Denbury presses Gulf Coast EOR projects

Aug. 16, 2010
Denbury Resources Inc., Plano, Tex., started carbon dioxide injection June 29 in Oyster Bayou field in eastern Chambers County, Tex., and hopes to begin injecting at Hastings field south of Houston around the end of 2010.

Denbury Resources Inc., Plano, Tex., started carbon dioxide injection June 29 in Oyster Bayou field in eastern Chambers County, Tex., and hopes to begin injecting at Hastings field south of Houston around the end of 2010.

The Green Pipeline is transporting 44 MMcfd 260 miles from Jackson Dome, Miss., to Oyster Bayou for injection into three wells. It will be about a year until an oil production response can be expected from the high-permeability formation, Denbury said.

Three rigs are drilling in Oyster Bayou, and work on the remaining 60 miles of pipeline across Galveston Bay and the Houston Ship Channel is well along. The company is running five rigs at Hastings field in northeastern Brazoria County, preparing wells for injection.

Denbury averaged 768 MMcfd of CO2 production at Jackson Dome in the quarter ended June 30 and is running two rigs in Gluckstadt field in Madison County, Miss., in hope of finding multiple fault blocks that would expand its carbon dioxide reserves.

The company is injecting CO2 in 14 oil fields in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas. Companywide oil production is expected to average 28,500 b/d of oil equivalent in 2010, including a contribution from the Bakken in the Williston basin.

Denbury is also well advanced with right-of-way work on Green Core, a planned 230-mile, 20-in. carbon dioxide pipeline from the Lost Cabin gas treatment plant in Fremont County, Wyo., to Bell Creek field in Montana. It has surveyed 95% and acquired 41% of the right-of-way.

Denbury has converted 17 idle former Bell Creek water injection wells for carbon dioxide injection and will convert another 12 by the end of 2010. Pipeline construction is to start in August 201, and injection is planned for late 2012 or early 2013. The company is negotiating with CO2 suppliers.

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