The Bar F # 1-20-3-2 discovery well commenced oil production on March 24, 2010 in the center of the Uinta Basin, Utah testing at a stable average rate of more than 900 barrels oil per day of 42 API yellow wax crude and 650 thousand cubic feet per day (Mcfd) of natural gas with approximately 1,400 pounds of flowing tubing pressure.
The well was completed in the Lower Green River and Upper Wasatch formations at a depth of 8200ft to 9600ft with six stages of hydraulic fracing. The Bar F is about seven miles south of the Altamont-Bluebell fields and potentially represents a major southerly extension of these fields that combined have produced over 373 million barrels of oil equivalent from approximately 792 wells.
Since December 2009, Branta has participated in eight Greater Monument Butte oil wells in the South Myton Bench Area (the Moon Wells) which have been drilled and completed as a northern extension of the Monument Butte oil field.
The Moon wells include some of the highest initial producing rates for wells drilled to date in the Monument Butte field. Two of the eight wells remain shut-in as processing facilities are expanded to handle unexpectedly high volumes of crude oil and natural gas.
The six producing Moon wells on production have produced in excess of 115,000 barrels of oil since December, 2009. The Moon 3A-29 initially flowed for a 24 hour period at over 1,900 barrels of oil per day (bopd) with current estimated daily production of 350bopd.
The Bar F # 1-20-3-2 well was drilled to a total depth of 17566ft into the over-pressured Mesaverde basin centered gas formation and was tested from 14000ft to 17400ft with an eight stage hydraulic fracing program. The well flowed at rates between 1.5 and 2 MMcfd of natural gas from various individually tested intervals. These tests have not conclusively determined the commercial potential of a stand-alone Mesaverde natural gas development in the current price environment.
These tests do, however, establish a multi TCF, long term gas resource which could be substantially held by production from development of the shallower oil resources currently being tested in the Bar F.
The Bar F established the fundamentals for long term natural gas drilling including an interval of 3,000 gross feet of tight sands with natural gas, over-pressure, evidence of natural fracturing and confirmation of the utility of hydraulic fracing.
Branta plans to conduct an active appraisal and development drilling program for oil on the Altamont-Bluebell southerly extension and the Monument Butte northerly extension with a view to having the first phase of development drilling substantially complete within three years. Further, Branta is participating in planning and consideration of both a 2D and 3D seismic program across these fields.
