Pantheon Resources has confirmed the successful flow testing of an oil discovery in the Brookian sequence in the Alkaid No. 1 well, just west of the Dalton Highway, south of the Prudhoe Bay unit. The test flowed 80 to 100 barrels of 40 API oil per day from a vertical perforated interval through the reservoir - horizontal wells that would be used in a field development would enable much higher flow rates, the company said. The zone of interest in the Brookian is estimated to have 240 feet of net pay within 400 feet of reservoir rock.
The flow testing has confirmed a new oil field discovery, Pantheon said. The company is applying to the state for permission to suspend and freeze protect the well, for future use in a field development.
Testing of secondary targets at shallower depths proved less successful, with brackish water being found in the West Sak and also inferred to be present in the Ugnu.
Pantheon says that the proximity of the new find to the Dalton Highway and the trans-Alaska pipeline should enable a shorter permitting and development schedule than is typical for the North Slope.
- ALAN BAILEY
See story in April 7 issue of Petroleum News, available online Friday, April 5, at www.PetroleumNews.com.
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