HGS Bulletin Volume 36 No.7 (March 1994)

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In this Issue
Volume 36 Contents
Houston Geological Society
HGS JOBS HOTLIN€: 713-785-9729
March
1994
Fiscal Regimes Risk Deterring Future Exploration
Drilling Fluids: Making Peace with the Environment
Volume 36
Bob West Field.. .a Developing Giant
Number 7
Thinking Like an Entrepreneur:
Exploration and Production Potentials
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In this Issue
TEXAS
Volume 36 Contents
CRUDE
AN INDEPENDENT OIL & GAS COMPANY SINCE 1941
TEmS CRUDE BUlZDING
2803 Buffalo Speedway, Houston, Tenas 77098
P. 0. Box 56586, Houston, Texas 77256-6586
Telephone: 713-XW-9900
Peter J. Fluor, President & C.E.O.
IS.C. Weiner, Vice-president
Doug O'Brien, Exploration Manager
A1 Curry, Operations Manager
Mike Huhnke, Drilling/Production Manager
Rice Universitv
L
office of
Executive Development
JesaeH.JomsGrsdurukSdwd
of Administntion
For mon information about this program
or other mmagment ctevelopment programs.
please call
(713) 527-6060
The Management Program
M a y 13 - July 22,1994
(1 1 Fridays & 5 Saturdays)
Today,many professionals in engineering and the sciences are expected to know the basics of how a
business unit operates. The Management Program (7?4P) introduces a broad m g e of managemart
functions to enable participants from these fields to improve Ueir on-the-job perfonnancc.
The four components of this program are:
+ accounting & finance
+ marketing & strategy
+ leadership & organization
+ competitive analysis
The focus is on individual performance improvement and methods of applying skills from the program to
the participant's work environment.
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Contents
President's Comments
Meetings
HGS/GSH Dinner Meeting
7
HGS Luncheon Meeting
9
International Explorationists
11
North American Explorationists
17
Environmental/
Engineering Geologists
19
Seismic Guided Log Property Mapping: A Controlled Study,
Phil Schultz
The Significance of Textural, Compositional, and Diagenetic
Interaction on Porosity Development in Gulf Coast and Other
Reservoir Sandstones, Dick Larese
Characteristics of Tertiary Carbonate Reservoirs in Southeast Asia,
Mark W 1,ongman
Petroleum Generation & Entrapment Above a Low-Angle
Detachment Fault: Blackburn Field, Eureka County, Nevada,
Ted Flanigan
Estimating Hydraulic Conductivity for Evaluating Contaminant
Transport, Michael D. Campbell
Feature Articles
International Briefs
12
International Business Note
Environmental/
Engineering Feature
Gulf Coast Feature
14
21
26
Tools and Techniques
34
Two Areas Available, Offshore Northern Territory, Australia;
Seychelles Shelf Open for New Exploration Ventures
Most Petroleum Fiscal Regimes Risk Deterring Future Exploration,
Drilling Fluids: Making Peace with the Environment
Roger Bl& ArthurJ. J. Zmterman and Cheryl Stark
Bob West Field - Zapata and Stan Counties, a Developing Giant,
Wayne E Jones
Thinking Like an Entrepreneur: Exploration and Production Potentials
Paul Oman
Columns
Geo-Events
Calendar
Committee News
Geological Auxiliary
O n T h e Move
G.C.A.G.S. Survey
Exploration Activity Review
Off the Shelf
Quick Look Techniques
30
31
32
33
33
45
46
54
56
March Coffee and Other Events; Geo-Wives
MEOW and the Mullets, Reviewed by David M . Orchard
A Method for Predicting Thick Sands Intervals from Seismic Sections,
Subsurface Consultants & Associates, Znc.
On The Cover
Clusters of diagenetic illite developed as a n alteration product of clay within a glauconite pellet.
Associated pore space adds matrix conductivity which can contribute to low resistivity pay.
Cretaceous transgressive sandstone, Australia.
-Photo submitted by George Bolgq PetroTech Associates.
Bulletin Housmn Geological Society. March 1994
1
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The Houston Geological Society
The Executive Board
President
John M. Biancardi
Vicksburg Production
937-8457
President-Elect
Dwight (Clint) Moore
Anadarko Production
8744730
=ce-President
Ron Nelson
Arnoco Production
3662198
Secretary
Steve Brachman
Araxas Exploration
447-0400
Treasurer
Ann Ayers Martin
Tertiary Trend Exploration
66 14294
Treasurer-Elect
Jeannie Fisher Mallick
Excalibur Consulting
580-9414
Editor
Lynne D. Feldkamp
Emerald Tide Interests
497-0503
Editor-Elect
John Michael Turmelle
Oak Ridge Oil a n d Gas
5832328
Executive Committeeman '94
Jeffrey W. Lund
Ashland Exploration
531-2900
James A. Ragsdale
AGlP Petroleum
688-628 1
Sue M. van Gelder
Consulting Geologist
4663348
James R. Lantz
Arnoco Production
3664454
Committees and their Chairmen
Academic Liaison
Advertising
Arrangements
Awards
Ballot
Computer Applications
Continuing Education
Directory
Entertainment
Environmental/Eng. Geology
Exhibits
Explorer Scouts
Field Trips
Finance
Historical
International Explorationists
Library
Membership
Nominations
North American Explorationists
Office Management
Personnel Placement
Poster Sessions
PublicationsNew
Publication Sales
Public Relations
Registration
Research
Technical Programs
Transportation
B.J. Doyle, Brittany Exploration
John King, Consultant
Mark Bloom, Enron
Dan Bonnet, Houston Enera & Deuel.
Steve Shirley, UNOCAL
Craig Moore, Dolomite Resources
Frank Huber, BHP
Nancy Benthien, Marathon
Martin Oldani, Apache
Ralph J. Taylor, Phase One Technoloa
Gerald Cooley, PetCons & Assoc.
Dan Helton, Natural Gas Pipe Line
Paul Britt, Texplore
Sandi Barber, Consultant
David Shepherd, Amoco
Thom Tucker, Marathon
Evelyn Wilie Moody, Consultant
Mike Deming, Amoco
Pat Gordon, Consultant
Chuck Buzby, Amoco
Gerald Cooley, PetCons & Assoc.
Joe Eubanks, Preston Oil
John Preston, Tourmaline
Harold Darling, Schlumberger
Tom Mather, Columbia Gas
Debra Sacrey, Consultant
Claudia Ludwig, Consultant
Phil Porter, Consultant
Ron Nelson, Amoco
Special Representatives
GCAGS Representative
GCAGS Alternate
Adv, Museum of Natural Science
AAF'G Delegate Foreman
AAF'GDPA Representative
AAPG Group Insurance
Engineering Council of Houston
John Biancardi, VicksburgProduction
Clint Moore, Anadadto
Morgan Davis, Consulting Geologist
Harry Mueller, Exron
Jerry Sides, Sidesmore Exploration Co.
Barbara Bremsteller
Claudia Ludwig, Consultant
Scholarships
Memorial Scholarship Board
(Graduate)
HGS Foundation
(Undergraduate)
Dan Smith, Texas Meridian Resources
Hugh Hardy, Emeritus
Houston Geological Auxiliary
President
Presiden t-Elect
First Vice President (Social)
Second Vice President (Members)
Third Vice-president ( HGS Rep)
Secretary
Treasurer
Historian
Parliamentarian
Geo Wives President
Mrs. Janet (Richard) Steinmetz
Mrs. Suzy (Glenn) Allen
Mrs. Grace (R.Jack) Chambers
Mrs. Norma Jean (Andy) Bacho
Mrs. Tina (Paul F.) Hoffman
Mrs. Beverly (Dewitt) van Siclen
Mrs. Jeanne (Gerald) Cooley
Mrs. Naomi (James) Watson
Mrs. Pat (John) Hefner
Mrs. Linnie (Charles) Edwards
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Bulletin Houston Geological Society
THE MONTHLY BULLETIN OF THE HOUSTON GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY
Houston Geological Society
7171 Harwin, Suite 3 14.
Houston, TX 77036-2190
Phone (713) 785-6402
FAX (713) 785-0553
Office Hours: 7 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Reservations to the
General Meetings
Reservations are made by calling the
HGS office (confirmation can be done
by FAX and/or mail). At the meeting,
names are checked against the reservation list. Those with reservations will be
sold tickets immediately. Those without
reservations will be asked to wait for
available seats and a $5.00 surcharge
will be added to the price of the tiiket.
All who do not honor their reservations
will be billed for the price of the meal.
If a reservation cannot be kept, please
cancel or send someone in your place.
Prices for
March Meetings
HGS / GSH Dinner Meeting,
Post Oak Doubletree Inn,
$20.00
March 7,
Environmental and Engineering
Geologists, H.E.S.S. Building
$2.00
March 9,
Luncheon Meeting
March 30,
$15.00
International Explorationists,
March 21,
$2 1.OO
North American Explorationists,
H.E.S.S.,
$20.00
March 28,
To Submit Articles and
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Manuscripts, inquiries, o r suggestions should be directed to the
Editor, c/o HGS Bulletin.
Deadline for copy is six weeks
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Editing
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on the first Wednesday evening of
the month to discuss the content
and improvement of the coming
issues.
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The page layout is produced using
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Typefaces used in the Bulletin are
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Bulletin Committee
Editor
Lynne Feldkamp
497-0503
Editor-Elect
John Turmelle
5832328
Associate Editors
Gail Bergan
George Bolger
Jim Ragsdale
Donna Davis
Larry Levy
773-9230
558-3996
688-628 1
9814345
777-0008
Contributing Editors
Business
Clint Moore
8748730
Education
Dean Ayres
729-7157
Environmental
Diane Sparks
Craig Dingler
409-86M989
930-2394
Events
David Callaway
268-2114
Exploration
Bill Eisenhardt
774-6669
Geophysical
Sandi Barber
Scott ~ e n b a r ~ e r
531-2979
5287536
Gulf Coast
Walter Light
784-8745
Technical
William Roberts
Jo Ann Locklin
465-2228
954-6262
HGS JOBS HOTLINE 713-785-9729
The Bulletin Houston Geological Society (ISSN 0018-6686) is published monthly except July and August by the Houston
Geological Society, 7171 Harwin, Suite 314, Houston, Texas, 77036. Subscription to the Bulletin Houston Geological Society is
included in the membership dues ($18.00 annually). Subscription price for non-members within the contiguous U.S. is $25.00 per
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postage is paid in Houston, Texas.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Bulletin Houston Geological Society, 7171 Harwin, Suite 314, Houston, TX 770362190
I
Bulletin H o u ~ t ubological
l
Satiety, March 1994
3
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Non-Exclusive 2D/3D
Seismic Surveys
1
fi
4
Bulletin Houston Gwloglcal Society, March 1994
L-.
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PRESIDENT'S COMMENTS
",-"=",",@""""""",@""""~""",~-=-"",,,,,,""@,,m@;;,=,=m@=,",,*,"',,,,",."""'''"",,'80/",,_,,,,,,,,,,,,m,,,'''@''''"'"'''''''''''''''@_m,,"""""""""'"''''"'''''@''''''''',,'''''
Greetings.
March is the month that we meet jointly with the
Geophysical Society of Houston.
This year the GSH is hosting, and
the meeting will be held Monday, March 7th at the Houston
Engineering and Scientific Society (H.E.E.S.) on Buffalo Speedway.
The speaker will be Phil Schultz from GeoQuest.
His talk is titled
"Seismic Guided Log Property Mapping: a Controlled Study". Later in
the month Dick Larese from Amoco will address the Society at the
Luncheon
meeting.
His talk, "The Significance
of Textural,
Compositional and Diagenetic Interaction on Porosity Development
in Gulf Coast and Other Reservoir Sandstones" includes experimental
as well as observational information.
Congratulations
To All Our Award
Winning Members!!!
As President I automatically become the HGS's representative to
the G.C.A.G.S. The representatives of the constituent local societies
meet in a general Board meeting twice a year. Once is during the
G.C.A.G.S. convention and the other is mid-year in the city where the
next G.C.A.G.S. convention will be held. In the near future I will be
going to Austin to attend this year's mid-year meeting. An important
topic that is currently under discussion is whether or not to maintain
the current "host city" rotation schedule. Over the years, for me, the
G.C.A.G.S. convention has always been the most beneficial professional gathering. Consequently I feel that it is very important to try to
maintain its benefit to all parties. HGS members make up a significant
percentage of the total members in all G.C.A.G.S. member societies.
When I attend the mid-year G.C.A.G.S. meeting I would like to feel
that I have some knowledge of the consensus opinion of our members. To this end Clint Moore, our President-Elect, has designed a
questionaire (G.c.A.G.S. Convention City Location Questionaire) that
appears on Page 45 of this bulletin. Please take the time to fill it out
and send it in. Make your opinion known.
.
Congratulations to all our award winning members!!! Both AAPG
and GCAGS have recently announced awards and the HGS is well represented.
Being awarded AAPG Honorary Membership
are Max
Pitcher, Bob Sneider and Nahum Schneidermann.
The AAPG Michel
T. Halbouty Human Needs Award will go to George Mitchell. The
AAPG Distinguished Service Award will go to Ted McFarlan and Susan
Longacre. The AAPG Wallace E. Pratt Award will go to Kevin Biddle
and Terry Bush. The G.C.A.G.S. is giving its Distinguished Service
Award to Dan Smith and its Life Membership Award to Jerry Cooley.
And
finally
GSH/HGS/HAPL
9th and 10th.
for
the
"fisherpeople"
amongst
us the
Sixth Annual Bass Tournament will be held April
~~
John M. Biancardi
Bulletin Houston
Geological Society. March
1994
5
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HGS GUEST NIGHT
MONDAY, JUNE 6, 1994
at
THE HOUSTON MUSEUM OF NATURAL SCIENCE
and
THE WORTHAM IMAX THEATRE
f eaturlng
-
From the Makers of the Hit Film "Alamo The Price of Freedom"
An Exclusive* HGS Showing of the Spectacular NEW
IMAX Film
@'THE
DISCOVERERS"
Mexican Fajita Buffet Dinner Catered by Pappasito8s**
"Tantathn Food d c8tarer sektkn
$25.00 PER PERSON
SPONSORED IN PART BY
v - v
-
Petroleum Corporation
ROO-7:OOpm Musmum Doors Opon. Soclal 6 Browsing Hour with Cash Bars
Bm Surm to Sam the Gem. Mlmral. and Seashall Collmctlonm:
7:OO-8:OOpm Dlnlng in Musmum on l k o Lmvmls
8:15-8:4Spm Awards Prmsmntatlons In M~~noum
0:OO-10:OOpm 'The Diacovererr' in IMAX Thmatrm
Rmrmrvatlons and Paymmnt Rmqulrmd by Malllng Chmck to:
HGS Ouast Nlght Event. 7171 Harwln. Sultm 314. Houston. Taxas 77036.
Call HGS at 785-6402 to conflrm rmcmlpt of your chmck.
Sand Your Chmck Soon , Only 400 Smats Avallabla.
kturd..ul.Mk(hruApl
1994
FESEAVEYOCR~EARLY.sNcEHlOlEsaDOVTEArCHPREVKWSYEAR
NO SALES AT DOOR1 ADMITTANCE BY NAME TAG ONLY1
The Houston Musmum of Natural Sclmncm la located In Hmrmmn Park across from MIIImr Thmatrm at O m Hmrmann Clrclm.
REGISTRATION FORM FOR HGS GUEST NIGHT EVENT
Enclose chmck payable to HOUSTON GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY.
NAML:
WORK PHONE
COMPANV:
GUEST NAME:
Bulletin Houston Geological Society. March 1994
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HGS/GSH JOINT
DINNER MEETING
SEISMIC GUIDED LOG PROPERTY MAPPING:
A CONTROLLED STUDY
Phil Schultz
HGS DINNER MEETING - March 7,1994
Social Period, 5:30 p.m., Dinner and Meeting, 6:30 p.m.
H.E.S.S. Building, 31 2 1 Buffalo Speedway
A good understanding of the spatial
distribution of hydrocarbon reservoir
properties, such as porosity, water saturation, permeability and formation volume
fractions makes the task of planning
developmental drilling and estimating
reserves more tractable. When we have
3D seismic data over the reservoir, we use
it routinely and effectively to estimate the
structure of the reservoir body ( o r at
least the geological structure controlling
the reservoir). On the other hand, when
it comes time to create maps of reservoir
or rock properties, log data and regional
geological information are used to the
exclusion of the seismic. Today the technology is at hand to analyze 3D seismic
attributes with borehole data to identify
statistically significant relationships, and
then to generate seismic guided property
maps which show both increased resolution (detail) a n d increased accuracy
(ability to predict).
To demonstrate the increased accuracy of maps created in this fashion, we
made a controlled study on a producing
field in a marine environment. T h e
reservoir was covered by good quality 3D
seismic data, while fifteen logged wells
provided spatial control for maps of
properties. Estimates of the distributions
of two properties, porosity and water saturation, were made for a producing layer
from well data, both with and without
seismic attribute guidance. Five differing
development scenarios were simulated,
where wells were withheld from t h e
analysis, and used for validation. T h e
maps generated with seismic guidance
gave increased detail in all cases, and
increased predictive accuracy in four of
the cases. In the best result, which came
from a stepout scenario, maps generated using seismic guidance were two times
more accurate for porosity, and two and
one half times more accurate for water
saturation. T h e results of controlled
studies, such as this one, suggest a simple
but profound conclusion: we get better
estimates of the distribution of rock and
reservoir properties away from well control when using 3D seismic attribute
guidance.
PHIL SCHULTZ Biographical Sketch
Phil Schultz holds a Ph.D. degree in
geophysics from Stanford University, and
is currently a staff Technical Consultant
for CeoQuest Systems in Houston. He
recently transferred from Paris, where
for over three years he managed an engin e e r i n g d e p a r t m e n t developing the
Reservoir Modeling workstation for
Schlumberger. prior to his activities in
France, he directed seismic data processl a the
ing development for ~ e c o - ~ r a k in
U.K., was the seismic department head
for Schlumberger K.K. in Tokyo, and was
a project manager for Digicon
Geophysical in Houston. He is a member of the SEG, CSH, and SPE.
OSYKA PRODUCLNG COMPANY, INCORPORATED
--
10333 Richmond Avenue
Suite 710
Houston, Texas 77042
Tel: (713) 266-0292
Fax: (713) 266-0295
Osyka is seeking close-in, low to moderate risk drilling prospects in South Louisiana and Texas
Gulf Coast.
We will also develop your gwlogical ideas.
Osyka Producing Company, Inc. is also interested in acquiring producing properties.
Contact: Samuel J. Algranti. Manager Exploration
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The RMAG Invites the HGS to Denver!
Field Trips and the 1994 AAPG Annual Convention
Examine Reservoirs in Outcrop to Understand Nearby Production:
Two trips examine carbonate facies control on porosity distribution patterns in Wyoming's Big Horn
Basin and in the Paradox Basin. The Elk Basin, Cottonwood Creek. Madden Deep, and Aneth fields are
examined. Core workshops will be integrated with field excursions through exhumed reservoirs. A trip to
Nevada examines the carbonate reservoirs responsible for some of the most prolific oil wells in the United
States. The Cretaceous Ferron delta in Utah and exposures of the Tocito and Gallup sandstones on the SW
San Juan Basin of New Mexico are used to illustrate the effect of base level change on reservoir quality
and architecture.
...
Stratigraphic Architecture and Its Relation to Reservoir Geometry:
JUNE12-15,1994
T
he June 1 9 9 4 Annual AAPG
A series of trips will focus on the splendid reservoir-scale outcrops of the Rocky Mountain area. The Book
Cliffs and the Kqiparowitz Plateau of Utah will serve as two focal points lo examine clastic and coal bearing depositional processes in a sequence stratigraphic context. Elements of courses taught in-house by
industry will be featured. Trips designed to focus on specific depositional environments will focus on
eolian systems. fluvial systems, valley fill settings and arkose fan environments. Each of these trips is led
by groups of researchers whose goals have been to determine how outcrop models can be applied in the
subsurface. The extraordinary exposures of the Guadalupe Mountains and the Capitan reef escarpment
will be featured as a carbonate model.
...
Convention is the Convention of
Field Trips! An unusually large
number of trips will give you and your
family a chance to enjoy the geology of
the Rockies. Summer is the time for field
Structural Geology and the lnlluence 01 Structure on Sedimentation:
The Rocky Mountains display the effects of both foreland basin and Laramide style deformation. A pair of
trips concentrates on the nature of the thrust style deformation in the area of the Teton Mountains of
Wyoming and the Laramide style in the Front Range area near Denver. Both structural style have controlled hydrocarbon accumulations. A second pair of trips will examine the interrelationship of developing
structures and syndeformational stratigraphy. The record of deformation can be deduced from the sediments seen on these two trips to southern Wyoming.
work - come join us!
Field trips underline the theme
Analogs for the World. Trip leaders use
outcrop analogs in a wide spectrum of
Basin Analysis:
A set of trips will examine basin evolution patterns. One trip will focus on the inverted Paleozoic Eagle
Basin. and a pair of trips will examine the evolution of the Denver Basin as seen from the uptilted strata on
its western margin near Denver.
...
depositional and structural contexts. They
capitalize on the unusual diversity of set-
Coal-Bed Methane and Fracture Plays:
tings within reach of Denver, with trips
Trips will illustrate the nature of coal degasification in the Piceance Creek basin with an opportunity to
also examine the rich lacustrine oil shales of the Uinta basin. A paw of trips will examine h e nature of
fractured reservoirs, based on outcrop and core data. Computer models will be illusuated in a motel roombased demonstration of the status of reservoir modeling software. The control of fracture geometries on
reservoir performance will be stressed together with an emphasis on non-vertical drilling applications.
spanning from the Tetons of Wyoming
through the Canyonlands of the Four
...
Comers, down to the rolling rapids of the
Grand Canyon, to the carbonate cliffs of
the Guadalupe Mountains. Some trips also
display engineering and production tech-
Environmental Issues:
A series of shorter trips has been designed to illustrate environmental mitigation practices as well as a selec-
tion of clean-up efforts where geological models of fluid flow are being utilized lo optimize waste recovery efforts.
niques as well as direct outcrop analogs
and cores from producing carbonate and
Adventure with Geologic Substrate:
clastic reservoirs. Other trips examine the
A highlight of h e field trip opportunities is the nine-day Grand Canyon raft trip on which participants follow the wake of great American explorers and examine the stratigraphy of the Colorado Plateau. Trips are
also planned to look at famous dinosaur quarry sites in Southern Wyoming and the KIT boundary clay in
southern Colorado. A series of trips has been planned for family participation as well. Fossil collecting,
float trips, and llama trekking are on the slate.
a * .
effects of base-level change and tectonics
on Cretaceous nearshore and coastal plain
reservoirs. Oil shale, coal and coal degasification resources are featured on trips
Other Opporlunities:
sponsored by the Energy Minerals
Day uips are planned to tour government mapping and climatological facilities, the Geological Society of
America headquarters, and a major oil company's research lab.
Division. A set of trips is designed for
family fun as well.
We have planned a range of trips to appeal to all convention attendees and look forward to sharing the
Rockies with you in 1994.
..a
More specific information is available. Contact: AAPG Convention Deparlment, P. 0. Box 979, Tulsa, OK 74101-0979 USA
Phone: 914'584-2555; Fax: 914'5842274
8
Bulletin Houstnn Geological Society. March 1994
~
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HGS LUNCHEON
Volume 36 Contents
MEETING
=~""''''"''''~=''''''''''''-""''''''''''*';''''"''''''*"",''~'»''''""",","''''''''''"''\<'W''",''''''''','"""""""""""""""""",,-,,,,,"""',,,,*,,,,,,,,,,,,g,,,,-,,,,",,",,,,",,,,,,,,,-,"",",,,,",,-,,,,,,,=,,@,,-,"";""""""""",,,,,,,-",,,,'",
The Significance of Textural, Compositional,
and
Diagenetic Interaction on Porosity Development
in
Gulf Coast and Other Reservoir Sandstones
Dick Larese
HGS LUNCHEON MEETING - March 30, 1994
Social Period, 11:30 a.m., Luncheon and Meeting, 12:00 p.m.
The Houston Club
Porosity development
in reservoir
sandstones is greatly influenced by diagenetic processes which characteristically
are programmed
by pre-burial conditions of depositional facies and framework composition.
Textural and mineralogical characteristics can have a great
impact on discrete chemical and physical
diagenetic processes affecting the sand
body.
Commonly, these effects (e.g.,
cementation, compaction) result in considerable modification of pore space in
part or all of the sequence and significantly
influence
exploration
and
exploitation strategy.
Depositional factors including lithology, sedimentary structures, and texture
(mainly grain size, sorting) have had a
pronounced effect on porosity development in Gulf Coast and other sandstones. Commonly, discrete diagenetic
processes are segregated within sandstone sequences on the basis of grain size
trends attributed to variation in depositional energy. In lower Miocene (offshore Texas) and Jurassic Norphlet (offshore Alabama) sandstones, physical and
chemical compaction
effects are most
pronounced
in finer-grained
facies
DICK LARESEBiographical Sketch
resulting in irreversible
porosity loss.
Chemical compaction
(pressure solution) processes in these intervals likely
provided an in situ source of silica and
carbonate cement which selectively precipitated in adjacent/nearby
coarsergrained sandstone intervals. In addition,
pressure solution effects on grain and stylolitic scale along argillaceous/organic
bed laminae may result in the development of effective barriers to vertical fluid
flow in sandstones (e.g., Nubia, Gulf of
Suez).
Mineralogical
composition
of reservoir sandstones is extremely critical to
effective porosity development, as framework grains of contrasting composition
behave differently with burial diagenesis.
Labile lithic fragments (volcanic, metamorphic, sedimentary) may be subjected
to significant physical compaction
by
ductile grain deformation.
The degree
of porosity reduction by this mechanism
is governed by the type, abundance, and
distribution heterogeneity of lithic components within the depositional environment. In contrast, the alteration of particular types of framework components
may aid in porosity
preservation
or
,.",. "'.,,..,,'..'.',;,;;.,".
""""""""',""'",,,,,.,,,,,,,,.,,,,,
Dick Larese
received
""'.;;';',,»,,,,,,,,,,,,,,.,,,,,,,,,,.,,,';',,,,,,,.,,,,",",.,""'''~;''''''';'';''''''';''"*''''=="'''-'''''"'"''';-'''''''''",''""""".,"w,','
his PhD in
geology from West Virginia University
in 1974.
From 1972-1977,
he was
employed as a geologist with the West
Virginia
Geological
and Economic
Survey where he served as Head of the
Economic Geology Section. In 1977 he
joined Amoco Production
Company,
Research Center (APR), in Tulsa as a
clastic sedimentary petrologist.
At present he is a Research Associate in the
Bulletin Houston Geological Society, March
1994
enhancement
within
a sandstone
sequence.
The selective dissolution of
detrital feldspar in lower Miocene sandstones from Matagorda Island (offshore
Texas) accounts for up to 30% of total
effective porosity. Correspondingly,
diagenetic alteration of minor amounts of
volcanic detritus (3-8 volume percent) in
several Tuscaloosa Sandstone intervals
(upper Cretaceous, Louisiana) has resulted in the development
of authigenic
chlorite coatings (5-13 volume percent)
which have preserved primary intergranular interstices by inhibiting the precipitation of quartz cement.
Principal preburial
controls
on
sandstone
composition include provenance, transportation, and mineral partitioning within the depositional environment.
In sedimentary basins possessing a common
sediment source, the concentration
of
framework components due to variations
in size, shape and density can result in
significant differences in the intensity of
diagenetic
reactions
and ultimately,
porosity distribution within a sandstone
sequence.
""''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
Petrology/Lithochemistry
Group at
APR specializing
in reservoir
exploration and exploitation
problems.
His
principal research interest is directed
toward on the relationship
of sandstone diagenesis
and depositional
processes in natural and experimental
systems.
9
l
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Volume 36 Contents
CALL FOR PAPERS AND
FIELD TRIP ANNOUNCEMENT
1994 Permian BasinSection - SEPM
Annual Field Trip and Guidebook
San Andres Mountains, New Mexico April 22 - 24, 1994
In Conjunction with the Roswell Geological Society
Theme: "Paleozoic Stratigraphy of the San Andres Mountains, New Mexico: Emphasizing Upper
Pennsylvanian Stratigraphy and the San Andres Formation Type Section."
Manuscript submittals are requested and are to be based upon new research, recent fieldwork, or reservoir studies on the Paleozoic stratigraphy of the San Andres Mountains, regional studies (including adjoining
mountain ranges and the Permian Basin), and specific stratigraphic studies on the upper Pennsylvanian and
the Permian San Andres Formation.
The 1994 Permian Basin Section - SEPMfield trip to the San Andres Mountains will be held Friday
evening through Sunday afternoon, April 22 - 24, 1994 prior to and in conjunction with the Southwest
Section Meeting of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists at Ruidoso, New Mexico.
For field trip details and manuscript submittals, please contact:
Bob Lindsay, 1st Vice President PBS-SEPM(915) 687-7233 or
call the PBS-SEPMOffice (915) 683-1573 Fax (915) 686-7827
Call for Papers and Posters
Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies
and
.
Gulf Coast Section SEPM
44th Annual Convention
Austin, Texas
October 4-7, 1994
Hosted by Austin Geological Society
The meetingtheme, "Energy and Environment-Expanding Professional Horizons," will be
highlighted in sessions representing a broad spectrum of Gulf Coast geology. Along with GCAGS and
SEPM sessions, there will now be sessions on environmental geology, as well as an opening allconvention symposium that will focus on environmental geology and earth resources. You are invited to
submit abstracts for oral presentations, poster sessions, or core presentations.
Abstracts of 250 words or less may be submitted for presentation by completing the Call For Papers
form being mailed to all members of Gulf Coast geological societies. Forms are also available from the
Program Chairman:
Shirley Dutton, Program Chairman
1994 GCAGS Convention
Bureau of Economic Geology
The University of Texas at Austin
Box X, University Station
Austin, TX 78713
Full manuscripts will be required for all oral presentations.
Completed papers will be due by April 1, 1994.
10
Bulletin Houston
Geological Society, March
1994
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Volume 36 Contents
INTERNATIONAL
EXPLORATIONISTS
',',""""""'''~''.''.'''''''',..,"m...'''m.",''.."..,~...'""""
Characteristics
In
,'
'...'. "",,,.'.""..'''',,,,,,'''',,,,,,,,,,,,,'''''''''''..'.''..'..'.'.'..."'''.,',',..."",''''''.''',
of Tertiary Carbonate
Reservoirs
Southeast Asia
Mark W. Longman,
Consulting
Geologist, Lakewood, Colorado
HGS DINNER MEETING - March 21, 1994
Social Period, 5:30 P.m., Dinner and Meeting, 6:30 p.m.
Post Oak Doubletree Inn
Study of Tertiary basins and carbonate reservoirs throughout Southeast Asia
has revealed
that a variety of both
buildups and non-buildups
can form
hydrocarbon reservoirs. Buildups forming reservoirs range from the typical
"walled-reef' coral-rich complexes with
up to hundreds
of meters of vertical
relief, to low-relief carbonate mudbanks
with only a few meters of relief during
deposition. Recognizing the geometry,
facies distribution, and tectonic setting
of these different types of buildups can
significantly influence exploration and
field development programs focused on
carbonate reservoirs.
While a classification system for reef
types based on overall morphology (e.g.,
barrier reef, fringing reef, pinnacle reef,
etc.) is certainly useful, improved insight
into reefs such as those
in the
Kepulauan Seribu of the western Java
Sea, for example, can be considered
"walled-reef complexes" that have a marginal rigid reef framework,
backreef
skeletal sands, and steep fore reef slopes.
Lateral correlation of facies in such reef
complexes can be difficult because the
different facies accumulate nearly vertically through time. Examples of analogous reefal reservoirs
occur in the
Philippines, around parts of the south
China
Sea including
the Central
Luconia Province of Malaysia, and probably in the NSB (North Sumatra Block)
pinnacle reefs.
Another common type of carbonate
buildup, particularly in tectonically stable back-arc basins, is the low-relief carbonate mudbank. The sheltered depositional
setting
in these basins,
in
combination
with deposition during a
time of gradually rising sea level (particularly during
the Early Miocene),
favored formation of these mudbanks
benthonic
foraminifers;
2)
abundant
over
walle'd.-reef
complexes.
Characteristics
of these
buildups
include: 1) an abundance
of skeletal
packs tones and wackestones containing
branching
cQral fragments and larger
depositional
micrite
matrix;
3) an
absence of rigid reef framework
and
marine cements;
4) a generally
lowrelief, lenticular shape; and 5) development on relatively flat carbonate shelves
with associated argillaceous carbonates
being deposited contemporaneously
in
slightly deeper water off the buildup.
Reservoir "flow units" in these buildups
tend to have formed in response to sea
level fluctuations and be laterally correlative across the field.
More than 16 billion barrels of oil
and oil-equivalent hydrocarbons
occur
in Miocene buildups of Southeast Asia.
These hydrocarbons
are approximately
equally divided between true walled-reef
complexes, mainly in rift margin basins,
and low-relief carbonate
mudbanks,
mainly in back-arc basins. Other types of
carbonate reservoirs include both nonreefal shelf carbonates and deeper water
reef talus and planktonic
foram-rich
limestones.
Mark became interested in geology
while a student at Albion College in
Michigan. He subsequently obtained a
Ph.D. in Geology from the University of
Texas at Austin (in 1976) and then
began working as a research geologist for
Cities Service Company in Tulsa. Much
of his work while at the Cities Service
Research Laboratory focused on carbonate reservoirs around the world, and particularly on carbonate
diagenesis as a
control on reservoir development. Mter
five years at the Research Lab, Mark
moved to Denver to begin work as an
explorationist, first with Coastal Oil and
Gas company, and then with Buttercup
Energy. Since 1984, he has worked mainly as a consulting geologist, and has been
involved in a number of studies that
focused on Southeast Asian Tertiary carbonate reservoirs. He specializes in using
carbonate petrography to interpret depositional environments,
diagenetic
textures, and porosity evolution in hydrocarbon reservoirs. He has published papers
on topics including reef facies, carbonate
diagenesis, and reservoir studies. His talk
will be based on a recent year-long consulting project for Petroconsultants
Australasia which focused on the Tertiary
carbonate reservoirs throughout
southeast Asia.
DR. MARK W. LONGMAN Biographic
Sketch
Bulletin Houston Geological Society, March 1994
11
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INTERNATIONAL BRIEFS
Two Areas Available, Offshore Northern Territory, Australia*
Late November 1993 the Australian Source Rocks
Government offered 11 marine areas for
T h e Jurassic Plover formation has
exploration permits, including 2 off intervals of fair to good source potential,
Northern Territory, 1 in the Territory of and the Flamingo Group has a basal
Ashmore a n d Cartier Islands, 3 off shale and silty units with good to excelWestern Australia, 3 off South Australia, lent source potential and average TOC
and 2 in the Bass Strait off Tasmania. of 2.5% at Heron-1. the Middle to Late
This is the first of a series giving a brief Cretaceous Bathurst Island Group also
description of each area.
has good potential source intervals with
Areas NT93-3 and NT 934 are in the TOC values as high as 1.79%. The Plover
central part of the Bonaparte Basin, formation may be overmature in the
about 300 km northwest of Darwin. They Malita Graben, but the Flamingo Group
constitute the eastern half of Area B in and Bathurst Island Group are within the
the Timor Gap Zone of Cooperation oil window.
(see figure). Water depth is less than
100m. The areas overlie the northeast- Seals
trending Malita Graben, the edge of the
The massive claystone and siltstone at
Sahul Platform on the north, and the
the base of the Cretaceous Bathurst
Petrel Suhbasin on the south.
The Malita Graben is a depositional Island Group is the major regional seal
trough filled with a thick section of Late for the Jurassic in this and nearby areas.
Mesozoic to Recent sediments, and char- Intraformational shales and claystones
acterized by northeast-trending tilted also provide local seals in both the
fault blocks. The graben probably origi- Jurassic and Cretaceous.
nated during Middle Jurassic. It overlies
the northwest-trending Petrel Subbasin, Play Types
a mid-Paleozoic rift containing more
Fault blocks and fault-related anticlines
than 10,000m of Late Paleozoic a n d dominate the play types, but stratigraphic
Mesozoic sediments. Vertical salt- plays in turbidite sands along the margins
induced structures are developed along of the graben could be a good explomajor fault zones and the Malita Graben ration target. Salt-related plays are anothboundary.
er possibility along the
faulted margin of the
Reservoirs
graben and the Petrel
The Jurassic Plover Formation and subbasin to the south.
Flamingo Group sandstones, and the
Cretaceous Bathurst Island Group sands Prior
are primary objectives, but many other Exploration
potential reservoirs have also been idenExploration began
tified. The Plover Formation is widein
the middle 1960s.
spread, but may be too deep unless it was
Approximately
420 krn
charged with hydrocarbons early enough
of
seismic
data
have
to inhibit diagenetic alteration with
b
e
e
n
acquired
over
depth. Turbidite sandstones of t h e
t
h
e
two
areas,
and
Flamingo Group are excellent potential
Curlew-1,
three
wells,
targets, as a r e shallow to marginal
and
marine sandstones of the Campanian to Jacaranda-1,
Darwinia-1
were
drilled
Maastrichtian Bathurst Island Group and
the overlying Paleocene. Porosities in the in NT93-4. Two others,
Plover and Flamingo range between 10% Gull-1, and Shearwater-1,
and 20%. In the shallower Maastrichtian, w e r e d r i l l e d j u s t
porosities have been noted between 20% o u t s i d e t h e a r e a s ,
a n d three, Heron-1,
and 28%.
Evans Shoal-1. a n d
Lynedoch-1,
were
*Reprinted w i t h permission from the
drilled in the Malita
International Exploration Newsletter,
Graben to the northDecember 1993 &JanuaTy 1994.
east. Most found minor
12
shows, but poor seismic control and diagenetic porosity destruction were factors
that begged more study.
Petroleum Potential
Despite results to date and the paucity
of control, re-evaluation of existing data
together with more recent discoveries in
nearby areas, lend considerable encouragement to this underexplored, highly
prospective area.
Data Available
Copies of the basic exploration data
for each area may be purchased from the
Northern Territory Department of Mines
and Energy as follows:
Department of Mines and Energy
Centrepoint building, The Mall
DARWIN NT 0800, AUSTRALIA
Telephone: 61 089 895511
Fax: 61 089 814806
Reference
Condensed from: Areas Available for the
Award of Exploration Permits, Offshore
Northern Territory i n Release of Offihorc!
Petroleum Exploration Areas, Release No. 2
1993, and Prospectivity of 7 ~ n of
e Cooperation
B, Gazettal areas N T 9 3 - 3 and N T 9 3 - 4 ,
Australia Department of Prima9 Indust9 and
Energy.
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Recent reviews of geological and g e e
physical data from the Seychelles shelf
have upgraded the hydrocarbon exploration potential of this frontier area. A
diversity of plays is recognized, involving
tilted fault blocks, stratigraphic pinchouts, reefs, and anticlines. Source rock
facies have been identified in wells from
five stratigraphic sequences, and indications of active hydrocarbon generation
and migration are evident from remote
sensing surveys, seismic data, and the regular strandings of tarballs.
The central Seychelles islands are a
u n i q u e example of mid-oceanic
~ r e c a m b r i a ngranite representing the
basement peaks of a microcontinent that
evolved through three phases of riftdrift
tectonics d u r i n g t h e b r e a k u p of
Gondwana. Well and seismic data reveal
more than 8000 m of sediments overlying
granitic basement. These deposits range
from Triassic to Lower Jurassic continental Karoo/Gondwana equivalents,
through Middle Jurassic shallow marine
carbonates, broadly correlatable to the
Middle East succession, Late Jurassic to
Cretaceous o p e n m a r i n e facies, a n d
Tertiary t o Recent shelf carbonates,
which form the present morphology of
t h e Seychelles Plateau a n d a d j a c e n t
banks.
Exploration History
Exploration for hydrocarbons began
during the late 1970s when three petroleum agreements were signed. Following
some 6400 km of seismic acquisition,
Amoco drilled three wildcat wells on the
western shelf of the Seychelles Plateau,
targeting continental Karoo-equivalent
deposits in tilted fault block traps. The
first well failed to reach the objective due
to a much thicker-than-predicted Upper
Targeting/Lower Cretaceous sealing
marine sequence. The second well found
the objective succession directly beneath
a mid-Cretaceous unconformity, above
which no seal was present. The third well
was later shown by depth conversion to
have been drilled outside structural c l e
sure. Nevertheless, all three displayed various indications of migrant hydrocarbons.
Since these wells were dlilled, a variety
of data has been acquired:
1982: 27,900 km aeromagnetic survey
1983: 7,100 km seismic, gravity/magnetics, and gas sniffer survey
1987: 4870 km seismic a n d
gravity/magnetics survey
1988/9: satellite gravity surveys
1991: 3675 km seismic a n d
In this Issue
gravity/magnetics survey, and W fluorescence Seepfinder survey
(International Exploration Newsletter 14
October 1991)
Enterprise Oil curently holds license
to approximately 10,000 sq km over shallow water, leaving some 60,000 sq km
available for new exploration ventures.
Hydrocarbon Plays
A variety of plays involving both continental a n d marine sequences occur in
t h e Seychelles Plateau a n d a d j a c e n t
banks, including the distant Farquhar
group.
1. Tilted Fault Blocks: Clastic continental and mixed clastic/carbonate marginal marine sequences of Triassic t o
Middle Jurassic rift origin provide source
rocks and reservoirs with porosities up to
22%. These, and the capping and sealing
Upper Jurassic/Lower Cretacous fine
marine clastics, have been block faulted
during subsequent rift tectonism. Only
this play has been drilled.
2. Stratigraphic Pinchouts: Regressive
marginal marine clastic sequences developed within an Upper Cretaceous pullapart rift basin provide reservoirs and
source rocks. The landward pinchout is
sealed between the underlying granitic
basement and overstepping transgressive
marine fine clastics.
3. Reefs: Barrier and fringing reefs
developed on passive margins d u r i n g
Late Cretaceous a n d Tertiary drifting.
Earlier marine shales, a n d associated
marine carbonates a n d shales could,
respectively, s o u r c e a n d
seal the vuggy carbonate
reservoirs.
4. Carbonate Onlap/
Compactional
Drape:
Tertiary shelf c a r b o n a t e
o n l a p u p o n , a n d compactionally d r a p e over,
major basement Bombay
High-style horst blocks, o r
possible local volcanic edifices. Earlier o r associated
marine shales o r micritic
carbonates are possibly the
source a n d seal for vuggy
carbonate reservoirs.
5. Wrench Fault Anticlines: Wrench faulting of
latest Cretaceous/ Tertiary
a g e c r e a t e d potentially
large anticlines within
Upper Cretaceous regressive marginal marine clastic sequences, containing
Volume 36 Contents
reservoir a n d source rock facies, a n d
overlying transgressive marine shales
seals.
Source Rocks
Potential source rocks have been identified in wells at five stratigraphic levels:
Middle Triassic lacustrine mudstones
Lower Jurassic deltaic lagoonal mudstones
Middle Jurassic marginal marine carbonates
Upper Jurassic/Lower cretaceous
shallow marine mudstones and siltstones
Maastrichtian/Paleocene shallow
marine mudstone.
Present maturities range from gas
mature in the Triassic, through oil mature
in the Jurassic/Cretaceous, to marginally
mature in the Paleocene. Active migration
is evidence by the well shows, gas sniffer
and solar fluorescence anomalies, and
regular strandings of tarballs.
Additional Information
For additional i n f i t i o n , data, a, copies of
a recently releaqed brochure and technical at&
that includes the fiscal and legal regimes, and
describes this prospective frontier in more &.!uil,
contact:
Managing Director
Sqrchelles National Oil Company
P. 0.Box 230, victiwia
Mahe, S E Y ( = H E B
Telephone: (+248) 225 182
Fax: (+248) 2251 77
A promotional tour is planned
fa,early 1994.
Equata
0
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INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS NOTE
Most Petroleum Fiscal Regimes Risk
Deterring Future Exploration*
Very few petroleum fiscal
regimes are structured to be flexible when oil prices fall, as they
have done in the past few months.
When the geological prospectivity
of a country is regarded favorably
by the oil industry, governments
a r e able to apply harsh fiscal
terms. The development of terms
in the past three years in Yemen one of the latest exploration "hot
spots" - is a good example of this.
In its first "Annual Review of
Petroleum Fiscal Regimes",
Peuoconsultants shows that these
fiscal regimes could result in
potential oil field developments
becoming uneconomic o n an
after-tax basis. The study analyses
the impact of 70 fiscal regimes on
a range of hypothetical field
developments- categorized
as
"marginal", "economic" o r "upsiden
according to the gross project' Net
Present Value (NW)2.
Regimes which contain a royalty (or a
similar mechanism which secures revenue
for the State before allowing full recovery
of costs) are found to be regressive, i.e.
the State Takes from a project increases
:'FIEIDS
FIELDS
STATE TAKE
STATE TAKE
25.0%
33.0%
36.6%
39.5%
41.0%
0
0
0
87.4%
S6.2%
>loo%
> 100%
>100Y
as the profitability of the field decreases.
More than 80% of the regimes reviewed
were found to be regressive, with the current regimes in Russia, Syria and Yemen
the most likely to deter development of
projects for these reasons.
As a general rule, the harshest fiscal
regimes are associated with countries
which have the highest prospectivity and
vice versa, although the UK (with a State
Take of only 33% from all projects) is a
notable exception. T h e average State
Take is between 70% and 75%, with over
two thirds of regimes providing a State
Take of between 60% and 90% from
"economic" and "upsiden fields. Only
* "AnnualRevim of Petroleum Fiscal Regimes 1994"
availrrble with diskettefim Petmonsultanls
Continued on b a ~ 53.
e
1
0
SHREVEPORTPETROLEUMDATAASSOCIATION,INC.
333 TEXAS STREET, SUITE 900
SHREVEF'ORT, LOUISIANA 7 1101-3674
Telephone (3 18) 429-2237 FAX (3 18) 429-244 1
Reduced Initiation Fees throueh A y i l 30. 1994
Individual
Corporate
SPDA offem covemge in:
14
$375.00
$625.00
LA, S. AR, E. TX,MS, AL, FL, and GA
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In this Issue
Volume 36 Contents
SIMPSON AND VIOLA GROUPS IN THE SOUTHERN MIDCONTINENT-A WORKSHOP
Norman, OK; March 29-30,1994
Co-Sponsored by
Oklahoma Geological Survey and Bartlesville Project Office of D.O.E.
A 2-day w o r k s h o p in Norman, OK, a t O k l a h o m a Center f o r C o n t i n u i n g E d u c a t i o n (OCCE).
Tuesday, March 29
Oral Presentations, 8 3 0 a.m.430 p.m.
Simpson GroupSbatigaphy of the Southern Micontinent.by Raymond W. SUHM.
Consultant. Oklahoma City
Contrasting Sedimentation Inside and Outside of the Southern Oklahoma
Aulacogen during Middleand Late Ordovician Times, by Rodger E. DENISON.
Univ. of Texas at Dallas
Major Simpson and Viola Oil and Gas Reservoirs i n Oklahoma, by Robert A.
NORTHCUIT. Okla. City, and Kenneth S. JOHNSON. Okla. Geol. Survey
Shatigraphy and Petroleum Production of the Simpson, Viola, and Maquoketa in
Kansas and Nebreska, by Marvin P. CARLSON. Nebraska Geological Survey,
and K. Dav~dNRNELL. Kansas Geological Survey
Tobosa B a s i n R e W Sediments of West Texas, by David V. LeMONE, Un~v.of
Texas at El Paso
Facies and Karst Development in the Viola Limestone in Southern Oklahoma, by
Zuhair ALSHAlEB and Jim PUCKEITE, Oklahoma State Un~v.
Viola Fractures-Friend or Foe in Hori-zontal-Drilling Programs, by Carlos
GONZALES. G&G International Consultants. Oklahoma City
Theviola Groupas a FWmWm S y s l e m - l m p l i i s for H o r b ~ C D r i l l i n gProspects, by D. A. WAVREK. Univ. of South Carolina, and M. A. GARCIA. ARCO,
Houston
GeochemicalCharacteristicsof Viob Oib and SourceRocks, by R. Paul PHILP,
H. WANG. J. ALLW,and A. BISHOP. Univ. of Oklahoma
SourcgRock Charac(eristics of the Viola Springs Formalionon the South Fbnk of
the Arbuckle Anticline, by Alton BROWN and Joe SENFILE. ARCO. Plano
Tuesday, March 29
Poster Session, 4:30-6:30 p.m.
Sequence Skatigraphic Model for Simpson Group of the Southern Midcontinent:
The Key to a New Stratigraphic Play, by Magell P. CANDELARIA. ARCO. Midland, C. Robertson HANDFORD, ARCO. Plano, and Christy L. REED. ARCO,
hliAl~n,i
,"%%"8Ca,,"
Correlation andDistribution of Reservoir and Sealing Facies Within theviola Formation, South-Ceniral Kansas, by K. Dav~dNRNEU, Kansas Geol. Survey
ConVols of Quarharenite Diagenesis, Simpson Group, Oklahoma: Implications
for Reservoir-OualityPrediction, by Mark E. MATHISEN. Mobil E&P Tecnncal
Center. Dallas
Hydrocarbon Microseepage Signatureof the Clarita Prospect Coal County, Oklb
h m , by Daniel C. HTTZMAN. Geo-Mcrobial Tech.. Inc.. Ochelata. OK
Wettability Alteration in ReSe~OirRocks Due to Polar Constituents in Crude Oil,
by Anui GUPTA. Un~v.of Oklahoma
Reservoir Analysis of a Horizontal Well Completion: Viola Ls."Chocolate Brown
Zone," Marielta Basin, Oklahoma, by Brian ROUX and Magell P. CANDELARIA.
ARCO, Midland. TX
Seismic Evidence of the Development of Abrupt Sedimentary Buildups in the
Simpson Group of the Marietta Embayrnent, Oklahoma, by Gary L. GARNER.
Garner Resources, Inc.. Oklahoma City
Shallowina-U~wardEvents and Their Im~lications
for Internal Correlations and
ot the S t P& Sandstone in the Forest City Basin,
~ e ~ o s i t iEnvironment
o~l
NEKansas, by Lynn WATNEY. Kansas Geol. Survey, Bryan !3€PHENS,Texaco,
New Orleans, and David NEWELL. Kansas Geological Survey
Tobosa Basin Karsting in West Texas, by David V. LeMONE. Univ. of Texas at El
Paso
S.O.A.P. Database-Forecasting Trends in Crude-Oil Quality, by S. NEELEY and
D. A. WAVREK. Univ. of South Carolina
Sbatigraphyand DepositionalEnvironmentsof the R l i i Ordovician EveRon F a mation, S t Peter Sandstone, Joachim Dolomite, and Planin and Kimmswick
Limestones (Simpson Group Equivalents), Northern Arkansas, by William W.
CRAIG. Univ. of New Orleans
Wednesday, March 29
Oral Presentations, 8:00 a.m.430 p.m.
Ordovician Sealevel Changes as Seen from an On-Shore, North American Perspecbve, by Stanley C. FINNEY. California State Univ. Long Beach
Skuchtral and S W g r a p h i i Factors Which InfluenceSimpson Group Production
in Central Oklahoma, by Paul W. SMITH, Norman. OK
Stratigraphy, Paleogeomorphology, and Sfructure of Simpson. Viola, and Miissippian Strata, and Their Integral Relationship to Second Wilcox Production in
Lincoln and Logan Counties, Oklahoma, by Kurt ROllMANN. Beard Oil Go..
Oklahoma City
Facies. Depositional Environments, and Reservoir Properties of the Simpson
Group in Scully Field (Marion County, Kansas), by Jim W L U 3 and Martha
McFiAE. Texas A&M Unw.
Middle OrdovicianIronstonesin Kansas: Subsurface Markers of Paleoshorelines
for the Midcontinent,Pieter BERENDSEN and John D. WVETON. Kansas Geo!Og'cal
S i m ~ * m u c k l e ContactReviShd in NorthwestOklahoma bunty, Oklahoma.
bY Michael D. U S O N , Consultant, Gainesville, TX, and Bob U .
Kabodi.
hc.. Ardmore. OK
Influenceof Vertical Permeability Barierson the Ultimate Recovery from Oil Creek
Resewoirs, by James M. FORGOTSONand Roy M. KNAPP. Univ. of Oklahoma,
Paul W. SMITH, Norman. OK. and Hua~boUU, Univ. of Okla.
Characterization of High-Molecular-Weight Paraffins i n Simpson Group Reservoirs-lmplications for AdvancecCRecovery Techniques, by N. F. DAHDAH and
3 A. WAMKK, Univ. of South Carolina
DimgeneticBanding as a Sealing Mechanism in Bromide Sandstone Reservoirs in
Central Oklahoma, by James PUCKETTE, Azhari ABDALLA, and Zuhair ALSHAIEB. Oklahoma State Univ.
Optimized Recovery from Simpson Sandstones in the Noble Townsite Field. by
James M. FORGOTSON and Roy M. KNWP. Univ. of Oklahoma. Paul W. SMITH,
Norman. OK, and Jorge Luis CARMONA, Univ. of Oklahoma
SIMPSON-VIOLA WORKSHOP, PREREGISTRATION FORM - Make checks out to ''OGS Conferences."
Please fill out form. detach 11and return 11to: Oklahoma Geological Survey, I 0 0 E. Boyd, Room N-131, Norman, Oklahoma 73019.
NAME: (Last)
(First)
(Initial)
(Nickname, for badge)
AFFILIATION:
MAILING ADDRESS:
CITY
STATE:
Check, payable to '-w
c"-, q
ZIP:
R e g u l a r Registration
Rece~vedby
Llmch.4
Workshop
Banquet
S50
S15
PHONE:
(
)
must accompany preregcstration form. Use separate form for each registrant. For CEU credit@),please check hereStudent Registration
Received alter
Received by
mt!&l
!%u!A4
$65
$18
SS-
.-
STOTAL
(FOR HOUSING AT OCCE.
SEEFORMON OTHERSIDE) Payable to "OGS Conferences"
3ulletm Houston Geological Soc~ety.March 1994
Workshop
Spec~alregst. (no
lunch/proceedings)
Banquet
Received after
im.Gh-4
If you have a
disability which
$25
$35
$0
S0
S15
$18
$-
TOTAL
S-
requires special
Payable to "OGS Conferences"
s e ~ i m please
,
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SIMPSON AND VIOLA GROUPS IN THE SOUTHERN MIDCONTINENT-A WORKSHOP
Additional Information
(see previous page)
PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF WORKSHOP-This workshop is designed to transfer technical informationthat will aid in
the search for, and production of, oil and gas resources. It will
focus on reservoirs in the Middle and Late Ordovician Simpson
and Viola Groups of the southern Midcontinent. These reservoirs
already have y~eldedlarge volumes of oil and gas. and they have
great potential for additional recovery using advanced technologies. This is the seventh workshoplsymposium in as many
years, each program covering a topic of major concern to geologists and others involved in exploration and petroleum-resource
development in Oklahoma and adjacent states.
LOCATION-Oklahoma Center for Continuing Education
(OCCE) is a conference facility that provides meeting rooms,
housing, restaurant, and parking at 1704 Asp Avenue, Norman,
Oklahoma (4051325-5631).
REGISTRATION FEE-Advance registration (prior to March
4) is $50 ($25 for students) for the entire technical conference,
or any part of it. Late registration will be $65 ($35 for students).
Registration covers technical sessions, lunches, and the workshop proceedings, which will be published in early 1995. The fee
does not include the Tuesday evening banquet. Students may
choose a special registration, at no charge, that does not include
luncheons or workshop proceedings.
REGISTRATION DESK-Main lobby of the Forum Building
a: OCCE on Monday, from 4:OO-8:00 p.m.; on Tuesday, 7:30
a.m. unt~l5:00 p.m.; and on Wednesday, 7:30 a.m. until 3:00
p.m. Pick up badges, tickets, and other materials at the desk upon arrival. Admission to workshop activities will be by badge or
ticket only.
EARLY-BIRD PARTY-A no-charge cocktail party will be
held for early-arriving registrants in the Commons Restaurant
from 5:OO-8:00 p.m. on Monday.
TRANSPORTATION-Will Rogers World Airport, Oklahoma
City, is about 20 miles north of Norman. Rental cars or taxillimousine service (about $30 for one to four persons) are available
at the airport. If driving: exit from Interstate 35 in Norman on
Lindsey Street; travel 2 miles east to Asp Avenue; turn south
(right) on Asp and travel 0.4 mile; parking lots of OCCE are on
your right (see map of OCCE facilities).
BANQUET-Will be in the Commons Restaurant (OCCE) at
7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, following a no-charge cocktail hour at
6:30 p.m. Cost is $15 per person. Reserve tickets on the registration form. The banquet will have a speaker and entertainment.
HOUSING-Rooms are available in Sooner Hotel and Cottages at OCCE. Sooner Hotel rooms have two beds, phone,
color TV, and private bath. Cottages have two bedrooms (each
with one queen-sized bed), living room, kitchenette, phone, color
TV, and one private bath (available only for parties of 2,3, or 4).
Complimentary breakfast is available for guests in Sooner Hotel
or Cottages. Send the attached housing-reservation form to
OGS and we will forward it to OCCE. Call Sooner Hotel direct
(4051329-2270)to cancel or change housing plans. You may arrange for your own rooms at Norman's Marriott Residence Inn
(4051366-0900),Quality Inn (4051329-1624), Ramada Inn (4051
321-0110). or Sheraton Hotel (4051364-2882), all located on Interstate 35, about 3 miles from OCCE.
POSTER SESSION-A poster session will be held on Tuesday, March 29, in Conference Room B. Persons doing work on
appropriate subjects may display their work. Posters can be
work sheets, work maps, or rough copies of cross sections and
other data. Posters already offered are listed elsewhere in this
announcement. Others planning to bring materials for the poster
session should contact LeRoy Hemish. Poster Chair, at the
Oklahoma Geological Survey (4051325-3031) by March 4.
Posters will be up by early afternoon, on Tuesday, and authors will be at their poster display from 4:30-6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Poster authors may submit an extended abstract (or short
paper) on their work for publication in the Proceedings C~rcular
which will be released early in 1994.
CONTlNUlNO EDUCATION UNITS-1.5 CEUs are available for the two-day workshop.
FURTHER INFORMATION-Contact the Oklahoma Geological Survey (4051325-3031): Kenneth S. Johnson, General
Chair; LeRoy Hemish, Poster Chair.
SIMPSON-VIOLA WORKSHOP, HOUSING-RESERVATION FORM
Please frll out this side of the form if you want to reserve a room at OCCE. See description of accommodations under "HOUSING."
Do not prepay for your room.
Sooner House: 1 person. $32 U
Cottages (only for 2 or more):
2 persons, $40 3 (per night) (no tax will be charged)
2 persons, $60 3
3 persons, $66 D
4 persons, $72 O (per night) (no taw will be charged)
Complimentary breakfast for residents of Sooner Hotel and Cottages: juice, cereal, pastry, coffee, milk.
Arrival date
, approximate time
. Departure date
(Check-out time is noon)
Name
,Mailing address
City, State, ZIP
Phone (
)
Names of other persons who will be sharing room
Preregistration Form on other side. Return this with PreregistrationForm to the Oklahoma Geological Survey. But then call Sooner Hotel direct (405J329-2270)
if you must cancel or change your housing plans.
16
Bulletin Houston Gedogical Society. March 1994
L.
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NORTH AMERICAN
EXPLORA TIONISTS
""'''''''''<''''«'''''='''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''@''''''''''"'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''~'''''''''",m,,,,,,,,""H',""""',','''''''''''''''''',',<;;,,,,-,,,,,,x,,,,,,,,,,"",,.
Petroleum Generation & Entrapment Above
A Low-Angle Detachment
Fault: Blackbum Field,
Eureka County, Nevada.
'
Ted Flanigan
North American Explorationists Dinner Meeting - March 21, 1994
Social Period, 5:30 p.m., Dinner and Meeting, 6:30 p.m.
H.E.S.S. 3121 Buffalo Speedway
Blackburn Field is a structural trap
above a Tertiary low-angle extensional
fault,
designated
the
Blackburn
Detachment Fault (BBDF). The hangingwall consists of a westward-thickening
slice of mid-Paleozoic
rock that was
detached from the northern end of what
is now the Sulphur Springs Range and
transported about 3.7 miles (6 km) west.
Structurally,
the hanging-wall is composed of the gently-dipping western limb
and nose of the pre-existing Blackburn
Anticline; the steeply-dipping
eastern
limb now crops out in the Sulphur
Springs Range. The Blackburn Anticline
is one of a set of north-south
folds of
probable Mesozoic age.
The BBDF hanging-wall is segmented
by at least seven Tertiary high-angle normal faults which trend NNE-SSW and are
generally downthrown to the west. One
of these faults separates two oil pools in
the Blackburn reservoir.
TED FlANIGAN
Biographical Sketch
Ted Flanigan is a geologist for Quest
Petroleum in Reno. He has worked for
Bulletin Houston
Geological Society. March 1994
The stratigraphic
section consists of
valley fill, Oligocene volcanics, lower
Mississippian
clastics,
and middle
Devonian dolostone and dolomitic sandstone. The upper Devonian Devil's Gate
Limestone and Pilot Shale are both locally absent by erosion or non-deposition.
The lower Mississippian
rocks are
assigned to the Dale Canyon Formation.
By mid-Mississippian
time the Dale
Canyon was overridden by rocks of the
Roberts Mountains Allochthon,
which
remain preserved in axes of Mesozoic
synclines in the Sulphur Springs Range
and under western Pine Valley, but
which were evidently eroded off the
Blackburn Anticline prior to Oligocene
time.
Blackburn's
Devonian
and
Mississippian reservoirs have produced
2.9 MMBO from five wells through 6/93,
with ongoing production
of over 1700
BOPD. Most of this oil has come from
"",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,<<<,,,,,,,,,,
"""""""'''''''''''''''''''""",''",',',','",,,,-,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Quest and others
in
Nevada for the last six
years, and was previously
a geologist and reservoir
engineer for Mobil Oil.
He has a record of successful
drilling
in
Nevada, the Permian
Basin, and the Anadarko
Basin. He holds degrees
in geology
and geophysics
from
the
University of MissouriColumbia
and
the
University
of TexasAustin.
the middle Devonian Nevada Group
reservoir; very minor amounts have been
produced from Oligocene volcanics.
The best well in the field is the Petcon
#18 Blackburn, completed in 11/92. This
well produced 323 MBO in it's first eigbt
months and continues to flow 1400 to
1500 BOPD, water-free. It taps the same
reservoir as the #16 and #14 wells some
446' above the original oil-water contact
for that pool; the #18 stratigraphy is most
comparable to the #16 well. A drillstem
test of the #18 recovered a nearly full
string of oil with essentially virgin reservoir pressure, reflecting the presence of
an underlying water drive. Production
casing was cemented and perforated 53'
into the reservoir, minor formation damage was effectively treated with acid, and
the well was put on production.
Calculated initial production
was 150
BOPD through a 10/64" choke with flowing tubing pressure of 120 psi.
'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''',''''"";;,',,,,,,,,...,,''.""",''',"'''..'
.'.'.""""""""',',"",,,,"""'.'
""""<".'."''''';;''''''''''''=
ARAXAS EXPLORATION
A
Will pay Cash and Overriding Royalty
for your Gulf Coast ideas. Will acquire
seismic data to get prospects to
drillable stage.
Contact Araxas Exploration, Inc. at
333 Sam Houston Parkway E., Suite 1275
or call
Ken Masters, 713-447-0400
17
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ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITTEE
Field Trip To The Houston Ship Channel
The Environmental Committee i s currently planning a Saturday morning field trip aboard
the Port o f Houston MV Sam Houston. The purpose o f this trip will be t o provide o u r members
with an insight i n t o the environmental workings o f a complex industrial area. The trip leader,
f r o m the Texas Natural Resources Conservation Commission, will discuss the environmental
problems encountered by this high concentration o f potentially polluting industries located
adjacent t o a major body o f water. H e also w i l l point out and discuss the abatement equipment
and procedures that are visible f r o m the Ship Channel. At the conclusion o f the 1.5 hour trip,
the participants will meet at a local eatery for lunch and further discussion.
We are scheduled for a March 12th date and a turnout o f approximately 20-25 participants.
If you have a desire to attend o r have comments about t h i s trip, please contact George Vance
(713)360-5332 o r Ralph Taylor (713)462-5588. See Page 32, for detaili.
TNRCC RIVER CLEANUP
On Saturday, April 23, 1994, from 9:00 - 11:30 a.m., approximately
5000 volunteers are expected to participate in the San Jacinto River Clean
Up Battle and the Galveston Bay Clean Up. These celebrations of Earth
Day will include water-based and land-based cleanups, water quality monitoring demonstcations, trash sculpture contests, recycling exhibits, and
other environmental and educational activities. To thank volunteers, a
"Trash Bash" celebration with free lunch, entertainment, an environmental
fair. souvenirs, and door prizes will be held immediately following the cleanups.
Cleanups will be conducted along Buffalo Bayou, the Houston Ship Channel, the San Jacinto River at
the San JacintoState Park, take Conroe in the Sam Houston National Forest, the San Jacinto River at
Dwight D. Eisenhower Park, and the East Fork of the San JacintoRiver, as well as the Texas City Dike,
Pierce Marsh, Armand Bayou, and Morgans Point. Celebration activities will take place at the San Jacinto
State Park, the Sam Houston National Forest, Alexander Duessen Park, and in Coldspring, Texas, as well as
in Texas City and the Armand Bayou Nature Center.
The goals of this Earth Day program are to improve the environment, to educate people about the
plight of our public waters and the dangers of pollution, to involve citizens in realworld solutions to pollution problems, to promote recycling and citizens' water quality monitoring, and to have a great day!
We are asking for your help to accomplish these goals. We would appreciate all Texas Watch volunteers taking part in the cleanup at the location of their choice. Also, at the Trash Bash beginning at 11:30
a.m., we plan to have an array of environmental and educational activities. We will need experienced
Texas Watch trainers to assist with the monitoring demonstrations at each of the six sites. To volunteer to
assist with the demonstrations, please contact Anne Rogers, Texas Watch Volunteer Coordinator, at (512)
463-8206.
We will be contacting you again with additional information, or feel free to call if you have any questions. We thank you for your consideration, and hope we can count on your support of the San Jacinto
Clean Up Battle and the Galveston Bay Clean Up on April 23rd.
Dana W. Macomb
TNRCC River Cleanup Coordinator
(5 12)475-4835
Bulletin Houston Geological !ibAy, March 1994
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ENGINEERING GEOLOGISTS
Estimating Hydraulic Conductivity For Evaluating
Contaminant Transport
Michael D. Campbell, P.G.,P.H.
Senior Hydrogeological Consultant
Environmental/En&eering Evening Meeting - March 9,1994
Social Period, 6:30-7:00 p.m., Program 7:00-8:00 p.m.
H.E.S.S. 31 2 1 Buffalo Speedway
The hydraulic conductivity of shallow
subsurface sediments is the most important field parameter measured during
property characterizations in projects driven by RCRA or CERCLA regulations.
Studies to establish the rate of contaminant transport depend on reliable values
of hydraulic conductivity. Methods to
calculate hydraulic conductivity have
evolved over the last 50 years to evaluate
different subsurface conditions, ranging
from low permeability sediments to frac-
MICHAEL D. CAMPBELL
Biographical Sketch
Michael D. Campbell holds certifications as Professional Geologist and
Professional Hydrogeologist and has
been a consultant to industry over 25
years for companies such as Law
Engineering (Corporate Hydrogeological
Consultant), ENSR Consulting &
Engineering (Director, Geosciences), and
Du Pont Environmental Remediation
tured rocks. Some methods have been
found to produce widely varying results
over a range greater than one order of
magnitude. Laboratory produced results
are being rejected with increasing frequency as field-produced results,
through the use of slug test in low permeability conditions and of pumping
tests in medium and high permeability
conditions, indicate substantially higher
values of hydraulic conductivity and,
therefore, higher rates of transport of
conservative contaminants. Field methods produce data from induced waterlevel changes for manipulations by a variety of mathematiczl techniques, most of
which have been programmed in numerous commercial software packages.
Comparisons of software-produced
results and results produced by hand
plotting and calculation indicate signific a n t differences that would n o t be
acceptable for use in realistic emhations
of contaminant transport.
Services (Regional Technical Manager
and Chief Hydrogeologist). -He has produced two major textbooks (Water Well
Technology, McGraw-Hill; and Geology
of Alternate Energy Resources, Houston
Geological Society, 1977) and many
other publications and reports on hydrw
geology, mining, and associated topics
on hazardous waste and contaminant
transport. H e received a bachelor's
degree from The Ohio State University
in geology and hydrogeology in 1966
a n d a master's d e g r e e from Rice
University in 1976. Recently, h e
designed and produced the semesterlong
course:
Introduction
to
Environmental Technology for crosstraining petroleum geologists and engineers entering the environmental field
(see December, 1993 HGS Bulletin v. 36,
no. 4, pp. 1617).
ENVIRONMENTAL / ENGINEERING GEOLOGISTS COMMITTEE
CONTINUING EDUCATION SHORT COURSE
"SOILS FOR GEOLOGISTS - A LOCAL PERSPECTIVE"
Presented by John S. Jacobs, PhD Texas A & M
A 4-hour introduction to soil science, soils description and the surficial processes in
the Texas Gulf Coast area. The seminar will be oriented toward helping the practicing
geologist obtain relevant soil information for work in the environmental, engineering
and other related fields.
Tentative Date: May 14, 1994 12:30 - 4:30 p.m. lJniversity of St Thomas lecture hall
See April HGS Bulletin for more details
Wleh Houston Geologicel Society. March 1994
19
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GEOPHYSICAL SOCIETY OF HOUSTON
Environmental Applications - Special Interest Group 1994 Schedule
SIC Purpose: Address environmental applications of the geosciences o n public health issues and geochemical shallow investigations.
SIC Format and Program for 1994: During 1994 the SIG w i l l begin to paint its o w n picture of the environmental landscape and highlight where conventional geophysics can be applied. Throughout the year
topics can be added to the pallet based o n member interest and need. The 1994 program developed from
suggestions from members. Those members w h o volunteered to be a leader for a 1994 program are shown
below. The program leader for the meeting-of-the-month may use any format that encourages participation
and effective communication.
Meetings are tentatively set for the fourth Thursday of the indicated month at the Houston Engineering
and Science Society (HESS) building located at 31 21 Buffalo Speedway.
The date, general topic, and principle speakerlprogram coordinator for the sessions are:
March, 1994 Application of Hazard Surveys to the Onshore Environment.
Program Coordinator: Mr. Bill Gafford, A M O C O (366-7873)
May, 1994 A p p l i c a t i o n o f G e o p h y s i c s t o Waste M a n a g e m e n t a n d U n d e r g r o u n d C h e m i c a l
Contamination. Program Coordinator: Dr. H.C. Clark, Rice U n iv. (529-0090 Home)
Sept., 1994 N O R M S ( N a t u r a l l y O c c u r r i n g Radioactive Materials), Hazardous Chemicals a n d
Toxicology. Program Coordinator: Dr. S. Hrabar, GEMS^ (683-0638)
Nov., 1994
Integration of Geoscience Databases for Field Operations.
Program Coordinator: Mr. James Moulden, Jr., Energy Graphics (467-0250)
Stephanie Hrabar i s the SIG Leader for 1994; call her at 71 31683-0638 for details or questions about the
program.
Houston Geological Society Grand Canyon Field Trip
August 7-15, 1994
Flagstaff, Arizona.
Trip I s Filling Up Fast
Contact Dave Lazor ASAP
Please make reservations for the following to raft the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon from Lee's Ferry to
Lake Mead. Bus transportation will be provided from Flagstaff to the canyon and return to Flagstaff.
Name
Address
Telephone No.
Enclosed i s a deposit of $ 5 0 0 per participant made payable to the Houston Geological Society. Total cost, excluding transportation to and from Flagstaff, is $ 1 4 7 5 subject to no more than a $50 increase. The deposit i s 9O0I0 refundable if the trip is cancelled and 100% refundable if the trip is held and a replacement i s found. Final payment is due
by June 1, 1 9 9 4 . Contact Lazor for any participant under age 14.
Send check and reservation form to Dave Lazor, 11115 Fonda, Houston, TX 77035, Phone (713) 728-0917.
20
Bulletin Houstnn Geological SocieQ. March 1994
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l
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considerations
in decisions on drilling
fluids and additives.
This paper provides a snapshot of the
current status of drilling fluids vis-a-visthe
environment
in the U.S. It describes
progress that has been made in improving environmental acceptability, and suggests future directions.
A deliberate
attempt is made to present technical matters in a straightforward
manner with
enough background that environmentally
concerned persons outside the industry
can use it as a reference.
At the same
time the paper touches on the most
advanced fluids and technologies available today and undergoing
significant
development.
The interplay between
environmental concerns, new technology,
and the regulatory
framework
is an
underlying theme.
Issues addressed in this paper include
toxicity of water-based muds
heavy metal impurities in barite
.limitations of water-based muds.
oil-based muds and alternatives
drilling waste volumes'
disposal options
regulatory impact
Biodegradability and -bioaccumulation
..
..
..
In this Issue
issues as they apply to drilling fluids are
in early stages of definition as regards test
protocols and interpretations2,
and are
more properly the subject of a separate
paper.
TOXICITY OF WATER-BASED MUDS
The toxic characteristics of a drilling
fluid are determined by its composition.
Total drilling waste volume also in part is
related to the composition of the drilling
fluid. And composition is related. to performance requirements.
Although performance requirements
vary with well
depth, direction, and location, the most
fundamental
are achieved using the
materials described in the Appendix.
The simplest type of water-based mud
suitable for drilling under many conditions is a "lignosulfonate
mud". The
basic additives in a lignosulfonat~ mud
are barite, bentonite, caustic soda, lignite,
and chrome lignosulfonate.
When the
Mid-Atlantic
discharge
permits were
issued in 1978, four of the eight "generic
muds" listed in it were variations on the
lignosulfonate mud type. Indeed, most
wells drilled offshore with water-based
muds prior to 1980 used lignosulfonate
Volume 36 Contents
muds.
Since 1980 the trend has been to
"polymer muds". The basic additives are
barite, PHPA polymer, xanthan gum,
carboxymethylcelluloses
or starches, and
caustic soda. Small amounts of lignite or
lignosulfonate additives are at times used
as thinners in polymer muds. Although
polymer muds are effective in many situations, they tend to cost more than lignosulfonate muds which are still the predominant weighted mud type in the U.S.
Drilling fluids that contain only the
components in the basic lignosulfonate
mud and polymer mud just described
tend to test favorably in marine bioassays.
By the EPA-prescribed mysid shrimp protocol, the LC50 is in the 700,0001,000,000 ppm range, for instance.
Contaminants entering the fluid during
drilling such as drilled formation solids
and formation fluids can easily reduce
this number to below 500,000 ppm.
Specialty additives required in some wells
also affect the LC50. Thus an average
mysid LC50 for lignosulfonate field muds
might be 100,000-300,000
ppm, while
polymer muds might run slightly higher
since polymer muds are less likely to be
;
I
!
\
Conferenc~& Exposition
an\
AquiferRestoration
GtoundWater
~onitoring
i
// Geophysical
!
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/
Methods
/
~
'"
8i
'-,
~
'
,
Forabrochure,
contact
Trisha
Fr~eman
May 23
/
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- 25,1,94
~~;8~oi;~:~~~h~::~i~~~~~r~tact
Minneap,olis//
NationalGroundWaterAssociation,6375
dOfllRivers.ideDr.,Dublin,OH
43017,
(800)
551-'
Convent
jot{Cent~r
,/
MjJm~apolis,
c lon;,,~,~?379;(614)761-1711,
(614)761-3446
(Fax),,/,''Minnesota
22
""'-"",
",,,'"''
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GEOMAPB
COMPANY
34 Years of Service
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Computer
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Geological Maps Throughout U S .
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Volume 36 Contents
Well Log Normalization Workshop
Learn techniques to quickly recognize and correct biased well log data to achieve accurate results. For
engineers, geologists and well log professionals.
Place: Denver, Colorado
Date: March 10 and 11,1994
Instructor: Dr. Dan E. Shier
Cost: $495
Please contact us for details on this course or any of
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used in difficult drilling situations."
"LC50" is a c o n v e n i e n t m e a n s of
reporting toxicity test results. T h e term
connotes that concentration of toxicant
lethal to 50% of the test population. In
the c a e of drilling muds in the US., the
toxicant is obtained from a 1:9 mixtur-e of'
the mud in sea water.
Effects of Specialty Additives. Prior to
1980, many muds used oSfslfshore would
have failed the 30,000 ppm limit imposed
for discharges under- the 1986 General
Permit for the G d S o f Mexico. By I990
most muds passed with a three-fold comfort margin. Tighter attention to operating details was one reason. At least as big
a factor- in the improvement, however,
wer-e changes in specialty additives.
Drilling fluid companies developed,
arid now provide, lower-toxicity solutions
to problems that require specialty additives. Such problems include foaming,
excessive torque and drag friction, corrosion, bacterial attack, and stuck drillpipe.
Petroleum-based lubricants have been
replaced by low-toxicity glycols, esters,
a n d synthetic hydrocarbons. Alcohol
a n d petroleum-based defoamers have
given way to polyglycols. Chromates are
a v o i d e d as c o r r o s i o n i n h i b i t o r s .
Halogenated phenols are n o longer used;
formaldehyde-releasing compounds are
Bulletm Houstnn Geological Society. March 1994
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70, Englewood,
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Midland, Texas
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being replaced with more acceptable bactericides. Although there is still room for
environmental improvement in specialty
a d d i t i v e s ( p a r t i c u l a r l y in c o r r o s i o n
inhibitors), the record of progress has
been remarkable.
Petroleum, Chloride Salts, and Heavy
Metals. Ironically, t h e most c o m m o n
environmentally objectionable elements
in drilling fluids occur naturally. Indeed,
they are inevitably incorporated to some
degree into the mud as drilled solids and
fluids f r o m t h e f o r m a t i o n s d r i l l e d
through. T h e "natural" levels will be
there and may be impractical to reduce.
However, man-made contributions that
would exceed the natural levels are controllable, and generally can be eliminated
o r reduced to a minimum.
Petroleum, whether crude or refined
products, need n o longer be added to
water-based muds. Adequate substitutes
exist a n d are, for most situations, economically viable. Levels oS o n e percent
o r more of crude oil may be present in
drilled rock cuttings, some of which will
he in the mud.
Common salt, o r sodium chloride, is
also present in dissolved form irl drilling
fluids. 1,evels up to 3000 mg/I. chloride
and sometimes higher a]-e naturally pres e n t in fresh water m u d s as a conse-
I
quence of the salinity of subterranean
brines in drilled formations. Sea water is
the natural source of water for oSfshore
drilling muds. Saturated brine drilling
fluids become a necessity when drilling
with water-based muds through salt zones
to get to oil and gas reservo& below the
sal t.
In onshore drilling there is no need
for chlorides above these "backgrormd"
levels. l'otassium c h l o r i d e has b e e n
added to some drilling
- fluids as a n aid to
controlling problem shale formations
drilled. Potassium acetate o r potassium
car-boriate are acceptable substitutes in
most of these situations."
Heavy metals a r e present in drilled
fbrmation solids97 and in naturally occurring materials used as m u d additives.
T h e latter include barite, bentonite, lignite and mica (sometimes used to stop
mud losses downhole). There are backg r o u n d levels of heavy metals in trees
that carry through into lignosulfonate
made from them.
C h r o m i u m lignosulfonates Lire t h e
biggest "man-made" contributor t o heavy
metals in d r i l l i n g fluids. A l t h o u g h
stitdiesViave shown minimal environmental impact, substitutes exist that can
result in lower chromium h e l s in muds.
T h e less used chronliurn-lignites (triva-
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lent chromium complexes) are similar in
c h a r a c t e r a n d p e r f o r m a n c e . Nonchromium substitutes a r e effective in
many situations. Typical total chromium
levels in muds are 100-1000 mg/l.
Zinc compounds such as zinc oxide
a n d basic zinc carbonate a r e used in
some drilling fluids. Their function is to
react out swiftly sulfide and bisulfide ions
originating with hydrogen sulfide in
drilled formations. Because human safety
is at stake, there can be no compromising
effectiveness, and substitutes for zinc have
not seemed to be effective.9 Fortunately,
most drilling situations d o not require
the addition of sulfide scavengers.
Beyond the chromium and zinc materials alluded to above, n o o t h e r manmade sources of heavy metals are needed
in muds. Indeed, in most drilling the
drilled formation solids o r t h e barite
weighting agent, because of their large
volumes, are the biggest contributors to
the "total heavy metals".
HEAVY METALS IN BARLTE
Recently attention has focused on
the heavy metal impurities in barite.
P r o p o s e d U.S. r e g u l a t i o n s w o u l d
exclude many sources of barite o r e .
European and other countries a r e
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In this Issue
contemplating regulations of their own.
Bioavailability, a n d s u b s e q u e n t
bioaccumulation, of heavy metals is a
legitimate issue. T h e r e a r e a t least
t h r e e o r e characteristics t h a t effect
bioavailability. One is the "total" heavy
metals c o n t e n t a s released t h r o u g h
refluxing in strong acids.10 Another is
t h e m a t t e r of how t h e heavy m e t a l
impurities are bound u p in the ore: as
localized d e p o s i t s o r n o d e s , o r disp e r s e d within t h e b a r i u m s u l f a t e
matrix. T h e latter would b e less bioavailable owing to t h e insolubility of
barium sulfate. Finally, there is the mineral form of the heavy metal impurities.
I n many cases t h e heavy metals a r e
mostly tied up as sulfide o r oxide compounds. These may be less bioavailable
than carbonate forms, for instance.
Heavy metal impurities a n d their
expected bioavailability vary from o n e
barite ore body to another, and in some
instances across a single o r e body. A
scientifically sound (yet simple enough
to c o n d u c t routinely) bioavailability
assay needs to be agreed upon.
T h e economics of barite are signific a n t because of t h e volumes used.
Regulations based on total quantities of
o n e o r more metals present in an ore
EXPLORING THE
GULF COAST
Volume 36 Contents
a r e n o t a cost-effective solution to the
heavy metals issue.
COMPLICATIONS INDUCED BY
DRILLING SHALE FORMATIONS
WITH WATER-BASED MUDS
Most wells encounter shale formations
prior to reaching productive oil o r gas
zones. Shale rock is high in clay content.
Some shales, particulahy thosd offshore
a n d in y o u n g e r s e d i m e n t a r y basins
onshore, contain significant quantities of
highly hydrophilic clays. In contact with
water-based muds, these shales can create
serious wellbore and drilling fluid p r o b
lems.11
As the clays in the shale take on water,
the clay tends to swell, dispersing shale
particles into the hole and drilling fluid.
Sloughing of whole chunks of shale into
the wellbore can occur. These interfere
mechanically with the drilling operation.
The shale clays that disperse into the
d r i l l i n g fluid increase its viscosity.
Dilution o r chemical thinners. in most
cases both, are required to prevent the
viscosity increase from becoming excessive. Moreover, t h e increased volume
resulting from the dilution must be treated with a n additional volume of weighting agent and other drilling fluid addi-
P A L E O - D A T A , IWC.
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New Orleans, Louisiana 7012 4
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T. Wayne Campbell
Francis S. Plaisance, Jr.
Arthur S. Waterman
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Michael W. Center
Norman S. Vallette
supports the
PEL-TEX OIL COMPANY
Five Post Oak Park, Suite 1530
TEL 1713) 439-1530
FAX (713) 439-1023
H O U S T O N GEOLOGICAL
SOCIETY
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Subsurface Consultants & Associates, Inc.
Daniel J. Tearpock, President
1994Training Schedule
d S-ace
May 9-1 3
Aug 22-26
Sept 12-1 6
Geowcal M
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Houston
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a Tec~oloqy
April 27-29
June 22-24
Houston
New Orleans
/.ook T
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Aug 22-26
Oct 3-7
Houston
Bakersfield
btroduc&w to p e t r o k ~ nGeology
June 6-10
Aug 1-5
Houston
New Orleans
May 23-27
Nov 14-18
Houston
New Orleans
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June 28-30
Sept 27-29
Houston
New Orleans
July 26-27
Dec 13-14
Houston
New Orleans
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Study Methodolopy
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Houston
New Orleans
For more course information, contact; Renee Ory 318-981 -7496
1720 Kaliste Saloom Road, Suite B-1
Lafayette, LA 70508
tives. Eventually, this results in excess
drilling fluid which ultimately must be
disposed of.
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
OF OILBASED DRILLING FLUIDS
Oil-based m u d s offer p e r f o r m a n c e
advantages over water-based muds. These
a r e most p r o n o u n c e d in wells drilled
t h r o u g h problem shale formations, in
directional wells, a n d in high-temperat u r e , high-pressure wells. T h e h i g h e r
cost-per-barrel o f oil-based m u d s is a
deterrent to their use, as is their environmental impact. O n the other hand, oilbased m u d s a r e mostly re-usable a n d
result in lower waste volumes than waterbased rn~lds.
T h e basic components of a conventional "invert emulsion oil-based mud"
are #2 diesel oil, brine, barite and certain
fatty acid compounds used to emulsify
t h e brine a n d disperse the barite. T h e
diesel oil is the largest component a n d
the immediate environmental problem.
adletin Houston Geological Society. March 1994
Cuttings g e n e r a t e d by the bit drilling
through the subsurface rock remain coated with the oil when they arrive a t the surface. Economical means of completely
removing the oil coating from the cuttings are; subject of continuing research
investigation, with the ultimate goal of
recycling all such oil i n t o t h e drilling
fluid.
T h e 1986 General Permit for the Gulf
of Mexico (GMG 280000) forbade the
discharge of oil-based muds. In Europe.
the ~ ' r t h Sea countries had earlier
banned the discharge of diesel oil-based
muds, while permitting the discharge of
oil-wet cultitigs
with m u d s
based o n individually a p p r o v e d , less
toxic, mineral oils. Such discharges are
still permitted o n many North Sea wells,
although restrictions o n the a m o u n t of
oil discharged with the cuttings are tightening.
T h e Gulf of Mexico permit did not distinguish less toxic mineral oilhased muds
f r o m diesel oil-based m u d s . All dis-
charges into the sea of these muds a n d
the cuttings generated with them were
prohibited. Hauling c u t t i n g to shore fbr
treatment and/or disposal has been the
norm, while the muds themselves are reused.
Recently slurry-grinding with cuttings
injection (discussed later in this paper)
has been tried successf'ully o n oil-based
m u d cuttings. Although cuttings injection has some limitations, it should be a
viable alternative in many cases t o hauling cuttings back to shore.
SYNTHETIC-BASEDDRILLING
FLUIDS
Given the performance limitations of'
water-based drilling fluids, and the environmental limitations of' oil-based fluids,
alternative solutiorls a r e being sought.
Vegetable oils, although environmentally
prekrable to petroleum oils, are not sufliciently stable to serve as a base for drilling
Continued on @ge 36
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GULF COAST FEATURE
Bob West Field - Zapata and Starr Counties,
a Developing Giant
By Wayne E. Jones,
Exploration Consultant, Canyon Lake, Texas
Introduction
Bob West Field is located along the
Texas-Mexico border, in southern Zapata
and northern Starr Counties. The field
s h o u l d ultimately p r o d u c e 500 BCFG
from 44 distinct and correlative units in
an intermediate expansion of the Eocene
Upper Wilcox sand series. These sands
have previously b e e n i d e n t i f i e d in
Lopeno Field, six miles to the northeast
w h e r e they have p r o d u c e d o v e r 2 3 0
BCFG. Eighteen (18) different sands at
Bob West Field have been proven productive, within two thirds of the available
850Cft section penetrated. The field was
discovered in 1990. The majority of the
field lies beneath the Falcon Lake reservoir and park (Figure 1 ).
Stratigraphy
Localized nomenclature at Bob West
Field is described from earlier drilling at
Lopeno Field, (Debus, 1985). Both fields
c o n t a i n t h e Lower Zapata Series, a n
Upper Wilcox Hinnant equivalent, and
the Lopeno Series, a partially expanded
lower Upper Wilcox equivalent (Hargis,
1986). The primary targets at Bob West
are the L.openo sand series numbered L-1
through 1.44, represented by an 8500-ft
section of expanded Upper Wilcox. T h e
I.openo Series is involved in an additional
expansion fault further to the east along
a north-south trend, and is designated
the Fandango Series, a well-known term
in t h e geologic literature, (Kimmell,
1986). T h e Shell Fandango units, R-U
are equivalent to the Lopeno Series I,-l
through 1,-12. T h e Pennzoil designation,
W-20, and the fhmiliar Hinnant designation, H-9, are equivalent to the [,-I in the
Lopeno series. T h e operator nomenclature for several groups, such as, Pennzoil,
Shell, Tesoro, TXO and others has been
combined in a subregional nomenclature
chart, proposed by the author, to aid in
clarifing the confusion existing in operator designation of sandstone units in this
portion of the Wilcox trend (Figure 2).
T h e Lopeno series at Bob West Field is
depositionally thicker (10%) than the
analog at Lopeno Field and has a larger
gas c o l u m n . T h e s a n d s have b e e n
d e s c r i b e d by T e s o r o ( D e b u s , p e r s .
comm.) as nearshore, barrier bar a n d
strandplain units. T h e large sequence of
upward-coarsening patterns o n electric
logs would indicate a proximal delta location. This strike-oriented sand complex
with point-for-point correlations indicate
a p r o g r a d i n g system i n f l u e n c e d by a
wavedominated coast line, as described
by Marc Edwards (Edwards, 1981), in his
discussion of the Zapata Delta System and
illustrated in Figure 3. Paleontologic
interpretation of samples from the
Phoenix #1 Guerra confirms all sands
within the Lopeno Series are lower Upper
Wilcox, and all units below the expansion
fault are Middle Wilcox, (Horton, pers.
comm., with permission from Phoenix).
Structure
Bob West Field is a north-south striking, north-plunging, counter-regional
(west) d i p p i n g structure. It is downthrown to a n arcuate expansion fault o n
its west side. T h e r e a r e multiple traps
p r o v e n p r o d u c t i v e o n a s e r i e s of
down-tethe-south adjustment faults with
throws between 150 ft and 380 ft.
Production comes from a minimum of
18 zones in several fault blocks a n d the
gas column in the primary structure is at
least 1 I 0 0 ft thick. Average porosity
ranges from 14% to 2 1 % in the various
intervals with a loss of approximately 1%
porosity per 300 ft of structural loss. For
example, the Phoenix #I Guerra is a t
least 950 ft down structure a t the L-26
interval, a n d it h a s a n average o f 3%
lower porosity throughout the same units
as t h e m o r e c r d s t a ~ T e s o r o a n d
Sanchez-O'Brien wells. Downthrown
blocks with regional east dip are productive within the complex, trapped a t the
faults (Figures 4, 5, and 6).
Development
Development a t Bob West Field has
been difficult because a major portion of
the field lies beneath Falcon State Park
a n d Falcon Reservoir. T h e reservoir is
controlled by the International Boundarv
Commission and creates a major environmental liability while drilling. All locations are from a few prime locations on
peninsulas into the lake. Only two wells
out of 26 are straight holes; the discovery
well, t h e T e s o r o #1 G u e r r a , a n d t h e
Phoenix #1 Guerra. All others are directional. Initial wells were deviated to be at
a high structural position from a limited
surface location, but more recently the
wells a r e b e i n g deviated t o allow f o r
offstructure dev&opment. An additional
26 wells have been permitted by the various operators to drill direc tionally in to
this field. Primary exploration has been
by Tesoro Petroleum Exploration a n d
Production Co., Inc.; Coastal Oil and Gas
Corporation; Sanchez-O'Brien Oil a n d
Gas Corporation, Hanson Minerals, Inc.,
KCS, E n e r c o r p Resources, Inc., a n d
Phoenix Energy Companies, Inc. Each is
developing multiple portions of the sandstone series, depending o n their surface
access and lease boundaries (Figure 7).
Seismic
In structurally complex trends, such as
the expanded Wilcox, the acquisition of
high effort, long-offset 2-D o r full-offset
1
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Figure l-South Texas regional
location map (from Atlas of Major
Texas Gas Reserves, 1989).
ZAPATA COUNTY SUBREGIONAL NOMENCLATURE CHART
-
-
-
-
ROLETA FIELD LOPENO FIELD BOB WEST FlELD ESCOBAS FIELD FANDANGO FIELD
-UPPER
STRATK;RAPHIC
U r n DEFINED
wncox
UPPERmUXlx
U)lmRY(WI
YDOLE rmcox
YDDLErmcOx
woe m)
BY PALE0
SHELL
FAM)AGO
TESORO
LOPENO RELO
K 1 K 3 Hd
I
ROCETA REID
ESCOBAS AELD
Figure 2-Subregional
KT
KI
R
LOWER ZAPATA SERIES
---
rn
PENNZOlL
ti4
-
u-2-
-
IS
my='-)
T
T d T-10
LOPENO SERIES (PnY. DIP.)
-
(PARTMUY EXPANDED)
L
w-10
W-20
-
-
L-1 L-2 L 4 L-7 L-10 L-12 L-13
THRU
L U
UPPERWLCOXUNMRERBmAlED
(PARTWYDEVBOPB)- UNMPANDED)
W-4 W-12 W-13 W-16 W-18
U
PEmm
7SANO SERlES
SERAPIO VELA SERIES
UPPER MKR HOWZON
LOWERMKRHOWZON
PERDM)
OR
OURCOSAHW
ROCnA SERIES
UPPER QUERRA SAND
L M R WERRA
SAND5
--
.
nomenclature chart depicting local operator unit designations for various Wilcox stratigraphic
sequences and their proper chronostratigraphic positions.
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3-D data, such as that in Figure 8, can
provide more accurate interpretations of
the faulting and depositional patterns.
This allows greater confidence in the use
of surrounding speculative seismic data,
which is often inadequate for the deep
structural targets due to either modest
field efforts in acquisition or data processing. Although rarely available, speculative data with both post-stack a n d
pre-stack migration allow better interpretations from the higherquality imaging
of the pre-stack data, yet
.
-provide a
post-stack migration tie to surrounding
data (Sechrist, pers. comm.).
Drilling
Various production challenges associated with the highly deviated wellbores
have resulted in high drilling and c o m
pletion costs. Dry hole costs for deviated
Figure %Type
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14,000 ft wells with no complications averages $2.2 million, approximately 30%
more than straight hole costs.
Overpressured horizons, 330 degree
fahrenheit temperatures, the use of oilbased muds, and directional wells complicate the attempts at logging and completion. The large displacement fracture
treatments required in completing the
sandstones occasionally screen out prematurely in these directional wellbores.
Completions
The majority of the operators elect to
complete u p to four zones in a
multistage frac and then commingle the
The Texas RRC has
productive
allowed commingling of the G24, L-25,
L-26 (RRC order # 4-96, 664, Oct. 28,
1991 ), L-30, L-31, L-32, L-33 (RRC
Docket # 4-97,174, approved
Feb. 3,
..
1992) and L12, L13, L14, L15 (amended RRC Docket #497,910, approved June
28,1993).
Average data from various zones are
outlined in the chart below. All data are
from RRC hearings.
Post-frac flow rates average 3.5
MMCFG to 7 MMCFG per day per zone,
all dry gas. In a n overall view, t h e
Lopeno L1 through L20 zones appear to
have better deliverability rates d u e to
higher permeability and porosity. The
lower portion of the series has seen only
minimal production at this time due to
mechanical problems in the highly deviated well bores. Currently, the deepest
zone penetrated at Bob West Field is the
L-38 drilled by Tesoro. Farmout restrictions on key lease blocks and a unique
escalating gas contract have focused the
mgority of the accelerated development
Continued on page 40
Log - Phoenix #1 Guerra, Zapata County, Texas, electric log.
International
Detailed paleo-bathyrnetry
& pal~ec0l0gy
Volume 36 Contents
Geophysics
(713) 722 -8002
mx:swlm-ams
Reaional Hydrocarbon Trends
in the Gulf of Mexico
MultE-AtbibuteSeismic Stnitbra~hv
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HGA Bridge, Briar Club,
Timmons & Westheimer,
10:00 a.m.-2:30 p.m., Mar. 2.
AWG Dinner, Erika Frantz,
Momingside Thai, Mar. 8.
SPWLA Westside Luncheon,
Mark Alberly, "The Influence of the
Borehole Environment Sp or
Compressional Sonic Logs,"
Radisson Suite Hotel, 1-10& Beltway 8,
11:30 a.m., Mar. 10.
SPWLA Galleria Luncheon,
Marriott Galleria,
1750 West Loop south,
11:30 a.m., Mar. 15.
SIPES Luncheon,
Reg Spiller,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy,
"Domestic Oil and Gas Initiatives of
the Clinton Administration",
Petroleum Club,
11:30 a.m., Mar. 17.
SPWIA Northside Luncheon,
Steve Bridges, "Quantitative Open
Hole Logging with Very Small
Diameter Tools,"
Sperry-Sun Cafeteria,
3000 No. Sam Houston Pkwy E.,
12 Noon, Mar. 17.
GSH Noon Luncheon,
H.E.S.S.,
3121 Buffalo Speedway,
11:30 a.m., Mar. 21.
SPWLA Downtown Luncheon,
J.M. McBoliffe, "Use of 3-D Seismic
Data in Recognizing and Mapping
Bypassed Oil,"
Petroleum Club, 800 Bell St.,
11:30 a.m., Mar. 22.
HGA Bridge, Briar Club,
Timmons & Westheimer,
10:00 a.m.-2:30 p.m., Mar. 23.
HGS MARCH MEETINGS
MARCH 7,1994
(Joint Dinner Meeting with GSH)
"Seismic Guided Log Property
Mapping: a Controlled Study"
Philip Schultz
H.E.S.S., 3121 Buffalo Speedway.
Social Period 5:30 p.m.,
Dinner and Meeting 6:30
p.m.
Reservations by name only, telephone 785-6402. Must be made or
cancelled by noon Friday, Mar. 4.
MARCH 9, 1994
(EVENING MEETING)
HGS Environmental/
Engineering Geologists
"Estimating Hydraulic Conductivity for
Evaluating Contaminant Transport"
Michael D. Campbell
H.E.S.S., 3121 Buffalo Speedway
Social Period 6:30-7:00 p.m.,
Program 7:00-8:00 p. m.,
no reservations required.
MARCH 21, 1994
(DINNER MEETING)
HGS International Group
"Tertiary Carbonate Reservoirs of
Southeast Asia"
Mark Longman
2001 Post Oak Blvd.
Dinner and Meeting 6:30 p.m.
MARCH 28, 1994
(DINNER MEETING)
HGS North American
Explorationists
"Blackburn Field, Nevada"
Ted Flanigan
H.E.S.S., 3121 Buffalo Speedway.
Dinner and Meeting 6:30 p.m.
MARCH 30, 1994
(LUNCHEON MEETING)
"Significance of Textural,
Compositional, and Diagenetic
Interaction on Porosity Development
in the Gulf Coast and Other
-Reservoir Sandstones"
Dick Larese
Houston Club, 811 Rusk
Social Period 11:30 a.m.,
Lunch and Meeting 12:00 Noon.
cancelled by noon Monday, Mar. 28.
SCHOOLS
AND FIELD TRIPS
HGS Environmental Field Trip,
John Ward,
Houston Ship Channel, Mar. 12.
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Alan Byrnes &J.R. Wood,
"Reservoir Quality Assessment and
Prediction in Clastic Rocks",
Doubletree at Allen Center,
Mar. 14-16.
GSH Symposium,
"Pitfalls of 3-D Seismic,"
Marathon Auditorium,
San Felipe and St. James,
Mar. 22.
AAPG School, "The Petroleum System An Investigative Technique to
Increase Exploration Success,"
Mar 28-29.
OTHER
EVENTS
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AROUND THE COUNTRY
SIPESAnnualMeeting,
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1994
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March
Monday
Sunday
Thursday
Wednesday
Tuesday
Friday
Saturday
L
H(;A Bridge
Briar Club
7
I I'
HGS /GSH
JOINT DINNER
MEETING
AWC Dinncr
E ~ i k aFranu
Morningsidc 'Thai
Philip Schul~z
H.E.S.S.
HGS ENVIR/
ENG EVENING
MEETING
Michael C;~rnpht:ll
H.E.S.S.
HGS ENVIR.
FIELD TRIP
SPWIA Wccside
1.unchcon
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Kadisson Suilc Holel
I Ious~onShip
Channel
.john W d
SIPES Luncheon
Reg Spillcr
Petrolcurn Club
SPWIA Galleria
Lunchcon
SPWIA GI-ccnspoint
Luncheon
S~cvcRridgcs
Sperry-Sun Calcleria
Ci
WI
"(i
Mark I . o n p m
Post Oak Doublctree
SPWIA Downlown
1.unchcon
J.M. McRoliffc
Pclroleum Club
GSH Technical
I.unchcon
H.E.S.S
( S H Symposium
Pilfalls of :%I)
Marathon Audilorium
HGS INTN'L
DINNER MEETING
HGA Rridgc
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HGS
NO. AMERICAN
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HGS LUNCHEON
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H.E.S.S.
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Tourny & Dinner
Kingwod C.C.
Srhw&'7'bPefrohm Syskm, "
Mar. 28-29
.
)
I data. Get ranid. n~inntitntiveidentification
or minerals, lncluaing clays, with our
Mineralog" service.
5295 Holl~sterRoad
Houston. Texas 77040
(713) 460-9600
W Copyrghl 1993 W m w n Allas lnternalwmal Inc All
Bulletin Houston Geological SocieLy. March 1994
rngnlr rerewed
C94-m2
31
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COMMITTEE NEWS
HOUSTON SHIP CHANNEL ENVIRONMENTAL FIELD TRIP
MARCH 12,1994
ANY HISTORICAL
GEOLOGY LITERATURE?
I.ocal Paleontological Society is looking Sor any literature that deals with fossils or historical geology. Any literature
that you are no longer using and wish to
donate to the Paleontology section of
The Houston Gem and Mineral Society
library would be appreciated. They are
looking fijr any hooks, journals, bulletins,
or reprint5 that may be available. If you
believe you have anything that would be
of interest to this group and would like
to donate i t to their library please contact Wayne S. B a r n e t t a t 443-7220
rvenings or 680-4440 daytime.
I
I
IN M E M O R Y
Walter Alexander, Northwind
Exploration, died suddenly o n
December 25, 1993.
I
I
The HGS Environmental Committee
a n n o u n c e s a field trip down t h e
Houston Ship Channel aboard the Port
of Houston MV Sam Houston. The trip
leader will be Mr. J o h n Ward, Water
Quality Manager for District 12, Texas
Natural Resources conservation
Commission. Mr. Ward will point o u t
the current pollution abatement installations that are visible from t h e s h i p
c h a n n e l . H e will discuss the various
processes involved in each installation
a n d also give a brief regulatory background o n each. In addition, Mr. Ward
will highlight some of the continuing
sources of ship channel contamination
a n d will discuss regulatory efforts to
b o t h e n d t h e pollution a n d to h e l p
clean u p its affects. At the conclusion of
the 1.5 hour boat trip, the participants
will return to either Shanghai Red's o r
Brady's Landing for lunch a n d further
discussions with Mr. Ward.
DATE: March 12, 1994
TIME: Assemble 9:30 a.m.,
10:OO a.m. - 1 1:45 a.m.
PLACEPort of Houston, MV Sam Houston
7300 block of Clinton Drive, Gate #8
RESERVATIONS: Limit 25, Contact: George
Vance 360-5332
COST: MV Sam Houston trip is free. Lunch
will not be provided.
GEO-RAFTING
Whitewater Rafting on the Salmon
in the Idaho wilderness June 17-23,
1994. $875 per person
Contact Andy Gambill @ 6832365
HGS FIELD TRIP
Environmental Geology Of Boling Salt Dome And Vicinity
Wharton, Fort Bend And Brazoria Counties
SATURDAY, APRIL 30,1994
DESCRIPTION; Participants will meet in the Westwood Mall shopping center at Bissonnet and the Southwest Freeway
at 7:45 am on Saturday. April 30, 1994. Transportation will be by charter bus. The trip will end at 5.00 pm at
Westwood Mall. Stops are planned at a sand quarry near Sugar Land, and an active fault at the town of Needville.
Stops on the dome will include the Boling sinkhole., sulfur mining operations and a gas storage project. A short stop
will also be made at Damon Mound.
FIELD TRIP SPEAKERS; HGS speakers will include Saul Aronow. Carl Norman, Steven Schafersman, Richard Howe,
and possibly others. Plans are to include experts with knowledge of the local geology and industrial operations at each
of the stops.
COST; $48 HGS members, $53 for non-members. Lunch and soft drinks will be provided. Checks should be made
payable to the Houston Geological Society. Registration deadline is April 25.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION; Call Paul Britt at 341-1800
REGISTRATION FORM
Name (s):
Address:
City, State, Zip:
Work,/hone phone:
Non-Member$53.00 x -HGS Member$48.00 x -Enclose check payable to HOUSTON GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY,
and return with this form to: Paul Britt, Texplore, Inc, P.O. Box 450, Richmond, TX 77406
32
Bulletin Houston Geological Suciety. March 1994
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HOUSTON GEOLOGICAL AUXILIARY
MARCH COFFEE AND OTHER EVENTS
March Coffee - Attention wives of new
Houston Geological Society Members!
There will be a get-acquainted coffee o n
March 3rd. Make some new friends and
find o u t about the Houston Geological
Auxiliary. For m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n call
Nornralean Bacho at 4949247. If youjoin
the Auxiliary at this coffee your rnembership will he paid u p for the 94-95 year.
What a deal!
Game Day - d o you like to play games?
Here's your chance! There is a game day
~ l a n n e dfor Wednesday, April 6 at the
hriar Club. You can play bridge, bring your
own game or ,just come to play. For more
inforrr~ationcall Jeanne Schultz at 6265918 or Marcy Miley at 782-6935.
Wildcatter's Blowout! What filn! If you
niissed the couples party in February at the
I'rtroleurn Club, you missed a great time!
T h e one-act play by T o m B a r b e r
HGS MEMORIAL GRADUATE
SCHOLARSHIP FUND
T h e Mrrrlorial Graduate Scholarship
Fund provides scholarships to graduate
students I'roni nearby universities. Each
year t h o ~ ~ s a n tof
l s dollars worth of scholarships ar? p~wsenlrdto deserving individuals. These reductions to the corpus
of the Fund are partially ollset each year
by doriations 1.1-ornindividual HGS members. These donatio~isallow us to mainvain the number arid size of scholarships
each year.
T h e HGS and Memorial Scholarship
Fund Board gratefully acknowledge the
following contributions to the Fund. T h e
t h r e e categories o f c o n t r i b u t i o n s a r e
Patron ($500 o r more), Donor ($100 to
$5O0), and Contributor (less than $100).
Donors
Mr. J.F. Bookout, Jr.
Mr. S.W. Marshall
Contributors
Mr. W. Dean Grafton
Mr. Edward McFarlan, Jr.
Mr. John A. Adamick
(in memo~yof Mr. Rill Burkman)
"Decisions, Decisions" was hilarious. A big
thank you to Gwinn Lewis a n d Virginia
Barber and their committee for an unforgettable evening. How ahout those table
decorations? Those spectacular oil derricks
were painstakingly m a d e by A n n e t t e
Mather and friends. They are so wonderful
that you can look forward to seeing them
again at the AAPG Convention when it is
in Houston in l995! You can also look forward to the Houston Geological Auxiliary
meeting in May. Bonnie Ashford and Janet
P e p p i a t t promise us a g o o d time a t
Lakeside Country Club on Thursday, May
8, so mark your calendars now. More information will h e in the April issue of the
Bulletin.
HGA MEMBERSHIP FORM
(Your Name)
(Spouse's Name)
Address
Zip
Home Telcphone
-
HGS Member's Company
(Dues are $15 per year, check payable to
Houston Geological Auxilialy)
GEO-WIVES
GetrWives is the newcomer branch of
the A~lxiliary.All active Auxiliary members who have not enjoyed membership
in <:etrWives tbr a total of ten years are
invited to join us. We meet monthly for
lunch a n d a program. O u r programs are
varied in order to attract a n d entertain
our members. In January we enjoyed the
lovely surroundings of Sholeh Huber's
h o m e a n d were entertained by the creative artistry of J e a n e t t e C o o n as s h e
carved fi-uih and vegetables for food garnishing. February will find us touring the
Menil Collection and enjoying lunch at
1.a Mora Restaurant. In March we plan to
explore the Mercer Arboretum and have
lunch afternard.
For further information about activities o r nlenlbership in Geo-Wives please
call 1,innie E d w a r d s a t 785-71 1 5 o r
Hellen Hutchinson at 877-8479.
O N THE MOVE
William A. Brslik has been named
P r e s i d e n t of S t o n e & W e b s t e r O i l
Company, Inc. replacing E. F. Lewis
who retired January 1. Mr. Brslikjoined
t h e firm's exploration department in
1985 a n d most recently held the position of Executive Vice President.
J o h n A. Walker has accepted t h e
position ot' Exploration Manager fbr
the Company. He was previously geological consultant For this a n d o t h e r
firms.
Send to:
Mrs. Norma Jean I k h o
38 Charleston North
Sugar L.and, TX 77478
GEO-WIVES MEMBERSHIP F O R M
(Your Name)
(Spouse's Name)
Address
Zip
Home Telephone
HGS Member's (:ompany
(Dues are $7.50 per year, check payable
to Geowives)
Send to:
Mrs. Hellen Hutchison
10 S. Briar Hollow Lane #63
Houston, TX 77027
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TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES
Thinking Like an Entrepreneur:
Exploration and Production Potentials
by Paul Oman
Pearland, Texas
Introduction
There is a lot of the entrepreneurial
mind-set involved with oil and gas exple
ration and production. The idea of seeing things a bit differently than everyone
else, applying a fresh approach, and
looking for ways to d o things better,
cheaper and faster could be said equally
a b o u t the inventor o r a b o u t t h e
Exploration and Production (E&P) p r e
fessional.
But while we a r e creative in o u r
search and production of oil and gas, we
tend to have a herd mentality when it
comes to how we perform our work. We
question other peoples interpretation of
the subsurface, but never stop to question our own methods.
It's time to turn our creative and questioning minds not just to the subsurface,
but also upon the way we work and the
very tools we use. By doing this we go
from being a good oil finder to being a
good oil finding business person-from
being a good employee into being a
good oil company.
Seismic Dependence
It could be argued that seismic techniques have progressed from being
another very useful tool into an all-scenario crutch. Although seismic has great
value, might not it be, at times, overrated, over-promoted and overly used?
By any measure, it's expensive. Because
we have become so addicted to the magic
of seismic perhaps we have been taking it
for granted and applying our fertile
minds toward other things.
What would happen if we questioned
not just the subsurface interpretations of
others, but our own methodology and
tools as well? Might not such an exercise
take us away from the rest of the herd
and perhaps point us toward an over-
34
looked competitive edge? Armed with
our better mousetrap, we could then
grow a business by developing the independent entrepreneur within.
To get you to start thinking like an
entrepreneur, looking to create something truly new and wonderful, I am taking away your seismic crutch. It is no
longer there. Find other tools to fill the
seismic void.
Wouldn't we be in for a creative,
imaginative time if I really could yank
away the seismic factor? Nearly everyone
would have different ideas as to the next
best thing to utilize. In that diversity of
thought would come new information, a
few breakthroughs and great success for
a selected group of right thinking individuals. And nearly all those right-thinking individuals would probably go start
their own petroleum companies.
By playing the game of no seismic,
limited seismic or site-specific seismic
only, we step away from the herd and
look for something new and different in
the list of alternativessomething that will
provide us with a competitive edge over
everyone else. This entrepreneurial competitive edge, if successful, is something
we can take to the bank while our oldway competitors continue to struggle in
an economic environment that getting
tighter and tighter everyday.
Seismic Alternatives
Many of our seismic alternatives might
seem like old, worn o u t approaches.
Hasn't micro-magnetics/micro-gravity,
photo geology and geochemistry been
around for decades? Of course they have,
and like seismic they have been improving over those decades. Unlike seismic,
fewer people have tracked those
improvements and effectively harnessed
them.
Data Processing
Here's something else to ponder.
There is data and there is processed data.
Processed data becomes information.
Even if the above data-information transition techniques for non-seismic data are
still crude (and I don't believe they are)
maybe there is room to create a competitive edge based upon how the old data is
processed (just like the reprocessing of
older seismic data). Using today's computers and computer-based neural net
analysis, 3D visualization, etc., old data
sets might easily give up new insights and
clues not apparent 25 years ago. That's
the belief of a company called Ultimate
Resources and their trademarked
Superinduction data set analysis services.
The company's principles have the credentials and track record necessary to
merit your attention.
Remote Sensing
As for photogeology/remote sensing,
this author spent many hours with a
grease pencil and satellite and/or high
altitude imagery prints during the early
1980s looking for tonal anomalies and
other features that could add support to
a log-based subsurface interpretation.
Even without the then still-tebe invented
workstation, the results were encouraging enough to result in two papers published in Oil & Gas Journal. What would
happen if such crude interpretations
were dusted off and statistically analyzed
o r enhanced? Would a new competitive
edge result?
Micropavity/Micr+magnetics
Jack Land of J.P. Land & Associates
has spent many years as a micr@gravity/
micro-magnetics consultant and interpreter. He remains busy with clients
from all around the world who see a
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need a n d an economic value for these
exploration tools. Even non-earth scientists can imagine how much more sensitive a n d exacting gravity a n d magnetic
sensors have become over t h e past 20
years. T h a t a l o n e is reason e n o u g h to
look into these tools as a potential source
for a new competitive edge.
Geochemistry
Finally, there is geochemistry. It's heyd a y was in t h e l a t e 1950s a n d e a r l y
1960s,just before the computer/technology driven rebirth of seismic. Martin
Davidssn, a former Crown Central geologist m e n t i o n e d in a n article h e wrote
long ago that 65% of Crown's 1960 production came from 1% of their leases.
That 1% were leases bought based upon
geochemical evaluations between 1940
and 1957.
Now fast-foward geochemical analysis
into the nlicro-chip, gene splicing, AIDS
research, GRAY supercomputer age and
take a guess what the results mightbe.
Table 1 shows a coverage map of nearly 1 million geochemical samplesites that
both you a n d I have access to f o r o u r
future E&-P projects. Like existing seismic lines, that data is already there. It
simply n e e d s new, fresh analysis. O f
course new proprietary data can also be
collected. Either- way, geochemical s w veys certainly hold secrets left for you o r
me to discover. Whether those secrets are
actual new discoveries, field extensions o r
ways to better- tal-get and to minimize the
use of surfice seismic, the result is money
in o u r pockets. T h a t s a big c h u n k of
what constitutes a competitive edge.
Conclusions
At times this paper has read like an
integr-ated exploration article. That was
not the purpose. T h e aim of this paper
was to g e r m i n a t e t h e e n t r e p r e n e u r i a l
seed within. T h e pal-allels between integrated exploration and gaining the E&P
competitive business edge are such that
the two tend to merge a t times.
But while the similarities are there, so
a r e t h e differences. O n e is a kite with
$0.39 worth of string. T h e o t h e r h a s
$3.99 worth of string. O n e offers freedom, unlimited wealth and self-actualization while the other holds the threat ol'a
pink slip in your regular weekly col-porate paycheck. That's reason enough for
you to start thinking like a n innovative
business person a n d developing your
entrepreneurial potential.
Paul Oman is a AAPG Cerlified Pe'rlroluum
Geolo& and n mumher of AAPC, Sl'E and
SEG.
NORTH AMERICAN ROCK MECHANICS SYMPOSIUM
T h e FIRST N O R T H AMERICAN
ROCK MECHANICS SYMPOSIUM (N
ARMS), a regional meeting of the ISRM,
will b e h e l d J u n e 1-3, 1 9 9 4 a t T h e
University of Texas at Austin. T h e symposium will combine technical sessions,
panel discussions, a n d pre- a n d postc o n f e r e n c e workshops, s h o r t courses
a n d field trips to encourage exchanges
among ;dl practionen in the disciplines
of rock mechanics. NAKMS is sporisored
in .joint veltt~lrehy CARMA (Canada),
SMMR (Mexico), a n d the USNC/KM
(U.S. N a t i o n a l C o m m i t t e e o n Rock
Mechanics). Keynote speakers will be:
from Civil Engineering, Arturo Hello
M a l d o n a t l o ( M e x i c o ) a n d Alfred J .
H e n d r o n (USA); from Mining
Engineer-ing, Nielan van Der Merwe
( S o u t h Africa) a n d Malcolm S c o b l e
(Canada); from Petroleum Engineering,
William Dershowitz (USA) and Nathan
Meehan (USA).
Bulleun Houston Geological Soc~ety,March 1994
Special panel topics include:
Hydraulic Fracture; In-Situ Stress a n d
Fluid Flow in Fractures; Weak Rock
E n g i n e e r i n g ; I n t e r p r e t i n g Acoustic
Emissions; a n d E n g i n e e r i n g U n d e r
NAFTA. Technical sessions a r e organ i z e d u n d e r t h e f o l l o w i n g topics:
Natural Fracture Systems, Rock Cutting
Mechanics, Mechanical a n d Hydraulic
P r o p e r t i e s of Discontinuities ( 2 sess i o n s ) , R h e o l o g y o f W e a k Rock,
Properties of Poorly Consolidated Rock,
Mine Design and Bursting ( 3 sessions),
Blasting, Rock Slope Engineering, Static
a n d Dynamic Properties of Intact Rock,
F l u i d T r a n s p o l - t in I n t a c t Rock.
C o n t i n u u m Analysis, Discontinuurn
Analysis, Civil E n g i n e e r i n g / H y d r o
Projects,
U n c e r t a i n t y in
Rock
E n g i n e e r i n g , B o r e h o l e Stability/
Hydraulic Fractur-e, a n d Underground
Civil Works. Topics for pre- (May 30 a n d
31) and postconference (June 4) WOI-k-
s h o p s , s h o r t courses, a n d field trips
include: Natural F r a c t u r e Networks,
TBM
Performance
Sinlulation,
Engineering Geophysics, Reservoir
Characterization, Rock Engineel-ing:
Pr-actical methodolo&?, Mechanism and
Modelling in Rock Fragmentation by
Blasting, Excavations in Jointed Rock,
E n v i r o n m e n t a l Awar-eness Drtring
Petroleum Exploration and PI-oduction,
Excavations for- t h e Supel-conducting
Super Collider-, T h e Geolosy o f Certtl-al
Texas - the IdlanoUplil't.
Registration idol-mation will he available after February 15, 1994. Symposium
contacts include [)I-. L'riscilla k. el son,
Chair- ( t e l e p h o n e 5 12-571-5664), Dr.
Stephen E. Laubach, (:o-(:hair (fix 51247 1-0 140) o r T h e NARM Synrposiurn,
Continuing E n g i n e e r i n i Studies,
Cockrell Hall 10.324, T h e Univcr-sity of
Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712.
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i:'nvironmental/~~ngzgznem~ng
Feature
Continued from page 25.
fluids. However, various synthetic liquids
appear satistictory for the purpose.lY-l4
T h e possibilities in synthetic materials
are virtually endless. Special performance
or environmental characteristics can be
designed into them. New types of materials can be created. Naturally occurring
c o r n p o ~ ~ n can
d s be duplicated with significant improvement in uniformity and purity.
A synthetic material is man-made by
reacting two o r m o r e raw materials to
make a finished product whose molecules
are dill'erent trom those present in the raw
materials. In assessing the environmental
acceptability of synthetics, it should be
appreciated t h a t specific raw material
source is largely irrelevant, since many
compounds made from vegetable starting
material can also be made from petroleum, and vice-versa.
T h e I986 Gulf o f Mexico G e n e r a l
Permit did n o t address synthetic-based
drilling fluids. T h e mysid test protocol is
not well-suited to water-immiscible liquids.
The sheen restriction is another potential
problem for synthetics. Nonetheless, they
are attracting keen interest, and there have
been at least twenty field trials in various
parts 01' the world to date.
IMPACT OF DRILW[NG FLUID TYPE
ON WASTE VOLUMES
T h e volume of earth drilled u p by the
bit is in a sense the minimum waste volume
in drilling a well. To this must be added
t h e volume from hole enlargement o r
"washoutn resulting from any fluid erosion,
mechanical abrasion and, most significantly, from the hydration and dispersion of
shales and clays. As explained elsewhere in
this paper, the hydrati& and dispersion of
shales and clays is a major factor in the volume ofwaste drilling tluid generated. As a
consequence, in drilling difficult intervals
of some wells, a several-fold difference in
Help
drilling waste volume can result from the
choice of drilling fluid composition.
Oil-based muds effectively inhibit hydration and dispersion. Synthetic-based mods
are of little interest if they cannot d o the
same. T h e real challenge is to minimize
hydration and dispersion in a water-based
mud. Much of the development of waterbased muds has been devoted to this end.
The inhibition of hydration and dispersion of shales a n d clays in water-based
muds is accomplished through the addition of chemicals. In some instances there
is a trade-off between reduced toxicity and
reduced waste volumes. Chemicals that
inhibit shale and clay hydration and dispersion may a t the same time lower the
I.C50 of the mud. This trade-off between
two environmental goals probably should
favor potassium chloride offshore, for
instance, for its shale-inhibiting characteristics.
T h e 1986 Gulf of Mexico permit does
not address drilling waste volume, other
than to prohibit dilutions for the purpose
of discharge. It thereby encourages the
use of simple muds, more certain to pass
the mysid LC50 test, even when the result
is greater waste volume.
MECHANICAL MEANS FOR
MINIMIZING WASTE VOLUMES
Removal of cuttings generated by the
drill bit is primarily via mechanical solids
control equipment. T h e goal is to separate t h e cuttings from the drilling fluid
prior to the fluid going back in the hole,
while n o t losing excessive a m o u n t s of
barite and other additives in the process.
T h e lower the viscosity of the mud, the
more efficient the separation. Also, the
larger the cuttings are at the surface, the
easier they a r e to remove a n d t h e less
drilling mud and chemical lost with them
( a n o t h e r environmental a r g u m e n t f o r
inhibitive muds).
Adequate solids control equipnlent and
proper operation a n d maintenance of it
are keys to minimizing waste drilling fluid
In this Issue
Volume 36 Contents
volumes, since increased solids in the mud
increase viscosity --eventually leading to
d i l u t i o n a n d m o r e m u d volume t h a n
desired. Advances in vibrating screen shake r technology a n d in the screens themselves in the last ten years have been a significant step forward. Also, there has been
greater utilization of centrifuges in twostage processes to return liquid, separated
with solids in the first stage, back into the
drilling fluid. The use of chemical flocculants in combination with centrifuges has
been effective in many applications, particularly in unweighted or lowdensity muds.
It has been proven repeatedly t h a t
good solids control equipment, properly
maintained and used, more than pays for
itself in reduced mud additive c o n s u m p
tion. I n this case, e n v i r o n m e n t a l l y
responsible behavior goes hand-in-hand
with lower drilling costs.
WASTE DISPOSAL PRACTICES
Disposal of spent drilling fluid and the
earth solids removed d u r i n g drilling is
accomplished in o n e o f several ways.
Waste disposal will be in all cases in accordance with replatory requirements, which
vary with locale.
A common practice onshore involves
separating free water from the solids, and
burying the solids in a suitably lined pit
(usually the "reserve pit" at the drillsite),
filling the pit with soil and covering it with
topsoil. The water is treated to the necessary standards for disposal into local systems, o r pumped down injection wells to
depths safely below fresh-water aquifers.
T h e separation of the free water often is
a i d e d by c h e m i c a l flocculants; t h e i r
environmental acceptability must also be
assessed.
Another m e t h o d sometimes used is
annular injection. Originally, this was
achieved by pumping mud into the annulus of the well for permanent disposal.
Both fresh-water aquifers and hydrocarbonproducing reservoirs a r e protected by
c e m e n t a n d pipe. Casing d e p t h s a n d
Multidisciplinary Biostratigraphic Services
Palynology, Micropaleontology, Nannofossils
High Resolution Biostratigraphy, Sequence Stratigraphy
Experience in over 50 countries, Paleozoic to Recent
39 RUSTIC WEW COURT, TEE WOODLANDS, TEBXS 77381 (713) 3647117
DALLAS (214) 617-2692
NEW ORLEANS (504) 845-3248
36
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Midland Valley Associates Inc.
MARKReETHEREDGE
CONSULTING
GEOWGIST
U.S.AND IKTERNATIONAL
Announces toll free sales and
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In USA 48 states 1 800 482-200 1
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injection pressures are often regulated by EMBRYONIC
Put geology back into seismic interpretation
states a n d / o r local agencies. Recent TECHNOLOGIES
improvements o n ~ i ~ technique
is
involve
S o m e new t e c h Experimentation also continues o n
grinding and slurrying of the cuttings, fol- nologies hold promise for t h e future.
lowed by pressurized injection into the Synthetic-based drilling fluids were dis- bacterial processes in which the bacteria
ti)rmations.l5 Annular injection leaves cussed in a n e a r l i e r s e g m e n t of t h i s digest the oil from the cuttings. Since oilalmost n o footprint a t the rig site a n d paper. Here we review other technologies eating bacteria are known (in fact, comgreatly reduces the potential of surface currently undergoing significant develop mon) and have been isolated, the problem is one of speeding their growth and
a n d / o r groundwater contamination. It ment.
activity.
Limited progress has been
cannot be used in some areas because of
O n e psychologically important breakdownhole formations o r proscription by through involves a fresh look at water-sol- reported to date.
Reversible fluids are another possibiliagencies.
uble cationic polymers as shale inhibition
ty.I4
These are fluids that are miscible
1.andfarming involves the even distrih agents. A perception that cationic polyution of mud a n d cuttings onto surface mers a r e both toxic a n d incompatible with s e a water, yet immiscible u n d e r
soils a n d mechanically i n c o r p o r a t i n g with all but the simplest muds blocked downhole conditions a n d hence potenthem into [he soil. This is done after ana- serious consideration of them until the tially inhibitive to shale swelling and dislytical studies of both the material to be last few years. Actually, some cationic persion. A variation of this notion is
landfarmed and the receiving soils have polyniers are not particularly toxic by cur- reverse-wetting in which oil- o r syntheticb e e n c o m p l e t e d . Tilling of t h e soils rent testing protocols, and techniques tbr wet cuttings rapidly revert to water-wet
allows faster biodegradation of any h y d r e building stable muds around them have after discharge into t h e ocean, with o r
carbons and greatly dilutes the impacts of evolved. Field trials have been encourag- without the aid of surfactants. Toxicity
any trace metals o r s a l t s . l V h e a r e a ing, although it is not possible to say at must b e c o n s i d e r e d in every case, o f
required is dependent upon the volume this time they a r e a complete replace- course.
of material to he disposed of as well as the ment for oil-based 1nuds.l7-19
concentration of the contaminants. T h e
Two technologies for recovering the TOWARD A GREENER FUTURE
E n v i r o n m e n tal awareness is everynaturally occurring background levels of oil from drilled cuttings are the subject of
contaminants are sometimes higher than continuing development. Thermal recov- where. Environmental training is manencountered in the drilling mud. This is ery involves distillation of the oil-wet cut- d a t e d . Environmental planning is a n
a simple process which uses very little tings followed by condensation of the oil. integral part of the drilling plan for each
equipment.
This is superior to incineration since it well. Where d o we g o from here?
Better technologies must ultimately be
Solidification of drilling waste requires requires less energy and recovers the oil
mechanical equipment a n d cementing for re-use. Several prototypes of thermal the answer. We must be open to experichemicals. Proper solids control e q u i p recovery units have been built, a n d fur- mentation with new technologies. Some
ment on the rig will aid in removing the t h e r improvements
formation solids which a r e then mixed can be anticipated.
with a cementing agent a n d allowed to
"Critical f l u i d s
dry. C o m m o n c e m e n t i n g m a t e r i a l s e x t r a c t i o n " c o m include fly ash, kiln dust, a n d portland presses gases into liqcement. T h e cured solids, which have u i d solvents t h a t
passed required leachability tests, can wash the oil-wet cutIs seeking quality Gulf Coast,
then be buried o n site o r transported off- tings. T h e solvent is
s i t e f o r disposal. T h e w a t e r c a n b e easily separated from
South Texas and Offshore prospects.
returned to the active mud system o r dis- the oil by reducing
posed of in compliance with local regula- t h e pressure. T h e
Close in, low to moderate risk,
tions.
technique is used o n
Open acreage or ready to drill.
Offshore drilling waste is discharged a s m a l l e r s c a l e i n
into the sea o r hauled in for treatment s o m e o t h e r i n d u s Contact
a n d / o r disposal onshore. Relatively few tries, a n d a t t e m p t s
John
Doughtie
650-8646
wells have used a n n u l a r injection off- a r e b e i n g m a d e t o
shore, but this technique is gaining in apply it t o d r i l l i n g
11 00 Louisiana Ste. 291 0
Houston, 7'X 77002
popularity.
waste.
UNDER
ENE
W:
UGtlTIE
INC.
(713)
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will fail; s o m e will b e uneconomical in
every sense; yet others will chart t h e directions into t h e future.
Regulations can a n d have served as a
stimulus
for
new
technology.
Unfortunately they c a n also b e a deterrent when they appear to prohibit testing
a n d implementation of new technologies.
T h u s t h e m a n n e r in which regulations
a r e drawn, a n d t h e adaptivity of regulators themselves in i n t e r p r e t i n g regulations, are very important to the d e v e l o p
m e n t of better solutions.
We should not view drilling a n d envir o n m e n t a l preservation as antagonistic
goals. H u m a n ingenuity has b e e n challenged to meet both, a n d t h e challenge
has b e e n accepted. Real progress h a s
b e e n made, a n d as indicated in this
paper, more is in the wings.
REFERENCES
1.
Ayers, R. C., Jr., Sauer, T. C., Jr. and
Anderson, P. W.: "The Generic Mud
C o n c e p t f o r NPDES Permitting o f
Offshore Drilling Discharges," Jounlal
of Petroleum Technology (Mar. 1985)
475.
2.
H e n r i q u e z , L. R.:
"Current
Regulations Regarding the Testing and
Evaluation of Chemicals and Drilling
Fluids Discharged O f f s h o r e t h e
Help
In this Issue
Netherlands," paper presented at the
Fifth N o r t h e r n E u r o p e a n Drilling
Conference held in Kristiansand, Nov.
5-6, 1991.
Leuterman, A. J. J et al.: "New Drilling
Fluid Additive Toxicity Data
Developed," Offshore Uuly 1989) 31.
Gillenwater, K. E. a n d Ray, C. R.:
"Potassium Acetate Adds Flexibility to
Drilling Muds," Oil and Gas Journal
(Mar. 20, 1989) 99.
US Environmental Protection Agency,
Soil S c i e n c e Field S t u d y Branch:
'Memorandum on Levels of Metals in
Soils," (Oct. 1980).
Leuterman, A. J. J., Jones, F. V. a n d
Candler, J. E.: "Drilling Fluids a n d
Reserve Pit Toxicity," J o u r n a l of
Petroleum Technology (Nov. 1988)
1441.
Candler, J. e t al.: "Sources of Mercury
a n d Cadmium in Offshore Drilling
Discharges," SPE-20462 presented at
t h e 1990 S P E A n n u a l T e c h n i c a l
Conference held in New Orleans, Sept.
2326, 1990.
National
Research
Council.
C o m m i t t e e o n Biologic Effects of
Atmospheric Pollutants: Chromium,
National Academy of Sciences,
Washington, DC (1974).
Volume 36 Contents
Garrett, R. L. e t al.: 'Chemical Scaveng e r s f o r Sulfides i n Water-Based
Drilling Fluids," Journal of Petroleum
Technology (rune 1979) 787.
US Environmental Protection Agency:
"Test Methods for Evaluating Solid
Waste," 3 r d edition, SW-846 (Nov.
1986).
Simpson, J . P.: "Drilling Fluids - Today
and Tomorrow," Journal of Petroleunl
Technology (Nov. 1971) 1294.
Friedheim, J. E. e t al.: "An Environmentally Superior Replacement for
Mineral-Oil Drilling Fluids," SPE23062 p r e s e n t e d a t t h e O f f s h o r e
Europe Conference held in Aberdeen,
Sept. 3 6 , 1991.
C a r l s o n , T.: " F i n d i n g a S u i t a b l e
Replacement
for
Petroleum
Hydrocarbons in Oil Muds," paper
presented at the American Association
of Drilling Engineers New Advancements in Drilling Fluids Technology
Conference held in Houston, Apr. 2223, 1992.
Bland, K.: "Glycols as Environmentally
Acceptable
Alternatives
to
Hydrocarbons," paper presented at
the American Association of Drilling
Engineers New Advancements in Drilling Fluids Technology C o n f e r e n c e
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Investing in Drilling Prospects
(Exploration and Development)
A /so
Acquisition of Producing Properties
rC,
Prefer Operations - Will Consider
Non-Operated Interest with acceptable Operator
Houston: 1100 Louisiana, Suite 4550 Houston, TX 77002 (713) 739-8305
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16.
17.
18.
19.
held in Houston, Apr. 22-23, 1992 and
Oil & GasJournal (June29, 1992).
Fristoe, B.: "Drilling Wastes Management for Alaska's North Slope," paper
presented at the First International
Symposium on Oil and Gas
Exploration and Production Waste
Management Practices held in New
Orleans, Sept. 10-13, 1990:
Bleckmann, C. A. et al.: "Land
Treatment of Oil-Based Drill Cuttings,"
SPE/IADC-18685 presented at the
1989 SPE/IADC Drilling Conference
held in New Orleans, Feb. 28 - Mar. 3,
1989.
Hemphill, T. et al.: "Cationic Drilling
Fluid Improves ROP in Reactive
Formations," paper presented at the
American Association of Drilling
Engineers New Advancements in
Drilling Fluids Technology Conference
Oil & GasJournal (June8,1992) 60.
Welch, 0 . and Lee, L,J.: "Cationic
Polymer Mud Solves North Sea Gumbo
Problems," paper presented at the
American Association of Drilling
Engineers New Advancements in
Drilling Fluids Technology Conference
Oil and GasJournal (July 13, 1992).
Beihoffer, T. W. et al.: "Cationic
Polymer Drilling Fluid Can Sometimes
Replace Oil-Based Mud," Oil & Gas
Journal (Mar. 16, 1992) 47.
APPENDIX: BASIC COMPONENTS OF
DRILLING FLUIDS
Weighting agents. Many wells in
Texas, Louisiana, the Gulf of Mexico, and
elsewhere must be drilled through g e e
pressured formations. Depending on the
location and depth of the well, a drilling
fluid specific gravity as high as 2.0-2.3 may
be required to control subsurface p r e s
sure and allow a safe drilling operation.
Finely divided barite, a barium sulfate
1
Volume 36 Contents
StratiGrap hics
Medallion Production Company
An InterCoast Energy Company
15.
In this Issue
"PALEONTOLOGICU ~ V I C E S "
STWE ROSE AND ASSOCIATES
41 FAUlNO STAR C O W . THE WOODLANDS. TX 77381
(713) 363-3465
HIGH RESOLUTION BIOSTRATIGRAPHY
PLANKTIC I BENTHIC FORAMINIFERA I NANNOFOSSILS
COMPUTER GENERATED (RAGWARE) PLOTS
CHECKLISTS DEPICTING SEQUENCE BOUNDARIES I
MAXIMUM FLOODING SURFACES
ABUNDANCE IDIVERSITY GRAPHS
PLANKTIC I BENTHIC RATIOS
STRIPLOGS
ore, is a major constituent of drilling fluids. The barite is added to increase specific gravity and can constitute as much as
35% of the volume of fluids drilling
through highly geopressured formations.
Barite is heavy, minimally abrasive, inert;
most
studies suggest
minimal
environmental impact.
Iron ores, most notably specular
hematite from Brazil. have bken used as
substitutes for barite in some wells.
Although more abrasive than barite, they
remain a viable option.
Viicosifiers. Viscosifiers o r suspending agents keep weighting agents from
falling out of drilling fluids. Wyoming
bentonite, a sodium montmorillonite
clay, is the material most commonly used
for this purpose. It constitutes 37% of
most drilling fluids. Bentonite has a high
afinity for water and swells to as much as
twenty times its dry state when immersed
in fresh water. The hydrated bentonite
has excellent suspending characteristics
and, also important, reduces filtrate loss
from the wellbore.
High-molecular-weight water-soluble
polymers have substituted to some extent
for clays in drilling fluids. They are effective at concentrations of 0.1-0.5% in the
drilling fluid. An especially popular and
effective polymer suspending agent used
in drilling fluids is xanthan gum, produced by a particular strain of bacteria.
Thinners. Highdensity drilling fluids
require thinners or dispersing agents that
act on the solids in the drilling fluid.
Without them fluidity can be lost.
Dispersing agents used in drilling fluids
typically are anionic polymers, water-soluble or partially soluble, with a molecular
weight under 50,000. The most common
"chrome lignosulfonate" is a trivalent
chromium complex of the lignin byproduct of the sulfite process for pulp paper.
Typical concentrations are 0.5-2.0% of
the drilling fluid. The chromium helps
extend the temperature stability of the
lignosulfonate. Viable alternatives exist
and have been used, though they are not
as universally cost-effective.
lGltrate Loss Controllers. The hydrostatic pressure of the drilling fluid column pushes filtrate i n t o p e r m e a b l e
subsurface formations and in so doing
deposits a filter cake on the borehole
wall. If this is not controlled, the filter
cake can close off the borehole. Various
"fluid loss additives" are capable of reducing filtrate loss and minimizing filter cake
build-up. Most commonly used in the
U.S. is naturally occurring, highly oxidized lignite, technically known as
leonardite, mined in North Dakota and
Wyoming. Typical concentrations are 0 . 5
2.0%. Medium-to-high-molecular weight
water-soluble polymers supplement o r
replace (particularly in Europe) lignite in
some muds. Carboxymethylcellulosesand
starches are particularly popular and
effective.
Commercial chemicals. Common
inorganic commodity chemicals including caustic soda, soda ash, potassium
chloride, lime, and gypsum find application in drilling fluids. The most ubiquitous is caustic soda used to increase alkalinity in-muds. A pH between 9.0 and
11.5 is common in drilling fluids. The
alkalinity reduces corrosion-and increases
solubility of lignosulfonate and lignite
additives.
Synthetic Watefioluble Polymers. By
adjusting molecular weight a n d
monomer ratios, a wide range of polymers can be synthesized through co-polymerization of acrylic acid and acrylamide
monomers. These can function as viscosifiers, filtrate loss controllers and, to some
extent, thinners. Particularly popular is a
30%-hydrolyzed polyacrylamide with a
molecular weight in excess of 2,000,000.
Known by the acronym PHPA, this is the
key component in many "polymer muds"
used today, even though it constitutes less
than 1/2% of the drilling fluid.
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Bob West Field
Continued from page 28
'/'
./
~
~'"
./
./
./
'. '"
\
\
Figure 4-L-15 Structure
map of Bob West Field from
RRC Docket # 4-201981 ,
exhibit 6, June 4, 1993.
\
L-15
-~_.. ...
"
I.~
;-
PRODUCTION
coo.tPANY
TESORO
EXPl.ORAT1ON
AN!)
808 WEST .,ELO-"."':.
. "... ._'u ,,,..
'11.,.4 L-261-;7-<1
.CI = '00'.-
i
L
.
IT."..
-~:::;~~.._.
.' ,- 'UOU
~
~
40
\
Figure 5-L -26 Structure
map of Bob West Field from
RRC Docket # 4-96,664,
October 22,1991.
Figure rotated 9a'
_Uo<
Bulletin Houston Geological Society. March 1 994
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Figure &Phoenix # 1 Guerra 5" log
across L-26 interval showing obvious
pay 950 ft below structural crest.
I
3
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Computer-generated checklists and abundance/diversity histograms
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Seismic Sequence Stratigraphic Analysis is at the cutting edge of
petroleum geology. Utilizing this technique on your wells will permit you t
Identify systems tracts associated with reservoir, source and seal strata;
Determine the geometry of the reservoir and the correct play concepts for various types of reservoir sands.
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Bulletin Houston GeologicalSociety. March 1994
5755 Bonhornrne, Su~te406
Houston, TX 77036
71 3-977-2120
71 3-977-7684(fax)
41
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geologic base at 1'=2000 (reduced), depicting current activity in Bob West Field.
Bulletin Haustan Geological Society, March 1994
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In this Issue
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Figure &Portion of high
effort seismic data across
Bob West Field depicting
generalized structural
relationships,
1=glide plane,
2=Lopeno Series,
3=adjustment fault.
Easterly direction
to the right.
Louisiana which will provide detailed
gravity coverage over an 82+ OCS block
area. The ship-track gravity line spacing
will be 240 meters.
Acquisition of the gravity data will be
performed using a LaCoste & Romberg
aidsea gravity instrument, with the ZLS
fully digital control system.
LCT, with Geco-Prakla, TGS-CALIBRE, and Sidney Schafer &
LCT's new 3-D adjustment system.
Mexico Southern Additions.
viable seismic interpretations; aids construction of velocity models
for pre-stack depth migration and tuming-wave processing.
Eulletin Houston Geological Society, March 1994
i
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In this Issue
Gulf Coast Feature Text Continuedjbm page 28
Well name
Coastal
Ramirez
#lUSA
Tesoro #1
USA
Zones
Porosity % Sw %
L12,13,1418.4
29.8
7287
L24,25,26 1517
38
10,200
11,790
305
.008
11,409
12,022
L30,31,32, 12-14.5
33
38
11,000+
330
.008
12,920
13,559
Cuena
Tesoro #3
Guerra
on the upper units (above 12000 ft).
Cummulative production from 21 wells
through September of 1993 was 32.54
BCFG, the majority of which came on
line in late '92 and early '93.
CO~C~US~O~S
Additional reserves remain to be
added to this 120Gacre feature (12,000 ft
by 3,800 ft). The expansion of the
Lopeno series to a thickness of 8500 ft
with multiple pay horizons allows for the
developmint of large reserve potential in
a relatively small feature. Currently, over
300 BCFG can be calculated in place in
the upper units with development of the
lower portion of the Lopeno series pushing the total reserves to 500 BCFG.
The new production at the Bob West
structure demonstates that large resexves
remain to be discovered, often in proximity to previously developed areas,such as
the 40 year old Lopeno field in this example.
I would like to express my thanks to
Phoenix Energy Companies, Inc., Dallas,
I
I
Press (psi) Temp°F Pem.(md) Depth (ft)
9076
9550
Texas, for sharing data with the geologic
community, Acoustic Exploration, Inc.,
Houston, Texas, for contributing a portion of their seismic data for structural
visualization, and Tobin Surveys for the
use of their geologic base in Zapata and
Starr counties. A s ~ e c i a lthanks to
Stewart Chuber of ~ a i e t t eExploration,
Schulenberg, Texas, and Richard Debus,
Tesoro Petroleum Exploration and
Production Company, Inc, of San
Antonio, for their constructive editorial
review of this article.
Biographical Sketch
Wayne E. Jones is an independent
exploration consultant focusing on deep
gas prospects in RRC districts 1 through
4. His primary interest has been in the
expanded Wilcox trend in South Texas,
where he has worked with independents
such as Arco, Occidental Petroleum,
Canadian Occidental, Kerr McGee and
American Exploration in various joint
ventures since becoming an independent
in 1980. He was co-founder of Socorro
Energy, Inc., and participated in that venture from 1981-1985. Prior to that he
worked in San Antonio for Gulf Energy
OIL AND GAS EXPLORATION
UMC Petroleum Corporation
Is Seeking High Quality,
High Potential Open Acreage
Ideas In The Gulf Coast
Please Contact :Robert L. Hixon
Exploration Manager
(713)664 9 110
-
Volume 36 Contents
('79-'80) and Suburban Propane Gas
Corp. ('77-'79) and had international
experience with Dresser Magcobar in
Singapore, ('74275).
He was President of the South Texas
Geological Society ('89-'go), an AAPG
Delegate, ('90-'93), and Editor of the
South Texas Geological Bulletin,
('86'439)
He currently consults from Canyon
Lgke, Texas for various independents on
Wilcox exploration in South Texas.
References Cited
Campbell, Steven M., 1988, The Structure and
Stratigraphy of Roleta Field, Zapata county, Texas: South Texas Geological Society
Bulletin, v. XXVIII, no. 6, p.1320.
Debus, Richard W., 1985, Historical review of
Upper Wilcox (Eocene) drilling activity in
south Texas Railroad Commission District
four: South Texas Geological Society
Bulletin, v. XXV, no. 8, p.4460.
Edwards, M. B., 1981, Upper Wilcox Rosita
Delta System of South Texas: Growth
Faulted Shelf-Edge Deltas: AAF'G Bulletin,
vol. 65, no.1, p. 5473.
Hargis, Richard N., 1986, Proposed
Stratigraphic Classification of the Wilcox
of South Texas: Contributions to the
Geology of South Texas, 1986, p.135159.
Kimmell, C.E., 1986, Fandango Field Zapata
County, Texas: Contributions to the
Geology of South Texas, 1986, p. 160-170.
RRC O&G Docket No. 496,664, October 22,
1991.
RRC O&G Docket No. 497,174, December 10,
1991.
RRC O&G Docket No. 040201126, March 15,
1993.
RRC O&G Docket No. 040201981,June, 1993.
Atlas of Major Texas Gas Resewoirs, Bureau of
Economic Geology, 1989.
COMPANY
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Q U A L M PROSPECTS
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HOUSTON, TEXAS 77002
(71 3) 655-122 1
ALSO PURCHASING P R O D U C I N G PROPER776
Bulletin Houston Geological Society,March 1994
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GCAGS CONVENTION CITY LOCATION QUESTIONNAIRE
For 42 years, the Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies, known as the GCAGS, has held its annual convention every October
in one of its member society cities. O f the 12 local societies that comprise GCAGS, two have never held an annual convention (East Texas
and Alabama) with nine of the other ten member societies hosting the convention every nine years. Since dedicated volunteer members
must be found in each city to work on the convention, this nine year schedule has not been burdensome to the memberships, even for the
larger three societies who must also host the annual AAPG National convention every six years. However, registrants, exhibitors, and presenters have declined in numbers. In some cases, smaller memberships have left some societies undermanned to barely form committees
to hold the GCAGS when it has rotated to their city. Even more importantly, due to the considerable expense guarantees demanded by
convention center and hotel facilities in every city, and the recent large loss incurred at Jackson, it seems responsible to at least consider
alternative options for future convention years.
HGS has over 5000 of the GCAGS membership of less than 9,000 total members. The Houston membership is consistently represented
at over 50% of registrants at all recent GCAGS conventions. Due to the serious financial questions raised by the Jackson GCAGS convention, the HGS Executive Board felt that we should poll the membership about future GCAGS convention options, and offer these results to
the GCAGS Board in an advisory capacity when HGS PresidentJohn Biancardi attends the mid-year GCAGS meeting in March.
Let us know what you think by answering our questionnaire, and be sure to add any additional comments at the end of the page. Thank
you for your interest and cooperation.
Please circle the appropriate choice:
Does the host city location affect your decision to:
a) attend as a registrant
Yes
no
b) submit a paper or poster
Yes
no
yes
no
C)
exhibit your service or product
Which of the nine cities should we continue to visit i n the traditional nine city rotation, assuming that all of them
wish to continue to host the convention?
Houston
Corpus Christi
Baton Rouge
San Antonio
Lafayette
Jackson
New Orleans
Austin
Shreveport
Should GCAGS visit a non-local society Gulf Coast city as a wildcard convention location, much like AAPG
National will do i n 1996 with our visit to San Diego?
Yes
No
No Opinion
Would you be more inclined to attend a GCAGS convention located i n the following suggested Gulf Coast cities?
Pensacola
Biloxi
Other
No Other
Should GCAGS follow the practice of the AAPG Midcontinent section and hold its convention EVERY TWO
YEARS, instead of an annual convention?
Yes
No
No Opinion
I f the GCAGS convention continues to be held annually, should the format of every second year be altered to be
more streamlined and focused like a research conference?
Yes
No
No Opinion
Please indicate if you attended the recent GCAGS Conventions?
Shreveport '93
Jackson '92
Houston '91
None
If you did not attend, please write down the principal reason for not attending i n the space provided below.
Thank you again for taking the time to participate in this fact finding process.
Comments:
Mail to : GCAGS Convention Questionaire
Houston Geological Society, 7171 Harwin, Suite 314
Return by March I st.
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EXPLORATION ACTIVITY REVIEW
B y Walter S. Light, Jr.
President, Thunder Exploration, Inc.
Domestic Data Fumished by Geomap Co.
International Data Fumished by Petroconsultants
Valley Sand perfs 10,798' to 10,818'. The
new well opens New Barn Field and is
South Texas
located on the north dipping flank of a
Genesis Producing has projected its #1- broad anticline at the top of the Cotton
7 Chapparosa to 8800'. The well is located Valley Lime.
18 miles west-southwest of LaPryor in
Sonat Exploration has announced two
Zavala County, and 1 mile east of San new field discoveries with its #5 Childress
Miguel gas production in Chonan Field. GU2 and its #1 Slack in Rusk County. The
The new well should penetrate the Pearsd wells are in the Henderson Field area.
near TD. The primary targets include the The #5 Childress GU2 opens Oak Hill, W.
Glen Rose and Pearsall formations which Field with Pettit production. The well
were logged between 6470-8220' and flowed 2028 MCFGPD and 120 BCPD on a
8630-9315', respectively, in Shell's #1 14/64" choke from perfs 7454' to 58'. The
Plumly 2.5 miles southwest. Pearsall gas #1 Slack also established Pettit production,
production has been established at testing at a flowing rate of 642 BOPD and
Johnson Field 7.75 miles south. As 406 MCFGPD on a 16/64" choke from
mapped on Geomap's base Austin Chalk perfs 7438' to 7442'. This well opens
horizon, it appears the #1-7 Chapparosa is Digger Field. Both locations, as shown at
on south dip; however, the location also the Base Massive Anhydrite mapping horispots on the east flank of a north-south zon, are on the westdipping flank of the
trending structural nose. Glen Rose and Panola Uplift.
James Lime carbonate shoals o r patch
In north central Henderson County,
reefs creating local structure and localiz- Caskids Operating has staked location for
ing associated high-mergy reservoir rocks a scheduled 14,350' Smackover wildcat.
are likely in the area.
The #1 A&O Builders, Inc, is located 4.6
miles eastsoutheast of Smackover producEast Texas
tion in Eustace Field and 3.5 miles east of
Vaughn Petroleum has staked a 15,200' the nearest Smackover control, Elf
Smackover test, its #1 Herron 1 mile Aquitaine #1 Collins. As presently
south-southwest of Fruitvale, E. Field in mapped at the Cotton Valley Lime and
Van Zandt County. Fruihde E. Field pro- Smackover horizons, the wildcat is on the
duces from the Rodessa and Smackover. east-southeast flank of an easterly-plunging
At present, the wildcat is shown on local nose from the Eustace Field vicinity.
northeast dip.
Duncan, Oklahoma-based Mack Energy
Elsewhere in eastern Van Zandt has staked location for a its # 1 Sallas an
County, Petrocorp, Inc. has staked its #1 11,500' Glen Rose in Houston County.
Love 7000' Paluxy test. The well is located The wildcat is 2.75 miles southwest of the
8 miles west-northwest of Mt Sylvan Field.
nearest production (Woodbine) in
In southwest Cass County Marathon Oil one-well Pennington Field. The nearest
tested its #1 Simpson "En,0.6 mile north of Glen Rose production to the #1 Sallas is
Avinger Field. The well tested 1450 MCFG more than 10 miles southwest in Glendale
PD, 3 BC and 25 BWPD from Cotton NW and Tantabogue Creek Fields. The
MESOZOIC TRENDS
46
Claiborne, Wilcox, Austin Chalk,
Woodbine and Wash-Fred formations are
all productive in the region as well.
Additional Glen Rose production occurs
in Pearson Chapel Field located 12 miles
west. At the Glen Rose mapping horizon,
the wildcat is well downdip to several anticlinal features interpreted to the northeast, northwest and south.
Marathon is continuing to explore for
more Cotton Valley pinnacle reef production in Leon County, presently drilling
below 12,900' in its #1 Beddingfield. The
projected 15,700' Cotton Valley Lime test
is just over a mile north-northeast of the
recently completed discovery for Peanvood
Field, the second pinnacle reef discovery
in the county. The first Cotton Valley completion in this trend was the TXO #1-A
Marshall in Branton Field, is 1.6 miles
north of the new location. Marathon's
other pinnacle reef test, the #1 Bumpurs, 7
miles southwest in Robertson County, was
abandoned at 14,900'. At the Cotton Valley
Lime mapping horizon, the new wildcat is
on the south flank of one of the Branton
Field anticlines, much like Marathon's #1
Poth discovery is prc~entlysituated on the
flank of the other Branton Field anticline.
In south-central Smith County, the
G u m has staked location for its #I Kee
(scheduled TD 8000'), 1 mile southeast of
Paluxy-productive Whitehouse Field. This
well is located on southwesterly dip at the
Paluxy horizon with small scale faulting
evident.
Teco Operating has staked its #1
Patterson as a 6800' Paluxy test in Wood
county. The wildcat located 2.25 miles
westsouthwest of Shiner Pond Field. The
well is staked along one of the
northeast-southwest trending faults which
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is part of the fault swarm extending from
t h e Q u i t m a n a n d Merigale-Paul Field
areas, along which recent Paluxy fields
such as Ad-Am, Itty-Bitty and Lisa Layne
have been found.
South Arkansas - North Louisiana
El Dorado-based Shuler Drilling has
s c h e d u l e d its #1 Grayson-Warnock, a
Rodessa wildcat in s o u t h w e s t e r n
Columbia County, Arkansas. T h e #1
Grayson - Warnock is located about 2 miles
northeast of Taylor. The nearest well control is Union Texas' #1 Lois Deane, located about 2000' southeast of Shuler's proposed test. This well tested the Rodessa
Hill Sand 4944' to 50' at an initial rate on
a 12/64" choke of 1200 MCFGPD with a
1580 # FTP (flowing tubing pressure.)
Apparently, a subsequent test through the
same perfs flowed 288 MCFGPD and 33
BWPD through a 10/64" choke. A tubing
pressure of 416# was recorded on this test.
On July 15, 1985, the #1 Lois Deane was
abandoned as noncommercial. Geomap's
structural interpretation of the area of
interest mapped o n t h e Base Massive
Anhydrite is shown on Report ltem # I .
This interpretation shows the Union Texas
#1 Deane to be located on a structural closure, however, Shuler may have interpreted their location to be an updip test of the
Hill Sand which produced gas at the #1
Deane.
Louisiana Operating, Shreveport, has
apparently made a Smackover discovery in
northeastern Claiborne Parish only 2.5
miles south of the Arkansas state line. The
#1 Spears was drilled to 9850' 5 1/2 inch
casing was set to 9580'. The operator has
held test information tite on the #1 Spears,
however, the fact that they have permitted
and are in various stages of operations
with 3 additional wells in the immediate
area indicates positive results from the
#1 Spears. T h e t r e n d of Louisiana
Operating's new activity follows the depositional a n d s t r u c t u r a l strike o f t h e
Smackover Formation. T h e speculated
trapping mechanism could be a stratigraphic pinchout of a Smackover oolitic
bar, similar to the recently discovered
Stateline Field about 4 1/2 miles to the
north. Faulting may also play a part in the
trapping of hydrocarbons in this area, similar to production along the Stateline Fault
system which is located about 2 1/2 miles
southwest of Louisiana Operating's activity.
Mississippi - Alabama - Elorida
In Humphreys County, Mississippi,
Lewis Oil has staked location for the #1
G r a h a m 21-16, a p r o j e c t e d 7000'
Tuscaloosa wildcat. The Tuscaloosa is one
of several major pay zones (including the
Selma and Eutaw) in the highly prolific
BuUetin Houston Geological Satiety. March 1994
Tinsley Field a b o u t 1 5 miles t o t h e
south-southeast.
An apparent new field discovery has
been made by Amerada Hess Corporation
2.5 miles south-southwest of multiple pay
production in Wayne County, Mississippi's
Yellow Creek W. Field. T h e #1 Pat H.
Sanderson 1-13 has reportedly tested 400
BOPD with 1600 MCFGPD t h r o u g h
unspecified Smackover perfs. 5 1/2" casing was set to the 17,621' TD. The wildcat has apparently found another anticlin a l f e a t u r e , possibly salt-induced o r
fault-bounded. Nearby Yellow Creek, W.
Field has produced nearly 33 million barrels of oil from numerous Cretaceous
pays as well as the Cotton Valley. T h e
Smackover section was logged in the nearby Columbia #1 Harrison, et al, dry hole,
which bottomed in salt at 19,366'.
Another Amerada Hess Corporation
wildcat, its #1 Mineral Management 2€!-1
will probably be completed as a Hosston
producer 0.5 mile north of abandoned
Gum Branch (Sligo) Field in Covington
County, Mississippi. T h e wildcat was
drilled and cased to 15,055' before unspecified perfs reportedly flowed 3 MMCFGPD.
The nearest previous Hosston production
is 2.5 miles south in McRaney Field.
The new discovery appears to be very
near the limits of the salt stock for the Dry
Creek Dome, as presently interpreted at
the base Ferry Lake horizon. Trapping is
very likely due to intersecting boundaries
of the salt stock and a fault.
Oxy USA has completed its #1 Board
of Education "Dmas a Lower Tuscaloosa
new field discovery in Adams County,
Mississippi. Classified as the discovery for
Holiday Field. The well located 0.6 mile
southwest of Pellucid Bayou Field, flowed
1856 MCFGPD with 120 BCPD o n a
16/64" choke through perfs 11,02@026'.
TD was 11,275'. The nearest production
from a comparable pay in a similar stratigraphic setting is 10 miles west in t h e
Beverly and Beverly, N. Fields.
TERTIARY TRENDS
Upper Texas
Zinn Petroleum has announced the
completion of a Frio gas discovery 2.3
miles west-northwest of Eagle Lake near
Eagle Lake West Field in Colorado
County. T h e #1 First National Bank of
Eagle Lake flowed 296 MCFGPD through
a 7/64" c h o k e from p e r f o r a t i o n s
3312-3314'. T h e CAOF was reported a t
8200 MCFGPD with a gravity of 0.569,
SITP of 1035 psi and a BHSIP of 1109 psi.
The well TD was 4400'.
A 14,200' projected Frio test has been
In this Issue
Volume 36 Contents
scheduled by Amerada Hess Corporation
6.75 miles west of Wadsworth i n
Matagorda County. The deepest well of
c o m p a r a b l e d e p t h is p a n - ~ m e r i c a n
Petroleum Corporation's #1 T. J. Petrucha,
the discovery well for Petrucha Field 3.5
miles east-southeast. This well reached a
TD of 15,005' in the Frio a n d initially
flowed 11,200 MCFGPD (AOF) and 2491
MCFGPD f r o m a n 8 / 6 4 " c h o k e .
Perforations were r e c o r d e d between
12,452-464'. Opened by the discovery of
Tenneco's #1 Pierce 1 mile southeast,
one-well Cane Island Field encountered
gas between 10,21&228'. The #1 Pierce
flowed 2950 MCFGPD (AOF) a n d 2132
MCFGPD t h r o u g h a 9 / 6 4 " c h o k e .
Geomap shows the new wildcat to be near
the crest of structural high a n d in the
upthrown fault block of a bifurcating b a s
inward normal fault at the Nodosana blanpiedi mapping horizon. Structure should
also be present at depth for other Frio
sands.
ARC0 Oil & Gas has permitted its #1
Alban Family Trust, a 12,000' wildcat 3 1/3
miles northwest of Manvel in Brazoria
County to test the Vicksburg/Yegua sands.
Both the Santa Fe #1 McCleary 1 2/3 miles
northeast and Mobil's #1 Gartner, et al 2
miles southwest encountered the objective
interval. Tight sands interbedded with
s h a l e between 8300-10,200' a n d
11,000-12,000' are primary targets. There
is no Vicksburg or Yegua production in
the area.
Structurally, t h e #1 Alban Family
Trust spots near the crest of a faulted
interdomal ridge which extends westward
from ~ a n v e l ~ o m
a t eG e o m a p ' s t o p
Vicksburg mapping horizon. Although at
this mapping horizon the location is downthrown to a basinward normal fault, at
depth the well should be upthrown to the
fault with possible upthrown fault closure.
Anadarko Petroleum has recently
staked a location 3.75'miles northwest of
Beaumont in Jefferson County for its #1
Guseman, a Yegua test. Projected to
13,000', the #1 Guseman is 2.5 miles southwest of one-well Cook's Lake S. Field. The
discovery well, Prudential's #1 Sun, flowed
1376 MCFGPD (AOF) and 609 MCFGPD
plus 86 BCPD through a 6/64" choke from
Yegua perforations 10,756-61'. At t h e
Yegua mapping horizon, Geomap interprets the #1 Guseman to be near the crest
of a large southward-plunging structural
nose u p t h r o w n to a large regional
down-to-thecoast normal fault. The bottom hole location of the #1 B. E. Quinn
a p p e a r s to be o n s t e e p east d i p also
upthrown to the same regional basinward
normal fault.
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Central Texas
A 6500' Yegua test has been scheduled by Suemar Exploration 14 miles
southeast of George West a n d 4 miles
south-southwest of Clareville in Live Oak
County. T h e #1 Matter Unit is also 1.6
miles northeast of one-well Swinney Switch
E. Field. T h e nearby Winn #1 Jones, a
6010' dry hole 1.8 miles west-northwest,
indicates generally thin target Yegua sands
between 5300-6000'. Refugio Enterprises,
lnc. #2 Linkenhoger, the discovery well for
Swinney Switch E. Field, flowed 2100
MCFGPD (AOF) a n d 1539 MCFGPD
through a 14/64" choke from perforations
6098-6106'. T h e new location spots o n
strike with #2 Linkenhoger gas discovery.
It also appears the new location is near the
crest of a subtle southeast-trending structural nose at Geomap's Yegua mapping
horizon.
Rutherford Oil will stepout 0.3 mile
east of Brazil Field to drill a 13,000' Wdcox
test near the southwest comer of Live Oak
County. The #3 Baker Trust will be drilled
approximately 2500' d e e p e r t h a n t h e
deepest production in Brazil Field. This
field is productive from Jackson sands
between 1800-1902' a n d f r o m Wilcox
sands between 847410,359'. Wilcox sands
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In this Issue
below 12,000' are primary objectives of
the new test. As mapped o n Geomap's
top Wilcox horizon, the well is interprete d to be o n the east flank of the Brazil
Field structure, upthrown to a small southeastdipping fault a n d downthrown to a
large basinward normal fault.
South Texas
Tri-C Resources has staked locations
for two shallow Yegua tests o n the east flank
o f t h e Moca Field s t r u c t u r e i n Duval
County. The #1 and #2 DCRC 265 are both
projected to go to 3500'. Moca Field to the
west produces from b o t h Yegua a n d
Wilcox. Although several large faults also
cut several wells over the structure, production appears to be controlled by stratigraphic changes in the sandstones. T r i C
Resources apparently is trying to locate
sands pinching out in an updip direction
toward Moca Field. Since there is very little
control o n the east flank of the structure,
some faulting may also occur.
North Central Oil has staked a location n e a r Mesquite Rincon Field i n
Kenedy County t o test the Upper Frio.
The #1 State Lease 345 is projected to g o
to 8200'. Mesquite Rincon Field lies o n a
north-northeast trending anticline at the
Volume 36 Contents
upper Frio horizon. Several small faults cut
across the field in the upper Frio. T h e
North Central hole should test the downthrown block of a small down-tethe-northwest fault which cuts the Union Production
#2 SL 349 (abandoned gas well) at 7540'
(-7520').
Also in Kenedy County, a d e e p Frio
test has been staked by Brooklyn Union
Exploration. The #1 Billie Russell, et al, is
projected to 16,000'. the well will test deep
Frio sands on the north-northwest flank of
the Julian-North Julian Field anticlinal
structure. The operator is apparently looking for stratigraphic traps created by deep
Frio sands pinching out updip on the anticlinal structure o r closure created by seismiccontrolled faults.
Enron is currently testing its #I M.
Dominguez, a 10,006' o u t p o s t t o Los
Tonitos N. Field in Hidalgo County. The
well lies approximately 2000' to the northeast of shallower Frio production. The test
also lies 3 miles to the southeast of Frio p r e
duction which lies upthrown to the major
down-tethe-northeast Shepherd fault. The
major down-to-the-east growth fault
(Donna Fault) lies approximately 2 miles to
the east of the Enron hole at the upper Frio
horizon. Several small down-tethe-north-
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east faults cut near the test hole at the
upper Frio horizon. Structural dip in the
upper Frio is in a southwesterly direction.
Enron has also offset the #1 Dominguez
with the #2 Dominguez, a 10,600' test,
located approximately 1500' to the southeast of the #1 well. In the Sinclair #1 Fred
Krenmueller, a dry 10,824' hole approximately 1 mile east-southeast of the #1
Dominguez, several Frio sands had good
gas shows.
Bright & Company will attempt to
establish Marginulina-Frio production in its
#1 Dunn-McCampbell, a projected 8500'
TVD test which lies approximately 3 miles
north of Murdock Pass N. Field in Kleberg
County. Production in Murdock Pass N.
Field is from what the operator, Sun Oil,
called the Marginulina interval, however, it
might also be the first Frio sand. The discovery well for Murdock Pass N. Field, was
perforated in the interval 7318-7325' fbr an
IPAOF of 152,27'2 MCFGPD.
Southeast Louisiana
T h e OXY USA #I-A Richland
Plantation, was completed as the discovery
well of Richland Plantation Field. The well
is located 2.5 miles east of Little Comite
Creek Field, East Feiiciana Parish. The wildcat had an initial production of 200 BOPD
and 375 MCFGPD on a 14/64" choke
In this Issue
through perforations of 13,04864' in the
Lower Tuscaloosa Sands. TD was 13,350'.
Subtle dip closures and stratigraphic traps
on structural noses account for Lower
Tuscaloosa production in the area.
The Southwestern Energy Production
#1 E. Chauvin was completed as the discovery well of an unnamed new field 1.3 miles
east of Lake Boudreaux Field in east
Terrebome Parish. The exploratory well
had an initial production of 2106 MCFGPD
and 50 BOPD on a 10/64" choke through
perforations of 12,698-730' and 12,849-64'
in a couple of Tex 'W" sands of the Middle
Miocene. Southwestern's directional well
reached a TD of 14,060' MD. Lake
Boudreaux Field has produced 1.2 MMBO
and 89 BCF from Tex 'W' and Big '2'
sands. The new field appears to be situated
on a northward-plunging nose upthrown to
the down-to-the-basin fault at the pay level.
INTERNATIONAL
HIGHLIGHTS
LATIN AMERICA
Argentina
Bridas has announced a gas discovery
with its Punta Bauza in the Sur Deseado
Volume 36 Contents
block (San Jorge Basin). The well is locate d along t h e southern margin of t h e
Canadon Leon Fields block and tested
8,000 MCFGD from o n e zone a n d a n
aggregate of 14 BOPD from two o t h e r
intervals.
Brazil (Offshore)
gas and condenPetrobras made a "
sate discovery in the Cumuruxatiba Basin.
The 1-BAS-104 is located 75 km ENE of
Caravelas, S o u t h e r n Bahia a n d was
drilled to 3,732 m. The well was tested
for an average flow of 8100 MCFGD and
130 BCPD from a n interval between
2,512 a n d 2,575 m, presumably in t h e
Tertiary section of the Urucutuca turbidites. Estimated reserves for the structure are 78 BCF according to Petrobras.
The well might represent the first commercial hydrocarbon discovery in t h e
Cumuruxatiba Basin.
Columbia
Oxy spud its Aysisi 1 the first well in
t h e Araguaney block, LLanos Thrust
Front. The well is located about 55 km NE
of the Cupiagua structure and 20 km SW
of BP's Pauto 2 wildcat. Objective of the
test well is thought to be the Eocene
Mirador Formation.
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CGG American Services, hc
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In this Issue
Ameur Ouest 1 wildcat in the Rharb Basin
Ecuador
Petroamazonas, operating the Coca tested an unspecified volume of gas from
Block Napo Basin announced an oil dis- Miocene sands. TD was 1,200 m. The well
covery with its Pacay 1. The well tested is located 33 km northeast of Kenitra in
972 BOPD of 25.2 gravity oil form the the M o p e convention area.
Albanian.to Lower Cenomanian Lower
Napo "T" Sand Member.
CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN
AFRICA
NORTH AFRICA
Algeria (Onshore)
BHP discovered oil in the Ghadames
Basin District V with its Rhourde El Rouni
Nord 1 (RERN-1). The discovery found
pay in the Triassic (Trias Argilo&reseux
Inferieur) and TD'd at 3168 m in the
Gedinnian. Location is in the Rhourde El
Louh license, 12 km northeast of
Sonatrach's Rhourde El Rouni 1
discovery.
Egypt (Offshore)
Agip's subsidiary, IEOC and Amoco
have made a gas condensate discovery in
their offshore El Temsah concession
with the El Temsah 3. The well tested
34,500 MCFGD and 2,300 BCPD on a
5/8" choke with a well head flowing pressure of 5,225 psi from a Middle Miocene
payzone (Sidi Salem Formation).
Location is approximately 4 km north of
Mobil's 1977 discovery, El Temsah 1 that
tested 6,400 MCFGD from a Lower
Miocene Qantara interval.
Petrobel, the EGPC/Agip joint venture completed their Belayim Marine
113-61B as a deeper pool oil discovery.
An unspecified interval in the Cretaceous
Nubia A Formation had a flow of 2,700
BOPD of 32 API crude.
Morocco (Onshore)
The SCP-Onarep partnership's Merja
PCI
Volume 36 Contents
Niger
Elf and,partner Esso spud the Faringa
1. The well is located 15 km SSE of
Goumeri 1 oil discovery. The Faringa 1 is
scheduled as a 2,960 m test to evaluate the
hydrocarbon potential of Maastrichtian
and Eocene reservoirs.
FAR EAST
Angola (Offshore)
Elf completed its Caama Est 1 in
Block 1 as an oil discovery. The well flowed
4,400 BOPD of 32 API oil. Payzone is
believed to be the Pinda Formation.
Congo (Onshore)
Elfs Kouakouala 1 (-1)
wildcat
paged 980 BOPD on drillstem test. Pay
was between 1,530 and 1,543 m. The well
bottomed in the basement at 1,738 m and
was drilled to evaluate the potential of the
Lucula and Djeno-Mengo Formations of
the Lower Cretaceous. Location is in the
Loeme tract some 36 km ENE of Pointe
Noire.
Cambodia
Campex spud its Apsara 1 on the
Khmer Shelf approximately 160 km SW of
Sihanoukville. No drilling has been done
in the area since 1974.
China (Offshore)
Bohai Oil Corp announced a new discovery in the Bohai Gulf. The Caofedian
1-6-1 tested 2,961 BOPD of 31 API and 198
MCFGD on a 15/32" choke. Pay is below
2,800 m. The well is located 35 km ESE of
Tanggu and 30 km north of the Caofedian
1 3 1 oil discovery drilled by Japan-China
Oil Development Corp in 1981.
Cote D'ivoire (Offshore)
United Meridian Corp completed its
Panthere 1 as a gas condensate discovery.
The well flowed 30,000 MCFGD and 700
BCPD through a 56/64 inch choke.
Flowing tubing pressure was 1,909 psi from
20 m of perforations in the Albian siliclastics at a depth of 2,834 2,860 m. The well
is located in the CI-11 permit in the West
Foxtrot area.
China (Onshore)
In Tibet (Xizang Autonomous
Region) a recent wildcat tested oil and/or
gas from several intervals between 1,479
and 1,780 m. The drillsite is 4,800 m above
sea level in the Tertiary Lunpola Basin.
The well is part of a multi-well program
sponsored by MOG (Ministry of Geology
and Mineral Resources) , the State
Nationalities Affairs Commission and the
Xizang Autonomous Region itself.
In southeastern Inner Mongolia near
Namib'i (Offshore)
Chifeng (Ulanbad), an new discovery has
Norsk-Hydro has spudded its first well been announced. The exploratory well
in Block 1911. The 1911/151 well's objec- was drilled to 1,800 m and is reported to
tive is the Jurassic and has a planned TD have penetrated a 40 m oil column.
of 4,500 m. Water depth is 500 m.
Preliminary reserve estimates are 1 billion
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barrels of oil in place and 580 to 660 million barrels recoverable. The prospect
area reportedly covers 1,500 sq krn.
In the Turpan Basin in Xinjiang, an
affiliate of CNPC has reportedly made
another oil discovery. The Santanghu
Prospect was reported to have tested 145
BOPD, but no other details were released.
Indonesia (Offshore)
Caltex drilled its first well in Nias
Block in the Indian Ocean west of Central
Sumatra. The Bozihona 1 was abandoned
at a TD of 1,834 m after penetrating
approximately 120 m of porous Late
Miocene limestone with no hydrocarbon
shows.
Caltex has also spud its Merah 1
approximately 25 km north of the
Bohizona 1.
(Onshore)
Amoseas spud its first well in the Soe
Block on Timor Island. The Banli-1 is
planned for a TD of 2,590 m. Two noncommercial discoveries on Timor have
tested oil from Paleogene reefal limestones (Cota Taci 1) and quartzose sandstones of Late Miocene age (Matai discovery). Both wells are located approximately
80 km NE of the Banli-1.
Dragon Oil's Kirkland operating unit
has spud its Dragon 1 on the northern por-
In this Issue
tion of East China Sea Basin Block-V. The
well will evaluate the Lower Miocene
Sayori and Oligocene Kafago Formations.
The well will kick-off at about 1,100 m and
drill through the two objectives at a 38
degree angle.
Malaysia (Offshore)
Offshore Trengganu in the Malay
Basin, Esso Production Malaysia (EPMI)
discovered hydrocarbons in the Raya
North 1. Three oil and two gas zones having a combined 43 m of net pay were
found between 1,850 and 2,300 m in
Tertiary siliclastics. Location is in the SE
part of PM-8, just north of the producing
Seligi field.
EPMI has also made another discovery in PM-8 with its Telok Timur 1. Oil
and Gas were logged in sands and shales of
the Mid-Miocene Group 1. No tests were
conducted.
Oxy has reported an 0.8 TCF gas discovery with its Chili Padi 1. The well is offshore Sarawak in the Central Luconia
Basin. Pay is presumably from Miocene
reefal carbonates. Gross gas column is
430 m.
Pakistan (Onshore)
OMV has completed its Miano 1. The
well flowed 35,500 MCFGD from Lower
Cretaceous Lower Goru sands. Location is
Volume 36 Contents
in Block 20 in the Indus Basin (Sind
Province) and is on trend with Mari gas
field and Kadanwari field.
Union Texas Pakistan's Mazari South
Deep 1 in the Mazari ML License tested
475 BOPD. Union Texas also completed
Buland 1 as agas/condensate discovery
with an unreported flow rate. The Jalal 1
flowed 12,900 MCFGD from Lower Goru
Formation (Cretaceous). All three wells
are located in the company's Badin area in
the Indus Basin (Sind).
Vietnam
Idemitsu has spud its Hoa Dao 1 in
the Gulf of Tonkin, offshore Block 102.
The well is east of the Tien Hai gas field
on the Red River Delta.
NEAR EAST
Neutral Zone (Onshore)
Saudi Arabian Texaco has tested oil
from the Upper Jurassic Gotnia Formation
in its South Umm Gudair DWl. According
to Kuwait's Ministry of Oil the well flowed
between 3,250 and 6,150 BOPD of 25 APl
oil with 40,000 ppm H2S. The well will be
drilled to its planned TD of 4,663 m to test
the Middle to Lower Jurassic Najmah,
Sargelu and Marrat Formations in the
~ i b d i b a hSubbasin, Arabii Basin.
--
lcyL
A Cubaldl.rr
E-ra*
~ovo~opmont
Corpora tlon
ol PUBLIC CCRVICC CNTCRPRISC
O R O W mCOnPORA T I 0
OIL AND GAS
EXPL ORA TlON & PRODUCTION
ASHLAND EXPLORATION INC.
SUBSIDIARY OF ASHLAND OIL. INC.
J a m e s 6. Gresham
VP Exploratlon
14701 ST. MARY'S LANE, SUITE 200
T h o m a s M. D e e t e r
Mgr. Onahore ( M e ~ o a o l c )Exploratlon
J a m e s D. McCullough
Mgr. Offahore Explaratlon
Mlchael S. Young
Mgr. Onshore (Gull Coast) Exploratlon
- -.
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1000 Loulslsna. Sulta 2 9 0 0 Houaton. Tsxar 77002 (713)750-730(
Bulletjn Houston Geological Society. March 1994
77079
P.O. BOX 218330
77218
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Ornar and Tanak fields that
produce from the Cretaceous
Rutbah Formation and the
Triassic Mulussa Formation.
Yemen (Onshore)
British Gas has spud its
Jarshah 1 wildcat in its A1 Hajar
tract (Shabwah Basin). The well
is located approximately 100 krn
WSW of Total's Kharir 1 discovery.
Clyde suspended drilling its
Atheib 1 pending further testing, after log analysis and RFTs
indicated an oil bearing reservoir about 12 m thick in the
Lower Cretaceous Qishn
Formation. TD was 2,053 rn in
basement. Location is 3 km NE
of Canadian Oxy's Herniar
North Field. The well is considered an appaisal well of the
Herniar North structure.
EUROPE
Oman (Onshore)
Conquest (American Exploration) was
scheduled to spud itsJebel Aswald 1 in the
Jebel Aswald license on November 15th.
The license covers part of the Fahud Salt
Subbasin, Northern Oman. The well has a
planned TD of 3,500 m and objectives in
the Middle Cretaceous Natih and Lower
Cretaceous Shuaiba Formation. Both of
these formations produce in the blocks
adjacent to Block 15.
In Southern Oman, PDO has probably found oil in the Paleozoic with its
Nusuk 1. The well is located 5 km NW of
the Mukhaizna field, in the South Oman
Sub-basin. The Mukhainzna fields are
assumed to have pay in the Haushi Group
(Permian). The well was suspended after
reaching a TD of 1,465 m.
PDO has also spud its first well in
Block 21, Hathar 1, in the Tertiary Basin.
The well has a projected TD of 2,200 m.
Sediments in the basin are Mesozoic and
Tertiary. Objectives of the well a r e
believed to be the Cretaceous and Lower
Tertiary carbonates and shales.
Syria (Onshore)
In the Euphrates Graben, Elf
Aquitaine has completed its Chibli 101 as
an oil discovery. The well was drilled to a
TD of 4,130 m, presumably well into the
Paleozoic. Chibli 101 lies between the
Germany (Onshore)
suspended
RWE-DEA
drilling its Voelkersen N o d Z 1
in the N W German Basin after
testing 25,400 MCFGD from the Lower
Permian
Upper
Rotliegendes
Wechselschichten below 5,000 m.
Wellhead flowing pressure was 5,800 psi
during the test.
Greece (Offshore)
NAPC was scheduled to spud its
Prinos North 2 in the Thrace Trough at
year end 1993. TD is planned for about
2,800 rn, with objectives in the Middle
Miocene turbidites. Location is 1 km
north of Prinos Field's OWC.
Italy (Offshore)
Agip's 1 Sionetta
1 is a Pliocene gas d i s
covery in the Central
~ d r i a t i c (Marche Arruzzi foredeep).
Location is 10 krn
NNW of Pescara in the
B.C 5.AS concession.
TD was 2,553 m.
Turkey (Onshore)
TPAO spud its
Seben 1 in the
Mudurnu
Basin.
Location is 110 krn
WNW of Ankara.
Volume 36 Contents
List of Advertisers
AGlP Petroleum
Arnoco
Ashland Exploration, Inc.
Araxas Exploration
Core Laboratories
Core Service, Inc.
David K. Davies & Assoc.
Edelrnan, Percival & Assoc.
EDC
Energy Data Services, Inc.
Mark R. Etheredge
Four Star Printing Co.
Geco-Prakla
Geornap
Gillring Oil Co.
James Roach ("Arabian Link")
LCT
Lexco Data Systems
Linder Doughtie
Medallion Production Co.
Micro-Strat
Midland Valley Associates
National Ground Water
Norcen Explorer, Inc.
Osyka Producing
Paleo Control, Inc.
Paleo Data, Inc.
PaleoSourcdEarth View Assoc.
Pel - Tex Oil Co.
Petroconsultants (Houston)
Petroleum Information
Rice University
Shreveport Petroleum Data Services
Stratigraphics
Subsurface Consultants
Texas Crude
U M C Petroleum Corp.
Union Petroleum Corp.
NORCEN EXPLORER, INC.
2 0 0 WestLake Park Blvd., Suite 800
Houston, Texas 7 7 0 7 9
(713)558-661 1
Byron F. Dyer
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International Business Note
Continued Jrom page 14.
Ireland, UK, Turkey and Paraguay provide a State Take of 40% o r less from the
same fields.
T h e State Take in Australia decreases
to less than 40% from "marginal" fields
but in most o t h e r countries t h e State
T a k e increases. 32 of t h e 70 regimes
reviewed gener'tte a State Take in excess
of 70% from "marginal" fields a n d , of
these, 14 generate a State Take in excess
of 100%.
T h e study argues, however, that it is
possible for governments to structure a
flexible fiscal regime which d o e s n o t
d e t e r development of marginal fields
while ensuring, at the same time, that the
State can secure a high proportionate
take from very profitable projects. Very
few regirnes are currently designed o n
these principles, however. T h e most flexible fiscal regirnes are found to be those
which allow the investor early recovery of
costs before levying taxes and which link
increases in the State Take to increases in
project profitability. These regimes are
progressive, i.e. t h e S t a t e T a k e only
In this Issue
i n c r e a s e s w h e n p r o j e c t profitability
increases. T h e r e g i m e s in S e n e g a l ,
Australia a n d India were f o u n d to be
most progressive and another nine were
marginally progressive.
With oil prices predicted by many
observers to remain at levels well below
$20 in the near to medium term, many
potential developments across the world
will a p p e a r m a r g i n a l a n d it m u s t b e
expected that a number of countries will
have to revise t h e i r fiscal t e r m s in
response to this. T h e e x t e n t to which
these revisions improve the efficiency of
t h e r e g i m e will b e c o v e r e d when
Petroconsultants updates the service next
year. It is possible that some countries
may remove special petroleum taxation
altogether, as the UK did in 1993. These
regimes, however, d o n o t provide t h e
means for the State to retain the lion's
share of any extraordinal? profits which
may be generated if the economic climate becomes m o r e favorable in t h e
f u t u r e . In s u c h situations it must b e
expected t h a t additional taxes will b e
reintroduced, adding a n o t h e r layer of
uncertainty to current company evaluations of future prospects.
Volume 36 Contents
Notes:
1. "GROSS PROJECT" is the value of
the developrnent before any
State impositions, i.e. revenue less
costs only.
2. NPV throughout is calculated using a
15% discount rate.
"Marginal" fields have a n NPV o f
between 0 and $3.5 per
barrel; "economic" fields between
$3.5 and $6.0 per barrel
and "upside" fields between $6.0 and
$12.6 per barrel.
3. " S t a t e T a k e " is t h e S t a t e s h a r e ,
including direct State participation,
of the (undiscounted) gross project
cash flow, expressed as a percentage.
ContacC
Hoherl Harris Pe~roconsullanlsS.A. - Gmeua
Tel: +41 22 721 1892
lax: +41 22 721 1894
Susan Hodgshon Pe~roconsullanlsUK 1,td. - London
Tel: +44 81 780 2500
Fax: +41 81 780 2036
LET'S CELEBRATE
SPRING KICKOFF
Friday, April 1, 1994
HGS TENNIS TOURNAMENT
WESTSIDE TENNIS CLUB
1200 Wilcrest (North of Westheimer)
12 N O O N - 5 PM
DIVISION A & B PRIZES
COST - $35.00 includes tennis, lunch, refreshments & trophies
Entry Deadline March 30, 7 994
Send check, along with name, phone no. and rank (A, A- or 6) to the PTS Laboratories.
Mail to: 4342 W . 12th, Houston, TX 77055, Attention: Mike Walker With Questions Call: (71 3) 680-2291
53
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In this Issue
Volume 36 Contents
MEOW and the Mullets
by R. E. Kelsay
Reviewed by David M. Orchard
Just a short while ago (although fast
fading in practical significance for our
current careers), the petroleum industry
was flooded with investors. Money
chased a piece of the action, t h e
romance of exploration, the promise of
ever-rising prices, a n d tax breaks.
According to R. E. Kelsay, some 20% of
total investment in U.S. exploration during t h e boom years was provided by
investment vehicles for outside investors.
In the vernacular, the money came from
"mulletsn.
Following the urgent tone of statements from the government, universities
and think tanks, and, of course, promoters, money poured in. As ~ e l s says,
a ~
"America was stampeded into a six-year
vacation from common sense. The small
investor was herded into the corrals of
the promoters."
Drilling funds, income funds, master
limited
the federal lease
lottery, oil-for-stock swaps, royalty funds,
leasing funds, and mineral ownership
pools:where did all that money
Kelsay is able to tell us about some of it.
Based in Jack County, Texas, h e was
involved in the formation of six drillingf u n d partnerships a n d o n e start-up
penny stock company. All, in the end,
turned out badly for the investors. This
book contains his memoirs of those
years. The frontispiece states: "An oil
man's observations on the late- and by
some lamented- Energy Crises, and the
fleeting bonanza it created for some of
us."
Broadly organized in four parts, the
book starts with a somewhat rambling
recollection of the tenor of the times; the
Energy Crisis, Jimmy Carter's Moral
Equivalent of War (hence MEOW), the
OPEC stranglehold, IRS tax breaks to he rarely names names. He is critical of
encourage exploration, and the largely geologists or at least of the use to which
illusionary opportunity for cashing in on geologic investigations were put by prorising oil and gas prices. It moves on to moters. "Geology is the art of drawing
describe the myriad types of investment expensive conclusions from insufficient
programs a n d how each worked a n d premises."
failed. Kelsay then provides a highly perOccasionally I found myself wishing
sonal account of the life and death of his the book would provide more of a busipublic company, Circle Seven Oil and ness school-type analysis of investor
Gas, Inc. He ends the book with com- deals. What fallacies does hindsight
ments about the current energy situation expose in all of those early-eighties
of this country.
spreadsheets that justified the investThe Circle Seven story is told from the ments? Kelsay provides few of those preheart. Kelsay wrote this book in the same cise numbers; that isn't his purpose.
portable building from which Circle This is a personal account, proud but
Seven was conceived and managed. The humbled and apologetic and very tongue
building is now a patched shambles on in cheek. He was inside an event of hishis farm, a n d he is s u r r o u n d e d by toric economic proportions, and he has
reminders of hopes and dreams and of written a book about it. More people
that "fleeting bonanza". Financed with ought to write such books, and more
$3,850,000 in 1980, the company liqui- people ought to read them.
Meow and the Mullets is available
dated in 1989 with only $160,000 of dispersible assets. How badly were the from:
Mr. R.E. Kelsay
investors hurt? The average stockholder
Jacksboro TX 764580670
invested $666, while the principals invest$15.95
ed $120,000 each. In fact, whenever
Kelsay uses the disparaging term "mullet", he says in effect,
"I believed it too! We
were the biggest mullets of all! We should
T H E A J Z 2 L B J Z : A . W LINK
have known better."
He provides a fair
A novel about a Texas family
account of the ruins.
part in giant discovery and
Amongst d r i l l i n g
catastrophe in Saudi Arabia.
funds, there was an
almost universal failHow it might have been and
ure to reach payout.
He comes down hard
how it could be.
on Blinder Robinson
(as did the feds), and
1/800/235-6646
discusses Petro-Lewis
$22.95 plus $2.95 P&H
in detail. Otherwise,
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Volume 36 Contents
SIXTH ANNUAL
GSH/HGS/HAPL BASS TOURNAMENT
IT'S SPRING LUNKER TIME AGAIN!!!
GET YOUR
SPONSORS
PARTNER
WELCOME!
NOW!
WHEN;
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Harbour) New Place!
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PRIZES:
CALL 625-4912
OVERALL FIRST PLACE:
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OVERALL THIRD PLACE:
GSH FIRST PLACE:
HGS FIRST PLACE:
HAP1 FIRST PLACE
TOTAL WEIGHT BASS
TOTAL WEIGHT BASS
TOTAL WEIGHT BASS
BIG BASS (WEIGHT)
BIG BASS (WEIGHT)
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FlRST PLACE:
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or John Stuchell (713) 665-2372 (work) (713) 988-4305 (home)
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GSH/HGS/HAPL BASS TOURNAMENT REGISTRATION FORM
Name:
Partner's Name:
Address:
Phone: (Home)
(Work)
Enclose your check of $40.00/contestant payable to Geophysical Society o f Houston (GSH) Bass
Tournament.
Mail To: Harold Landers, c/o Wickford Energy, 2323 S. Shepherd, Suite 910, Houston, Texas 77019
L
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Volume 36 Contents
QUICK LOOK TECHNIQUES
"'"'''"'''''.''''''.'''''''''''~'''''''''''''';,,"",'M''''''''''''';"',',',"'@',,«,",,;,,','.',
'"""",@",,,,,,,.,'.
",";;,';C,,,,,,',,,',"','",,;c",,,,,,,,,,,,,',,,,,,,,,,,,,",~"""","",'""",",'"",,',".'"""'''@''
A Method for Predicting Thick Sand
Intervals from Seismic Sections
by Subsurface Consultants BeAssociates, Inc.
Lafayette, LA 70508
Did you ever drill a well that did not
contain sand or encountered unexpectedly thin sands?
If so, then the following technique
may help. The seismic technique presented here can be used to predict the
presence
of thick sands.
We have
learned that a few groups used a qualitative version of this method for years in
prospecting,
but the work seemed to
have vanished during the boom of the
late 70's.
Most geoscientists know that during
deposition shale sections have a higher
initial porosity than sand sections, and,
UNCOMPACTED
------------
upon burial, shales compact more than
sands. If a growth normal fault is present
within a sand and shale section, then,
upon burial, the fault will have a low
angle of dip in the shale section and a
higher angle of dip in the less compacted
sand section as shown in Figure 1. Thus,
a growth fault cutting through a shale
interval and into a sand interval will
steepen its dip within the sand interval.
This change in fault angle can be seen in
Growth Fault 1 on the depth corrected
seismic section shown in Figure 2. This
change in fault shape produces
the
antilistric or "sand indicator" fault bend
COMPACTED
SECTION
LOWER
SHALE SECTION
FAULT DIP
SAND SECTION
HIGHER
FAULT DIP
-----------<I>
= INITIAL POROSITY
Figure 1
Figure 2
56
(Figs. 1 and 2.)
This technique can be used in a general, qualitative
manner to obtain an
indication of the presence of sand. A
quantitative method for estimating gross
sand percentage through a thin alternating sand-shale sequence is presented in
Tearpock and Bischke (1991). Our work
with the method suggests that synthetic
fault dips can be used to predict sand
percentages at shallow depth using vintage seismic data. The resolution of the
method is primarily dependent
on the
ability of the interpreter to pick changes
in fault dip on the seismic sections, and
secondarily on the velocity versus depth
functions required to depth correct the
fault traces. At deeper depths, where
synthetic faults sole or flatten out, crestal
antithetic faults can be used to estimate
sand percentage.
Many interpreters
depict faults on
seismic sections as smoothly curved surfaces, typically listric in shape.
Most
growth normal faults are typically not
continuously listric in shape. Instead the
faults change dip with depth.
A fault
may start out listric, then go antilistric
(steepening downward), go listric again,
etc. Many geoscientists have not correctly interpreted these changing fault dips.
On seismic sections, this is partly so
because most seismic sections are vertically exaggerated.
These vertically
extended
sections have the effect of
straightening
out fault surfaces, therefore masking changes in fault dip. The
interpretation work must be approached
in a carefully observant manner, looking
for these
subtle
changes
in dip.
Therefore, it is very useful to depth correct the sections in order to analyze fault
geometry and to apply this technique.
This can be simply done by digitizing
and depth correcting a fault trace under
study.
Bulletin Houston
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Volume 36 Contents
First callfor papers
me Society for Organic Petrology
1
11th Annual Meeting
September 25-30,1994
V
I
Jackson, Wyoming
U.S.A.
-
Z h ' s right! J ~ u : k o..
n situated at the base of the Tetom,]& a short &ivejhm the Yellowstone
National Park The meeftng will be held at theSnow King Resort, neur the center of Jackson
h k rhue 1994 dorw on your culende? now.
Plan to mrhrc e d y to enjoy this part of the Wut.
Sept 25 - PZbMeeting Wolkshop "Introductionto F
d Geometry and its use in the earth sciences"
taugixt by Christopher C.Barton, U.S. Geological Survey,Denver, CO
Sept 26-27 - W o days of oral and poster technical -0119
including a theme
scssiun entitled " w c s and the Rockies" contributionswelcome.
-
Sept 28-30 - Field Excursion throughthe Wind River, Bighorn, and Powder
River Basins to examine coal and terrestrial source rocks.
Led bv Romeo Flores. U.S. Geoloaical Survev. Denver. CO
Submit your tentative titlesfor apresemkatbn anytime before April 30,1994 to Ron Stanton
( k b k s s below) and indicore yourpreference for oral or poster presentahkn Inrtructiom to
prepme your abstract will be sent so that you can submit a$mI &ended abstract by J& 30,
1994. Authors rJso will have the opp~rtunityto submit papersfor publication in a special
isme of Organic Geochan-.
Topim to conrider include: organicpetrology of roch and c o d , paitynology, paleobotany,
inorganic/mganic intemdons, applied petrology, thennol maturaiion, m o h d o g s ,
geochemistry,jluorescence, OM,
and electron microscopy. Other related topics me welcome.
For Further Infonna!ion, contact:
Ron StPmLon
US. GC4bgi~alS ~ m y
703-648-6462
Ccntcr
FAX 703-648-6419
956 N&MI
Ruton, VA 22092
e-mail r~tcrnton@acr&.wgs.cr.gov
Bulleon Houston Geolog~calSoc~ety.March 1994
I
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Geologist Geophysicist Engineer
place your business card here.
Send $113 with two cards and
you're advertising all year.
Volume 36 Contents
SPECTRA
RESOURCESINC.
V l c r o R H. ABADIE Ill
CONSULTINGGEOLOGIST
CERTIFIEDPETROLEUMGEOLOGIST. ME.NO 3936
CALlFOflNlAREGISTERED GEOLOGIST. LIC NO 4040
11 11 1 Wilcrrst Crem. Sldrr 130
7ixa.177W2
Hr~~vnm.
(713) V74-fM~1
FAX 1713) 974-6461
ADMINISTRATOR
T r i h Oil And Gas Corn.
BURTON C, M
JAMES B. BENNEIT
Geolqly
RANDALL SCHOll
~eophysks
1300 Main Slreet
Thud noor
Houston.Texas 77W2
President
Bus (713) 650-1378
WILLIAM B. TURNER
ROBERTH. MRDE
WILLIAM C, BISHOP
AAPO GROUP m s u w c I c PROORAM
S6X3 GROUP INSURANCE PROORAM
N
1010 m
r #I580
Houston,
TX.
nm
(713) 650-3614
LO13 S A N JAClNTO BLDO.
HOUSTON. TX TmO.
T. WAYNE CAMPBELL
PALEO-DATA. INC.
CONSULTING PALEONTOLOGIST AND GEOLOGIST
as10 FLEUR Dm LIS DRIVE
NEW ORLEANS. LOUISIANA 7OlM
(504) 488-3711
Michael J. Carroll
Staff Geo~lcntlst
11702.6 Gnnt Rd.. Suite 222
Cypar Texas 77429
(713) 370-7912
DRAWS INTERESTS, INC.
JEFFREY J. DRAWS Ph D
Applid C.-W
SedimCntOl~gy
Regional Play Evaluatbn
Reservoir DescriptionlModeling
Facies and Pomsily Evdulion
In-House and FieM Cativnate Seminars
4133 Tennyson, Houston, Texas 77005
(713) 667-9844 (W) 1 (713) 667-5453 (H)
EL-OIL, L TD.
ELLINGTON & ASSOCIATES, INC.
2-
A Natural Resource Company. . .
Guy C Ellison, Jr.
Looking for D&
(318) 232-5742
FAX(318) 232-5717
P. 0.BOX52282: L q i i n ~LA
. 70505
Omce: (713) 5561784
(713) 5558154
M.L. "Newt" Feldman
Raymond J. Forbish
Consunant
(713) 376-2336
Specia,!Ang In:
14119 Swbs Hi
Hou.don. TX 77077
10409 Tam h Country Way
Houston. TX 77024
Certified P6imleum Geologist. A.A.P.G.
Regiwed Profess!! Eqneer,
Geolog'i and Mining. TX 8 LA
Fie!d Studies.
Pmducfion Geology.
Exploitation 8 kw&pment
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JOHN W. GREEN CO.
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WILLIAM S. CRUBB
M A Y
GeophysicalConsult;nl
ud Ml-
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CHRIS HELMS
GEOPHYSICALCONSULTANT
20lHEYMANNBLVD.
P. 0. BOX 51858
LAFAYETTE,LA 70505
consulting Geologists
and Paleontoo' gislc
OFFICE (318) 234-3379
HOME (318) 235-1923
GEORGE M HIDLE.
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ma
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Ft LauderddP. FL 333391983
,711) 897-7-5
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STEVE H. HILL
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P.0. B O X 71-2
HOUSTON. TX 77171-2
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HOUSTON, TX 77002
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HOME: ( 7 1 3 ) 467-4166
AUTO: (713 ) 2 4 8 - 3 6 3 4
FAX: ( 7 13 ) 654-913 6
CERllFlED PEIROLEUM CEOLOGISE m
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LLENROC COMPAMES
PO BOX 6715
KINGWOOD, TEXAS
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n u ) 3s-4
wolldrride Po(i(ical
FWk Management.
JOHN M. JURASIN
President
Ced. Pet. Gedngis(14284
SOUTHERN STATES PROFESSIONAL
UX;ASSOCIAnON. lNC.
Fred W. Kelly, Jr.
14434 Twisted Oak Lane
W I L L I A M A. L A M O N T
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Phone: (713) 4-7654
CanprSem: 70335.1214
4923 MAPLE ST.
BELLAIRE. TEXAS 77401
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!&WE77
J A M E S W. R O A C H
3. DAVID REEVES
~PYPLORATION
Consuhg Geophyrkist
Carl M. Padgett
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60
Bulletin Houston Geological Society. Mamh 1994
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Bulletin Houston Geological Society
Volume 36 Contents
SECOND CLASS
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HGS Bulletin Volume 36 No.7 (March 1994)

Transcription

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