The Million Dollar Way (The Bakken Oil Blog): 03/19/22

Saturday, March 19, 2022

Calling It A Day -- See You In The Morning -- Good Luck To All -- March 19, 2022

Bloomberg

Why I don't subscribe: exhibit A.

"They" actually said that "it stings most if you earn less than $300K on an annual basis.” I don't know if they clarified whether that was "active" income or "passive" income.

Family Affairs

45th wedding anniversary dessert.

For the main course we had salmon. One of our signature dishes is salmon. Wow, it's incredible. Two secrets: don't over-cook it; and, use a nice marinade. But use it in moderation. Start with a little and add more next time if necessary.

For years we've used Ponzu sauce as the marinade. But our favorite grocery store appears not to carry it any more, or simply they've been temporarily out of it for quite some time. So, tonight, I picked up something different, and -- wow! No more Ponzu sauce for us. Thai fish sauce.

Back to the photo at the top: that haircut by Sophia is still lookin' good.

March 17th is also the official date every year that I start wearing a Hawaiian shirt every day until winter some eight months from now.

A month or so from now I hope to have a deep tan. We'll see and a lot of bike riding.

A Strobeck Well In Alger Field Is Back -- Grayson Mill -- March 19, 2022

Locator: 10029B.

I don't know the history of this well or the back story, but for me it tells me a lot about the mystery of the Bakken. All I can say is there's still a lot of work to be done in the Bakken, and this basin still has some surprises coming.

The well;

22034, 2,944, Grayson Mill / Equinor / Statoil / BEXP, Strobeck 27-34 2H, Alger, t7/12; cum 284K 1/21; cum 307K 8/23;

This well was drilled back in 2012. At that time BEXP was a huge name in the Williston Basin. It was bought out by the Norwegian national oil company, Statoil, when later changed its name to Equinor, and in turn Equinor sold its Bakken assets to Grayson Mill Operating, LLC.

When this well was drilled in 2012, an IP of 2,944 was huge. Absolutely huge. But BEXP / Statoil wells had a severe decline rate, like all the Bakken wells at that time.

Initial production:

BAKKEN	1-2013	31	8066	8071	5848	7399	5107	2292
BAKKEN	12-2012	19	4125	3589	2993	4307	955	3352
BAKKEN	11-2012	20	5007	6078	2822	4959	1989	2970
BAKKEN	10-2012	31	12199	11706	7528	8319	1546	6773
BAKKEN	9-2012	30	12318	12265	7842	7717	0	7717
BAKKEN	8-2012	31	24201	24570	15465	16975	3861	13114
BAKKEN	7-2012	5	8635	7292	12475	3489	0	3489

The well leveled off at 1,500 bbls / month and stayed there "forever," very, very typical of those early Bakken wells.

Then when the price of oil imploded in 2019 / 2020, the well was taken off line. This is what it looked like for almost two years, mostly "zeros":

BAKKEN	7-2020	1
BAKKEN	6-2020	0
BAKKEN	5-2020	0
BAKKEN	4-2020	1
BAKKEN	3-2020	0
BAKKEN	2-2020	0
BAKKEN	1-2020	117
BAKKEN	12-2019	2

But, now, look at this. This well is back.

Pool	Date	Days	BBLS Oil	Runs	BBLS Water	MCF Prod	MCF Sold	Vent/Flare
BAKKEN	1-2022	19	1901	2232	1790	2345	2269	4
BAKKEN	12-2021	28	2984	2427	2963	3752	3635	1
BAKKEN	11-2021	13	1019	1588	1072	863	818	5
BAKKEN	10-2021	31	3247	2627	3912	3171	3047	0
BAKKEN	9-2021	26	2081	1660	4686	2787	2683	0

Let's see if the file report / sundry forms provide any insight:

sundry form, received May 6, 2021: transfer of wells from Equinor to Grayson Mill, 1160 Dairy Ashford Rd #140, Houston, TX.
sundry form, received June 17, 2021: authorization to purchase and transport oil from lease

That's all there is. A big company like Equinor simply wasn't interested in these stripper wells, but a new company comes in and makes these wells work financially.

So, we will tag this for December, 2023, and see how this well is doing next year.

One Of The Original Bakken Wells Goes Over 500K Bbls Crude Oil -- March 19, 2022

This was one of the "original Bakken" wells. Wow, those were exciting days. I'm glad I was able to be there to watch this all play out.

The well:

18628, 4,357, Grayson Mill / Equinor / Staoil / BEXP, Jack Cvancara 19-18 1H, Alger, t5/10; cum 425K 9/16; cum 534K 1/22; recent production:

Pool	Date	Days	BBLS Oil	Runs	BBLS Water	MCF Prod	MCF Sold	Vent/Flare
BAKKEN	1-2022	31	1268	972	1220	2874	2735	15
BAKKEN	12-2021	30	1209	1533	1056	3073	2900	53
BAKKEN	11-2021	30	1652	1959	1542	3944	3807	17
BAKKEN	10-2021	31	1679	1402	1666	4087	3943	20
BAKKEN	9-2021	30	1633	1526	1469	4187	4019	48
BAKKEN	8-2021	31	1694	1497	1602	4009	3861	24
BAKKEN	7-2021	31	1713	1900	1516	3880	3731	25
BAKKEN	6-2021	30	1653	1430	1489	3782	3640	22

Initial production back in 2010:

BAKKEN	12-2010	31	9794	8573	4496	7454	5625	1413
BAKKEN	11-2010	30	8552	8933	4330	7360	6574	5
BAKKEN	10-2010	25	9539	9418	3918	7599	1858	5371
BAKKEN	9-2010	29	14256	14115	5479	13691	10063	1835
BAKKEN	8-2010	31	16036	17149	6550	15473	10393	2603
BAKKEN	7-2010	31	17396	16290	6999	16816	13909	0
BAKKEN	6-2010	30	25690	26168	10890	25647	18614	3082
BAKKEN	5-2010	28	42919	41254	49679	26176	15835	8124

The Slawson Orca Federal Wells In Big Bend

These wells are spread across three different pads, although #35903 is on the Slawson Slasher Federal pad in the section to the west. The other wells are on the two Slawson Orca Federal pads to the east.

The wells:

19916, 486, Slawson, Orca Federal 1-23-26H, Big Bend, t7/11; cum 541K 1/22; see this post; no sundry form and no data posted by Slawson to indicate this well was re-fracked; cum 566K 6/22; updated and production here;
35903, 481, Slawson, Orca Federal 1 SLH, Big Bend, t10/20; cum 225K 1/22; 45 stages; 9.8 million lbs proppants; 33-061-04694. FracFocus: 14 million gallons of water; 92.1% water by mass; cum 303K 6/22;
37426, loc/A, Slawson, Orca Federal 2-23-26H, Big Bend, first production, 10/21; t--; cum 73K 1/22; data posted over at FracFocus: 14.7 million gallons of water; 92.2% water mass; 46 stages; 10 million lbs of proppant; cum 195K 6/22;
37424, loc/A, Slawson, Orca Federal 3-23-26H, Big Bend, first production, 11/21; t--; cum 34K 1/22; data posted over at FracFocus; cum 144K 6/22;
37427, loc/A, Slawson, Orca Federal 4-23-26TFH, Big Bend, first production, 11/21; t--; cum 44K 1/22; data posted over at FracFocus; cum 112K 6/22;
37425, loc/A, Slawson, Orca Federal 5-23-26TFH, Big Bend, first production, 11/21; t--; cum 44K 1/22; data posted over at FracFocus; cum 125K 6/22;
37236, loc/A, Slawson, Orca Federal 6-23-26TFH, Big Bend, first production, 8/21; t--; cum 115K 1/22; data posted over at FracFocus; cum 204K 6/22;
37237, loc/A, Slawson, Orca Federal 7-23-26TFH, Big Bend, first production, 8/21; t--; cum 145K 1/22; data posted over at FracFocus; cum 238K 6/22;
37238, drl/A, Slawson, Orca Federal 8-23-26H, Big Bend, first production, 11/21; t--; cum 44K 1/22; data posted over at FracFocus; cum 259K 6/22;

Slawson's Original Orca Federal Goes Over 500K Bbls Crude Oil; Huge Jump In Production -- March 19, 2022

I've probably posted this well earlier, but I'm not interested in looking now. I will check later.

The well:

19916, 486, Slawson, Orca Federal 1-23-26H, Big Bend, t7/11; cum 541K 1/22;

Recent production, 18,655 bbls over 18 days extrapolates to 31,000 bbls over 30 days:

Pool	Date	Days	BBLS Oil	Runs	BBLS Water	MCF Prod	MCF Sold	Vent/Flare
BAKKEN	1-2022	25	8163	8173	10185	3838	0	3712
BAKKEN	12-2021	19	6908	6973	10034	3255	0	3162
BAKKEN	11-2021	30	21782	21712	24716	10427	0	10277
BAKKEN	10-2021	31	24996	25190	37463	12008	0	11854
BAKKEN	9-2021	29	29577	29477	50639	14315	0	14170
BAKKEN	8-2021	18	18655	17939	38555	8780	0	8692
BAKKEN	7-2021	1	0	0	6394	258	0	251
BAKKEN	6-2021	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	5-2021	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	4-2021	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	3-2021	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	2-2021	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	1-2021	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	12-2020	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	11-2020	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	10-2020	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	9-2020	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	8-2020	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	7-2020	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	6-2020	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	5-2020	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	4-2020	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	3-2020	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	2-2020	9	964	1768	563	783	716	24
BAKKEN	1-2020	31	3384	3131	1423	3125	2614	0
BAKKEN	12-2019	20	2222	1993	1166	1602	1250	19
BAKKEN	11-2019	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	10-2019	21	1600	2220	983	1713	1441	0

When this well was drilled more than a decade ago, it was considered a great well. This was the initial production back in 2011. This well was originally fracked in July, 2011: 31 stages; 2 million lbs proppant, an incredibly small frack; FracFocus as no frack data for this well. The first frack was accomplished before FracFocus starting posting data. I don't know if this well was re-fracked in 2021.

BAKKEN	9-2012	30	10839	10628	1644	7331	7031
BAKKEN	8-2012	31	12638	12267	1874	7884	7574
BAKKEN	7-2012	31	11927	12192	1842	6779	6469
BAKKEN	6-2012	30	12674	13347	2579	8387	8087
BAKKEN	5-2012	28	11959	10599	4678	6764	6484
BAKKEN	4-2012	1	1	0	0	0	0
BAKKEN	3-2012	18	4617	5511	897	2111	1931
BAKKEN	2-2012	29	11623	11354	2539	6059	5769
BAKKEN	1-2012	31	8943	9671	1918	5313	5003
BAKKEN	12-2011	31	8545	8591	1700	5009	4699
BAKKEN	11-2011	25	6118	6022	1442	3593	3343
BAKKEN	10-2011	25	7822	7396	7111	4347	4097
BAKKEN	9-2011	29	10784	11016	2680	6236	5946
BAKKEN	8-2011	31	16316	15765	6391	12662	12352
BAKKEN	7-2011	7	4625	3856	2524	2470	2400

Now, ten years later (see above), production, not only better than ever before, but even much better than the original / initial production.

Coupled with the surging price of oil, Mr and Mrs Johnson (not their real names) can't wait to get the monthly royalty checks. Not only better than ever but beats the zero dollars they were getting in all of 2020 and much of 2021.

Quiet Beautiful Day In North Texas, Nothing About The Bakken --- March 19, 2022

Beautiful, beautiful day in north Texas.

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The Book Page

Wow, talk about serendipity. It's a long story, I won't bore you with the details but I finally got a hardback copy of The Rings of Saturn, W. G. Sebald, c. 1995.

The author is German, had taught at the University at East Anglia (UK) when this book was published, He was made Professor of German, there in 1986, and was the first director of the British Centre for Translation. One wonders if he was a fan of JRR Tolkien.

The Rings of Saturn was written in German; mine, of course, is a translated version.

Genre: they call is a "novel."

It's not. It's "pure literature" at its best but it's not a novel.

It's a memoir written by an older gentleman who reflects on life as he walks along the southeast coast of Britain. If one likes streams of consciousness from a man who reflects on literature, with really, really good writing, it's highly recommended.

It is amazing all the new words and new idioms I have found in just the first few pages;

"turned the collars himself"
quincunx
amphisbaena
Baldanders
hydriotaphia
pismires
exequies

That was the first chapter, all I've read so far, and now I'm re-reading the first chapter before moving on. In that first chapter the author spends quite a bit of time on Gustave Flaubert, which led me down a rabbit hole. Here's a small sampling:

Gustave Flaubert's scrupulous devotion to style and esthetics;
Vertigo: "Flaubert's grain of sand."
Mythology of Blue: Flaubert and his scruples.
Tumblr: Mythology of Blue

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The Movie Page

Rotten Tomatoes:

200 best romantic comedies of all time;

#1: "The Philadelphia Story" with Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant, director, George Cukor, 1940
#9, "It Happened One Night" with Claudette Colbert and Clark Gable, director, Frank Capra, 1934
#13, "Groundhog Day" with Bill Murray -- I never considered this a romantic comedy; it's a Bill Murray classic.

100 best romance movies of all time;

#1, "It Happened One Night" with Claudette Colbert and Clark Gable, director, Frank Capra, 1934
#2, "Casablanca," 1942.

100 sexiest movies of all time.

"Basic Instinct": #79
"Troy" with Brad Pitt, #76
"Mr and Mrs Smith" with Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, #73
"Dirty Dancing" with Patrick Swayze, #59
"Eyes Wide Shut" with Nicole Kidman, Tom Cruise, #51
"Swimming Pool" with an older Charlotte Rampling, #37 -- fascinating
"Mulholland Drive" with so many; a David Lynch classic, #36
"Body Heat' with William Hurt, blew me away when I saw it the first time, #4
None of the rest interested me; except for #4 I have not seen any of the other top 35.

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Family Affairs

My wife and I are celebrating our 45th wedding anniversary today.

Sapphire, coincidentally, happens to be my wife's second favorite gemstone.
Her favorite gemstone is opal, the gemstone associated with the 34th anniversary.
I don't know if May has any sapphires, but she certainly has several nice opals.

Our daughter and granddaughter Olivia are in Phoenix where Olivia's FC Dallas soccer team is playing in a tournament.

Sophia, our youngest granddaughter, stayed home with her dad. Yesterday, Sophia spent the day on the beach in nearby Grapevine Lake, TX. It's even a better today for the lake.

The oldest granddaughter, of course, is in Nashville, TN -- Vanderbilt University.

Up in Portland, OR, our younger daughter is home with husband and two-year-old twins; the twins celebrated that birthday about two weeks ago.