The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement has approved its 10th permit for drilling in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico — this one for Statoil Gulf of Mexico LLC to drill a new well (Well No. 1) in the Walker Ridge Block 969 in 7,813 feet of water, approximately 219 miles off the Louisiana shoreline. Statoil had a rig under contract and an approved permit to drill a new well when activities in the Gulf were suspended following the explosion aboard the Deepwater Horizon rig. Statoil has contracted with the Marine Well Containment Co. to stop the flow of oil in the event of a blowout.
Drilling
Articles from Drilling
Nova Scotia to Review Fracking Issues
Responding to concerns expressed by citizens, the government of Nova Scotia has begun a year-long review of environmental issues associated with hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking).
Texas Service Company Expanding
Horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing are on the rise, necessitating expansion of Weir Oil & Gas unit Weir SPM’s manufacturing and services facility in Fort Worth, TX, the company said.
Colorado Bill Addresses Water, Drilling Disputes
Colorado’s state lawmakers are moving a bill (HB 1286) to strengthen the powers of the state engineer’s office in resolving water disputes between ranchers and oil and gas drilling companies. The state’s director of the Department of Natural Resources supports the measure as a means of avoiding a two-year period of uncertainty for oil and gas producers.
Colorado Bill Addresses Water, Drilling Disputes
Colorado’s state lawmakers are moving a bill (HB 1286) to strengthen the powers of the state engineer’s office in resolving water disputes between ranchers and oil and gas drilling companies. The state’s director of the Department of Natural Resources supports the measure as a means of avoiding a two-year period of uncertainty for oil and gas producers.
Pennsylvania Halts Chesapeake Well Pad Construction
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has ordered Chesapeake Energy to stop work on a natural gas drilling well pad in rural Potter County for failing to implement required erosion and sediment controls, DEP said Wednesday.
Marcellus Water Issue Overrated, Pennsylvania Official Says
Water use in Marcellus Shale drilling “may not be as big an issue as we originally thought it was,” a Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) official told a natural gas forum on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, last Wednesday.
Marcellus Water Issue Overrated, Pennsylvania Official Says
Water use in Marcellus Shale drilling “may not be as big an issue as we originally thought it was,” a Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) official told a natural gas forum on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, last Wednesday.
Industry Brief
JayHawk Energy Inc. has begun evaluating for drilling its recently acquired acreage in the Bakken Shale. The Post Falls, ID-based company also said it was looking to add more acreage to its Bakken holdings and plans to accelerate its efforts through purchases and joint ventures through 2011. JayHawk has procured more than 1,066 gross acres — about 135 net acres — in Divide County, ND. Spacing of wells is currently 1,280 acres, so JayHawk said it will pool its acreage with other interest holders in order to drill a well, possibly by 4Q2011.
Mississippi Haynesville Well Looking Better Than Thought
Mainland Resources Inc. reported positive results from its Burkley Phillips No. 1 Well in Jefferson County, MS, in the Buena Vista Haynesville Shale that suggest there is more adsorbed and free gas in place in the reservoir than previously thought.