Hey, we have another vertical shale gas test possible in New York's own Middle Ordovician Utica Shale.
Pretty much the only driller still active of late in the central part of upstate, Norse Energy, quietly spudded the Aarismaa 1 on Christmas Eve 2010. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation wells database describes Norse's new well — on County Road 18, a/k/a Bogers Road, in the Town of Preston, Chenango County, about five miles due west of Norwich — as all vertical, and with Utica Shale as the objective formation. Here's a link to Google Maps for the exact Aarismaa 1 location.
This is not necessarily Norse's first or only Utica shale drilling permit in New York. But it is the first time Norse has decided to get its bit in the ground, officially aiming for this target. This may or may not represent a break from the frack-moratorium-induced reluctance to vertically test for Utica or Marcellus shale gas, as espoused by new CEO Mark Dice as recently as November, when he publicly reviewed the over-the-counter stock's third-quarter results. (My long-winded, upstate-filtered version of this then-current State of Norse is still readable here.)
If I were getting paid to write this blog (and, for those of you who have wondered, I'm not), then maybe I would be making some midday phone calls to Norse, out in Buffalo. My first question would be whether the Dec. 24 event out in Preston merely represents a spud by the company's second "hole-starting" rig — in order to exercise a permit which was otherwise due to expire Dec. 31. In other words, does Norse still plan to hold back from a currently permissible vertical test until New York State finally works up the political nerve for issuing its new regulations covering full-on horizontal shale gas exploration? (Which — not to belabor the obvious — could easily continue to be a long wait.)
If Norse is ready for a test, well then, what sort of completion timetable might be expected? And also what sort of hydraulic fracturing test is planned, and also has New York State yet permitted any such test frack? (And also — given that Gastem wound up trucking its latest volume of test frack flowback water from Otsego County 400 miles out of state all the way to Warren, Ohio, for treatment and disposal — what's the plan for any wastewater?)
But, again, I'm not getting paid. As a consequence, I got bigger fish to fry. I got some snow to shovel. I got some firewood to stack. So you guys are on your own. Truly, my Chenango County information resources at this point consist entirely of the Internet, the pro-gas CNY Landowners' Coalition (which is my kinda organization, by the way), one or two Norwegians on Twitter, and a very colorful farmer from the Earlville area named Tom. But, given the right kind of motivation, maybe Melissa deCordova at the (Norwich) Evening Sun, or Jon Campbell at the Binghamton Press could be coaxed into action on this latest move by the folks from Norse.
Pretty much the only driller still active of late in the central part of upstate, Norse Energy, quietly spudded the Aarismaa 1 on Christmas Eve 2010. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation wells database describes Norse's new well — on County Road 18, a/k/a Bogers Road, in the Town of Preston, Chenango County, about five miles due west of Norwich — as all vertical, and with Utica Shale as the objective formation. Here's a link to Google Maps for the exact Aarismaa 1 location.
This is not necessarily Norse's first or only Utica shale drilling permit in New York. But it is the first time Norse has decided to get its bit in the ground, officially aiming for this target. This may or may not represent a break from the frack-moratorium-induced reluctance to vertically test for Utica or Marcellus shale gas, as espoused by new CEO Mark Dice as recently as November, when he publicly reviewed the over-the-counter stock's third-quarter results. (My long-winded, upstate-filtered version of this then-current State of Norse is still readable here.)
If I were getting paid to write this blog (and, for those of you who have wondered, I'm not), then maybe I would be making some midday phone calls to Norse, out in Buffalo. My first question would be whether the Dec. 24 event out in Preston merely represents a spud by the company's second "hole-starting" rig — in order to exercise a permit which was otherwise due to expire Dec. 31. In other words, does Norse still plan to hold back from a currently permissible vertical test until New York State finally works up the political nerve for issuing its new regulations covering full-on horizontal shale gas exploration? (Which — not to belabor the obvious — could easily continue to be a long wait.)
If Norse is ready for a test, well then, what sort of completion timetable might be expected? And also what sort of hydraulic fracturing test is planned, and also has New York State yet permitted any such test frack? (And also — given that Gastem wound up trucking its latest volume of test frack flowback water from Otsego County 400 miles out of state all the way to Warren, Ohio, for treatment and disposal — what's the plan for any wastewater?)
But, again, I'm not getting paid. As a consequence, I got bigger fish to fry. I got some snow to shovel. I got some firewood to stack. So you guys are on your own. Truly, my Chenango County information resources at this point consist entirely of the Internet, the pro-gas CNY Landowners' Coalition (which is my kinda organization, by the way), one or two Norwegians on Twitter, and a very colorful farmer from the Earlville area named Tom. But, given the right kind of motivation, maybe Melissa deCordova at the (Norwich) Evening Sun, or Jon Campbell at the Binghamton Press could be coaxed into action on this latest move by the folks from Norse.
Just to put this in perspective — outside of some stuff in way western Erie County — DEC records show there are only five previously drilled wells which list Utica Shale as either the "objective formation," or the "producing formation."
The Olson 1-C (625335), owned by Chesapeake, was completed 4/29/2008 in the Town of Fenton, Broome County.
The Butkowsky 1-B (625331), another $CHK asset, is listed as an active well producing from Utica Shale in the Town of Kirkwood, Broome County. It was completed 6/17/2008, but I was not able to flesh out any publicly available production data.
Two Gastem USA Inc. wells in Otsego County — the Pullis 1 (Town of Springfield) and the Sheckells 1 (Town of Cherry Valley) — are listed as capable of producing from Utica Shale but currently shut-in. Both were completed way back in 2007 (although I'm pretty sure Gastem was sending around press releases regarding having been granted a state permit to frack at least the Sheckells this past fall).
A third Gastem well, the Ross 1, was completed 11/11/2009 in the Town of Maryland, Otsego County.
All five of these are vertical wells, and all five presumably would only have qualified for a low-volume frack — although New York State's currently perpetually temporary ban on high-volume hydraulic fracturing did not technically begin until 7/23/2008.
A third Gastem well, the Ross 1, was completed 11/11/2009 in the Town of Maryland, Otsego County.
All five of these are vertical wells, and all five presumably would only have qualified for a low-volume frack — although New York State's currently perpetually temporary ban on high-volume hydraulic fracturing did not technically begin until 7/23/2008.
The point is — after you sweep aside all the hype and speculation — very little is actually proven or known about the true potential of Utica Shale for gas production, pretty much anywhere in Appalachia, but especially in New York State. Compared to the Marcellus Shale, the deeper Utica Shale has consistently been a less desirable target. Most of what is known about the Utica Shale remains closely held in private hands. But with every one of these test wells, very important locally relevant information is getting collected by people who know what they're doing — examining the cuttings of this rock, and sampling for natural gas.
Norse's Aarismaa 1 represents that company's first crack at this onion. For the sake of all the unwitting landowners out there, sitting atop this rock, I hope those wily Norwegians move forward, safely get it done, and that the results are everything you'd ever want in a gas well — and maybe even more.
Norse's Aarismaa 1 represents that company's first crack at this onion. For the sake of all the unwitting landowners out there, sitting atop this rock, I hope those wily Norwegians move forward, safely get it done, and that the results are everything you'd ever want in a gas well — and maybe even more.
As for the chart below, again, I'm just trying this out as a possible way of cutting through all the clutter to summarize recent well-permitting or drilling activity in New York. Just so you know, I'm focusing for now on areas outside of the state's historically most active oil and gas counties (Erie, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, and Allegheny).
Date | Event | Well type — Formation (orientation) | Well Name | Operator | County (Town) | Map It | |
1/2/2011 | Reached Total Depth | Herkimer (horizontal) | Disciascio 1H | Norse Energy Corp USA | Madison (Lebanon) | 31053264780000 | |
12/29/2010 | Spudded | Herkimer (horizontal) | Morse 1H* | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017264800000 | |
12/24/2010 | Spudded | Utica (vertical) | Aarismaa 1 | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Preston) | 31017264640000 | |
12/22/2010 | Plugged and Abandoned | Geoexchange | W-3 | 471 VE LLC | New York (Manhattan) | 31061237580001 | |
12/21/2010 | Plugged and Abandoned | Geoexchange | W-2 | 471 VE LLC | New York (Manhattan) | 31061237570001 | |
12/21/2010 | Permit Requested | Herkimer (horizontal) | Anderson J 1H | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017300010000 | |
12/20/2010 | Permit Issued | Herkimer (horizontal) | Davis, TK. 1H | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017264790000 | |
12/20/2010 | Permit Issued | Herkimer (horizontal) | Parry, B. 1H*** | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017264810000 | |
12/20/2010 | Permit Issued | Herkimer (horizontal) | Parry, B. 2H | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017264820000 | |
12/20/2010 | Permit Issued | Storage — Onondaga (horizontal) | IW 6A | Wyckoff Gas Storage Co., LLC | Steuben (Jasper) | 31101264670101 | |
12/17/2010 | Permit Requested | Stratigraphic — (vertical) | Tilcon West Nyack Quarry 1 | Sandia Technologies, LLC | Rockland (Clarkstown) | 31087270180000 | |
12/17/2010 | Permit Requested | Stratigraphic — (vertical) | NYSTA Tandem Lot 2 | Sandia Technologies, LLC | Rockland (Clarkstown) | 31087270170000 | |
12/17/2010 | Permit Requested | Stratigraphic — (vertical) | NYSTA Tandem Lot 1 | Sandia Technologies, LLC | Rockland (Clarkstown) | 31087270160000 | |
12/9/2010 | Permit Issued | Herkimer (horizontal) | Chiulli 161** | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017264840000 | |
12/9/2010 | Permit Requested | Storage — Syracuse (vertical) | Finger Lakes 1 | Finger Lakes LPG Storage, LLC | Schuyler (Reading) | 31097264850000 | |
12/8/2010 | Reached Total Depth | Herkimer (horizontal) | Sweezy, J. 2H | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017264760000 | |
12/5/2010 | Reached Total Depth | Storage — Onondaga (horizontal) | IW 6 | Wyckoff Gas Storage Co., LLC | Steuben (Jasper) | 31101264670000 | |
12/5/2010 | Spudded | Storage — Onondaga (horizontal) | IW 6A | Wyckoff Gas Storage Co., LLC | Steuben (Jasper) | 31101264670100 | |
12/2/2010 | Permit Issued | Herkimer (horizontal) | Chiulli 160** | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017264830000 | |
11/18/2010 | Permit Issued | Vernon (vertical) | Spinelli 1-437 | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017239080002 | |
11/18/2010 | Permit Issued | Sauquoit (vertical) | Spinelli 1-437 | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017239080001 | |
11/18/2010 | Permit Issued | Herkimer (vertical) | Howe1 | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Preston) | 31017239980001 | |
11/15/2010 | Permit Issued | Vernon (vertical) | Hare 2 | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017238870001 | |
11/15/2010 | Reached Total Depth | Herkimer (horizontal) | Davis 1H | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017264380001 | |
11/12/2010 | Spudded | Herkimer (horizontal) | Smyrna Hillbillies 6H | Norse Energy Corp USA | Chenango (Smyrna) | 31017264770000 | |
11/6/2010 | Reached Total Depth | Oriskany (vertical) | Strong 1 | Inflection Energy, LLC | Tioga (Owego) | 31107264660000 | |
11/5/2010 | Plugged | Herkimer (vertical) | Branagan M-99-11 | Norse Energy Corp USA | Madison (Lebanon) | 31053228160000 | |
11/2/2010 | Completed | Brine — Salina (horizontal) | Texas Brine Company 104 | Texas Brine Company, LLC | Wyoming (Middlebury) | 31121276400000 | |
11/1/2010 | Spudded | Oil — Fulmer Valley (vertical) | Edlind 9 | Nathan Petroleum Corp. | Steuben (West Union) | 31101264730000 | |
11/1/2010 | Spudded | Oil — Fulmer Valley (vertical) | Edlind 10 | Nathan Petroleum Corp. | Steuben (West Union) | 31101264700000 |
* Compulsory integration hearing scheduled 1/12/2011.
** Compulsory integration hearing scheduled 2/9/2011.
*** Compulsory integration hearing scheduled 3/9/2011.
** Compulsory integration hearing scheduled 2/9/2011.
*** Compulsory integration hearing scheduled 3/9/2011.
No comments:
Post a Comment