1 Northern California's San Joaquin County has a new wildcat under way-the #1 Bingham being drilled by OXY Resources California LLC. The venture is being directionally drilled to evaluate the gas potential of the area in irregular Section 31-4n-5e MD. It's 1.33 miles east of River Island Field, according to IHS Energy Group. 2 According to the Nevada Oil Reporter, Sawyer Oil & Gas Co. LLC, Lewisville, Texas, is cleaning out to the old total depth of 8,635 ft. at the #4-15R Blue Eagle to deepen the Nye County, Nev., wildcat to 10,000 ft. The test, in Section 15-8n-57e, Railroad Valley, was originally competed as a dry hole in 1996. Included in three new wildcats staked in Nye County is the Sawyer #21-1 Blue Eagle in 21-8n-57e. The other two new projects are the Alpine Inc. #1-15 Sand Springs Federal, west of the Pancake Range in Section 15-11n-54e, and the Amerxx Energy Inc. #22-14 Graham Unit Federal in Section 14-5n-61e, White River Valley. 3 In Utah, a Uintah County wildcat drilled by Wind River Resources Corp. has been completed as a discovery flowing 2.7 million cu. ft. of gas and 100 bbl. of water per day from Cretaceous Mesaverde. The Roosevelt, Utah, firm tested on a 36/64-in. choke through perforations at 4,521-44 ft at the #4-10-15-20 North Hill Creek in Section 10-15s-20e. The well is on the Uintah and Ouray Reservation. 4 Also in Uintah County, El Paso Production Oil & Gas Co. reportedly has completed the #35-22 Leland Bench-Fee as a gas discovery in Cretaceous Mesaverde and Mancos. El Paso tested an undisclosed amount of gas from 10,693-10,703 ft. in Mesaverde, 12,535-12,986 ft. in Lower Mesaverde and 13,186-13,904 ft. in Mancos. The venture is in Section 35-4s-2e. 5 Lyco Energy Corp., Dallas, pumped 191 bbl. of oil and 20 bbl. of water, with 89,000 cu. ft. of gas, per day at the #17-4 H Antone-Dombrowski, completed as a horizontal Mississippian Bakken discovery in Section 17-24n-56e, Richland County, Mont. The successful wildcat is producing through perforations in a horizontal Bakken interval between 10,680-13,452 ft. It was drilled to a measured total depth of 13,608 ft. (10,149 ft., true vertical depth). 6 A remote North Dakota wildcat has been staked by Jordan Exploration Co. at the #1-25 Williams in Section 25-138n-67w, Stutsman County, reports the Rocky Mountain Oil Journal. No information has been revealed about the objective of the Traverse City, Mich., independent's project, which is about 150 miles southeast of the nearest established production in Rollette County, N.D. Stutsman County is a lightly drilled, nonproducing county. 7 Drilling is under way at the EnCana Energy Resources Inc. #14-4-18n-4e Gilbert in South Dakota's Harding County. IHS Energy Group reports the remote wildcat, in Section 4-18n-4e, has a target depth of 3,844 ft. EnCana plans to evaluate the gas potential of Cretaceous Shannon and Muddy sands. 8 Operators drilling on the Pinedale Anticline in Wyoming continue to be rewarded with highly successful wells that produce gas from Cretaceous Lance and/or Mesaverde. Recent completions in Sublette County include a discovery, an extension and two successful development wells. The discovery, completed by Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Co. LP, Houston, at the #41-8 Grindstone Butte in Section 8-32n-111w, flowed at a combined rate of 1.285 million cu. ft. of gas per day from both zones. Three intervals of Lance between 10,169-11,035 ft. yielded 485,000 cu. ft. of gas per day, while Mesaverde between 11,608-11,783 ft. gave up 800,000 cu. ft. of gas and 120 bbl. of water daily. Production from the two formations is to be commingled when the discovery is placed online. Shell Rocky Mountain Production LLC's #22-32-30-107D Rainbow, Section 32-30n-107w, has extended an as-yet unnamed field. According to state records, the stepout was completed flowing at an average rate of 5.15 million cu. ft. of gas and 66 bbl. of condensate per day from Mesaverde. The directionally drilled stepout reached a total depth of 13,353 ft. The two development wells are in Township 32n-109w at the Mesa Unit. In Section 34, Ultra Petroleum Inc., Englewood, Colo., gauged a flow of 11.3 million cu. ft. of gas equivalent per day from Lance and Mesaverde between 8,188-13,482 ft. at the #9-34 Mesa. Denver independent Anschutz Exploration Corp. tapped Lance for a flow of 6.552 million cu. ft. of gas, 52 bbl. of condensate and 294 bbl. of water per day at the #8-28 Mesa in Section 28. The well is producing from 8,437-12,172 ft. 9 Also in Sublette County, Burlington Resources is drilling below 12,400 ft. at the #1 Gamma Ray in Section 25-31n-110w. The Rocky Mountain Oil Journal reports target depth is 13,500 ft. in Mesaverde at the wildcat, about 11 miles northwest of Jonah Field. 10 A stepout nearly a mile south of Snake Charmer Draw Field in Converse County, Wyo., gave up a flow 433 bbl. of oil, 491,000 cu. ft. of gas and one bbl. of water per day at completion by EOG Resources Inc., Houston. The #2-30 Crotalus, Section 30-38n-75w, was gauged on a 14/64-in. choke from Cretaceous First Frontier, perforated at 12,742-62 ft., reports IHS Energy Group. 11 Wyoming has another successful outpost, this one the #29-3 Monument in Section 29-22n-93w, Sweetwater County, and completed by BP America Production Co. for a flow gauge of 1.312 million cu. ft. of gas and 186 bbl. of condensate per day. BP used a 24/64-in. choke to test the extension from 10,780-10,815 ft. in Cretaceous Lewis and two zones between 11,280-11,560 ft. in Mesaverde. The new producer is 0.5-mile east of Siberia Ridge Field on the Wamsutter Arch. 12 The Rocky Mountain Oil Journal says field reports credit Davis Petroleum Corp., Los Angeles, with testing commercial amounts of gas from Lewis at a depth near 11,500 ft. at the #1-3 Red Lake Federal wildcat in Sweetwater County. The prospect, in Section 1-23n-98w, was originally permitted to Cretaceous Erickson at 11,800 ft. 13 A lightly drilled, nonproducing area of Sweetwater County is the site of a remote wildcat being drilled by EnCana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc. at the #13-21 Jon-Federal. Located in Section 21-15n-110w, the venture is being drilled toward a projected depth of 13,175 ft. in the Almond member of Mesaverde. IHS Energy Group notes the closest current production is about 13 miles west-northwest in Church Buttes Field. A mile and a half north-northwest, EnCana earlier this year cased the 12,033-ft. #2-17 Mary-Federal in Section 17-15n-110w. No details have been released on the prospect, which was set up as a 12,475-ft. test to Cretaceous Hilliard. 14 Tipperary Corp., Denver, has announced the completion and initial testing, for average rates of 2 million cu. ft. of gas, 100 bbl. of condensate and 250 bbl. of water per day, of the #34-1 Tipperary Ninemile Federal in Moffatt County, Colo. The discovery, operated by Elm Ridge Resources, Dallas, in Section 34-9n-96w was completed in Almond at an approximate depth of 10,200 ft. Tipperary earlier reported it had assembled a 35,000-acre prospect area and subsequently sold a 60% interest to Elm Ridge. Of the 35,000 acres, 12,000 acres were acquired through a farmout agreement from Denver-based Western Gas Resources Inc., which retained a 30% working interest on farmout lands. Tipperary and Elm Ridge are preparing to drill additional wells to further test the Almond formation. 15 ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc. has scheduled three new wildcats in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, reports IHS Energy Group. One of them, the firm's Carbon venture, is to be drilled in Section 4-10n-1e, Umiat Meridian, about 14 miles west of Nuiqsut. ConocoPhillips plans to drill the other two south of Smith Bay near the Puviaq site where the company stored a drilling rig during the summer. The two ventures are the #1 Puviaq in Section 35-16n-10w, Umiat Meridian, and #2 Puviaq in Section 16-15n-10w, UM. Up to four reservoir penetrations (two wells and two sidetracks) may be drilled at each Puviaq location during the winter drilling seasons, between now and June 2004.