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🛢️ SC-Bingeman-154-98-0904H-9
Hess Bakken Investments II, LLC · Williams County, North Dakota County, ND · File #41697 · Generated 2026-02-13 12:33
- API
- 3310506480
- Target Formation
- Middle Bakken
- Permit Explained
- Yes
📋 Permit Cycle Assessment
The well file contains clear contemporaneous documentation justifying the permit approval dated 04/01/2025 (permit issued date per APD). The SOD waiver (approved 04/15/2025) is the primary permit-cycle justification, explicitly authorizing the two-rig phased approach documented in daily operations (intermediate rig 08/23–08/25/25; full rig 09/07–10/09/25). The noble rig engineering letter (04/08/2025) provides direct technical justification for non-standard surface drilling with an intermediate rig. The open-hole log waiver (approved 03/13/2025) and core/sample requirements letter (03/17/2025) condition the drilling program as executed: no wireline logs, sample-based formation tops, and mandatory sample archiving. Bakken pool definitions and lateral setback stipulations (issued 04/01/2025) define the drilling window and completion design, both executed within the documented tolerances. All key operational decisions and well geometry—spud phasing, surface casing depth (5,103' MD), curve landing (11,864' MD, 20' TVD into Middle Bakken), lateral toe setback (150')—correspond directly to permit conditions and pre-drill approvals.
🔍 Permit Cycle Signals (5)
📄 Sundry Form 235862; Reviewer Comments; dated Approved 04/15/2025
📅 04/15/2025 (Exact confidence)
SOD approval explicitly conditions permit issuance on surface casing completion within 90 days and plug-and-abandon obligation if larger rig does not arrive. This directly explains the phased drilling approach documented in the APD and geology report (intermediate rig released 08/25/25; vertical rig resumed 09/07/25).
📄 Letter from Jack Blickwede, Hess Drilling Engineering, dated 04/08/2025, submitted with Sundry 235862
📅 04/08/2025 (Exact confidence)
Regulator approval of non-standard rig (smaller intermediate unit for surface drilling) required engineering justification comparing to offset well performance. Letter explicitly justifies sufficiency of Noble 6 specs relative to previous Nabors X28 deepset jobs.
📄 Sundry Form 235867; dated Approved 03/13/2025
📅 03/13/2025 (Exact confidence)
Waiver conditioning permits approval on offset log reliance and mandating GR-CBL run. This directly enabled no-log drilling program documented in APD ('No logging required') and geology report (no wireline logs run; sample-based formation pick-up from 8,800' MD).
📄 Letter from Ross Edison, Geologist, ND DMR Oil & Gas Division, dated 03/17/2025
📅 03/17/2025 (Exact confidence)
Pre-permit regulatory requirement tied to NDAC 43-02-03-38.1 and North Dakota Century Code 38-08-04. Directly explains sample collection protocol documented in geology report (samples caught at 30' intervals 8,800–11,864' MD; 200' intervals 11,864–22,025' MD; examined Fair to Excellent quality; boxed and archived per spec).
📄 Application for Permit to Drill, Stipulations section; Completion Schematic (shows 4.5" production liner, wet shoe, frac-plug design); dated issued 04/01/2025
📅 04/01/2025 (Exact confidence)
Setback geometry and completion design constraints are non-routine for Bakken horizontal development and directly condition lateral landing zone and toe perforations (150' toe setback per plan; 150' heel setback). These spatial constraints are executed as designed per anticollision report and survey data (heel landed 11,163' TVD approx. 20' TVD into Middle Bakken; toe at 11,158' TVD).
📖 Historical Context (2)
Well is awaiting completion as of 10/09/2025 (geology report conclusion and APD well status); completion operations and fracture stimulation not yet documented in file. Hydraulic fracturing will be conducted without diesel fuels per affidavit from Completion Engineering Team dated 04/21/2022.
📄 Geology Report, page 2 (Well Status); Affidavit from Tom Richardson (Senior Manager, Drilling & Completions) dated 04/21/2022, confirming Halliburton stimulation supplier compliance with North Dakota ban on specific diesel fuel CAS numbers (68334-30-5, 68476-34-6, 68476-30-2, 68479-31-3, 8008-20-6). · 📅 Unknown
Completion design (wet shoe, frac-out architecture per schematic) and stimulation constraints (no diesel fuels in HF) persist as forward operational obligations. Pending completion activities must comply with NDAC setback and casing isolation requirements already imposed by permit. Diesel fuel prohibition is blanket policy covering all Hess Bakken wells and remains in effect until well abandonment.
Anticollision analysis completed 12/03/2024; closest approach to SC-Bingeman-154-98-0904H-10 is 32.93 ft (separation factor 0.639, Level 1 warning at 2.79 sigma). P Wood 154-98-14-22-16-3H wells show closest approach 1,281 ft with separation factor 4.435 (acceptable). Multiple offset wells evaluated within filter radius.
📄 Scientific Drilling Anticollision Report, dated 12/03/2024; summary table shows all offset well checks and warning levels. · 📅 Unknown
Anticollision clearance is verified acceptable for lateral drilling executed (no collision reported in geology record). However, the H-10 offset well proximity (32.93 ft center-to-center, Level 1 warning) establishes a future constraint: any intervention, recompletions, or adjacent well drilling in the pad must reference this collision envelope. Separation factor 0.639 indicates tight but acceptable clearance under ISCWSA error model.
🔧 Operator Pattern
Hess Bakken Investments II, LLC demonstrates compliance with North Dakota regulatory framework for multi-well infill development in the Bakken. Operator leverages cost and schedule optimization through phased drilling (intermediate rig for surface, full-size rig for completion) under SOD waiver. Operator implements standardized geologic and completion programs (sample archiving, formation correlation via offset logs, cemented liner with frac-out design, no-diesel-fuel HF).
SOD approval and execution (intermediate rig Noble 6 on 08/23/25, released 08/25/25; Nabors X27 vertical/lateral rig on 09/07/25, completed 10/09/25) reflects pre-planned, regulator-approved phasing. Well file references companion wells on same pad (SC-Bingeman H-7, H-8, H-10, pad design shows 4-well configuration) indicating standardized development model. Completion schematic and drilling fluids (BaraXcel OBM vertical, saltwater lateral per geology report) are consistent with Bakken field practice. Affidavit on hydraulic fracturing fuels (04/21/2022) demonstrates proactive compliance documentation at operator level covering all wells.
Confidence: High
The well file is comprehensive and internally consistent across multiple document classes: (1) APD and stipulations clearly state permit terms (150' setback, pool definition, closed mud system, remote shutoffs); (2) Sundry forms provide exact approval dates for SOD waiver (04/15/2025), log waiver (03/13/2025), and core/sample requirements (03/17/2025); (3) Engineering letter (04/08/2025) justifies rig selection; (4) Geology report documents drilling execution, formation tops, sample collection, and well status as of 10/09/2025; (5) Daily operations log provides hour-by-hour audit trail of surface casing (08/23–08/25/25) and full drilling campaign (09/07–10/09/25), confirming SOD compliance and rig phasing. Anticollision and survey reports validate well geometry against stipulated setbacks. One minor ambiguity: permit issuance date stated as 04/01/2025 on APD cover but Effective Date on Spud Notification Sundry is 07/29/2025; however, the 04/01/2025 APD approval date is the relevant permit anchor for permit-cycle analysis. No material contradictions between documents.