Sugarloaf Gas and Condensate Project >> Austin Chalk - Introduction
Geological maps of Texas show a series of play types that are predominantly orientated parallel to the Gulf Coast. The curvature of the Texas gulf coastlines leads to these trends forming arcs that are at times fragmented somewhat by localized faulting or depositional settings. One such trend is the Austin Chalk; four primary fields called the Giddings, Pearsall, Brookeland and Masters Creek generate an arc that stretches from the Mexican border across the whole of Texas and then into Louisiana. Opposite is a map that shows the position of three of these fields as well as the relative position of the Sugarkane Field.
The Austin Chalk was originally produced from vertical wells drilled in the 1960’s and was characterized by low production rates over a long period of time. Well performance within this play has a wide statistical variation and although profitable it is normally a long term return on investment. Austin Chalk is generally characterized by low matrix porosity and permeability. The Sugarkane Field has demonstrated consistently higher matrix porosity than traditional Austin Chalk formations. Chalk, being brittle in nature, is predominantly produced through fractures within the formation therefore the most productive wells are the ones that have the most exposure to naturally occurring fractures or where man made hydraulic fractures are induced.
The Austin Chalk horizon at the Sugarkane Field was discovered in 2006 with the Kunde #1 exploration well that intersected the formation in the adjacent AMI to Sugarloaf. The Kunde #1 vertical well has been producing gas and condensate from the Austin Chalk since September 2006. The same formation was encountered 7 km away on the Sugarloaf #1 exploration well soon after Kunde #1, whilst drilling to the primary target at the deeper Hosston horizon.
All of the wells drilled to date and a number of historical wells have encountered a consistent, correlatable Austin Chalk formation across the field.