File #30561 | Lime Rock Resources III-A, L.P. | Dunn County
API
3302502839
Target Formation
Bakken
Permit Explained
Partially
Permit Cycle Assessment
The 05/06/2025 permit renewal approval is explained by routine administrative renewal. The operator's Form 4 submission (received 04/29/2025) explicitly states intention to 'drill the well as originally permitted' and requests standard one-year extension with $100 fee. Reviewer approved renewal without documented technical modifications, regulatory orders, or engineering stipulations specific to this renewal cycle. The 05/2025 approval references no new geotechnical, operational, or regulatory trigger. Historical context shows the well remains subject to the 06/2018 packer-use revocation and associated cementing stipulation, but these constraints do not explain or justify the 05/2025 renewal—they predate it. No contemporaneous technical justification (anticollision study, new waiver, geologist requirement, or regulatory order) is documented to condition this specific permit approval.
Permit Cycle Signals (3)
Permit renewal approval issued by NDIC with effective date 05/06/2025, anchored to operator request received 04/29/2025. Operator statement: 'LRR plans to drill the well as originally permitted.' (2025-05-06)
Approval date anchors the permit cycle. Operator explicitly commits to drilling well 'as originally permitted,' confirming no material change to permit conditions or well geometry from original 01/23/2015 approval.
Form 4 renewal application filed 02/07/2024 with one-year extension approval effective 02/16/2024. Operator statement references Order 31848 exclusion: 'This well is not subject to Order 31848.' (2024-02-16)
Regulatory order status (Order 31848 non-applicability) explicitly stated by operator at prior renewal cycle. Indicates no change in regulatory constraints between 02/2024 and 05/2025 renewals.
NDIC letter dated 06/15/2018 revoked approval for TAM swell packers on 7-inch intermediate casing string (proposed at 5019' and 5734') across Dakota Group, citing NDAC 43-02-03-21 cementing requirement. Stipulation: 'Intermediate or longstring casing string must be cemented above the top of the Dakota Group Sand.' (2018-06-15)
Revocation of packer-based isolation method persists as an operational constraint binding all renewals post-06/2018. This is a material modification to well completion design relative to original 2015 permit, but constraint (cementing requirement) is now standard and does not explain the 05/2025 renewal itself—only confirms historical restriction remains in force.
Historical Non-Routine Signals (4)
06/15/2018 NDIC revocation of TAM swell packer approval for 7-inch intermediate casing string at 5019' and 5734' depth. Stipulation imposed: cementing required above Dakota Group Sand (top at 5412 feet TVD). This revocation affects all post-2018 drilling/completion operations. (N/A)
Binding operational constraint on casing and cement design. Eliminates packer-isolation methodology for Dakota Group protection; requires full cement column above Dakota Sand top. Applies to any future drilling or workover on this well.
03/22/2016 operator change: OXY USA Inc. transferred to Lime Rock Resources III-A, L.P. via approved Form 15 (Notice of Transfer). Bond B009778 ($100,000) issued to Lime Rock. Transfer assignment date noted as 11/20/2015. (N/A)
Established Lime Rock as statutory operator of record post-03/2016. Bond B009778 remains security instrument for all operations. All subsequent renewals (2016-2025) execute under Lime Rock's regulatory and bonding obligations.
01/23/2015 original permit approval (Commission Order No. 25712, File No. 30561). Well approved as horizontal development in Fayette BAKKEN field, spacing unit Sections 28 & 33 T143N R96W (1280 acres). Permit stipulations included: dike required around entire location; filter sock container required effective 06/01/2014; conductor set limits; NDIC field inspector notification required. (N/A)
Establishes baseline well geometry, spacing, casing design, drilling mud program, survey requirements (100 ft vertical, 30 ft build, 90 ft lateral frequency), and ancillary site requirements (dike, filter disposal, location construction 3-day waiting period). These structural permit conditions persist across all renewals unless modified. Location-specific environmental and safety stipulations (dike, filter containers) remain operative.
Gas Capture Plans filed annually with renewals (2016–2020 examples in file). Plans document ONEOK dedication agreement (dated 09/01/2003, amended), anticipated completion dates, production forecasts (200 MCFD per well initially; 400 MCFD pad total), and flaring analysis. State flare percentage consistently 21.6%; field flare 8.1%. Affidavits from Lime Rock engineers (Derek Fox, Daniel Transtrom) confirm ONEOK coordination for pipeline connection. (N/A)
Demonstrates continuous contractual dedication to ONEOK and active coordination for gas sales infrastructure. Affidavits confirm operator intent to deliver production to gathering system without flaring. No flaring reduction milestone or regulatory order appears in file, but operator commitment to pipeline connection persists as forward operational framework.
Historical Operator Profile
Total Wells:N/A
Active Wells:N/A
Notable Patterns:None identified
Confidence Assessment
Level: High Rationale: Original permit approval (01/23/2015) and subsequent renewals are clearly dated and documented in official NDIC filings. Operator statements in Form 4 renewals (2024, 2025) are explicit and unambiguous. Regulatory modifications (packer revocation, 06/15/2018) are unambiguously documented. Historical Gas Capture Plans and affidavits are notarized and filed. However, the 05/06/2025 approval itself contains minimal contemporaneous documentation explaining why this renewal was issued beyond routine administrative processing and operator intent to drill as originally permitted. No new technical submission, waiver request, or regulatory trigger conditioned the 05/2025 approval, which is consistent with a standard one-year renewal. Confidence in permit-cycle explanation is reduced to 'Partially' because approval lacks detailed justification; confidence in historical constraint identification is high.