Random Update on the Pankowski Well

I just received a nice e-mail note from a reader providing a detail about the Pankowski well:

• 20857, 358 (1,312 according to the sundry form), KOG, Pankowski 4-6H, Truax, Three Forks; t2/12; cum 67K 10/12; 23 stages total; 1 million lbs proppant; ("ten stages this frac" on sundry form; I do not know what that meant); producing at 6,000 bbls/month 10/12; 

The reader told me that the Pankowski had problems in the Bakken formation; the decision was made to drill through the Bakken formation and into the Three Forks.

Reading the file report is very, very interesting and confirms the reader's comment.

From the introduction of the well evaluation provided by North Plains Energy, LLC:

The ... Pankowski ... will be the second Three Forks horizontal double-section well designed to develop oil production in this [Truax] field, following the Hess Corp Scanlan 17-1TH. ... Original plans called for a curve to be built at ... landing in the Middle Bakken Member for a Bakken well. Build rates for a Bakken well were not acquired and the curve was then planned to land in the upper portion of the Three Forks Formation.

Later in the geo-steering portion of the report:

The build rates to land the curve at the desired target were not acquired and the well bore was landed at TVD of 11,209', right above the Lower Bakken Shale. The were plans were then changed to drill a Three Forks well rather than a Bakken well and the curve build was continued. The edited well plan called for a landing of 14' into the Three Forks Formation, in the upper 2' - 3' of the preferred target interval, at a projected TVD of 11,250' and an inclination of ... The actual landing was estimated at 11,249' TVD, putting the well bore ~ 1' - 2' below the 12' target interval due to the approximate down dip at the start of the lateral. The top of the 10' target came in at 11,248' TVD and the bottom of the preferred 6' target came in at 11,254' TVD.

Spud: October 31, 2011; TD: November 24, 2011. The request to change from a Bakken well to a Three Forks well was received by the NDIC on November 14, 2011.

A trivial point but I was thrilled when I saw it: the geologist was a woman. Maybe not so trivial.  I look forward to my granddaughters going into engineering. [One wants to be a marine biologist; the other appears a budding artist.]

I am absolutely amazed that "they" hit a 10' target within a foot almost two miles down. This speaks volumes about the geologist and the tool pushers (and all the rest I know nothing about).

A huge "thank you" to a reader sharing a story, giving me an opportunity to read the file report and see how this played out.

By the way, the Truax field is near the heart of the Bakken and will eventually have six wells per spacing unit.