Petro River Oil, an independent oil and gas exploration company utilizing the latest 3-D seismic technology, announced the spudding of 1 of the 4 exploration wells in its Pearsonia West Concession.
The issuance of permits for drilling marks an important turn-out in Osage County, Oklahoma, which had been previously delayed due to uncertainty in environmental standards and regulations.
The first 2 exploration wells–South Blackland #1-11 and South Blackland 2-11 –will be drilled to a depth of approximately 2,800 feet. The 4 vertical explorations wells are testing the first 1,610 acres of the 4,480 acre structural closures identified by the re-processing of 3-D seismic and has prospective resource potential of 2.5 million barrels of oil. Results will be anticipated within 45 days. Success on these wells will confirm interpretation of the 35 square miles of 3-D seismic re-processed in August 2016 which identified 10+ structures and significant opportunities for the Petro River.
“This is a significant milestone for the company,” said Stephen Brunner, president of Petro River. “We are now able to validate our advanced 3-D seismic technology, and after a prolonged waiting period in Osage County for drilling permits, the Company is excited to start our Pearsonia West project where we believe there are significant pools of oil within our defined structures.”
The Company’s Pearsonia West Concession in Osage County, Oklahoma includes 106,500 contiguous acres centered on the structural trend of the Pearsonia-Blackland-Foraker fields. These fields have produced in excess of 20 million barrels of oil through vertical well development, and is close to fields that have produced 200 million barrels of oil through vertical production since the early 1900s, without the benefit of 3-D seismic technology.
Osage County, OK
The federal government holds the mineral estate beneath Osage County in trust for the Osage Nation and together they have been working on a solution to resume permitted drilling in this field. As a result, the Bureau of Indian Affairs requires all applicants to fill out a questionnaire to receive environmental assessments as required by the National Environmental Policy Act before giving out drilling permits. Petro River is one of the first to receive a permit to drill under these terms since 2015.