Review of Vedder pool development, Kern River field, Kern County, California
The Kern River field is located on the east side of the San Joaquin Valley, just north of Bakersfield, California. Since its discovery in 1899, the field has produced over 1 billion bbl of heavy oil from the Kern River Formation. It was not until 1981 that light oil was discovered from a deeper zone, the Vedder formation. The discovery well, Getty Oil Company WD-1 Apollo, encountered 40 ft of net oil sand within the third Vedder sand and was completed on pump for an initial production of 100 bbl of 40.5/sup 0/ API oil and 200 MCDGD. As suggested by its name, WD-1 Apollo was drilled as a water-water injection wells. However, a detailed subsurface study of the field suggested the possibility of a trap within the Vedder formation. The originally proposed location of WD-1 Apollo was then moved to test the proposal. The trap is a series of intersecting, up-to-the-basin normal faults trending west and northwest. These faults have dropped impermeable silty zones within the Vedder formation against the productive Vedder sands. Since the completion of WD-1 Apollo, nine other wells have been drilled within this pool, extending production over 1 mi to the southeast. One of the first of the extension wells, Getty Oil Company 73X Central Point, located approximately 600 ft southeast of WD-1 Apollo, established production from the second Vedder sand. This well was completed flowing 300 b/d of 32/sup 0/ API oil and 1000 MCFGD through a 16/64-in. choke. Through December 1985, Texaco (Getty Oil) produced more than 250,000 bbl of oil and 350,000 mcf of gas combined from the second and third Vedder sands from 2.5 net wells. Although attempts to find other such Vedder pools have met with limited success, there is still the potential for many to exist, given proper structural closure, as seen in the Apollo pool.
- Research Organization:
- Texaco, Bakersfield, CA
- OSTI ID:
- 5187116
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-8608105-
- Journal Information:
- Am. Assoc. Pet. Geol., Bull.; (United States), Vol. 70:7; Conference: 4. circum-Pacific energy and mineral resource conference, Singapore, China, 17 Aug 1986
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Tular Lake Field, Kings County, California - a significant onshore development
The floating oil pool - A unique trapping mechanism at Kern River field
Related Subjects
CALIFORNIA
OIL FIELDS
RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
OIL WELLS
PERMEABILITY
RESERVOIR ROCK
SANDSTONES
SILTSTONES
SOURCE ROCKS
WELL DRILLING
DRILLING
FEDERAL REGION IX
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
MINERAL RESOURCES
NORTH AMERICA
PETROLEUM DEPOSITS
RESOURCES
ROCKS
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
USA
WELLS
020200* - Petroleum- Reserves
Geology
& Exploration