🛢️ OLSON 4-8H1

Continental Resources, Inc. · McKenzie County, ND · File #28279 · Generated 2026-02-13 12:33

API: 33-053-05892
Target Formation: Three Forks B1
Permit Explained: Partially

📋 Permit Cycle Assessment

The well file contains contemporaneous regulatory documentation that conditions and constrains the new permit/operational status, but does not explicitly explain the triggering action for a recent permit approval. The Stripper Well Determination letter (July 23, 2024) directly anchors to a July 19, 2024 application filing and establishes regulatory classification of the well as a stripper well under NDCC 57-51.1-01, based on May 2023–April 2024 production averaging 34.21 BOPD. This determination is a regulatory act that affects tax treatment and operational obligations for the Bakken and Three Forks Formations specifically. However, the well file does not contain evidence of a new drilling permit or completion permit issued contemporaneously with July 2024. The core well file documentation (APD approval dated May 1, 2014, drilling operations June–July 2014, completion September 2014) predates the 2024 determination by a decade. The January 2015 cement bond log deficiency order and subsequent completion waivers (June 2014) relate to the original drilling and completion cycle, not a new permit action. The file demonstrates historical regulatory oversight and compliance but does not establish contemporaneous justification for a specific recent permit approval beyond the stripper well determination itself.

🔍 Permit Cycle Signals (5)

Cement Bond Log deficiency requiring monitoring stipulation and frac string requirement

Direct

📄 January 13, 2015 letter from Richard A. Suggs, Geologist; Form 4 Sundry Notice dated January 23, 2015
📅 2015-01-13 (Exact confidence)

Regulator-issued order conditioning well completion. Top of cement behind 7-inch casing at 5,150 feet did not cover Cretaceous-Newcastle Formation (picked at 4,744 feet). NDIC required: (1) continuous annulus pressure monitoring with 300 psi gauge maximum, (2) immediate pressure development reporting, (3) frac string installation prior to hydraulic fracture simulation per NDAC 43-02-03-27.1, (4) eventual isolation of Dakota Group upon abandonment.

Stripper Well Determination application and approval

Supporting

📄 July 19, 2014 application filing; July 23, 2024 determination letter from Stephen Fried, Petroleum Engineer
📅 2024-07-23 (Exact confidence)

Regulatory determination letter explicitly states well qualifies as stripper well under NDCC 57-51.1-01 based on production profile (34.21 BOPD average during May 1, 2023–April 30, 2024 qualifying period). Determination applies only to Bakken and Three Forks Formations. Signals regulatory classification status contemporaneous with permit cycle activity.

Waiver from tubing/packer requirement during completion flowback

Direct

📄 Form 4 Sundry Notice dated June 13, 2014, submitted by Continental Resources, Inc.
📅 2014-06-13 (Exact confidence)

Operator requested and obtained waiver from NDAC 43-02-03-21 tubing/packer requirement during post-fracture flowback period. Waiver conditioned on: (1) 7-inch P-110 casing with 11,220 psig API burst rating; (2) frac design safety factor 0.85 × API burst; (3) monitoring for damage detection; (4) 300# gauge installation on surface casing during flowback. Non-routine completion modification directly conditioning the permit.

Container waiver for filter sock disposal operations

Supporting

📄 Form 4 Sundry Notice titled 'Waiver to Container Requirement,' filed May 19, 2014
📅 2014-05-19 (Exact confidence)

Operator requested waiver from NDAC 43-02-03-19.2 leakproof container requirement. Justification: No filtration systems would be used during drilling; therefore, no container needed. Waiver applicable to drilling phase only. Demonstrates operator compliance posture on waste management conditions.

Open hole log waiver and offset well substitution

Direct

📄 Form 4 Sundry Notice titled 'Open Hole Log Waiver,' dated May 1, 2014
📅 2014-05-01 (Exact confidence)

Operator requested variance to not run open-hole logs, with GR/CBL/CCL run from deepest obtainable point to base of surface casing only. Offset well Olson 1-8H (same section) logs designated for correlation. All mud logs submitted as digital TIFF and LAS formats. Regulatory variance modifying standard logging requirements.

📖 Historical Context (5)

Cement bond log deficiency and ongoing annulus monitoring obligation
📄 January 13, 2015 NDIC order; Form 4 Sundry Notice dated January 23, 2015 installing 300 psi gauge on surface casing annulus · 📅 2015-01-13
Regulatory order with continuing compliance obligation. Cement behind 7-inch casing did not isolate Dakota Group (Cretaceous-Newcastle Formation). Operator required to: (1) continuously monitor surface-production casing annulus with 300 psi gauge maximum, (2) immediately report any pressure development, (3) isolate Dakota Group upon well abandonment with remedial action if needed. This constraint persists for the life of the well and affects future operational decisions and ultimate plugging program.

Horizontal well geometry and spacing unit setback compliance
📄 Permit approval dated May 1, 2014; Industrial Commission Order No. 20963; APD form 'Well Location Plat' and directional surveys · 📅 2014-05-01
Well bore must remain no closer than 200-foot setback from north/south boundaries and 500-foot setback from east/west boundaries within 1,280-acre spacing unit (Sections 5 & 8, T151N, R96W). Survey data confirms bottom hole location at approximately 233' FNL and 2,672' FEL in Lot 3, Section 5. Horizontal geometry creates ongoing boundary compliance obligation. Future workover, sidetrack, or reentry activities must respect these limits.

Stripper well tax exemption eligibility and production threshold monitoring
📄 Stripper Well Determination letter dated July 23, 2024; NDCC 57-51.1-01 qualification · 📅 2024-07-23
Well designated as stripper well based on May 2023–April 2024 production averaging 34.21 BOPD (below maximum efficient rate threshold). Determination applies to Bakken and Three Forks Formations only. Tax exemption benefits depend on maintaining stripper status. NDIC retains continuing jurisdiction to review and amend or rescind determination if production increases or well conditions change. Operator must monitor production to preserve exemption eligibility; future productivity enhancements (workovers, refracturing) could disqualify the well.

Confidential status expiration and public disclosure timeline
📄 May 1, 2014 permit approval letter, 'Confidential status' section · 📅 2014-05-01
Confidential status granted for six months from spud date (June 2014), meaning confidentiality expired by December 2014. All well information (except production runs, which remain confidential longer) is now public record. Historical constraint with diminished current relevance but affects data availability for future regulatory filings and public inquiries.

Frac design and hydraulic fracture stimulation requirements
📄 Permit approval dated May 1, 2014; January 13, 2015 geologist order requiring frac string; Hydraulic Fracture Simulation performed August 29, 2014 (40 stages, Three Forks 10,900–20,233 ft MD) per well completion record · 📅 2014-08-29
Well completed with 40-stage sand frac (177,517 barrels volume, 8,030,220 lbs proppant). Frac string requirement mandated by NDIC due to cement deficiency. Design parameters (9,400 psi max treatment pressure, 60.9 BBLS/min max rate) established and executed. Treatment details become reference baseline for any future refracturing or production assessment decisions.

🔧 Operator Pattern

Continental Resources demonstrates standard horizontal drilling compliance in Bakken/Three Forks development. Operator proactively requested and obtained regulatory waivers (container requirement, tubing/packer requirement, open-hole log variance) rather than defaulting to standard requirements, indicating operational flexibility and regulator engagement. Operator filed stripper well determination promptly upon production qualification, suggesting active tax-status management.
Multiple Form 4 Sundry Notices submitted May–June 2014 (waiver requests). Immediate filing of Stripper Well Determination application (July 19, 2024) upon qualifying production period completion. Proactive cement monitoring installation (January 2014) following NDIC order. Detailed directional surveys and geological reports submitted throughout drilling and completion phases. No evidence of violations or late filings in well record.

Confidence: Medium
Well file contains robust contemporaneous regulatory documentation (permits, orders, waivers, surveys, completion reports) for the 2014 drilling/completion cycle and the 2024 stripper well determination. However, the primary ambiguity is the absence of explicit text stating the 'new permit' referenced in the prompt. The Stripper Well Determination (July 23, 2024) is the only recent regulatory action in the file; no new APD, completion permit, or modification order dated 2024 is evident. If the 'new permit' refers to the stripper determination, the file fully explains it. If a different permit action is intended, that document may be missing from the file supplied. Production data, cement bond log, and historical regulatory orders are clearly documented and authentic. Survey data, drilling program, and completion records are detailed and certified. Confidence is reduced by the temporal disconnect between the main well development (2014) and the referenced permit action (2024).