Texas' biggest steamflood near start

Journal Article · Mon Dec 19 04:00:00 EST 1966 · Oil Gas J.; (United States)

OSTI ID:6432090

Shell Oil Co. has started drilling, site clearing, and equipment installation for its full-scale thermal assault on bulky heavy oil deposits in the Slocum Field, Texas. The target pay zone is the Wilcox, topped at 500 ft and averaging roughly 44 ft thick. Only small quantities have been recovered to date from an estimated 77-million bbl reserve of heavy oil in this piney woods area of East Texas. Oil viscosity, coupled with other problems such as unconsolidated sand, has stymied all previous efforts to recover respectable percentages of in - place reserves. Shell hopes to fare better with its thermal-recovery operation. The first phase of the project, covering some 39 acres, will get under way by February. About 2 to 3 million bbl of the heavy oil is in place in this area. If the first part of the test is successful, the second stage will begin in a year or two. This could extend the steamflood over the rest of the field, now mainly undeveloped.

• OSTI ID: 6432090
• Journal Information: Oil Gas J.; (United States), Journal Name: Oil Gas J.; (United States) Vol. 64:51; ISSN OIGJA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
020300* -- Petroleum-- Drilling & Production
ENERGY SOURCES
ENHANCED RECOVERY
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FOSSIL FUELS
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NORTH AMERICA
OIL WELLS
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RECOVERY
SOUTHWEST REGION
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TEXAS
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