BEFORE THE OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION COMMISSION OF THE STATE OF COLORADO
IN THE MATTER OF THE PROMULGATION AND ESTABLISHMENT OF FIELD RULES TO GOVERN OPERATIONS IN THE BRANDON FIELD, KIOWA COUNTY, COLORADO	) ) ) )	CAUSE NO. 188 ORDER NO. 188-12

REPORT OF THE COMMISSION

On May 19, 1971, the Commission issued its Order No. 188-10 in which it was found, among other things, that by maintaining the present production restrictions in the Brandon Field, maximum oil recovery may not be attained and that such restrictions should be withdrawn.  It was ordered that before the provisions of Order No. 188-3 be rescinded, lifting the restrictions placed on production, the field operators should file with the Director a detailed plan or plans by which all water that might reasonably be expected to be produced in the field if such restrictions should be lifted would be disposed of underground.  Such plan was to assure full protection of correlative rights and suggest a field-wide plan of proration to be effective in certain times of excess water production.

Said order also provided that if agreement on the disposal and proration plan or plans could not be reached by the field operators any operator could request a hearing.

By letters, maps, and instruments, filed by Inexco Oil Company with the Commission under dates of May 25, 1971, and June 3, 1971, a water disposal plan for the Brandon Field has been submitted included in such material is a Salt Water Disposal Agreement under date of December 24, 1969.

FINDINGS

The Commission finds as follows:

1.      That the plan for disposal of the produced water in the Brandon Field as submitted provides for the existing disposal system, in operation under terms of a Salt Water Disposal Agreement dated December 24, 1969, to be expanded and amended with the approval of the present participants as well as those operators wishing to participate in the future.

2.      That said plan includes data pertaining to the estimated future volume of produced water, capacity of the system and dates for completion of various phases of the system; it appears that adequate provision has been made to assure that all water that might reasonably be expected to be produced in the field if producing restrictions should be lifted will be disposed of underground.

3.      That Salt Water Disposal Agreement contains a provision that in the event total withdrawal in the field exceeds the disposal system capacity, the capacity of the system shall be apportioned among the producers.

4.      That said plan grants to all operators in the field an opportunity to dispose of their produced water underground, and all operators have been given an opportunity to either join in the system or have their water disposed of on a charge per barrel basis.

5.      The plan submitted provides for the protection of the correlative rights of all parties.

6.      No request for hearing upon the water disposal plan or the plan of pro-ration provided therein has been made by any party.

7.      That the Commission should therefore approve said plan and rescind the provisions of Order No. 188-8 and allow an unrestricted fluid withdrawal rate from the field, provided that such withdrawal be limited whenever adequate disposal is not made of all produced water.

ORDER

NOW, THEREFORE, IT IS ORDERED that the provisions of Order No. 188-3 are hereby rescinded, insofar as they apply to producing restrictions, and unrestricted fluid withdrawal is hereby allowed, provided that such withdrawal be limited whenever adequate disposal is not made of all produced water.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that all produced water shall be disposed of underground and the plan as submitted by Inexco Oil Company, which includes the Salt Water Disposal Agreement, for disposal of such produced waters is hereby approved; and in the event that the volume of water produced in the field at any time should exceed the capacity of the underground disposal system, until a request for hearing for reconsideration of the plan submitted is filed, water disposal shall be prorated on the basis provided for in said Salt Water Disposal Agreement.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that this order shall become effective June 15, 1971.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Commission expressly reserves the right, after notice and hearing, to alter, amend or repeal any part of or all of the above orders.

ORDERED this 15th day of June 1971.

OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION COMMISSION OF THE STATE OF COLORADO
	By	Frank J. Piro, Secretary