Producing Operations in the Uintah Basin, Utah
Authors: Ellwood E.T. 
Published: December 2007

This paper was prepared for presentation at the 47th Annual Fall Meeting of the Society of Petroleum Engineers held in San Antonio, Tex., Oct. 8–11, 1972. Permission to copy is restricted to an abstract of not more than 300 words. Illustrations may not be copied. The abstract should contain conspicuous acknowledgment of where and by who the paper is presented. Publication elsewhere after publication in the JOURNAL paper is presented. Publication elsewhere after publication in the JOURNAL OF PETROLEUM TECHNOLOGY or the SOCIETY OF PETROLEUM ENGINEERS JOURNAL is usually granted upon request to the Editor of the appropriate journal provided agreement to give proper credit is made. provided agreement to give proper credit is made. Discussion of this paper is invited. Three copies of any discussion should be sent to the Society of Petroleum Engineers office. Such discussion may be presented at the above meeting and, with the paper, may be considered for publication in one of the two SPE magazines.

Currently approximately 30 rigs are operating in the Uintah basin in northeastern Utah in the development of deep (8,000 to 17,000 ft) Wasatch oil production. These high-pressure wells are expensive to drill and complete. The high pour point of the oil (85 degrees F to in excess of 110 degrees F) requires high capital expenditures for producing and storage facilities. Problems producing and storage facilities. Problems associated with producing, storing and marketing high pour-point oil in the Uintah basin result in increased operating expense for the producer.

UINTAH BASIN

The Uintah basin (Fig. 1) in northeastern Utah is bounded on the north by the Uintah Mountains, on the east by the Douglas Creek arch, on the southeast by the Uncompahgre uplift, on the southwest by the San Rafael swell, and on the west by the Wasatch Mountains. This discussion will be limited to the northern portion of the basin in Duchesne and Uintah portion of the basin in Duchesne and Uintah Counties.

EARLY PRODUCTION

Commercial gas was discovered in 1925 in Ashley Valley and was used by nearby Vernal as a source of fuel until abandonment of the field during World War II. In 1948, a 4,100-ft Weber sand well was completed in the Ashley Valley field, resulting in the first significant oil production in Utah. Production continues from production in Utah. Production continues from this field at a rate of about 700 BOPD and with an accumulated production on Jan. 1, 1972, of 16,906,000 bbl of oil. Oil production was established in the Green River formation in the Red Wash field in 1951, and in 1962 development of Green River oil production in the adjacent Wonsits Valley field was begun. Accumulated production from the Greater Red Wash area on production from the Greater Red Wash area on Jan. 1, 1972, was 80,870,000 bbl of oil with a producing rate at that time of 14,770 BOPD. producing rate at that time of 14,770 BOPD.

TOPOGRAPHY AND WEATHER

The topography of the area we are considering is varied from relatively flat valleys and mesas to extremely rough terrain with many canyons and washes. The surface elevation in the area now under development varies from 5,000 to 8,000 ft above sea level.

Weather is extreme. Vernal, on the east side of the basin, has a normal minimum temperature of below freezing for 6 months of the year. Much of the time the temperature at the 5,000-ft elevation will be zero or below; of course, at higher elevations the temperature will be even lower. In the summer, the temperature frequently exceeds 1000. In the Wonsits valley area during the winter months, dense ice fog often persists for days at a time.