American Oil and Gas Reporter - May 2016 - 78

SpecialReport: Mid-Continent Activity Profile
He points out that Petro River won't
do any hydraulic fracturing. The Larne
has potential both onshore and offshore,
according to Brunner, who comments,
"It has nice targets, and we like the structure."
Wildcat Success
Not many companies are drilling wildcats in today's economic climate. However,
Stewart Producers Inc. drilled a successful
vertical wildcat well, completing the Illinois Minerals No. 30-1 on Sept. 28. Some

seven months later, it still was making
50 bbl/d oil. The Illinois Oil & Gas Association presented Stewart its Wildcatter
of the Year Award during its annual meeting in March in Evansville, In. (AOGR,
April 2016, pg. 109).
"Mike Tucker, an independent geologist, put the idea together," Stewart explains. "We accepted the deal in the fall
of 2014 and sat on it for almost a year.
We have a group of investors and share a
philosophy that we have to replace reserves. So we decided to drill the well,

"People still are targeting the old-time zones. The zones
that made money when oil was $20 a barrel still make
money."
DAN DARLING
Owner, Dan D Drilling Corp.
call it an extension to the Sesser Field in
Franklin County, Ill., but Robert Stewart,
president of Stewart Producers, maintains
it is a true wildcat.
"It was a mile from the nearest well
to the north, and there was no production
anywhere close to the east, west or south,"
he states.
The well came in producing 54 barrels
of oil a day from Renault Sand perforations
between 2,667 and 2,671 feet. Some

even with depressed commodity prices."
Stewart drilled and completed the well
for about $250,000, and its success means
the company plans to drill an offset.
Although there is some horizontal
drilling in the Illinois Basin, Stewart says
his company is focused solely on vertical
drilling in conventional reservoirs. "It is
more beneficial and economic for a small
operator," he says of the less expensive
program. "We try to work out of our

cash flow."
In addition to its work in the Illinois
Basin, Stewart Producers also is drilling
vertical wells in shallow (3,000-4,500
feet) conventional formations in eastern
and central Kansas.
Old-Time Zones
While 93 percent of the wells being
drilled in Oklahoma today are horizontal,
there are still some operators drilling vertical wells. The primary reason, according
to Dan Darling, owner of Dan D Drilling
Corporation in Lamont, Ok., is that some
zones just don't work for horizontal
drilling.
"People still are targeting the old-time
zones," Darling points out. "The zones
that made money when oil was $20 a
barrel still make money. Most will drill
to the Wilcox and hope they have some
(pay zones such as the Mississippian or
Red Fork) uphole."
Darling says his company has 16 rigs,
but only three were operating in April.
One was drilling a horizontal well in the
STACK (Sooner Trend Anadarko Canadian
Kingfisher) play in Kingfisher County,
while the other two were drilling vertical
wells in Garvin and Lincoln counties.
He notes that the target and depth of the
vertical wells depended on which county
it was drilling in.
"The farther east you go, the shallower
it gets," he observes. "For example, the
wells in Lincoln County are 3,500-5,000
feet."
❒

KJ Energy LLC Completes
Oil, Gas Field Acquisition
HOUSTON-KJ Energy LLC says it
has acquired 329 oil and gas wells and
associated facilities in East Texas and
North Louisiana.
The properties primarily are in the
Brachfield, S.E. Miden and Angie fields
in Rusk, Panola, Shelby, San Augustine
and Nacogdoches counties in Texas, and
in the Vernon, Ada and Bryceland West
fields in Webster, Jackson and Bienville
parishes in Louisiana, the company says.
"We have great confidence in the potential of these properties and the valueadded skill set of our employees. They
offer stable production with upside potential, low declines, and lower-risk
drilling opportunities," says James
Archer, KJ Energy's president and chief
executive officer.
❒
78 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

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American Oil and Gas Reporter - May 2016

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