Remote Horizontal Muddy Wildcat Abandoned
Johnson County, Wyoming
Fort Worth, Texas–based Hat Creek Partnership (Hat Creek) has abandoned a remote, unconventional Powder River Basin wildcat located some 24 miles northeast of Buffalo, Wyo., in the northeastern corner of Johnson County. Spud in the latter part of 2016, the CW State #15-1H, se-se 15-52n-78w, attained a true measured depth of 15,304’ and evaluated the horizontal section of the Lower Cretaceous Muddy. This well has been shut-in following production testing in January 2017.
According to documents filed with the state, Hat Creek evaluated the horizontal Muddy interval at 10,531’–15,187’, with no indications of oil or gas. Bottom-hole location for this wildcat is in the se-se 22-52n-78w. Prior to abandoning their attempt, the company assessed other potential zones in this wellbore, including the Teapot, Parkman, Mowry, and Shannon, none of which warranted testing. Log tops for the CW State #15-1H include the Teapot at 6,286’, Parkman at 6,574’, Shannon at 7,559’, Frontier at 9,154’, Mowry at 9,786’, and the Muddy came in at 10,036’, beneath a KB elevation of 3,898’.
The nearest exploratory vertical well to Hat Creek’s CW State #15-1H surface location is almost a half-mile to the northeast at a dry hole drilled 60 years ago by Clayton Oil. The State #1, nw-sw 14-52n-78w, bottomed in the Upper Cretaceous Steele at a depth of 6,845’. With no cores taken or DSTs conducted, this failure was abandoned in 1958. Log tops for the State #1 include the Fort Union at 1,374’, Lewis at 5,978’, Teapot at 6,248’, Parkman at 6,534’, and the Steele came in at 6,842’, measured from a KB eletion of 3,865’.
The closest established horizontal production to Hat Creek’s abandoned CW State #15-1H is roughly 13 miles to the southeast at a wildcat drilled by Ballard Petroleum (Ballard). Completed as a Muddy wildcat, the Hayden Trust #44-9 M H, se-se 9-51n-76w, has cumulated more than 14.4 k bo, 140.8 mmcfg, and 39.1 k bw from the lateral Muddy between 10,462’ and 15,404’. Bottom-hole location for this attempt landed in the nw-nw 9-51n-76e.
Drilled from the same pad as the Hayden Trust #44-9 M H, Ballard also punched in the Hayden State #41-16NH, which has a Muddy leg terminating in the se-se 16-51n-76w. This prospect has produced at least 11.6 k bo, 46.7 mmcfg, and 42.5 k bw from the horizontal Muddy interval at 8,746’–12,653’. The Hayden Trust #44-9 M H and the Hayden State #41-16NH have been on-production since 2013.
Approximately 17 miles south of Hat Creek’s dry CW State #15-1H is a lateral wildcat drilled by Anschutz Exploration and later signed over to EOG Resources. Producing from the horizontal Shannon segment at 9,680’–13,360’ (TMD), the Federal #24-3-4978SH, ne-nw 10-49n-78w, was given an IPP of 695 bopd and 115 mcfgpd. First going on-line in April 2013, this endeavor has cumulated more than 105 k bo, 429 mmcfg, and 18.2 k bw. The lateral wellbore ended up in the nw-nw 3-49n-78w.
Roughly 6 miles southwest of their CW State #15-1H, Hat Creek has staked an unconventional Muddy prospect at the Fleetwood Draw Fed #14-1H, sw-se 14-51n-79w. This confidential test is scheduled to evaluate the horizontal potential of the Lower Cretaceous at a true measured depth of 15,903’. Bottom-hole location should fall in the sw-se 23-51n-79w. This Muddy attempt spots in an area previously tapped for shallow coal-bed methane reserves by two companies, Carbon Creek Energy and Anadarko E&P.
The only exploratory activity near the Fleetwood Draw Fed #14-1H is at a pair of vertical wells drilled in the mid-1970s by Denver-based Davis Oil (Davis). Almost a half-mile southwest of Hat Creek’s tight hole is Davis’s Sanburg-Federal #1, se-nw 23-51n-79w. After bottoming their effort in the Shannon at a depth of 8,672’, the company conducted one DST in the prospective formation. This zone yielded just 60’ of slightly gas-cut mud from the Shannon Sandstone interval at 8,465’–8,482’. The sampler held a trace of gas and 1,710 cc of slightly gas-cut mud. Plugged in 1974, log tops of the Sanburg-Federal #1 include the Parkman at 7,502’, Steele at 7,828’, Sussex at 8,138’, and the Shannon was picked at 8,450’ beneath a KB elevation of 4,261’.
Davis’s second dry hole in this vicinity scales 1.5 miles southeast of Hat Creek’s Fleetwood Draw Fed #14-1H. The Junction Draw Unit #1, se-se 24-51n-79w, is a Shannon attempt that reached a depth of 8,601’ and was abandoned in 1975. One DST in the Shannon between 8,543’ and 8,601’ yielded negligible shows of hydrocarbons. The Shannon log top came in at 8,526’, measured from a derrick floor elevation of 4,452’.
Although the permit for the confidential Fleetwood Draw Fed #14-1H is still active, it is unclear if Hat Creek will pursue drilling of this prospect, considering results of the CW State #15-1H failure.