The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1915-08-14
INCREASE IN OIL PRODUCTION.
Last Years Output Establishes New
Record for Louisiana.

The output of petroleum in Lou
isiana in 1914, which amounted to
14,309,435 barrels, exceeded the out
put in 1913 by 1,810,607 barrels, or
over "A per cent, and established a
new record for oil production in the
state. The increase came entirely
from the productive districts in the
northwestern portion of the state,
which furnished II, ,8O8,46 barrels,
against 2,500,966 barrels from the
coastal pools, the former quantity rep
resenting an increase of more than 20
per cent over the 1913 output of the
northern fields ard the latter quantity
decline of per cent from the 1913
record Of the southern pools.
%he average price per barEI for
| the entire Louisiana production de-
clined from SO cents in 1913 to 80
cents in 1914, the average for the
northwestern Louisiana product from
| 81 to 95 cents barrel and the heavier
coastal product from 80 cents to Ct
cents barrel. This moderate de-
| cline in the yearly average price is
due to the steady demand for the
lighter grades of oil from the north
western Louisiana fields for refining
and to the fact that much of the heav-
ier coastal product was marketed on
contracts covering long periods en-
tered into before the market declines
set in.
Despite lower prices the total value
| of the states oil production in 1914
was more than half million dollars
in excess of the value of the produc-
ton in 1918. The value of the 1913
output was S12, 2,255,931; that of the
1914 output was $12,886,897. OF
the latter sum S11,206,686 is credit
ed to the fields of northwestern Lou
isiana and S1,680,211 to the coastal
division
Oil and gas in northwestern Lou
isiana are derived from fairly well de-
fined though variable zones of poorly
| consolidated sand and porous chalk
rock occurring in 1900 feet or more
of strata belonging to the cretaceous
system. In the southern Louisiana
! pools the product is obtained from
] layers of sand and porous limestone
/ of cretaceous, tertiary, and even qua
/ ternary age occurring in association
with crystalline limestone, gypsum,
| sulphur, and rock salt in low struc-
| tural domes or arches in the strata of
generally very slight areal extent.
During the year 1914 a total of 566
wells were drilled in Louisiana, of
which 374, or Sc per cent, yielded oil
/ 3d.. or about ] per cent, yielded gas
only; and 139, or 3s per cent, were
barren,
4 In northwestern Louisiana total
of 445 wells were completed during
the year. Field work was particular
i ly active during the spring and early
summer, resulting in the development
4 of an important pool in Desoto par
Il ish In consequence of discoveries
llnnade insd d913 and IN the opening oI
a new pool 6 miles to the northeast
/ near Abingdon.
). Activity in the productive pools OF
coastal Louisiana resulted IN the com.
pletion of 121 wells, of which 7s
I yielded oil. The total initial produc.
ton credited to the coastal fields dur.
ing the year amounted to 82,914 bar.
rels, representing an average output
of about 1852 barrels per well for the
4 first day of productive life. Further
developments in the coastal fields Of
LOUISIANA IN lSl4 IHciuueu tlie iloe "
Edgerly, in Calcasieu parish, which
developed from a wildcat discovery
made in June, 1913, into steady ant
reliable factor in Gulf coast produc
ton in 1914. From less than 5000
barrels in January, 1913, the outpu
of the pool increased to more than 80,
. 600 barrels in October, 1914, and ths
yield was more than 10000 barrels il
|, December.