Oooguruk development on schedule; Pioneer appraising nearby leases for tie-in

In a Nov. 1 conference call Pioneer Natural Resources executives told stock market analysts the company was on schedule with development of its Oooguruk oil field in the shallow waters of Alaska’s Beaufort Sea. First production is still scheduled for early 2008, Pioneer Chairman and CEO Scott Sheffield said.

Company President and COO Timothy Dove said Pioneer was looking at adjacent opportunities to possibly tie into Oooguruk — something Sheffield mentioned in August.

“We’re happy to have completed the gravel drill site at Oooguruk on schedule. We should be building ice roads somewhere in the neighborhood of the mid part of December. … (We) plan to put production modules in place all through the first quarter. We’re also installing the subsea pipeline back to the shore and installing the rig. We need to get the rig out there before the ice moves out,” Dove said Nov. 1.

Development drilling, he said, would start in early 2007.

“We also know that there’s known reserves in and around Oooguruk that we’re now evaluating for potential tie-ins as we get closer to actual production,” Dove said. “In fact we know that there’s a known resource about two to three miles away that’s 20 million to 30 million barrels, which has several wells already having penetrated it.”

Pioneer Executive Vice President and CFO Richard Dealy said the company would be drilling development wells at Oooguruk through 2010, and that initial production would be 6,000 to 7,000 barrels per day, “climbing to 15,000 to 20,000 barrels on a gross basis by 2010.”

Makua drill sites nearby

Alaska’s Division of Oil and Gas Director Bill Van Dyke told Petroleum News Nov. 9 that there was good potential for commercial oil discoveries between Oooguruk, which is northwest of the Kuparuk River unit on the North Slope, and ConocoPhillips’ Alpine field to the west.

“If you’re standing on Pioneer’s island and look around in a two to three mile radius you’ll see an area that was initially drilled mainly by Texaco and ARCO. To the southwest are ConocoPhillips leases and the Makua wells Conoco is looking at drilling (see related story on page 3). … (Also) to the southwest are Pioneer leases,” Van Dyke said.

“Pioneer is developing a Jurassic-age reservoir at Oooguruk. It’s very similar in age to the main reservoir at Alpine. Although Alpine is farther west, for the most part it’s the same rocks. … For Pioneer it’s just a matter of finding good reservoir rocks, good quality oil, and commercial quantities of oil,” he said.

The oil at Oooguruk is “more viscous. The reservoir quality is a little better at Alpine and the oil is very light. But there’s been some good oil shows in wells drilled in the area,” Van Dyke said, mentioning ARCO, Texaco, Amerada Hess and Unocal wells.

“There’s also a chance to pick up a Kuparuk reservoir. … And there’s always the possibility of finding something unexpected. There’s always been good oil charge in the area from Oooguruk to Alpine.”

—Kay Cashman