Hello All,
I have mineral rights in Beckham, County Oklahoma. Currently I have three horizontal well producing (Apache Corporation) on Section 17 11N 21W (20 acres rights-640 acre tract). I have one such well producing on Section 18 11N 21W (5 acres rights-640 acre tract). All of the wells produced from the Granite Wash “C” play. The wells are Smith 1-17H, Smith 2-17H, Roza 1-17-H and Madole 1-18H. All of the wells were very good initially (since about 2012- 2014) but now the royalties have dwindled by about 95%. Here are my questions: 1. Will these good wells ever be reworked/refracked to bring back higher revenues? 2. I was told there are multiple plays in this area, so will they ever drill new wells at different depths? (an Apache landman told me years ago that the Cottage Grove play may be next). I have called Apache on numerous occasions but the are tight lipped about everything. They told me that because oil & gas prices are so low, there is limited activity in that area. I am wondering whether or not this area will still be considered for expansion of drilling down the road. Any advise will help. Thank you. S. Klausner
The decline on the wells is about right. Don’t get too discouraged. They are liable to last a very long time at the low rates. We call it the hockey stick shape. The blade is the first few years and the stick is the next 30 or so years. The shape of the decline changes over time. I looked up the wells and Smith 1 looks predictable. Smith 2 seems to have some oil issues, but the gas looks good. Roza looks predictable. Madole looks it might have had a problem. Plenty of room for more wells in section 18.
The new players in the area are Atalaya Resources and Le Norman Operating. They have several wells in the township over the last two years.
In general, if the economics are good, operators may come back and drill additional wells or rework older wells. The technology for horizontal completions now is so much better than back in 2012. The reserves are still in the ground, they just need the right prices to justify coming back for them. Companies look at their whole portfolio to see what they keep for a later date, what they sell, what they work on right now.
Here is the latest investor presentation on Apache. They are really focussing on the Permian basin right now.
http://investor.apachecorp.com/static-files/fe7dd462-9828-4759-936e-820065adb105
If you have kids and grandkids, then consider hanging onto the acreage for the future as cycles come and go. This horizontal play concept has decades left to go. Keep an eye on what Atalaya and Le Norman are doing. The “Des Moines” time frame does have multiple reservoirs. As time goes on, they may develop them further.
We have acreage in 10N-21W and are hanging onto it for the future.
If you get a good offer to sell, then you need to consider the pros and cons of it as well.
Apache assets in this region (Anadarko Basin) were just purchased by Presidio Petroleum. We are hoping they will run with the ball, and start to enhance and redevelop these existing assets. Does anyone know if they are active or will be soon in Beckham County, OK? Thanks for your help. S.K.