chanced upon your blogspot.I have enjoyed it very much and hope you continue for some time.Take care.

    ReplyDelete
  5. If nothing else, I'm learning a lot about the geography of my home state and the peculiarities of the oil industry. Just looking at this one small piece of the Van Hook has been very rewarding.

    Have a great week.

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.