Louisiana: Smackover Brown dense drilling progresses

Southwestern Energy Co., Houston, is drilling its third well in the Jurassic Lower Smackover Brown dense play in southern Arkansas and northern Louisiana, in which it has acquired 520,619 net acres.

The BML 31-22 1-1H well is in Union Parish, La., was spudded in February 2012, the same month in which the company completed its first well in the play, the Roberson 18-19 1-15H, in Columbia County, Ark.

The Robertson well has a 3,600-ft lateral in the lower third of the target formation, and total depth is 9,369 ft measured depth. Core analysis indicated this section had some of the lowest permeability in the entire interval.

Southwestern said the well has been producing from eight of 11 fractured stimulated stages for 20 days of an expected 20 to 30-day clean-up period. Oil production began on the eighth day, and the company expressed encouragement with the highest 24-hr rates to date of 103 b/d of oil, 200 Mcfd of gas, and 1,009 b/d of water with 45% of load recovered.

The company’s second well, the Garrett 7-23-5H 1 in Claiborne Parish, La., was drilled to a vertical depth in February 2012 at 10,863 ft with a 6,536-ft horizontal lateral steered into the top of the interval. It drilled faster and had better oil shows than the first well.