BEFORE THE OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION COMMISSION

OF THE STATE OF COLORADO

 

IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION OF PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION FOR AN ORDER ESTABLISHING SPACING AND WELL LOCATION RULES FOR THE WILLIAMS FORK FORMATION OF THE MESAVERDE GROUP FOR CERTAIN DESCRIBED LANDS IN THE RULISON FIELD AREA, GARFIELD COUNTY, COLORADO

 

 

CAUSE NO.

 

DOCKET NO.

 

 

APPLICATION

COMES NOW Petroleum Development Corporation ("Applicant"), by its attorneys, Gorsuch Kirgis LLP, and makes application to the Oil and Gas Conservation Commission of the State of Colorado for an order establishing spacing rules applicable to the drilling and producing of wells from the Williams Fork Formation of the Mesaverde Group covering certain described lands in the Rulison Field area, Garfield County, Colorado and in support of its application states and alleges as follows:

1.                  That Applicant is a corporation duly authorized to conduct business in the State of Colorado.

2.                  That Applicant owns a leasehold interest in the following described lands:

Township 6 North, Range 96 West, 6th P.M.

 

Section 4:  That portion of the section west of Parachute Creek

Section 5:  All

Section 6:  All

Section 7:  All

Section 8:  NW/4, E/2NE/4

Section 17:  W/2W/2, E/2W/2

Section 18:  All

Section 19:  SW/4

Section 30:  S/2

Section 31:  W/2

 

Township 6 North, Range 97 West, 6th P.M.

 

Section 12: All

Section 13: All

 

Township 7 South, Range 96 West, 6th P.M.

 

Section 5:  W/2, NE/4

Section 6:  S/2, NE/4

Section 7:  N/2, SE/4

Section 17:  NW/4

Section 18:  N/2

 

Township 7 North, Range 97 West, 6th P.M.

 

Section 1: W/2

Section 12: NE/4

 

(hereinafter “Application Lands”)

3.                  That the following described Application Lands (unspaced) are subject to the Commission's Order No. 510-1 which amended the Commission's Rule 316 (now Rule 318) to provide that the permitted wells should be located no closer than 400 feet from the boundaries of any lease line and no closer than 800 feet from any existing well drilled into and producing from the Williams Fork Formation of the Mesaverde Group:

Township 6 South, Range 96 West, 6th P.M.

 

Section 8:  NW/4, E/2NE/4

Section 17:  W/2W/2

Section 19:  SW/4

Section 30:  S/2

Section 31:  W/2

 

Township 7 South, Range 96 West, 6th P.M.

 

Section 5:  W/2, NE/4

Section 6:  S/2, NE/4

Section 7:  N/2, SE/4

Section 17:  NW/4

Section 18:  N/2

 

Township 7 South, Range 97 West, 6th P.M.

 

Section 1: W/2

Section 12: NE/4

 

4.                  That the following described Application Lands (unspaced) are subject to the Commission’s Order Number 510‑4 which established 40-acre drilling and spacing units for the below listed lands which were previously unspaced and the number of wells which can be drilled into and produced from the Williams Fork Formation shall be the equivalent of one (1) well per twenty acres for such lands.  The permitted well shall be located no closer than 200 feet from the boundaries of the drilling unit and no closer than 400 feet from any existing Williams Fork Formation well or wells:

Township 6 South, Range 96 West, 6th P.M.

 

Section 17:  E/2W/2

 

5.                  That the following described Application Lands are unspaced and subject to the Commission’s Rule 318a:

Township 6 South, Range 96 West, 6th P.M.

 

Section 4:  That portion of the section west of Parachute Creek

Section 5:  All

Section 6:  All

Section 7:  All

 

Township 6 South, Range 97 West 6th P.M.

 

Section 12: All

Section 13: N/2

 

6.                  That Applicant and others have drilled, tested and completed multiple wells in the Williams Fork Formation of the Mesaverde Group upon the Application Lands and other nearby lands.

7.                  That to promote efficient drainage within the Williams Fork Formation of the Mesaverde Group of the Application Lands, the Commission should increase the number of wells which can be optionally drilled into and produced from the Williams Fork Formation of the Application Lands which constitute existing drilling units (or portions thereof) to the equivalent of one Williams Fork well per 10 acres.

8.                  That as to all future Williams Fork wells to be drilled upon the Application Lands (as described in paragraph 4), the well should be located downhole anywhere in the drilling and spacing unit but no closer than 100 feet from the boundaries of the unit without exception being granted by the Director of the Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.  It is provided however that in cases where the Application Lands abut or corner lands in respect of which the Commission has not at the time of drilling permit application granted the right to drill 10 acre density Williams Fork wells, the well should be located downhole no closer than 200 feet from the boundary or boundaries of the drilling unit so abutting or cornering such lands without exception being granted by the Director of the Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.

9.                  As to those Application Lands which are unspaced (described in paragraph 3 and paragraph 5), all future Williams Fork wells should be located downhole anywhere upon the Application Lands but no closer than 100 feet from the boundaries of any lease line unless such lease line abuts or corners lands in respect of which the Commission has not at the time of drilling permit application granted the right to drill 10 acre density wells in which event the wells should be drilled downhole no closer than 200 feet from the lease line which so abuts or corners the lands in respect of which 10 acre density downhole drilling for Williams Fork wells has not been ordered by the Commission.  Applicant would clarify that as to the Application Lands subject to these well location requirements, it is not intended by this application to drill more than four (4) Williams Fork wells downhole per governmental quarter quarter section. 

10.              Applicant commits that wells to be drilled under this Application will be drilled from the surface either vertically or directionally from no more than one pad located on a given quarter quarter section unless exception is granted by the Director of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.

11.              That the above-proposed spacing and well location rules will allow more efficient drainage of the Williams Fork Formation of the Mesaverde Group; will not promote waste; will not violate correlative rights and will assure the greatest ultimate recovery of gas and associated hydrocarbon substances from the reservoir.

12.              That the names and addresses of the interested parties according to the information and belief of the Applicant are set forth in Exhibit A attached hereto and made a part hereof.

 

WHEREFORE, Applicant respectfully requests that this matter be set for hearing in July, 2004, that notice be given as required by law and that upon such hearing this Commission enter its order consistent with Applicant's proposals as set forth above.

Dated this _______ day of May, 2004.

GORSUCH KIRGIS LLP

 

 

By:                                                                             

      William A. Keefe

Tower 1, Suite 1000

1515 Arapahoe Street

Denver, Colorado  80202

 

STATE OF __________________                 )

                                                                        )         ss.

COUNTY OF ________________                )

 

___________________________, of lawful age, being first duly sworn upon oath, deposes and says that he is the __________________________ for Petroleum Development Corporation and that he has read the foregoing Application and that the matters therein contained are true to the best of his knowledge, information and belief.

 

                                                                                  

 

 

 

Subscribed and sworn to before me this _____ day of May, 2004.

Witness my hand and official seal.

My commission expires:                                                   

 

                                                                                  

Notary Public

( S E A L )

 

 

EXHIBIT A

Tom Brown Inc.

555 17th Street, Suite 1850

Denver, CO 80222

 

Union Oil Company of California

376 S. Valencia

Brea, CA 92823

 

Chevron Shale

Chevron U.S.A. Inc

11111 S. Wilcrest Dr.

Houston, TX 77079

 

Williams Production RMT Company

Tower 3, Suite 1000

1515 Arapahoe St

Denver, CO 80202

 

Rosewood Resources Inc

200 Crescent Ct, Suite 300

Dallas, TX 75201

 

Abo Petroleum Corporation

Yates Drilling Company

Yates Petroleum Company

Myco Industries, Inc

Martin Yates III Estate

331 West Main

Artesia, NM 88021

 

Zenith Drilling Corporation

1861 North Rock Road, Suite 200

Wichita, KS 67206

 

Bureau of Land Management

2850 Youngfield Street

Lakewood, CO 80215-7076

 

 

 

Bureau of Land Management

Grand Junction Office

2815 H Road

Grand Junction, CO 81506

 

Gerald W. Brummett

8006 W 78th Circle

Arvada, CO 80005

 

Occidental Oil Shale Inc

2480 Fortune Drive, Suite 300

Lexington, KY 40509

 

Oxy USA WTP LP

P.O. Box 4294

Houston, TX 77210-4294

 

Shell Frontier Oil & Gas Inc

P.O. Box 576

Houston, TX 77001

 

EEX Corporation

2500 Citywest Blvd, Suite 1400

Houston, TX 77042-3000

 

Alarado Corp

215 Union Blvd, #450

Lakewood, CO 80228

 

Barrett Reserve Corp

1125 17th Street, Suite 2400

Denver, CO 80202

 

BEFORE THE OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION COMMISSION

OF THE STATE OF COLORADO

 

IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION OF PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION FOR AN ORDER ESTABLISHING SPACING AND WELL LOCATION RULES FOR THE WILLIAMS FORK FORMATION OF THE MESAVERDE GROUP FOR CERTAIN DESCRIBED LANDS IN THE RULISON FIELD AREA, GARFIELD COUNTY, COLORADO

 

 

CAUSE NO.

 

DOCKET NO.

 

 

AFFIDAVIT OF MAILING

STATE OF COLORADO                         )

                                                                  )           ss.

CITY AND COUNTY OF DENVER       )

 

William A. Keefe of lawful age, and being first duly sworn upon his oath, states and declares:

That he is the attorney for Petroleum Development Corporation, that on May ___, 2004, he caused a copy of the attached Application in the subject docket to be deposited in the United States Mail, postage prepaid, addressed to the parties listed on Exhibit A to the Application.

 

                                                                                  

William A. Keefe

 

Subscribed and sworn to before me May ____, 2004.

Witness my hand and official seal.

My commission expires:  ___________________________

                                                                                  

Notary Public