By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, May 9 -- Continental Resources Inc., Enid, Okla., declared success at the first "simulfrac" stimulation performed in the Devonian Woodford shale in the Arkoma basin in eastern Oklahoma.
The company also hiked its 2008 drilling budget for the Arkoma Woodford to $130 million from $103 million, boosting to 23.3 from 19.9 the number of net wells it expects to have completed.
The company obtained 7-day average initial production rates of 3.84 MMcfd/well from four horizontal Woodford wells in a 640-acre area where two previously completed horizontal wells had 7-day average initial production rates of 2.74 MMcfd/well.
The four new parallel horizontal wells were simultaneously fracture treated in late April in seven separate east-west intervals or stages. The wells were drilled from north to south 1,320-ft apart southeast of Gerty in 19 and 20-4n-10e, Hughes County.
The two original wellbores are outboard of the four new laterals.
Each frac stage consisted of pumping about 10,000 bbl of water and 270,000 lb. of sand at 75 bbl/min into each well simultaneously. This was repeated seven times over 4 days in successive intervals along each lateral.
Each new well cost $4.2 million and is expected to recover 3 bcf of gas ultimately. The wells are 6,500 ft deep with laterals as long as 4,200 ft.
The frac water is recovered and reused in later stimulations.
Meanwhile, Highland Partners LP, Enid, planned to expand its Arkoma Woodford shale gathering system capacity to more than 65 MMcfd by late September 2008 at a cost of $10 million. The system has been averaging close to its 25 MMcfd capacity.
