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Aurora Gas applies to produce 3 wells at Nicolai Creek gas field Company began work at field in late 2000, with first production last October; joint venture with Boelens Well Service of Wyoming has brought in truck-mounted rig Petroleum News Alaska
Aurora Gas LLC has applied to the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission to complete and produce three gas wells at its Nicolai Creek gas field on the west side of Cook Inlet.
The commission said July 17 that Aurora has applied for a spacing exception for the wells — permission to complete and produce them within 3,000 feet of each other and within 1,500 feet of a property boundary.
The Nicolai Creek unit No. 1B, No. 2 and No. 8 wells all have surface, anticipated productive intervals and bottomhole locations in section 29 of township 11 north range 12 west, Seward Meridian.
Aurora arranged a $25 million line of equity in May and said at the time that it would use an initial draw of $5 million to acquire undeveloped acreage and continue development of the Nicolai Creek field.
Ed Jones, Aurora’s vice president of production and asset management, said when the financing was acquired that the company would re-complete several wells for production this summer. Jones told the commission late last year that Aurora planned to drill the Nicolai Creek unit No. 8 well, re-complete the No. 2 well and re-enter and sidetrack the No. 1A well in 2002, with installation of a common production facility and pipeline for these wells planned for the summer of 2002.
In June the commission approved underground disposal at Nicolai Creek of produced water; drilling, completion and workover fluids; drill cuttings; rig wash; mud slurries; and other Class II fluids and solids at the Nicolai Creek unit No. 5 well. Production from single well In May, the latest month for which the commission has posted field production figures, Nicolai Creek produced 74 million cubic feet of gas from one well.
Aurora purchased the interests of Unocal and Marathon in the Nicolai Creek gas field in early 2000. The field was discovered when companies were exploring for oil and some gas was used for field operations.
Aurora began development at Nicolai Creek in late 2000 with the work over of the Nicolai Creek unit No. 3 well; production facilities and pipeline for that well were installed between May and October of 2001 and production began Oct. 3.
Scott Pfoff, president of Aurora Power Resources, a partner in Aurora Gas, told the Alaska Support Industry Alliance in early 2001 that Aurora plans to pursue similar development opportunities at small fields already discovered in Cook Inlet.
“We see this as a real niche for us,” Pfoff said.
This month Aurora Well Service LLC, a joint venture between Pfoff and Boelens Well Service LLC of Thermopolis, Wyo., brought a truck-mounted rig to Alaska for Cook Inlet work.
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