5s 2e section 17

Oklahoma Mineral Rights Carter County, OK
1

So if i remember right the shale formation that lies under Ardmore is about 15,000 feet down here. What kind of potential exists? We’ve leased out our acreage before but never any drilling occurred. No interest recently - at least no one has contacted me in years.

M. Barnes, i would really appreciate your input on this area.

John

2

The Carter area is seeing a resurgence in interest. The earlier plays were in the Atokan and Desmoinsian sands. They are looking at the Woodford shale and other potential shales for horizontal drilling. Most of the leases in the last six months have been on the western side of the county under the old shallow fields. Near Ratliff City, Tatums, Wilson. Not much around the city of Ardmore.

3

So is it a known quantity or largely unknown potential? I guess they have lower hanging fruit for the time being. Has this sort of formation, thickness of the shale and depth in my area be the type that has produced well in other places? Could there be undiscovered formations at other depths?

4

Hi John,

Carter County is a geologically complex area. The flurry of activity M. Barnes is discussing is in the Northern part of the County. As you move South of the Sho-Vel-Tum field, you get into complex faulting, making drilling difficult in places and impossible in others. XTO has had some success in intermontane areas on a section-by-section basis, but the resource is not homogenous across a large area like most fields you may be thinking of.

To answer your questions:

  1. 17-05S-02E would be an unknown potential
  2. Formation quality is on a section by section basis. If a geologist thought you had good rock quality here, you likely would have been approached to lease long ago. The last time an oil and gas operator filed any regulatory in the section was in 1976, and no well was ever drilled. In short, no.
  3. While there could be undiscovered formations at other depths, if anyone comes to drill they will most likely target the Woodford shale formation thereby holding all formations above it. There is not much potential for horizontal drilling below that formation in Oklahoma at this time.
5

Thank you for the detailed answer! It has been leased at least twice in the last 20 years so someone thought it had something. Also, an outfit was trying to lease it about 4 years ago but they refused to negotiate - their offer or nowt.