Hilcorp looking for Tyonek gas at Beluga

Kristen Nelson

Petroleum News

Hilcorp Alaska has applied to the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission for a spacing exception to allow drilling of the Beluga River Unit 223-24 well in the Beluga River Sterling/Beluga Undefined Gas Pool and the Beluga River Tyonek Undefined Gas Pool within the Beluga River field.

Hilcorp requested the spacing exception because there are multiple wells within the governmental section where the well is proposed and there is a vertical ownership change involved.

There are no pool rules for the Beluga field, Hilcorp said, instead the commission issues well spacing exceptions, 22 in the field since 1972.

The change in ownership issue arises because from the surface down to the bottom of the Undefined Sterling/Beluga (also the top of the Undefined Tyonek), Hilcorp, the field operator, has a 33.3% working interest ownership and Chugach Electric Association has a 66.67% WIO. Below the top of the Undefined Tyonek, Chugach Electric has a 100% WIO, meaning the wellbore will cross the ownership boundary.

Hilcorp said the well will target the Undefined Tyonek, but if the deeper sands in the Tyonek “prove unsuccessful, it will move up hole targeting and testing additional sands in the Undefined Sterling/Beluga.”

This will be the first well in the Beluga River field targeting production from the Undefined Tyonek, Hilcorp said.

“All other existing wells within the Beluga River Field currently produce from the Undefined Sterling/Beluga,” Hilcorp told the commission in its Sept. 13 application.

The commission has tentatively scheduled a public hearing on the request for Oct. 20 at 10 a.m. in its Anchorage offices but said the hearing would be held only if the commission receives a written request by 4:30 p.m. Oct. 13, “indicating a significant degree of public interest.” If, however, there isn’t a timely hearing request filed, the commission may consider issuance of an order without a hearing. Information on the hearing will be available on the AOGCC Events webpage after Oct. 13, the commission said.

- KRISTEN NELSON