Brooks Range Petroleum tests Alaska well

Feb. 29, 2008
Brooks Range Petroleum, which in January reentered the North Shore No. 1 well north of Prudhoe Bay oil field, said the well flowed 2,092 b/d of 34° oil.

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Feb. 29 -- Brooks Range Petroleum Corp., which in January reentered the North Shore No. 1 well north of Prudhoe Bay oil field, said the well flowed 2,092 b/d of 34° oil for 5 hr at a stable rate from a 22-ft perforated zone near the top of the formation.

The operator drilled a 153-ft offset from the original bottom-hole after joint venture partners failed to finish that project before the end of the 2007 winter drilling season. A 4½-in. production liner was set to 13,361 ft TD, and the Ivishak and Sag River formations were perforated prior to Feb. 6 release of the rig. The Ivishak formation subsequently was tested using a coiled tubing unit.

The North Shore No. 1 well is 1,100 ft west of the Gwydyr Bay South No. 1 well, which reportedly flowed at 2,263 b/d in a 1974 production test. The two wells are thought to be in the same Ivishak oil pool. The Sag River formation was not completed "for mechanical reasons," officials said.

Earlier reports said the well was "highly deviated and complex." But the primary reason it took longer than expected to complete was that Nabors Alaska Drilling Rig 16-E had been in storage since 2004 and took time to be reactivated, sources said.

Other partners include TG World Energy, Bow Valley Alaska Corp., and Ramshorn Investments.

"We are encouraged by the successful test of the Ivishak formation in the Northshore No. 1 well," said R.G. Moffat, president and chief executive of Bow Valley. "Further upside is identified in the potential of the untested Sag River formation and prospectivity identified in two similar, seismically defined, structures in close proximity to the Northshore pool. A follow-up success in either the Sag River test or in an offset drilling location will help determine the commerciality of this prospect area."