After commencing the first phase of its summer drilling program early, Edge Resources Inc. has successfully drilled, cased, and completed two wells in Primate, Saskatchewan, one of which has resulted in the discovery of a new pool.
Both wells will commence production testing and pressure buildup analysis simultaneously. Additionally, the company acquired 100% of the land it posted at a recent Crown land sale; adding 395 net acres of contiguous property to its existing Grand Forks oil asset.
In Primate, the company had secured the drilling rig, which was between wells on a nearby program for another operator, on a short-term window. This allowed the company to commence drilling earlier than it had planned.
The wells were successfully drilled to the primary target, the McLaren formation, at less than 850 m (2,789 ft), having passed through several other potentially hydrocarbon-bearing sandstones. On-site geological analysis and logs indicate no less than 12 m (39 ft) of McLaren formation sands were encountered in both wells.
The company is now equipping the wells for pressure buildup analysis and production. Production testing will commence immediately and will likely require four weeks, but possibly up to three months, before a stabilized production regime can be established, as is normal with all cold heavy oil production with sand wells.
Brad Nichol, president and CEO, said “We are especially pleased with the well drilled in the eastern section, which was previously given zero value on our reserve report. Our Primate asset continues to represent a wonderful opportunity to increase both oil production (and associated cash flow) and asset value. It was nice to drill the first two wells early and establish production in eastern section before drilling the rest of the program.”
The first well was drilled in an eastern section of the company’s Primate, Saskatchewan property. This section is a non-producing section that immediately offsets a very actively-drilled area. As this section did not contain any producing wells, it was previously allocated zero value in the company’s reserve report and balance sheet. This new pool, described as a mid-Mannville heavy oil accumulation, is offsetting a similar, but separate, pool to the east, which is believed to be currently producing over 2,000 b/d of oil.
The second well was drilled into the company’s existing, producing pool and encountered approximately 15 m (49 ft) of net pay. This was the southernmost location into the existing pool to-date, which helped to further delineate and define a relatively undrilled area of the existing pool. After being perforated, this well was shut-in to commence a multi-day pressure buildup. Production testing will commence after several days of collecting pressure data.
Nichol added, “Given this initial success, we have already commenced a plan to shoot 3D seismic over the sections in Asset East. This will help us delineate this oil pool and assist us in choosing locations for additional wells. We hope to commence a seismic program in 4Q of this year, after the crops are off the fields.”
Additionally, the company acquired 395 net acres of mineral land rights at a crown land sale, which increased the company’s land position in Grand Forks, Alberta, where the next phase of this summer's drilling program is expected to commence.
