By Don Rutledge
FPS Associate Editor
February 2, 2010
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| Gas well drilling operations are underway on the Stanley and Diane Miller property along SR 332, south of Carrollton, where this 75-foot Union Drilling Co. rig is operating 24-hours a day, seven days a week. |
Coal apparently isn’t the only natural resource that is plentiful in Carroll County.
Exploration for natural gas is underway south of Carrollton near the site of the proposed Rosebud Coal facility.
Union Drilling of Punxsutaway, PA., is drilling for natural gas on the Stanley and Diane Miller property along SR 332, just south of Carrollton.
According to Rodney Wilson, a consultant for R. W. Consulting of Weatherford, OK., drilling operations began Jan. 27 on a test well for Anschutz Exploration Corp. headquartered in Denver, CO. Wilson said drilling usually takes a couple of weeks to find gas sources.
The double 75-foot rig, which can be seen from a distance at night, pulls two 30-foot joints of pipe which are inserted into the ground. The rig is manned by a 12 to 15-man crew who works three 8-hour shifts seven days a week.
Wilson said Tuesday drillers have reached about 2,700 feet in search of natural gas. This is the first well drilled in this area as a result of seismic testing conducted in 2009.
According to records in the Carroll County Recorder’s office, Anschutz Exploration Corp. has a total of 903 oil and gas leases on file in all of Carroll County’s 14 townships.
Anschutz Exploration Corporation, a company of 30 experienced professionals, currently has active exploration or production projects in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Dakota, Montana and Wyoming. Two drilling rigs are under long-term contract in North Dakota, and drilling projects are planned for 2010 in all six states.
Every well that AEC drills is a directional or horizontal well designed to accommodate surface land use issues, to access the target horizon in the optimum manner or to attain the best reservoir performance. All these factors are considered in well and production facility design.
AEC has demonstrated its commitment to applying the best available technology to drilling and completions in order to bring secure U.S.-based oil and natural gas resources to the energy marketplace. |
