The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1922-04-16
Delay in Drilling in Well
Often Loses Good Producer,
u. S. Mine Bureau Explains
Oil. the "Nomad of the Underground Channels" Is Ever
Moving About Seeking an Opening and While the Driller
Waits a Rich Producer May Move Onto Another Structure;
First Wells Are Always the Biggest Producers.

WASHINGTON-Delay in drill
ing into an oil structure or sands
after they have been opened up may
cause losses OF from 5 TO so per
cent in the ultimate amount OF oil
produced from the we'll, according
To a statement issued by tho United
states bureau OF mines.
oil Is an underground nomad. II
moves through the deep sand layers
propelled by a pressure behind II.
ever searching for the opening
through which Il may spout or be
pumped 10 the surface. Tho first
wells penetrating the sand OPP
crate under high pressure. while
those drilled after the gas pressure
has been reduced almost without
exception rome IN for a much
smaller Initial production.
In fields whore small tracts form
n checker board" drilling In any
u tract forces the owner OF the
adjoining tract ~ begin an immedl-
ate drilling grogram. II he delays
drilling, he viii see oil which might
have been his coming from his
n~elghbor'A well and the longer he
delays drilling his offset well the
less oil will his we'll yield. II Is
only when a structure has not been
tapped" and has no faults along
the edges through which the oil
may secp that Il In possible to con-
serve oil underground.
One of the Game laws"
One Of the game laws OF the oil
fields corresponds to an English law
regarding deer which provided that,
no matter how many differently
owned pieces of land the deer
crossed In its flight. II was the
property OF tho owner of the land
on which it was killed. Regardless
OF the number OF tracts under which
the oil may pass in a structure, il
belongs TO the owner OF the well
through which II leaves the ground.
Tho men In the oil fields know
THIS and know also that the early
drlller gets the most oil. II an own
.cr OF a tract neglects to drill and
thereby loses the oil which passes
under his land to another well, he
must accept his loss without COM
plant. II IL an axiom OF the oil
fields that, II a man wants oil. he
must drill,
Studies made by an engineer OF
the United Staes bureau OF mines.
covering a grcat many wells I'm
Oklahoma, Louisiana and Califor-
MA, show that tho loss due to delay
~ drllllng Is In places as much az
90 per cent. The seriousness Of this
loss Is shown In the following ex-
tracts from his report, now in
manuscript form and TO he pub
llshed IN the future as n bureau OF
mines bulletin:
During the early life OF a pool.
wells are brought In with large In
ltlal production. Az the pool be-
comes older, there is marked de-
crease In initial production OF new
wells due TO n fan in gas pressure.
Naturally, a loss In recovery per
acre results, being due to drainage
OF gas and also in some cases To
drainage OF oil, The drainage fac
tor Is important TO the operator IL
his property has not been protected
properly by line wells. In order TO
obtain the maximum amount OF oil
from a tract In a pool, where there
are other operators, a fast drilling
program Is necessary, thus obtain.
Ing wells OF large initial production
and consequently large ultimate
Three Typical Fields.
I'm three typical fields OF Okla
homa, the Adair pool, the Bartles-
vilie-Dewey district and the Nowata
district. losses in total recovery OF
oil from adjoining wells varied from
. 10 90 per cent. when all condi-
tions were apparently similar eX-
cept time OF drilling. The greatest
difference was between two adjoin-
Ing wells. n OF which was drilled