Whiting - Stockyard Creek

See this post.

For educational purposes.

The reader has minerals in only one section in this oil field: section 4 of T154N-R99W.

A section is one mile x one mile square.

A section is 640 acres.

The way Bakken spacing works:

1. Each well stands on its own. Each well requires a permit and each permit states which section(s) are involved.

2. Bakken wells are all based on sections: half-section, full sections, multiple (including parts of) sections.

3. In this particular area, my hunch is that all wells will be either 1280-acre (most) or 2560-acre (few).

4. The 1280-acre wells:

• long laterals
• two-miles long
• two sections
• 1280-acre spacing

5. The 2560-acre wells:

• long laterals
• two-miles long
• two sections
• 2560-acre spacing

6. This is confusing: 1280-acre wells and 2560-acre wells are the same length: two miles, and they each lie in only two sections.

7. 2560-acre wells are placed along section lines to capture oil that would otherwise be "left behind" (orphaned).

The next two examples are for any mineral owner who owns at least one acre in section 4 of T154N-R99W. Each example below is for one well; each is a separate well. If there are nine wells in the area under discussion, there would be nine permits to check.

1. Example, 1280-acre spacing. The permit for the well says:

• the well is 1280-acre spacing (two sections)
• the two sections identified are sections 4 and 9
• anyone with even one acre in either section 4 or 9 will receive royalties from this well
• where the well will be sited; it does not matter where the well is actually drilled; even if it is drilled outside sections 4 and 9, the permit is for sections 4 and 9; the well can be drilled in section 4, section 9, or any section adjoining these two sections
• a mineral owner with one mineral acre anywhere in section 4 will receive the same royalties as someone in section 9 regardless of where the well is actually located

2. Example, 2560-acre spacing. The permit for the well says:

• the well is 2560-acre spacing (four sections)
• the two sections identified are sections 4, 5, 8, and 9 (a large 2 x 2 section square)
• anyone with even one acre in any of the four sections will receive royalties from this well
• where the well will be sited; it does not matter where the well is actually drilled; even if it is drilled outside sections 4, 5, 8, or 9, the permit is for sections 4, 5, 8, and 9; the well can be drilled in section 4, 5, 8, or 9, or any section adjoining these four sections
• a mineral owner with one mineral acre anywhere in section 4 will receive the same royalties as someone in sections 5,8, or 9 regardless of where the well is actually located

Now back to the specific area under discussion.

In the first graphic below, I have "whited" out everything except the sections under consideration:

• sections 4, 5, 8, and 9 of T154N-R99W.

Again, each section is one mile x one mile. The four sections in the graphics below are two miles x two miles.

In the graphics below, note that most wells (the little black circles) are located/sited near the top of sections 4 and 5. 

In the graphics below, note that all the horizontals -- the long black lines -- run from the north to the south and are about two miles long (running through two sections).

Reminder: the reader owns mineral acres in section 4.

One cannot tell from the graphic alone which wells mineral owners participate in, but the graphics and knowledge of how the Bakken works can give one a pretty good idea. One only knows for sure which sections are involved by looking at the permit.

But again, from the graphics and knowledge of how the Bakken works, one can pretty much guess which wells will generate royalties for the reader with minerals in section 4.

First, one can assume that any horizontal -- a long black line -- that is inside section 4 will generate royalties for the owner.

Second, a horizontal -- a long black line -- right next to a section line either on the west side or the east side of section 4 is also likely ot benefit the reader who has minerals in section 4. One will only know for sure by looking at the permit. Horizontals outside section 4 but very near section 4 are likely to be spaced at 2560 acres and include the reader who owns minerals in section 4.

The state has designated sections 4, 5, 8 and 9 to be a 2560-acre unit. Any well with a permit for this 2560-acre unit will benefit the reader who owns minerals in section 4.

In the graphic above, the reader who owns minerals in section 4 will NOT participate in any of the wells in section 5 and section 8 except one well in those sections that run right along the section line.

Future:

Look at all the white space in the graphic below (pay attention to only sections 4 and 9 since the reader owns minerals in section 4. Look at the white space outlined by the blue oval to the right. Eventually, another one or two wells will be drilled here.

Formations:

The graphics only show the "horizontal" aspect.


From the graphics we cannot see the "vertical" aspect.

At this point, almost all horizontals are in the middle Bakken. Almost all the long black lines in the graphics above are middle Bakken.

But some horizontals now run below the middle Bakken, and run in the Three Forks.

There are actually two or three "benches" (sub-formations) in the Three Forks.

Right now, I count nine (9) horizontals running in sections 4 and 9. Almost all of them are 1280-acre wells; the ones on the far left or far right, along the sections lines, are 2560-acre wells.

One would have to look at the permits to know, but almost all of these are middle Bakken wells.

Let's assume six of the nine are middle Bakken wells; three of the nine will be the first bench of the Three Forks.

In the very, very best of the Bakken, operators will place six wells each in each of the following formations in each drilling unit:

• middle Bakken (6)
• first bench, Three Forks (6)
• second bench, Three Forks (6) 

That totals 18.

The reader with minerals in section 4 receives royalties from nine wells (in the examples given). Eventually, if this is among the best areas in the Bakken, there should be 18 wells.