Unocal completes Harvest appraisal well at deep shelf discovery

Nov. 11, 2003
Unocal Corp., operator of West Cameron Block 44 in the Gulf of Mexico, has drilled a successful appraisal well on its deep shelf Harvest natural gas field on the block, confirming the commerciality of the play.

By OGJ editors

HOUSTON, Nov. 11 -- Unocal Corp., operator of West Cameron Block 44 in the Gulf of Mexico, has drilled a successful appraisal well on its deep shelf Harvest natural gas field on the block, confirming the commerciality of the play.

Unocal said it drilled Harvest-2 to 14,322 ft TD and encountered more than 140 ft of net gas pay, including 110 ft of continuous pay in one high-quality interval.

The well lies more than half a mile from the Harvest-1 discovery well, which had encountered 70 ft of net gas pay at 15,000 ft and currently is producing 35 MMcfd of natural gas (OGJ Online, Apr. 8, 2003). Harvest-1, in 35 ft of water, is being developed using a mobile offshore production unit—a converted jack up rig. " This lets us get up and running much faster," said spokesperson Christine LeLaurin, who said using such a unit also keeps down the costs of abandonment later when wells are shut down.

Unocal said it expects the Harvest-2 well to begin production in mid-December at a rate likely to be higher than that of Harvest-1. LeLaurin said a line from Harvest-2 would be run to the production unit at Harvest-1 to facilitate production quickly.

Unocal also is formulating plans for a second appraisal well on West Cameron Block 44 in 2004 and is evaluating follow-up drilling opportunities on nearby West Cameron Blocks 22 and 57.

Unocal holds a 41% working interest in Block 44. Its partners are Marlin Energy Offshore LLC 37%, William G. Helis Co. LLC 20%, and Houston Energy LP 2%.

Red Pepper
Unocal also reported that it made a discovery with its deep-shelf exploration well on the Red Pepper prospect at High Island Block 37. The well found 55 ft of net natural gas pay and began producing 40 days after the rig moved off location. Red Pepper is now flowing 25 MMcfd. Unocal has a 36% working interest; its partners are Seneca Resources Corp. 25%, Fidelity Exploration & Production Co. 25%, and William G. Helis Co. LLC 14%.

Unocal currently is drilling other deep shelf Gulf of Mexico exploration wells at La Grange on West Cameron Block 41; at House Payment on Eugene Island Block 40; and at Thin Red Line on South Timbalier Block 214. It also is drilling onshore at Acadiana in Louisiana. Results of these wells should be available by yearend, Unocal said.