Sometimes IPs Don't Even Come Close To Telling The Whole Story: All Three Of These Are Three Forks Wells; All In The Same Section

Some additional comments:

• all three of these wells are on a 5-well pad; these three are on DRL status; two others on CONF status
• two of three below were originally permitted to be middle Bakken wells; changed to TF wells
• the Three Forks is often thought to be best on the fringes of the middle Bakken, or the pinchout; these wells are smack dab in the middle of the middle Bakken play in western North Dakota

Another well sited in this section:

• 18211, 1,000, Slawson, Minx 1-29H, Big Bend, middle Bakken; 18 stages; 176,800 lbs; blew out while fracking; t10/09; cum 188K 6/13;

******************************
Sometimes IPs don't even come close to telling the whole story:

THREE FORKS WELL/MDW
NDIC File No: 20810     API No: 33-061-01743-00-00
Well Type: OG     Well Status: A     Status Date: 6/4/2013     Wellbore type: Horizontal
Location: SWSE 29-152-92     Footages: 300 FSL 1330 FEL     Latitude: 47.949777     Longitude: -102.476832
Current Operator: SLAWSON EXPLORATION COMPANY, INC.
Current Well Name: MOOKA 2-29-20TFH
Elevation(s): 1907 KB   1884 GR   1884 GL     Total Depth: 20090     Field: BIG BEND
Spud Date(s):  11/15/2012
Casing String(s): 9.625" 1722'   7" 10573'  
Completion Data
   Pool: BAKKEN     Perfs: 10573-20090     Comp: 6/4/2013     Status: F     Date: 6/15/2013     Spacing: 2SEC
Cumulative Production Data
   Pool: BAKKEN     Cum Oil: 21565     Cum MCF Gas: 7768     Cum Water: 9582
Production Test Data
   IP Test Date: 6/15/2013     Pool: BAKKEN     IP Oil: 669     IP MCF: 395     IP Water: 337

Monthly Production Data

Pool	Date	Days	BBLS Oil	Runs	BBLS Water	MCF Prod	MCF Sold	Vent/Flare
BAKKEN	6-2013	30	21565	20737	9582	7768	7468	0

***********************

THREE FORKS WELL/MDW
NDIC File No: 24217     API No: 33-061-02308-00-00
Well Type: OG     Well Status: A     Status Date: 6/6/2013     Wellbore type: Horizontal
Location: SWSE 29-152-92     Footages: 300 FSL 1380 FEL     Latitude: 47.949776     Longitude: -102.477036
Current Operator: SLAWSON EXPLORATION COMPANY, INC.
Current Well Name: MOOKA 3-29-20TFH
Elevation(s): 1907 KB   1884 GR   1886 GL     Total Depth: 19942     Field: BIG BEND
Spud Date(s):  11/20/2012
Casing String(s): 9.625" 1885'   7" 10534'  
Completion Data
   Pool: BAKKEN     Perfs: 10534-19942     Comp: 6/6/2013     Status: F     Date: 6/24/2013     Spacing: 2SEC
Cumulative Production Data
   Pool: BAKKEN     Cum Oil: 21694     Cum MCF Gas: 11658     Cum Water: 9336
Production Test Data
   IP Test Date: 6/24/2013     Pool: BAKKEN     IP Oil: 733     IP MCF: 423     IP Water: 407

Monthly Production Data

Pool	Date	Days	BBLS Oil	Runs	BBLS Water	MCF Prod	MCF Sold	Vent/Flare
BAKKEN	6-2013	26	21694	20936	9336	11658	11398

*************************** THREE FORKS WELL/MDW
NDIC File No: 24218     API No: 33-061-02309-00-00
Well Type: OG     Well Status: A     Status Date: 6/5/2013     Wellbore type: Horizontal
Location: SWSE 29-152-92     Footages: 300 FSL 1355 FEL     Latitude: 47.949776     Longitude: -102.476934
Current Operator: SLAWSON EXPLORATION COMPANY, INC.
Current Well Name: MOOKA 4-29-20H
Elevation(s): 1906 KB   1884 GR   1885 GL     Total Depth: 19865     Field: BIG BEND
Spud Date(s):  11/18/2012
Casing String(s): 9.625" 1743'   7" 10463'  
Completion Data
   Pool: BAKKEN     Perfs: 10463-19865     Comp: 6/5/2013     Status: F     Date: 6/8/2013     Spacing: 2SEC
Cumulative Production Data
   Pool: BAKKEN     Cum Oil: 23656     Cum MCF Gas: 9670     Cum Water: 11110
Production Test Data
   IP Test Date: 6/8/2013     Pool: BAKKEN     IP Oil: 997     IP MCF: 482     IP Water: 893 Monthly Production Data

Pool	Date	Days	BBLS Oil	Runs	BBLS Water	MCF Prod	MCF Sold	Vent/Flare
BAKKEN	6-2013	27	23656	22892	11110	9670	9400

Tweets Are Tweets, And Where There's Smoke, There's Fire

There are two reasons why a company might spin off assets.

Earlier it was reported that OXY USA might spin off its California assets.

Regular readers also know that Chevron is moving people and resources from San Francisco to Houston.

I may be reading too much into these two stories, or reading too much between the lines, but headlines are headlines, and tweets are tweets.

Confirmation: Canada Is Not Sitting Around, Waiting For The President To Make A Decision

Platts is tweeting:

Kinder Morgan, Keyera to complete 40,000 b/d Edmonton crude oil rail loading terminal by Q2 2014; may later boost to 125,000 b/d.

Put this bit of trivia into context.

See this post yesterday, and updated today. Canada not sitting around waiting for the Keystone XL to be approved. You know, before this is all over, things may work out better than expected. To the Canadians, the president will be seen as the jerk they already think he is -- unable to make a decision one way or the other -- and Canada will still sell all the oil then can produce. 

Put all of this into the context of an earlier Platts essay: CBR will keep on chugging.

A $10,000 Wrinkle

Updates

August 8, 2013: "the fix is in" -- Matt Drudge

Original Post

 
The New York Times calls it a wrinkle:

As President Obama barnstorms the country promoting his health care law, one audience very close to home is growing increasingly anxious about the financial implications of the new coverage: members of Congress and their personal staffs.

Under a wrinkle that dates back to enactment of the law, members of Congress and thousands of their aides are required to get their coverage through new state-based markets known as insurance exchanges.

But the law does not provide any obvious way for the federal government to continue paying its share of the premiums for the comprehensive coverage.

If the government cannot do so, it could mean an additional expense of $5,000 a year for individuals and $11,000 for families under some of the most popular plans.

Not surprisingly, that idea is unpopular on Capitol Hill. 

Conspiracy theory: this was not an oversight. Capital Hill lawyers are not dummies. They put this in the bill as such to get the bill passed: they could honestly say that Congress did not get the usual Congressional break. They were subject to the same law that everyone else was subject to.

Had Congress exempted themselves in the original bill, it never would have passed. In fact, it's very possible President Obama would not have allowed it. No doubt President Obama is very, very sincere that his health bill is the best thing since ... well, FDR's social security program.

You can bet that this will be corrected with a simple amendment attached to an unrelated bill that must be passed, such as a defense appropriations bill, or a "continuing resolution bill" to continue funding the government. Congress will take care of themselves and their secretaries (and interns). Not to worry. Nothing will change for Congress.

Wells Coming Off Confidential Llist Wednesday; 4/6 Go To DRL Status; EOG Has Another Gusher In Clarks Creek

• 20513, 2,365, EOG, Riverview 3-3130H, Clarks Creek, t3/13; cum 116K 6/13;
• 23286, drl, Statoil, Bures 20-29 4TFH, Alger, no data,
• 23405, 183,  Fidelity, Jerry 15-22H, Stanley, t3/13; cum 17K 6/13;
• 24086, drl, Statoil, Sax 25-36 4TFH, Banks, no data,
• 24402, drl, SM Energy, Koeser 3X-26HB, Siverston, no data,
• 24504, drl, Hess, BB-State 151-96-3625H-4, Blue Buttes, no data,

*********************************

 20513, see above, EOG, Riverview 3-3130H, Clarks Creek:

Date	Oil Runs	MCF Sold
5-2013	35626	2206
4-2013	37326	0
3-2013	42129	0

OXY Could Spin Off California Assets; Misses on 2Q13 Earning

Reuters is reporting:

Chief Executive Steve Chazen indicated in April that Occidental's Middle East operations might be put up for sale , and analysts also expect the California division to be spun off.

Also, in the report:

Occidental Petroleum Corp posted a smaller-than-expected quarterly profit on Tuesday, hurt by lower oil prices in the Middle East and North Africa, where the fourth-largest U.S. oil company is considering an exit. 

Quarterly profit was $1.58 vs $1.60. 

Disclaimer: this is not an investment site. Do not make any investment decisions based on what you read here or what you think you may have read here.  

Update On CBR Vs Pipeline In The Bakken; Enbridge Reports Disappointing Numbers

Platts is reporting:

Volumes on Enbridge Energy Partners' North Dakota crude pipeline system are on the rise in connection with less competitive netbacks for sending Bakken Shale crude by rail, the company said Tuesday.

We "expect improvement on our North Dakota system as a result of significant narrowing of pricing differentials between the market centers and the North Dakota supply basin," President Mark Maki said on a call to discuss the company's second-quarter earnings.

Crude-by-rail movements have increased in recent years in North America because of a lag in pipeline capacity to ship booming low-cost shale oil production, notably from the Bakken, to destination markets.

Zacks reports disappointing numbers:

Enbridge (EEP) reported second-quarter 2013 adjusted earnings of 13 cents per unit, falling behind the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 22 cents. The quarterly figure was also lower than the year-earlier profit of 23 cents.

Total revenue in the quarter was up almost 7.8% year over year at $1,672.7 million from the year-ago level of $1,551.1 million. The reported figure was however below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,750.0 million.

Also at Zacks:

Enbridge Energy remains optimistic about its long-term growth. It expects various organic projects to be commissioned in 2013 and 2014. These projects are characterized by their longer term and lower risk. The partnership’s business model will assist the initiative of its parent company – Enbridge Inc. – in increasing capacity in the Lakehead System and the Eastern Access Projects with its commissioning scheduled for 2014. The partnership is undertaking various growth initiatives in the Liquids segment as witnessed by pipeline expansion for expediting movement of resources from the Bakken region.

Disclaimer: this is not an investment site. Do not make any investment decisions based on anyting you read here or think you may have read here.

ONEOK 2Q13 Earnings Release

Press release:

ONEOK today announced second-quarter 2013 net income attributable to ONEOK of $0.9 million, or zero cents per diluted share, which includes a non-cash, after-tax charge of $71.0 million, or 34 cents per diluted share, in the energy services segment.  In the second quarter 2012, net income attributable to ONEOK was $61.0 million, or 29 cents per diluted share.

Excluding the impact of the non-cash charge in the energy services segment, second-quarter 2013 results increased compared with the same period last year.

The improved second-quarter 2013 results reflect significantly higher natural gas volumes gathered and processed, and natural gas liquids (NGL) gathered as a result of completed growth projects in the ONEOK Partners segment, and new rates and the benefit of colder than normal weather in the natural gas distribution segment.

Other items of interest:

• ONEOK Partners placing in service in the second quarter the following projects:

• The 600-mile Bakken NGL Pipeline that has a current capacity to transport 60,000 barrels per day (bpd) of unfractionated NGLs in the Williston Basin to ONEOK Partners' 50 percent-owned Overland Pass Pipeline;
• The 100-million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d) Stateline II natural gas processing facility in western Williams County, N.D.;
• An ethane header pipeline that creates a new point of interconnection between the partnership's Mont Belvieu, Texas, NGL fractionation and storage assets, and several petrochemical customers; and
• A significant portion of the Divide County, N.D., natural gas gathering system; the remaining portion is expected to be completed in the second half 2013.

Six (6) New Permits -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA; Statoil With A Nice Well

Active rigs: 181

Six (6) new permits -- 

• Operators: Oasis (2), Hess (2), Whiting (2)
• Fields: South Tobacco Garden (McKenzie), Beach (Golden Valley), Cow Creek (Williams)
• Comments:

Only one came off the confidential list today; went to DRL status

Five (5) producing wells completed:

• 24172, 2,079, Statoil, Panzer 22-23 5TFH, Alger, t6/13; cum --
• 24217, 733, Slawson, Mooka 3-29-20TFH, Big Bend, t6/13; cum 22K 6/13;
• 20810, 669, Slawson, Mooka 2-29-20TFH, Big Bend, t6/13; cum 22K 6/13;
• 24218, 997, Slawson, Mooka 4-29-20H, Big Bend, t6/13; cum 24K 6/13;
• 20879, --, HRC, Fort Berthold 147-94-1A-12-2H, McGregory Buttes; t--; cum --; producing; gas units were said to be quite high according to the file report; fracking data not available yet

Manning Acquitted

US Army Pfc Bradley Manning acquitted of aiding the enemy for giving secrets to WikiLeaks.

Twilight In The Desert

A reader suggests: Twilight in the Desert.

From Amazon, the book description:

[The author] reveals a Saudi oil and production industry that could soon approach a serious, irreversible decline. In this exhaustively researched book, veteran oil industry analyst Matthew Simmons draws on his three-plus decades of insider experience and more than 200 independently produced reports about Saudi petroleum resources and production operations.

He uncovers a story about Saudi Arabia’s troubled oil industry, not to mention its political and societal instability, which differs sharply from the globally accepted Saudi version.

It’s a story that is provocative and disturbing, based on undeniable facts, but until now never told in its entirety. Twilight in the Desert answers all readers’ questions about Saudi oil and production industries with keen examination instead of unsubstantiated posturing, and takes its place as one of the most important books of this still-young century.

Published back in 2006. I guess the Prince decided to go public now that he's read the book.

The book has received 112 reviews with an average rating of 4.2 on a scale of 1 to 5.

Burlington, North Dakota, Feeling Effects Of The Oil Boom; Outside The Oil Patch

It's hard to remember a sleepier town in North Dakota than Burlington -- except maybe for Grassy Butte. For newbies, Burlington is just west of Minot, and for all intents and purposes, outside the Bakken play. It is in Ward County, not one of the Bakken oil counties by a long shot. But, like Minot, it is feeling the effect of the oil boom.

The Minot Daily News is reporting:

The 197-acre Harvest Heights project is utilizing much of the scenic natural landscape along the hills overlooking a broad valley. The lots begin at the bottom of the hill. Others are terraced above in a well planned community that offers a myriad of spectacular views.

"The nice concept of this is about 35 acres remains as undeveloped space," explained Feist. "It will be green space with natural trees and foliage that will be undisturbed as much as we possibly can. It should complement the views from the lots, most of which range from 1,200 to 1,500 square feet."

Amber Alexander, Real Builders sales and marketing, calls the project "one of a kind" and unique to the region.

"We are trying to bring something different with the views and the sizes of the lots," said Alexander.

While Harvest Heights is the most visible development in the Burlington area and on schedule to become available to the public yet this year, other development projects are either getting under way with physical construction or are in the planning stages.

A 148-unit apartment complex has been designed and is scheduled to be built along U.S. Highway 2 & 52. The Highlands Ranch project on County Road 10 above the former Speedway Restaurant has been platted by a developer from California. It includes more than 500 lots.

A developer from California. More than 500 lots. Hard to tell that the boom is over. 

Platts: CBR Will Keep Chugging

Platts is reporting:

While many have warned the economic viability of moving crude by rail is threatened by the narrowing of the benchmark Brent-West Texas Intermediate spread, a group of railroads are still singing its praises, vowing that the shipping phenomenon has staying power.

At the same time, big upstream operator Newfield Exploration last week called CBR–a growing abbreviation for that mode of transportation–more of a “logistics” move to ship crude from the Utah’s Uinta Basin, instead of a way to gain price advantages.

So, how can there be so many differing opinions on the transportation method that has rapidly taken the crude logistics industry by storm?

See story at the link.

By the way, MDW was one of the first to refer to shipping oil by railroad with the acronym CBR.

The earliest post I can find in which I used the "CBR" tag was back on May 9, 2012. The link was to a story in which EOG mentioned that it had received  its first crude from the Bakken shale oil fields in North Dakota at  the St. James, Louisiana terminal on April 15 (2012). Wow, that was just less than a year ago. 

Earnings: NOV, Arch Coal

Disclaimer: this is not an investment site. Do not make any investment decisions based on what you read here or what you think you may have read here. 

National Oilwell Varco: earnings fall 12% on margins; the largest U.S. oilfield equipment provider, reported a 12 percent fall in second-quarter profit as margins remained under pressure in the North American land-drilling market. Net income attributable to the company fell to $531 million, or $1.24 per share, for the quarter ended June 30, from $605 million, or $1.42 per share, a year earlier.

Twelve (12) companies announced increased dividends.

Arch Coal beats by $0.04, misses on revs; Co says that the the outlook for U.S. thermal coal is improving: Reports Q2 (Jun) loss of $0.29 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.04 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of ($0.33); revenues fell 20.6% year/year to $766.3 mln vs the $919.73 mln consensus.

Europe's Renewable Romance Fades -- The WSJ ...

... just as President Obama's infatuation with wind soars....

The WSJ op-ed piece here.

Europe has bet big on wind and solar energy, and many environmental advocates would like America to follow. Wind and solar have a role in the U.S. energy economy, but we would be wise to see the cautionary tale in the European experience and adjust our plans accordingly.

Wind and solar generate 3.5% of America's electricity today, but Denmark gets 30% of its electricity from wind and hopes to produce 50% by 2020. Germany, Europe's largest national economy, produces roughly 12% of its electricity from wind and solar today, and it wants renewable energy to account for 35% of electricity generation by 2020.

Clean energy powered by renewable resources is understandably attractive. But the honeymoon with renewables is ending for some Europeans as the practical challenges of the relationship become clear.

The first challenge is cost. Germany has reportedly invested more than $250 billion in renewable energy deployment, and its households pay the highest power costs in Europe—except for the Danish. On average, Germans and Danes pay roughly 300% more for residential electricity than Americans do.

Another challenge of Europe's growing dependence on renewable energy is far more serious: the potential loss of reliable electrical supply. It's one thing to ask consumers to pay more for cleaner energy; it's another to force them to endure blackouts. 

I used to have strong feelings about renewable energy in this country, but I have pretty much lost interest. "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me."

Americans should now be aware of the scams, the cost, the futility of solar and wind, but if Americans don't mind paying higher utility bills for opportunity to burn candles during rolling blackouts, that's their prerogative.  We have a democracy and if folks want to approve these projects, that's their right.

I'll continue posting links/stories about global warming (which stopped some 15 years ago) and renewable energy for archival purposes, but I've pretty much lost interest in the whole subject.

******************

This one is almost too good to pass up. This sounds like Becky never took a science course after eighth grade. An entire "science" article with about as much science in it as saying "the sun came up in the east today."

Apparently Becky was very, very impressed with a "lake" in the Arctic that disappeared earlier this  summer. But then this:

The lake, about the size of an Olympic swimming pool, started forming in mid-July, LiveScience first reported on July 23. The size and timing of the lake are typical for this time of year and location, the researchers said.

A reader suggests Becky is padding her resume for a future application as Director, EPA.

Alberta Oil Incident Worsens

This story is starting to get some legs: the Alberta oil incident worsens. I first posted this story/link a few days ago. This may be the straw that breaks the camel's back as President Obama continues to dither on approval/disapproval decision for the Keystone. This is a most troubling headache for the Canadian producers:

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., Canada's largest independent oil producer, raised the amount of oil released from an uncontained series of leaks at an oil-sands site in Alberta to nearly 6,000 barrels of heavy crude, up from an initial report of 175 barrels, regulators said.

"Because it's ongoing, the volume will continue to increase," Cara Tobin, a spokeswoman for the Alberta Energy Regulator, or AER, said Monday.

Late Saturday, the province's regulatory authority changed the status of the incident to "ongoing" from "over" and raised the reported volume from four separate leaks to a total of 5,975 barrels of oil. That came more than a week after local media said more than 4,500 barrels of oil had leaked, citing internal company data. 

The Calgary-based company hasn't confirmed any figures regarding the size of the leaks and has said little about the scope of the problem. On July 25, it released a statement attributing the cause to unspecified "mechanical failures of wellbores in the vicinity of the impacted areas." Wellbores are holes drilled to explore for or recover oil.

Tuesday Morning Links, News, And Views -- An Update On Syria

Active rigs: 179

RBN Energy: Nova Scotia natural gas for northeast United States; right place, wrong time?

WSJ Links

There isn't much in today's paper that catches my attention. I posted this story yesterday about point-and-shoot digital camera sales plummeting, due to smart phones and iPads. Here was another bit of trivia I had not thought about:

"It's the classic case of an industry that is unable to adapt to shifts in user demands," said Christopher Chute, a digital imaging analyst at IDC.

While adding Internet connectivity through Wi-Fi has been commonplace in many consumer electronics, digital cameras remain largely stand-alone devices. Only one in six digital cameras shipped this year will be equipped with Wi-Fi, according to IDC.

BMW launches its first mass-production electric car, and it doesn't cost much more than the Volt.

... the auto maker's first mass-production electric car, saying his company would need to boost sales of plug-in and battery electric vehicles dramatically by 2025 to meet regulatory requirements.

The BMW i3 is expected to go on sale in the U.S. in the second quarter of 2014 where it is expected to be priced at $41,350 before federal tax and other incentives. An optional "range extender"—a small gasoline motor—will likely boost the price tag to $45,000.

Personally, I still don't see the market for these high-priced, short-range, automobiles. I think consumers are going to get incredible deals, especially in leasing when these automobiles all hit the market.  Apparently these BMWs will compete with the Tesla S, another hot-selling electric car, priced at $65,000. I honestly don't get it. Of course, I walk or ride a bike whenever I can.

Sitting on the back burner, pun intended, the Mideast may be ready to boil over -- or so reports The Journal today.

The region is much closer to a broad conflagration than most Americans realize, with Sunnis now facing off against Shiites, and secularists against Islamists across a wide swath of lands. The dream of fostering a new wave of democratic, multiethnic governments—embraced by two successive American administrations—may be withering before our eyes.

The problems start with the bloody turmoil in the streets of Egypt, the cornerstone of American influence in the region for 35 years. There, a new military strongman seems more intent on crushing the Muslim Brotherhood than heeding American counsel to find a way to include the Islamists in a new government.

Meantime, Syria has become a proxy war for the entire region, pitting Shiites against Sunnis and drawing in combatants from all over. The nasty Alawite/Shiite axis of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Iran and Hezbollah has fought back to even with Sunni opposition forces, armed by Persian Gulf states and, soon, the U.S.

This now is essentially a sectarian war, and it's starting to spread next door to Lebanon. Sunnis there resent the fact that Hezbollah's Shiite fighters have been using Lebanon as a springboard to enter the fight on behalf of Mr. Assad. Car bombs and street fights between Sunni and Shiite groups are popping up; Lebanon is in danger of sliding back into its familiar rut of sectarian war.

Iraq now also seems infected. While most Americans have largely checked out of Iraqi news, a new wave of Sunni-Shiite violence is building. On Monday alone, 18 bombs exploded, killing at least 58 people. Whatever stability a decade of American military presence left behind seems newly imperiled.

Wouldn't it be interesting if Bakken oil --> undermined Saudi economy --> Mideast conflagration? Ah, yes, "the Bakken has some oil, but not much." I forget who said that. Her blog site is now silent.

But without doubt, this is my favorite (and most humorous) story coming out of the Mideast: watching Washington try to tell us that the military ousting of Mr Morsi in Egypt was not a military coup. Say what? Really? My hunch is that the debate will simply wither away like so many other scandals and, in the end, no one will really care -- as if anyone really cares now.

Lame duck. The president's proposals for helping the middle class are DOA.