Development of Conventional and Unconventional Reservoirs: West Tavaputs Plateau, Uinta Basin, Utah
Hinds, Gregory
Bill Barrett Corporation, Denver, CO
In early 2002, Bill Barrett Corporation purchased approximately
46,000 gross acres in three Federal Units in the Nine Mile Canyon
area of the Southern Uinta Basin. At the time of the purchase, the
field was producing 1.4 MMCFD from approximately 11 wells. The
purchase also included three federal permits, an ongoing
Environmental Assessment and an antiquated polypipe gathering
system. The company immediately applied to shoot an 83 square mile
3D seismic program and to expand the EA as well as renaming the
project to the West Tavaputs Plateau to better reflect the area of
operations.
Historical producing horizons at West Tavaputs include the
primarily fluvial reservoirs of the Blackhawk, Price River and North
Horn formations along with shallow production from the alluvial and
lacustrine reservoirs in the Green River-Wasatch transition zone. The
project area also contained two deep tests that had resulted in a small
amount of gas production from the Dakota formation. By applying
CO2-assisted fracture treatments and stacking completions, the
company has been able to overcome the previously marginal
economics from the normal to slightly over pressured reservoirs.
Also, by utilizing 3D seismic, Bill Barrett Corporation has been able
to define sweet spots within the complex structural and stratigraphic
controlled shallow reservoirs. The 3D was also instrumental in
identifying deeper potential which resulted in the discovery of
significant reserves in the Navajo formation. Presently, the company
has drilled over 80 Mesaverde depth wells and six Navajo wells.
Production has grown to over 90 MMCFD and continues to increase,
despite a very difficult regulatory and operating environment.
AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90071 © 2007 AAPG Rocky Mountain Meeting, Snowbird, Utah