Double Eagle Petroleum Co., Denver, has spudded a Niobrara exploratory well on its Atlantic Rim holdings in Sweetwater County, Wyo.
The Washakie basin well will evaluate the Shannon, four potential benches of Niobrara over 1,500 ft in combined thickness, the Dakota, and the Frontier formations. It will be drilled vertically to 9,400 ft and will be designed for either a vertical or horizontal completion. Double Eagle’s working interest is 93%.
The company believes that logs and sidewall cores will provide valuable information on the appropriate completion operations and additional data for identifying future drilling locations.
Double Eagle chose the drillsite after reprocessing 25 sq miles of 3D seismic and evaluating log data for wells drilled in the area. The company plans to shoot 15-25 sq miles of additional 3D seismic in 2012 to further high-grade coalbed methane and deeper opportunities at Atlantic Rim.
The company has identified 20 potential Niobrara locations, filed for three permits, and staked 15 Niobrara locations to avoid future Bureau of Land Management permitting delays. It will refine the locations after evaluating data from the well and the data from the 2012 seismic program.
