U.S. BRIEFS

EXPLORATION

PRESIDIO OIL CO., Denver, 20-1 Whiskey Buttes in Sweetwater County, Wyo., flowed 1,147 b/d of oil and 1.9 MMcfd of gas through a 15/64 in. choke with 1,900 psi flowing tubing pressure from perforations at 12,092-111 ft in Cretaceous Dakota C sandstone. The discovery is in the Moxa Arch area of southern Wyoming.

FOREST OIL CORP.'S A-5 OCS-G-5517 well on Eugene Island Block 325 off Louisiana, drilled to 6,636 ft true vertical depth, cut 90 ft of net sand pay beyond that found by Forest's Al wildcat on the same block. Tests show an expected maximum sustained production rate of 14 MMcfd of gas and 100 b/d of condensate. Forest's A-6 OCS-G-5518 well, drilled to 2,176 ft true vertical depth on Eugene Island Block 326, cut 104 ft of pay in four sands. It has an expected sustained flow rate of 4.4 MMcfd.

COGENERATION

PANDA ENERGY CORP., Dallas, started commercial operation of its $128 million Panda-Rosemary gas fired cogeneration plant at Roanoke Rapids, N.C. The 175,000 kw plant, Panda's first cogeneration project, sells its production to North Carolina Power/Virginia Electric & Power Co.

DRILLING-PRODUCTION

HAWKINS OIL & GAS INC., Tulsa, with affiliates and SMR Energy Income Funds, acquired a working interest in 313 oil and gas wells in East Texas, South Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Louisiana, and Mississippi for $8.2 million. Hawkins will operate 85 of the leases and manage the entire purchase, producing 281 b/d and 2.2 MMcfd.

MURPHY OIL CORP. filed a Securities and Exchange Commission registration statement for its offer to acquire all outstanding common stock of Ocean Drilling & Exploration Co. The Murphy board has approved the offer to exchange one half share of Murphy stock for each share of Odeco. Murphy, which owns 61% of Odeco, plans a merger, once the offer is complete, in which all shares not tendered will be exchanged at the same ratio.

MAXUS ENERGY CORP., Dallas, logged 32 ft of gas pay in Upper Miocene sands in a well on Main Pass Block 181 off Louisiana. Maxus plans development drilling on the block during fourth quarter 1991, with production expected in mid-1992. The block is held by Maxus master limited partnership Diamond Shamrock Offshore Partners.

BANNON ENERGY INC. and partners agreed to pay ARCO $4.25 million for interests in 38 wells and associated acreage in West Lindreth Gallup-Dakota field, Rio Arriba County, N. M.

POOL CO. (TEXAS) INC., a unit of Pool Energy Services Co., Houston, agreed in principle to buy 53 service rigs and related assets from New London Inc., San Antonio, unit Well Solutions Inc. for an undisclosed amount of cash. Most of the rigs are in South Texas and the Austin chalk trend.

COMPANIES

ONEOK INC., Tulsa, settled three take or pay lawsuits filed in Oklahoma federal district courts. Two of the suits involved wells in Pittsburg County, Okla., and the third involved wells and area contracts in Carter and Love counties, Okla.

POGO PRODUCING CO., Houston, signed a settlement with the Internal Revenue Service reducing its taxes by $8.607 million for tax years through 1985. Pogo also filed a refund receivable for taxes and related interest income of $29.002 million through Dec. 31, 1990, which it expects to receive in first quarter 1991 .

GOVERNMENT

MINERALS MANAGEMENT SERVICE scheduled seminars Jan. 23 in Denver, Jan. 30 in New Orleans, and Feb. 5 in Dallas to explain its transportation and gas processing allowance rules. The meetings will cover issues regarding the rules and reporting problems encountered since they took effect Mar. 1, 1988.

ALTERNATE FUELS

OGDEN MARTIN SYSTEMS INC., Fairfield, N.J., began start-up and shakedown operations of a 1,200 ton/day solid waste burning power plant in Lancaster County, Pa. The $102 million plant is expected to begin full operation by July 1991, selling 30,000 kw of power to Metropolitan Edison Co.

PIPELINES

TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT'S Research and Special Programs Administration plans to develop a rule to require gas pipeline operators to install excess, flow valves on lines serving customers. It said most of the 298 gas line ruptures reported to it since July 1984 would have been less severe if service pipelines had the valves. The agency has asked for comments on the proposed rule.

U.S. OIL & REFINING CO.'S 16 in., 1 mile pipeline from Blair Waterway dock to its Tacoma, Wash., refinery ruptured last week, spilling an estimated 10,000 bbl of Alaskan crude into a drainage ditch near Puget Sound. The rupture occurred about 4 ft underground and 2,000 ft from the dock after offloading of the Overseas Alaska tanker. Several hundred gallons reportedly seeped into Blair Waterway, where it was contained by booms. Most of the oil was pumped from the ditch into rail cars and tanker trucks.

WILLIAMS ENERGY CO., Tulsa, acquired the 46 mile, 16 in. Crawfish Pipeline and Crawfish gas processing plant from Shell Western E&P Inc. for an undisclosed price. The 150 MMcfd gas pipeline runs northeast from Gibson field near Houma, La., to Shell Norco Chemical Co.'s plant in St. Charles Parish, La. The gas processing plant, at Luling, La., has a capacity of 125 MMcfd.

DIAMOND SHAMROCK REFINING & MARKETING CO. plans to build a products terminal 10 miles north of Laredo, Tex., and lay a 100 mile, 6 in., 15,000 b/d pipeline connecting it with the company's refinery at Three Rivers, Tex. The terminal will consist of two 55,000 bbl and three 30,000 bbl tanks and two automated truck loading bays. Diamond Shamrock expects to complete both projects by midyear.

FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION granted approval on all nonenvironmental issues of Trans-Colorado Gas Transmission Co.'s proposed 300 MMcfd, 310 mile, open access gas pipeline from the Piceance basin near Meaker, Colo., to the San Juan hub near Blanco, N.M.

EXPORTS-IMPORTS

THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION is relaxing a 1987 ban on imports of Iranian crude oil. It now will consider import permits case by case if payments go into an escrow account that finances American claims against Iran since the 1979 revolution. The Treasury Department said no oil company has so far applied for such an import license.

Copyright 1991 Oil & Gas Journal. All Rights Reserved.