Area Drilling

Publication

Permian Admire "C": Potential Exploration Target in Northern Denver Basin, by Scott Montgomery, published by Petroleum Information/Dwights LLC, 1675 Broadway, Ste 700, Denver, Colo. 80202. Quarterly, $224/year, 52 p.

Admire shallow marine carbonates have produced oil in a wide scattering of locations in Kimball and Cheyenne counties, Neb. They have revealed consistent oil shows over more than 720 sq miles.

The large scale producibility of this oil, at least by vertical wells, remains in question, but the area may hold as much as 200-400 million bbl in place.

Armenia

Armenian American Exploration Co. of Paulson Enterprises, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., was seeking a partner to drill a gas prospect in 1999 in southwestern Armenia.

AAEC drilled the Azat-1 to 3,524 m in 1998 on an oil prospect. The company's production sharing agreement covers 12,700 sq km and is valid for 5 years from Feb. 7, 1997.

Indonesia

U.S. independents signed a production sharing contract for a block along Irian Jaya's north coast.

Ramu International LLC, Casper, Wyo., is assembling an integrated project team to explore the 2.86 million acre Rombebai land and offshore block in the Waropen basin. The block contains several wells abandoned in the late 1950s due to methane flows at high pressures, Ramu said.

The block is east of and on trend with giant Tangguh gas field in the Bintuni basin and oil fields in the Salawati basin. Ramu principals are Wold Oil Properties Inc., Casper, Wyo., and Ramsay Barrett, Marshall, Va.

Newfoundland

Canada-Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Board issued a declaration of the configuration of the Terra Nova commercial discovery area on the Grand Banks.

The area consists of 40 sections each roughly 2 km square. The Terra Nova group consists of Petro-Canada, Mobil, Chevron, Murphy, Norsk Hydro, Husky, and Mosbacher.

Gulf of Mexico

ATP Oil & Gas Corp., Houston, completed a well on Main Pass Block 131. The 1 OCS-G-13651 well, completed subsea from a jack-up in 160 ft of water, has a single selective gravel pack in two zones and flowed 10 MMcfd of gas. ATP holds 100% of the working interest.

Oklahoma

Benex Oil & Gas, Oklahoma City, spudded a rank wildcat in Atoka County in the Ouachita Province.

The directional 1A Koi Chush, in 20-2s-12e, is projected to Jackfork at 15,500 ft. The site is far from existing production.

Texas

Gulf Coast Venus Exploration Inc., San Antonio, started a 3D seismic survey in Constitution (Yegua) field in Jefferson County, Texas, where it plans a development project on as much as 3,000 acres.

Venus in August hooked up the 1 Westbury Farms, which is flowing 750 Mcfd of gas and 100 b/d of condensate. Workover operations are expected to increase production.

East Chateau Oil & Gas, Dallas, was drilling a horizontal test to Cretaceous James lime in Shelby County, Petroleum Information/Dwights LLC reported.

The 1H Bailey, 10 miles east of Shelbyville, is to have a 2,925 ft leg in James at about 6,100 ft true vertical depth.

South The Exploration Co., San Antonio, said logs indicate its 1-64 E Paloma well in Prickly Pear field, Maverick County, cut 66 ft ft of Cretaceous Glen Rose reef that appears to be gas productive.

The seventh consecutive well the company has drilled there, it is expected to go on line at 2 MMcfd of gas. The 1-65 E Paloma, 1/2 mile southwest, is to go on line at 4 MMcfd of gas, not the previously estimated 2 MMcfd.

Field production has grown to 14 MMcfd from 2.5 MMcfd on the year.