Vision requests North Fork UIC well permit; plans more drilling
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Kristen Nelson Petroleum News
Vision Operating has applied to the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission for a Class 2 underground injection control well permit at its North Fork unit on the Kenai Peninsula.
The application indicates that Vision has plans to expand natural gas production from North Fork.
The Dec. 21 application, signed by Vision Operating President Stephen Hennigan, said there are eight existing NFU wells, with as many as 22 producing and pressure maintenance wells possible, up to two disposal wells and ancillary equipment and production processing and handling facilities for oil, gas and water.
Vision said the unit currently averages some 3 million cubic feet per day of natural gas, and production with planned activities could be as much as 60 million cubic feet per day, a volume which would make the field the largest current producer in Cook Inlet.
With the larger volume of gas, water production is projected at 5,000 barrels of water per day, the company said.
Field development Drilling began at the field in 1965, when Standard Oil of California constructed a pad and drilled the NFU 41-35 well, Vision said in a summary of field activity.
Armstrong Cook Inlet constructed the NFU Pad in 2008 and drilled the NFU 24-36 well that same year.
In early 2010 Anchor Point Energy initiated permitting and construction of natural gas pipelines, with pipeline construction completed in March 2011.
General pad work and drilling and workover operations in the summer of 2010 included minor pad upgrades, workover and recompletion of the original well at the NFU 41-35 PAD and drilling an additional gas well from the NFU PAD.
The unit’s single participating area, the Gas Pool No. 1 PA, was established in 1965 covering 640 acres. In 2011 it was expanded to 800 acres, the same year in which sustained production was achieved.
In 2013 NFU and the pipelines were sold to Cook Inlet Energy, which in turn sold them to Vision Operating in 2021.
Proposed disposal wells Eight wells have been drilled at North Fork, Vision said, with two shut in, NFU 23-25 and NFU 41-35, and six producing.
Vision said the proposed disposal well uses an existing well, NFU 23-25, with appropriate conversions. The Tyonek formation will be used for disposal.
The conversion of the well will be in two phases, Vision said, with the first phase perforating Zone 1 sands in the Lower Tyonek, with seven intervals identified for injection. “All of the zones are porous sands capable of receiving injected fluids,” the company said.
If more injection capacity is needed, Zone 2 will be perforated. That zone has six intervals identified for injection, Vision said.
Initial injection operations in the Lower Tyonek will begin at the lowest zone and continue upwards as required.
Vision said an estimated 75% of wastes planned for disposal are produced water coming directly from gas production which is entirely in the Tyonek formation. “These produced fluids will be sent to the injection well(s) for disposal back into areas of the Tyonek Formation where natural gas is not being produced,” the company said.
Hearing information The commission has scheduled a public hearing on the application for Feb. 15 at 10 a.m. at its Anchorage offices and said in the event of health and safety concerns the hearing may be changed from in-person to remote using MS Teams, with an audio call-in number of 907-202-7104, conference ID No. 705 044 624#.
Anyone wishing to participate remotely using MS Teams video conference should contact the commission’s special assistant, Grace Salazar, at 907-793-1221, or [email protected].
- KRISTEN NELSON
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