Australia
Renewed testing at the LMG03 coalbed methane well in the Gloucester basin resulted in a peak flow rate of 537 Mcfd, said Molopo Australia Ltd., Melbourne.
The lowermost target seam is at 405 m at the well, on the 5 sq km Stratford prospect on a 1,050 sq km permit in New South Wales 100 km north of Newcastle. Lucas Coal Seam Gas (Pty.) Ltd. is operator with 70% interest, and Molopo has 30%.
The rate of more than 400 Mcfd after reduced pumping to dewater is far above the threshold for a commercial project if sustained and repeated, Molopo said.
The companies are drilling LMGC1 at 258 m. It has intersected several anticipated thin seams and thick tuffaceous intervals marking the Craven Subgroup in Gloucester Coal Measures. It is projected to 700 m and is to be fully cored.
Pakistan
The government granted exploration licenses to Petroleum Exploration (Pvt.) Ltd. (PEL) on Blocks No. 2468-6 (Badin-IV North) and No. 2468 (Badin-IV South).
The blocks cover 1,246.03 and 1,265.33 sq km, respectively. Badin-IV North is in Badin, Thatta, and Hyderabad districts of Sindh province, and Badin IV South is in Badin and Thatta.
PEL is to invest $11.15 million on geological and geophysical studies, acquisition, processing, and interpretation of 2D seismic data. It will drill three exploratory wells in Badin-IV North block and four in Badin-IV South block during the 3-year phase one.
Syria
Gulfsands Petroleum PLC, London, completed acquisition of 1,155 km of 2D seismic on Block 26 in northern Syria.
The data flesh out leads in Cretaceous reservoir targets that offset large Souedieh, Rumailan, Hamzeh, and Karatchok fields in the northern part of the block and Paleozoic reservoir targets in the northern and southwestern parts of the block.
Based on existing seismic data and well control Gulfsands, operator with 50% interest, has identified 31 prospects and leads on the block and plans to drill at least four wells by August 2007.
Tunisia
Grove Energy Ltd., Vancouver, BC, acquired two large exploration blocks from Anschutz Overseas Tunisia Corp., private Denver independent.
The Kerkouane offshore-onshore block covering 6,720 sq km and the Chorbane onshore block with 2,428 sq km collectively contain 12 prospects and leads. Kerkouane, which contains the Dougga gas-condensate discovery made by Shell in the early 1980s, is adjacent to Grove’s 100% held Pantelleria permits.
Chorbane has two leads adjacent to Sidi el Kilani oil field and on trend with Miskar and Hasdrubal gas fields. Work programs are to drill one well on Kerkouane and acquire 250 line-km of 2D seismic data on Chorbane.
Kentucky
State agencies will organize a research consortium of oil and gas industry partners to encourage long-term natural gas exploration in Kentucky.
The study will focus on the gas potential of the Rough Creek graben and delineating gas plays in this complex, underexplored deep rift basin (see map, OGJ, Sept. 21, 1992, p. 97).
The state has put up $91,000, and other funding would come from the US government and participating operators, said John Hickman of the Kentucky Geological Survey ([email protected]). James Drahovzal, head of the energy and minerals section, will lead the study.
Nevada
PetroWorld Nevada Corp., George Town, Grand Cayman, staked a wildcat to 5,000 ft in nonproducing Gabbs Valley in far northwestern Nye County.
The 1-12 Cobble Questa location is 31⁄2 miles southwest of a wildcat drilled by Isern Oil Co., private Wichita independent, in 4-12n-35e. It bottomed at 6,500 ft in Tertiary Esmeralda where it found oil shows.
The area is 70 miles northwest of Tonopah and 120 miles west of nearest oil production in Railroad Valley. A seismic survey was acquired last fall (OGJ Online, Oct. 6, 2005).
New York
The state invited interested parties to offer assistance as consultants to help the New York State Energy Research & Development Authority in Albany respond to the gas and exploration industry’s growing needs.
NYSERDA plans to enter into task order agreements starting in the spring of 2006 in areas such as technical seminars and meetings, information services and data analysis, research publications, technical training and workshops, industry technical analysis, and outreach programs.
Oklahoma
Pennsylvanian Booch sandstones that have produced oil and gas since just before Oklahoma statehood in 1907 have yielded 78 million bbl of oil and 467 bcf of gas through April 2004 from 2,690 active and abandoned wells, the Oklahoma Geological Survey said.
Most Booch production is from the Arkoma basin and Cherokee platform, with gas limited to the Arkoma. An OGS publication compiled by Dan T. Boyd and Rick Andrews said 710 Booch gas wells still contribute 23 MMcfd. The 91-page review contains field studies of Brooken, Southeast Reams, and South Pine Hollow fields.
Operators have produced 107 bcf of the 110 bcf estimated ultimate recovery at Brooken on the shores of Lake Eufaula.
Sandstone in most of Brooken field is “of such high quality that net and gross thicknesses using an 8% porosity cutoff are essentially the same,” Boyd wrote. No Booch accumulation remaining to be discovered will be as large, but Brooken “has helped to define a closely related Booch gas play that is still far from fully explored.”
That play targets the channel-fill sands within the incised valley that are isolated from the main depositional axis.
Texas
West
Sonoran Energy Corp., Phoenix, completed a full field development plan for KWB (Strawn) oil field in Tom Green County.
The field, on 3,922 acres 90 miles southeast of Midland, was discovered in 1981 and unitized for waterflood in 1992. Cumulative production of 1.9 million bbl of oil and 12 bcf of gas represents 6% of OOIP, the company said. The field has 63 production wells and 25 plugged wells.
Sonoran Energy acquired the field in November 2005 when it purchased Baron Oil, a private Norwegian operator. There was no indication when redevelopment might begin.
Washington
Delta Petroleum Corp., Denver, expects meaningful results from Columbia River basin exploratory drilling in 2006.
The Anderson 11-5 wildcat is being drilled 25 miles south of the Anderville Farms 1-6 wildcat in Grant County, Delta Petroleum said (see map, OGJ, May 2, 2005, p. 53).
The company transferred its ownership in 427,000 gross (64,000 net) nonoperated acres in the basin to CRB Partners LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary, and sold part of its interest in CRBP to a group of investors for $75 million. Delta Petroleum remains manager and majority owner of CRBP.
The sale excluded Delta’s 100% interest in 337,000 operated net acres in the basin.