Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Hopefully, Back on the Internet Tonight

I'm on the iPad which is not good for the type of blogging I do.
I have received a lot of comments which need to be posted.
I was quite surprised by oil prices today.
Active rigs in North Dakota are din to 209 from an all-time high of 218.
QEP's permits for ten new wells are all for the same section in Heart Butte (the reservation).

Seventeen (17) New Permits -- BR With a Gusher -- 10 New Permits in Heart Butte for QEP

Daily activity report, July 17, 2012
Seventeen new permits
  • Operators: QEP (10), WLL (4), Hess (2), Cornerstone
  • Fields: Heart Butte (Dunn), Truax (Williams), South Coteau (Burke), Sanish (Mountrail)
The ten QEP wells will be in section 3-149-92, most of which sits under water. 

Eight wells came off the confidential list. Only three were completed or reported an IP, including a 6,800-bbl-IP reported by BR. We will see if this is correct. Update: this was an error. IP was 1,980:
  • 20637, 1,980, BR, Llano 34-34H, Charlson, t6/12; cum 297K 10/20;
  • 21553, 2,202, QEP, MHA 4-31-25H-150-92, Heart Butte, t10/12; cum 316K 10/20;
  • 21651, 506, Samson Resources, Armada 12-1-162-97H, Bluffton, t5/12; cum 117K 10/20;
  • 21672, 336,  Petro-Hunt, Vig 157-99-10D-3-1H, Lone Tree Lake, t4/12; cum 137K 10/20;
  • 21682, 968, XTO/Denbury, Lund 44-8NH, Siverston, t7/12; cum 322K 10/20;
  • 21694, 3,347, Equinor/BEXP, Cora 2-17 1H, Poe, t7/12; cum 264K 10/20;
  • 21885, 0, Chesapeake, Grenz 26-138-98 A 1H, wildcat,
  • 22078, 92/IA, Hess, AV-Wrigley Brothers-164-94-3130H-1, Forthun, t9/12; cum 74K 3/20;
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With regard to BR's Llano well noted above, one of the best wells ever is only five miles northeast of the Llano well. The following well is in the same field and the same section as the Llano well:
  • 16059, 729, Petro-Hunt, USA 2D-3-1H, Charlson field, s6/06; cum 1.24 million 2/12; still producing 9,000 bbls/month; this Bakken well continues to produce 9,000 bbls a month (5/12; and has no pump on it; it is also a short lateral; a sundry form states "NO" under "type of frac."
Folks are talking about this well over here. Be sure to read the comment at this post regarding #16059.

***********************
Three producing wells were completed and reported IPs averaging about 1,700 bbls each.
  • 21627, 1,655, BEXP, Zine 12-1 1H, Bull Butte (the "Kalil oil field"),
  • 21199, 1,764, MRO, Lucky One 21-2TFH,
  • 21457, 1,829, MRO, LuckyOne 21-2H, 
There was an operator transfer of 36 wells from Sumit Resources to Legacy Reserves.

Seventeen (17) New Permits -- BR With a Gusher

The Lost Decade -- Absolutely Nothing To Do With The Bakken

If you came here for the Bakken, please scroll up or down until you find a story about the Bakken, but avoid this post at all costs.

There is a story elsewhere on the "lost decade." I haven't read this particular story yet. I started talking about the "lost decade" a very long time ago, and even have a tag at the bottom of the post, "Lost Decade." In fact, I even have a new tag, the "Second Lost Decade."

Sometime in 2008, 2009, maybe 2010, I was optimistic with regard to the end of the first "Last Decade." I defined the first "Lost Decade" as 2001 to 2010, inclusive, as the "lost decade."  I thought that "we" might turn the corner, but then I noted two things

First, starting about a year ago, maybe two years ago, it became very obvious that the mainstream media was printing more and more stories about the immorality of making money in the US. Even "too big to fail" is a subset of those stories (the federal government and the states of California and Illinois are exceptions: they are too big to fail).

And, then, last Friday, to entrepreneurs, "If you have a company, you did not build it, someone else did." And something to the effect that the government built the internet so everyone could make money off it.

So, I see another "lost decade" in the works, regardless of how November turns out. We are already well into 2012, business plans are in the works for 2013, and it takes awhile for an economy the size of the US to turn around. With the mainstream media printing more and more stories on the immorality of making money in the US, ... not a pretty picture.

But I remain an eternal optimist. Just remember the story about the two walkers in the forest confronted by a bear, and one walker asks the other why the other is putting on tennis shoes, noting that even with tennis shoes, he won't be able to outrun the bear.

Great News -- But Not Bakken-Related

If you came her for Bakken news, please scroll up or down, but avoid this short note at all costs.

Great news. President Obama has lifted the permitorium.

In southeast Asia.

Meanwhile, in the US...... BP nears $15 billion settlement over 2010 gulf spill....

A Little Perspective For The Day

I have to chuckle at the rumors and stories I hear about the challenges and expenses involved in drilling in North Dakota.

I used to respond by saying: "compared to what, Iraq?"

Then this today at Rigzone.com:
A drilling ship leased by Royal Dutch Shell Plc to begin exploring for offshore oil in the Arctic this summer drifted off its moorings this weekend while anchored off the Alaskan coast and narrowly missed the shore.
Shell said a remotely operated vehicle sent to inspect the drilling ship found no sign of damage or evidence it ran aground, but the incident adds to the challenge of launching on time the company's controversial plan to drill in Alaska--one of the most expensive exploration bets it's ever undertaken.
Shell's efforts are being closely watched by authorities and faces stiff opposition from environmentalists; the U.S. Coast Guard has yet to approve an oil response vessel that's critical to the effort, even as the clock ticks on the short summer window the company has to start drilling in the Arctic's harsh environment.
I remember the uproar over six ducks that died in a waste pit a year or so ago in North Dakota. 

Minor Note, Non-Bakken; Noble Energy, Texas/Oklahoma --> Colorado/Wyoming

Noble Energy will be selling some [Anadarko] assets in Texas panhandle and southwestern Oklahoma and use proceeds to augment activities in the DJ Basin [Niobrara?].

[The original post was corrected after receiving a note from "anon 1." Thank you. And with regard to Unit, thank you for the reminder. Yes, it has some Bakken activity.]

Filloon Continues His Series on Completion Design: This Time -- OXY USA

Mike has noticed the same thing I've blogged about several times, starting quite some time ago. The OXY USA wells have not been all that stellar, though recently there has been a glimmer of hope.

I thought this was interesting, coming from Mike:
These results show why Anschutz needed to get rid of its acreage [for newbies, back in 2010, I think, Anschutz sold its North Dakota acreage to OXY USA].

Several Bakken Links -- Mineral Owners Along Rivers Will Get Their Day In Court

First, and this is a good one for mineral rights owners who contend they own the rights between the "high water" and the "low water" marks of creeks and rivers in North Dakota. The state says it owns those minerals. It will now go to court. I believe there is a related issue between the state and the Federal government.

Second: proposal for state money for college housing which has become very, very expensive in the state due to the oil and gas industry.

Third, the links at the Independent Stock Analysis site. The story regarding the price of oil is most intriguing and fits my worldview ("myth").

And fourth, the RBN Energy link on increasing LNG export terminals. This is an important issue for the entire oil and gas industry, not just the Marcellus folks.