Drilled

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Thursday said it will study the potential risks of a technique used to stimulate production of gas from wells drilled in gas shales — known as hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracing) — on water quality and public health. Producers say they are confident that the study — if conducted objectively — will show hydrofracing to be safe.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Thursday said it will study the potential risks of a technique used to stimulate production of gas from wells drilled in gas shales — known as hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracing) — on water quality and public health. Producers say they are confident that the study — if conducted objectively — will show hydrofracing to be safe.

The initial production rate of a horizontal well drilled at East Kakwa in west central Alberta was 10.9 MMcf/d at a flowing wellhead pressure of 2,380 psi, said Calgary-based junior independent ProspEx Resources Ltd. During an extended test the well produced at a stable flowing pressure of 2,300 psi, with the flow rate increasing to 6.6 MMcf/d from 6 MMcf/d. CEO John Rossall said the well validated “the concept of a repeatable horizontal drilling development on our lands.” The well cost an estimated C$3.9 million to drill and complete, prior to the deduction of an estimated C$700,000 Alberta drilling royalty credit. The well is to be tied into ProspEx’s pipeline by November. ProspEx is the operator with a 60% stake; NAL Resources owns the remaining 40%.

The latest economic stimulus package in British Columbia (BC) has taken the form of slashed royalties on new natural gas wells. BC cut royalties to a token, a flat 2% for one year on wells drilled between this September and June of 2010. The move is seen as a way to compete with rival Alberta, which has its own stimulus package for drillers.

Petrohawk Energy Corp., which drilled the highest-producing well to date in the Haynesville Shale, said last week its estimated ultimate recovery (EUR) in the play has risen to 7.5 Bcfe/d based on performance data from its first 14 completed wells.

Petrohawk Energy Corp., which drilled the highest-producing well to date in the Haynesville Shale, said Wednesday its estimated ultimate recovery (EUR) in the play has risen to 7.5 Bcfe/d. The estimate is based on performance data from its first 14 completed wells.

The U.S. Forest Service is considering a plan to allow 136 new natural gas wells to be drilled in Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming — a plan that Gov. Dave Freudenthal opposes.

The U.S. Forest Service is considering a plan that could allow 136 new natural gas wells to be drilled in Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming — a plan that Gov. Dave Freudenthal opposes.

The U.S. Coast Guard and the National Transportation and Safety Board are conducting an investigation into how a tugboat hauling two barges struck an underwater natural gas line belonging to Gulfport Energy Inc. in West Cote Blanche Bay, LA. The incident on Thursday triggered an explosion that killed at least four people and left two other people missing and feared dead. One barge was carrying chemically treated lumber; the other was hauling a mechanical crane and fuel.