Planning and Progress on Drilling a Record-Depth Well in the Rocky Mountains

Abstract

Introduction Rainbow Resources Inc., as operator for the Pacific Creek Deep Unit, has drilled a record-depth well in the Rocky Mountains. The Pacific Creek structure, which was defined by seismic techniques, is about 200 miles (322 km) southwest of Casper, WY, and 60 miles (97 km) north of Rock Springs, WY.The well was spudded March 14, 1978, and breached a total depth of 25,764 ft (7853 m) on May 9, 1979. This surpassed the previous depth record of 23,081 ft (7035 m) held by American Quasar Petroleum Co. in their Sellers Draw Unit 2, Well 1, in Petroleum Co. in their Sellers Draw Unit 2, Well 1, in Park County, WY. This paper discusses the planning Park County, WY. This paper discusses the planning for this record-depth well including the casing design, mud program, cementing of the deep strings, and drilling progress and techniques used to total depth. Geology and Structure Fig. 1 is a generalized columnar section of the Green River basin. Superior Oil Co. originally drilled this structure to 20,521 ft (6255 m) in 1949 and held the world's depth record until 1952. Terra Resources Inc. drilled a 13,500-ft (41 15-m) test on the structure in 1974. The Superior well bottomed in the top of the Frontier formation, and Terra bottomed in the Rock Springs formation. This left all the possible productive formations from the Frontier to the productive formations from the Frontier to the Madison untested on the Pacific Creek structure. Fig. 2 shows the structure contoured on top of the Nugget formation. As shown, the structure encompasses two large anticlinal closures. The northern structure has not yet been tested. The drilling of Pacific Creek Deep Unit Federal 1-34 has confirmed Pacific Creek Deep Unit Federal 1-34 has confirmed that the Superior and Terra wells were not drilled on the top of the southern structure. Drilling History Drilling Rig Parker Drilling Co.'s Rig 166 was used to drill Parker Drilling Co.'s Rig 166 was used to drill Federal 1-34. It is a diesel-electric rig and has an OIME Inc. Hercules E-3000 drawworks driven by two General Electric Co. 752 [1,000-hp (746-kW)] electric motors. The Lee C. Moore Corp. derrick is 142 X 30 ft (43 X 9 m) with 1.3 million lbm (589 670 kg) static hook load and 800,000 Ibm (362 874 kg) setback capacity. Prime movers consist of three Waukesha 5792's rated at 1,000 hp (746 kW), each of which drive generators that are fed through an SCR system.Mud pumps are two Continental-Emsco Co. FA-1600's. Two 6 X 8 in. (15.24 >< 20.32 cm) and two 5 x 6 in. (12.7 X 15.24 cm) centrifugal pumps are used for mud mixing. The rig is equipped with four 400-bbl (63.59-m3) mud pits and a 100-bbl (15.90-m3) trip tank.Drillpipe is 5-in. (12.7-cm) OD, 19.5-lbm (885-kg) Grades E and 5-135. Drill collars arc 9 1/2-in. JPT