A California field that last September produced its 2 billionth bbl of oil from relatively shallow depths soon will get a chance to produce from deeper horizons.
Atlantic Richfield Co. and Santa Fe Energy Resources Inc. are joining forces to look for deeper oil in the North Midway portion of Midway-Sunset field on a block that includes some 20,000 acres owned by Santa Fe and 1,800 acres owned by ARCO. The five year exploratory program calls for one wildcat per year.
The initial test for what the two participants call the San Arco project will be a 9,500 ft hole to be spudded before Sept. 30. ARCO will be the operator. Western Geophysical Co. of America is running an 80 mile seismic survey as an initial part of the joint program in Kern County.
Under terms of the ARCO-Santa Fe agreement, ARCO will pay costs of the seismic survey and the forthcoming wildcat, estimated at 53 million. If the well finds commercial pay, ARCO will be allowed to recover costs, after which the two companies will share equally in the deeper pay. Both companies retain rights to production presently proved from acreage contributed to the block.
OIL, GAS TARGETS
The companies are targeting light oil and natural gas. The companies are the largest producers in the field, which makes about 167,500 bid. ARCO has about 35,000 b/d and Santa Fe 33,000 b/d of predominantly Midway Sunset's benchmark 13' gravity heavy oil. Both companies are major steamers. A gas discovery could help fuel steam generators, while light crude could be used for blending with heavy crude to make the latter more marketable.
Present production in Midway-Sunset field, discovered at an undocumented date sometime around 1890, is from average depths of 200-4,900 ft in sands and shales ranging in geologic age from Pleistocene through Pliocene to Miocene.
For Project San Arco, geologists have identified targets at depths starting at about 7,000 ft. A prime target will be the Upper Miocene Stevens sand, which accounts for four of every five bbl of oil produced in billion bbl Elk Hills field six miles east.
Less than one mile east of nearest North Midway production, the Stevens is productive in the 555 Stevens pool of Buena Vista field. The pool was discovered in 1957 and since has produced 54 million bbl of 26-32 gravity oil and 2.1 bcf of gas from about 5,300 ft.
Deeper objectives include Lower Miocene Carneros and Phacoides, Oligocene Oceanic, and Eocene Point of Rocks sands that have been proved productive about three miles northwest of North Midway in the Northeast area of McKittrick field.
Copyright 1993 Oil & Gas Journal. All Rights Reserved.
