By By Lowell McGill
The Alabama Gas and Oil Board reported this week that preparations were underway to run production casing on Venture Gas and Oil’s Fountain Farm well No. 2, which is located on State property.
The official G&O Board wording was “the well was cored at TD 15,510 feet, logged and prep to run prod, casing.” No further drilling results on this well becoming a producer has been released as of press time Friday.
An oil journal Internet website describes production casing as “the last string of casing set in a well, inside of which is usually suspended a tubing string.” The well, which was cored at 15,510 feet, has a permit depth of 15,600 feet, is located near the old Hauss Nursery on a road that runs parallel to the Wayside Grocery Road. That road begins at State Highway 21 and runs east intersecting with Butler Street.
The G&O Board will lease more information on this well in their weekly report next week.
An Internet story Wednesday stated, “It is unclear whether a fourth well will be drilled.” While that fourth well site was not identified the G&O Board refers to it as Mason 36-14, which is about one mile east of the Fountain No. 2 well. This site is now being prepared for a rig to be erected for drilling according to the current G&O Board weekly report. Permit depth on the Mason unit is 15,400 feet.
Venture used the same drilling rig for all three of its wells and will use the rig to drill its fourth well according to a phone conversation with a Venture official this week. That spokesman said,” it is possible we could be real pleased with Smackover formations in the current drilling areas,” he said. “Hopefully our current well and the Mason well will generate us some good news.”
All these wells are regarded as “Wildcat Wells.” In the event of a new discovery, a ‘field” name would be assigned.
Local residents were pleased to read of another oil related story from the Associated Press Wednesday. In the article, it was stated that “Prison Commissioner Richard Allen announced Tuesday that the department has signed a five-year contract with Foote Oil and Gas Properties of Gulf Shores to explore for oil near the G.K Fountain Correction Center in South Alabama.” Andy Farquhar, director of Alabama Correction Industries, said. “Seismographic surveys show some hot spots that could yield oil.”
No new drilling permits have been released at press time, however.
The Gas and Oil board reported Ventures Floyd well near McCullough was “waiting on orders.” No other information was released on this unit, which had a permit depth of 15,700 feet.
Two other wells, Pruitt’s Morris unit and State Farm unit No. 1 were abandoned several weeks ago. No test results have been released on De Soto’s Edwards 13-1 unit located in Big Escambia Creek Field.