Aurora Oil and Gas’ North Belridge 26-1 oil well in California’s onshore San Joaquin Basin was spudded last weekend. Meanwhile flow testing of Livingstone Petroleum and Pacrim Energy’s Tennis-1 gas well in the Sacramento Basin is being abandoned despite identifying two possibly productive intervals.
Perth-based Aurora said yesterday the NB26-1 well reached a depth of 570 feet yesterday in a 14¾-inch diameter hole and was drilling ahead. The well is the first of 10 initial development wells planned for the North Belridge oil discovery.
NB26-1 is near the vertical discovery well, which intersected three oil-bearing reservoir intervals totalling 170 feet around 9800 feet and is presently on production from one of the reservoir intervals.
The well is to be drilled vertically through the expected 170 feet of reservoir section around 10,000 feet, before plugging back to about 9400 feet and kicking off directionally to drill horizontally along the selected reservoir interval for about 4000 feet, then be cased and completed for production.
The well is estimated to take about 34 days to drill and case before rig release. A smaller rig will then be used to carry out reservoir stimulation and well completion operations to allow production testing to start. This is expected to take about 14 days, subject to rig availability.
Private US company Texas Crude Energy is operator of the well.
Aurora executive chairman Jon Stewart said North Belridge was a recently discovered oil field and represented an outstanding opportunity for Aurora to participate in the development of a significant onshore oil discovery during a period of high oil and gas prices.
“The second well in the 10-well development program is expected to start in August,” he said.
Aurora has a 32.5% contributing interest in the NB26-1 well and will receive 32.5% of the revenue until well payback, after which the company’s interest reduces to 16.25% (net revenue interest 12.1875%). Texas Crude Energy’s estimate of potential recoverable reserves from this development well is about 600,000 barrels of oil.
Meanwhile, Perth-based Livingstone Petroleum and Ballarat-based Pacrim Energy have received the results of flow testing of the Tennis 1 well from operator Nahabedian Exploration Group.
The lower interval was perforated and tested with a recovery of gas and gas fluid at low rates. This was interpreted as wet, low-gas saturation.
The upper interval was tested with little or no entry of fluid or gas. This zone has low permeability and Nahabedian Exploration has recommended the well be plugged and abandoned as a dry hole.
Geological information gained from the Tennis-1 indicates that more than 400 feet of Upper Forbes Sands were encountered between 6000 and 8000 feet with fair gas shows. These thick sands indicate the potential for large stratigraphic traps in the Omega block. Livingstone will be holding discussions with Nahabedian Exploration regarding the further potential of the Omega block.
Nahabedian Exploration and Livingstone Petroleum each own 40% of the Tennis-1 well and Pacrim Energy has a 20% interest.
