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Hilcorp plans as many as 20 stratigraphic test wells on Kenai
Kristen Nelson Petroleum News
Hilcorp Alaska plans as many as 20 stratigraphic test wells on the Kenai Peninsula this summer and has applied to the Alaska Department of Natural Resources' Division of Oil and Gas to permit the eight wells which are on state of Alaska subsurface, the company said in its May 15 application. A total of 20 wells are planned with the remaining 12 on private surface and subsurface lands. The company said authorization for those test wells will be obtained separately.
(See map in the online issue PDF)
The program is scheduled from June to August, with a proposed start date of June 15, subject to receipt of authorizations, project constraints, scheduling, weather, and other factors, the company said.
The eight test wells in the state application are on the southern end of the Kenai Peninsula between Ninilchik and Anchor Point.
While all eight are on state subsurface, the division said four of the test wells are on private surface lands, one on Kenai Peninsula Borough surface lands and three on state surface lands.
600-foot wells "Hilcorp and its contractors have successfully completed numerous identical stratigraphic well tests in the southern Kenai Peninsula area since 2017," the company said.
Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission records show 42 stratigraphic test wells drilled by the company on the southern Kenai since 2017, including 10 Cottonfield wells, two Deep Creek wells, six Happy Valley wells, five Pearl wells and 12 Whiskey Gulch wells.
Truck-mounted drilling equipment will be used, the company said, with each well drilled to some 600 feet, evaluated and then plugged and abandoned. Casing will be drilled into place in the top 100-200 feet of each hole. Cuttings from drilling will be captured in a portable tank, with samples taken about every 30 feet. The waste cuttings will be transported to the Kenai gas field grind and inject facility for disposal.
Each well will be plugged and abandoned with a grout/bentonite mixture within 10 feet of the surface, Hilcorp said, and the top 20-30 feet of casing will be cut off and removed.
"The surface of the wellbore will be buried, and all locations will be cleaned/restored to the individual landowners' satisfaction," Hilcorp said.
Access Hilcorp said for activities on private property permission will be obtained from the landowner for activities on the property, including "surveying, site preparation, drilling activities, and data collection/evaluation for each stratigraphic test well," with locations chosen to minimize impact on property owners and the community.
Each stratigraphic test well requires a surface area of some 35 by 70 feet, with rig mats to be used where needed by ground conditions to provide the rig and support equipment a firm and stable work surface.
For sites within the right of way of the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, Hilcorp said the following conditions may apply:
*Test wells will be outside the Sterling Highway clear zone, 30 feet minimum, 50 feet desirable;
*At distances less than 30 feet, a traffic control plan is required;
*Equipment may have flashing yellow lights;
*There will be no material or equipment staging or parking in the clear zone;
*For casings which are above ground before being cut off below the surface at 20 feet, type II barricades will be used; and
*Where necessary to minimize damage, matting material will be used.
Comments on the proposal must be received by 4:30 p.m. June 17, the division said.
--KRISTEN NELSON
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