Alaska: Cook Inlet Kenai Loop well gauges gas

May 26, 2011
Buccaneer Energy Ltd., Sydney, said its Kenai Loop-1 well in Alaska’s Cook Inlet basin has tested gas to surface at the rate of 10 MMcfd with 3,495 psi flowing tubing pressure on a 20/64-in. choke.

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, May 26
– Buccaneer Energy Ltd., Sydney, said its Kenai Loop-1 well in Alaska’s Cook Inlet basin has tested gas to surface at the rate of 10 MMcfd with 3,495 psi flowing tubing pressure on a 20/64-in. choke.

Buccaneer will continue testing the 100% owned well to better predict long term deliverability. Smaller choke sizes were required causing some modifications to the testing program to limit the gas flare to about 100 ft.

The well cut as many as 16 zones totaling 510 ft of gross pay identified by logs as test candidates in the Beluga and Upper Tyonek formations. As the rig must be released back to Marathon on June 1, two of the three highgraded zones in the Upper Tyonek were chosen to be perforated and tested.

The two zones total 87 ft of gross pay and were described as follows:

Zone 1 has an upper sand of 37 ft of gross pay that logs have confirmed as being quality reservoir with high porosity and good permeability. This upper sand package had a gas kick during drilling. An additional 12 ft of lower sand is of lesser quality but remains attractive. Only the upper part of this zone is included in the test program.

Zone 2 is a massive sandstone zone of 50 ft of gross pay that logs indicate has good porosity and permeability.

Both zones were perforated simultaneously and resulted in an immediate buildup of pressure. The four-point test is to take 48 hr.

Additional details of the testing results will be made available after detailed analysis of the bottom hole pressure measurements. The two zones will be completed as the initial producing interval for this well. CAOF potential is expected to exceed expectations.

A second well is planned for the third quarter of 2011 depending on rig availability. The company is formulating a development plan for the field, including a production schedule, beyond the initially anticipated 2-3 wells.

The nearest wells to Kenai Loop-1 are the Cannery Loop-3 and 4 wells in Cannery Loop field, which were drilled from the same surface location 6,325 ft from the Kenai Loop-1 location. Cannery Loop-3 and 4 have produced a combined 25.5 bcf from pay zones whose equivalents are expected to be present in the Kenai Loop-1 well but separated from Cannery Loop field by geological deposition rather than fault. Drilling to date at Kenai Loop-1 confirmed that the formations encountered to date are likely separated from the field.

Eleven wells in Cannery Loop field produced 175 bcf. One well produced from the Sterling formation, which is not a target in Kenai Loop-1. The other 10 wells produced from the Beluga and Upper Tyonek. The Upper Tyonek is the primary target formation of Kenai Loop-1.