Bend Arch–Fort Worth Basin - Petroleum Production History

Petroleum Production History

Hydrocarbon shows were first encountered in Province 045 during the mid-nineteenth century while drilling water wells. Sporadic exploration began following the War for Southern Independence, and the first commercial oil discoveries occurred in the early 1900s. In 1917, discovery of Ranger field stimulated one of the largest exploration and development "booms" in Texas. Ranger field produces from the Atoka-Bend formation, a sandstone-conglomerate reservoir that directly overlies the Barnett formation. Operators drilled more than 1,000 wildcats in and around the Fort Worth basin attempting to duplicate the success of Ranger. These wildcat efforts resulted in the discovery of more fields and production from numerous other reservoirs including Strawn fluvial/deltaic sandstone, Atoka-Bend fluvial/deltaic sandstone and conglomerate, Marble Falls carbonate bank limestone, Barnett siliceous shale, and Ellenburger dolomitic limestone. By 1960, the Province reached a mature stage of exploration and development, as demonstrated by the high density and distribution of well penetrations and production wells. Oil and lesser amounts of gas are found throughout the Paleozoic section, but most hydrocarbons consist of oil in Pennsylvanian reservoirs.

Province 045 is among the more active drilling areas during the resurgence of U.S. drilling, which began after the OPEC oil embargo. It has consistently appeared on the list of the 10 most active provinces in terms of wells completed and footage drilled. 9,177 oil wells and 4,520 gas wells were drilled and completed in this area from 1974 to 1980.

Cumulative production in Province 045 from conventional reservoirs prior to the 1995 USGS Assessment was 2 billion barrels (320×10^6 m3) of oil, 7.8 trillion cubic feet (220×10^9 m3) of gas, and 500 million barrels (79×10^6 m3) of natural gas liquids. Cumulative gas production through 2001 from the continuous Barnett fractured shale play in Wise and Denton counties was about 440 billion cubic feet (12×10^9 m3). Cumulative gas production from the Barnett Shale for the first half of 2002 was 94 billion cubic feet (2.7×10^9 m3); annual production for 2002 was estimated at 200 billion cubic feet (5.7×10^9 m3). Currently, over 2.5 trillion cubic feet (71×10^9 m3) of proven gas reserves are assessed for NE-F. These production and proven reserve figures for the Barnett play, combined with estimates of underdeveloped Barnett resources indicate that technically recoverable continuous gas, and to a lesser extent oil, from fractured Barnett Shale will provide the greatest additions to near-future reserves in Province 045.