Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1941-02-22

&c up one degree for every 200 or pos
sfbly every 800 feet, but the general prin-
ciple should hold and should place a
limit to the depth at which oil may be
hoped for in any given pool Depth
enters In only as it affects the pressure
and consequent ability of the gas or
edge water to push the oil from the
sand, and as it raises the temperature
and renders the oil thinner and more
fluid so that it can flow rapidly from a
small opening The biggest well ever
found in the United States was on Spin
dletop at a depth of less than 1900
feet. In many other fields the reverse
has held true, but given two sands of
the same thickness in the same field,
it is believed that a sand at $500 feet
will normally yield more oil than one
at double that depth.
Such oil as is found in depth will to
some extent balance its small volume by
its great gasoline content, although OPP
orators who drill where the rocks are
too much altered will be puzzled and dis
gusted by finding heavy asphaltic ma
terial in place of the highly fluid oil
they are looking for.
This paper was written in 1926
THIRTEEN YEARS before deep drill
ing took it's true place in the oil indus
try. Many of his theories have been
proven. In 1925 the deepest penetration
was 1919 feet. Today the deepest well
is something over 1900 feet. Ten
thousand foot wells are no longer
deep" Little more time is required to
drill three miles deep today than was
required for 5,000-foot wells in those
days. Much of this technique has been
developed in the three past years.
However, this improved technique
has not had much effect on northern
Montana The improvement in drilling is
in use Of rotary tools. Rotary tools have
been used in Turner Valley, where pro-
duction is found at depths from $500
to 1900 feet, and that formation is
identical with north Montana, except as
to total depth. The Turner Valley hori.
zon will be found in the top contours of
Kelvin field at from 200 to 5000 feet
which is not deep drilling as measured
by the accepted term.
1t DOES require rotary tools to drill
the 600 feet through the Madison lime
because near the base Of the lime is
a gas horizon which has ruined two at
tempted deep tests using cable tools.
The pressure is so great that 1t hurls
the tools out of the hole, wrecking der
ricks and endangering the lives of the
drlllers. Both the Texas-Pacific Coal
Oil test in Section 36-35-2W and the
Frazer-Rice deep test in Section 1885
Nv, were halted by this gas flow. That
is sufficient evidence that cable tools
cannot do the deep drilling necessary
to open production in lower horizons of
Kevin-Sunburst field.
Rotary tools capable of this drilling
are already in the state: tools that can
complete wells to the lowest possible
producing horizons in less time than it
takes to drill to the Madison lime with
present equipment.
NO ROTARY HOLE HAS EVER BEEN
DRILLED IN KEVIN-SUNBURST OIL
FIELD
This gives some idea of what is ahead
for the owners of royalty in Kevin-Sun-
burst field
This field has thus far paid
$5,936, 374 to owners of LAND
OWNERS royalties: nearly six
million dollars-with the Turner
Valley horizon and other breaks"
in the Madison lime yet to be
drilled and acidized and with the
known oil-bearing horizons Be
LOW the Madison lime yet to be
developed. Whether they will pro-
duce more or less oil than the up
per horizons remains to be seen,
Mr.. Heads theories giving us
some food for thought on the sub
ject.
We know OF no spot that has more
inspiring outlook for the future We
know of no better place to speculate in
low-priced royalties ahead of deep drill
ing.