Development of the Offshore East Wilmington Oil Field

Abstract

Abstract The East Wilmington Oil Field, comprising approximately 5930 productive acres, is located just off-shore Long Beach, California, and contains oil reserves of approximately 800 million barrels. It is being developed by THUMS Long Beach Company as contractor for the City of Long Beach, the Unit Operator. Development is from four, 10 acre, man-made islands and two on-shore locations. Approximately 575 wells have been drilled to date, producing from eight zones. Cumulative oil production as of June 30, 1969 was production as of June 30, 1969 was 93,485,157 barrels. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND The East Wilmington oil field is located in the south central part of the Los Angeles basin, on the south-easterly plunge of the Wilmington anticline (Plate 1). The Wilmington oil field overlies a basement high that extends in a southeasterly direction from Torrance oil field to Huntington Beach oil field, a distance of 21 miles. The Ranger Petroleum Co., Well No. "Watson", completed January 26, 1932, for 150 barrels per day of 14 degree gravity oil was the first commercial well completed in the field. However, recognition and development of the Wilmington structure awaited the completion of General Petroleum Corporation, Well No. "Terminal" 1, in December, 1936, for 1419 barrels per day of 20.5 degree gravity oil. Rapid development followed this event, and prior to initial drilling in the Long Beach Unit in July, 1965, approximately 3500 wells had been drilled and had produced about one billion barrels of oil from 7825 acres. Subsidence began in the center of the field shortly after inception of production, and rapidly became a major production, and rapidly became a major problem. Pilot water injection was problem. Pilot water injection was initiated in Fault Block VB in the Upper Terminal zone in June, 1953, and was quickly extended to other zones and fault blocks. In 1956, the City of Long Beach prohibited drilling east of Pine Avenue prohibited drilling east of Pine Avenue until the subsidence was controlled, the excluded area including all the present Long Beach Unit, exclusive of Tract 2.