The Kevin review. [volume] (Kevin, Mont.) 1922-1929, 1924-03-27
California OF! Industry
On Wane, GeoIogist Say
Production From Last Years
Sensational Fields Shows
Big Slump.

NiN tS Ooa1N
precarious condition., according
to N. F. Jameson, operating
geologist for the Sunburst inter
ests, who returned recently from
4 two months trip to California
The Santa Fe field has dropped
from 225, 900 barrels a day to g.,
600 barrels a day; Signal Hill
from 300 900 to pa, 600. and the
new Terrence field, which has
been operating for about a year,
has dropped off more than 1900
barrels a week. The latter field,
which is about II miles south of
Los Angeles, reached a daily
production of IA, 900 barrels at it's
best.
There is a town lot drilling
campaign at Terrence" said Mr..
Jameson, land big rotary drills
are in operation for miles. In
some places, in fact, in a great
many, these drills are operating
SO feet apart. Signal Hill dis
trict, which has been operating
for about three years, is not do
ing any exploration work at all,
but the Dutch Shell company has
leased one end Of the field, about
1870 acres, and they have some
tests going on. If anything
comes in, there will be some ex-
element there. but otherwise
everything is very quiet.
AT Huntington Beach, As miles
southeast of Los Angeles, pro
duction has been falling off at
the rate Of about 5000 barrels q
month. For quite awhile pro-
duction reached l20,00 barrels a
day in this field. The California
oil men are very optimistic about
the future of the industry in ev-
cry place but California. Unless
oil is found in the Country Club
district, near Los Angeles, there
are no new fields in sight for de-
velopment. The Standard Oil of
California has sent all its geolog-
lists to Fort Collins in Colorado,
and at the present time there are
more than 80 biologists in that
district, just neutrality-suspicious..
"The cost of drilling operations
in California is also keeping the
small operators from there. The
cost to drill a we'll averages $780,
900 and some have cost as high
as $3.50 $1,000. | saw one well alb
andoned last week, into which
$160, 900 had been sunk.
"On the whole, the oil men
seem to be unanimous in their O.
pinions that California has seen
its best days as far as oil pro-
duction is concerned. | know of I
one oil man who refused a Is per /
cent bonus on the market price :
of oil, and it was a two-year con- /.
tract, too. The refineries are not
running and the oil business in {
California looks mighty bad right G
now. The future holds very lit I
tie prospects. ,
When n thinks of the cost of :
drilling a we'll in Montana and t
other places, and then compares 4
it with the cost in California, it $
can be readily seen that Montana :
will be worked and worked con- :
sistently this year. The produc- 0
ing sands in California oil fields a
are found at a depth of from 81 G
900 to $500 feet and the produc- .
ton is shortlived. !.
Montana has fields where one t.
does not have to drill only half
the distance of the minimum e
of the California wells, and b
the production is not as ;
great, it is longerlived and in the :,
end will prove more valuable, be- cj
cause the initial cost of drilling is e,
a trife, compared with the cost W
N California" n
Mr.. Jameson says that the y
field should see more ac-