🛢️ LC Rambousek 1-9H

Murfin Drilling Company, Inc. · Dunn County, ND · File #41983 · Generated 2026-02-13 12:33

API: 3302505091
Target Formation: Middle Bakken
Permit Explained: Partially

📋 Permit Cycle Assessment

The well file establishes that a permit was issued for LC Rambousek 1-9H targeting the Middle Bakken Formation. The permit cycle signals reveal that the primary operational constraint—the 100-foot north setback with a wet-shoe cemented lateral prohibiting fracture initiation from the shoe—was imposed via a Sundry Notice (Form 259763) approved on 07/23/2025, the same date the well was spudded (07/22/2025 per Sundry Form 260069). This represents a regulatory modification to the original permit design, which had specified a 50-foot setback. The sundry approval explicitly conditions the wellbore on this revised toe geometry and completion method. Supporting pre-permit signals include filter sock container waiver (06/17/2025) and core/sample submission requirements (06/16/2025 letter). However, the well file does not contain the original permit approval document itself, nor does it explain the regulatory rationale for the setback increase or the genesis of the permit approval prior to the sundry modification. The drilling operations executed successfully within the permitted parameters, with total depth reached 08/03/2025 at 21,361 feet MD in the Middle Bakken Dolomite. The permit-specific approval date remains absent; only the sundry effective date and spud date are documented.

🔍 Permit Cycle Signals (4)

Completion method change requiring 100-foot setback from north boundary. Production liner cemented in lateral with wet shoe, no ability to frac out of shoe.

Direct

📄 Sundry Form 259763, Reviewer Comments
📅 2025-07-23 (Exact confidence)

Directional design constraint imposed by regulator (Emma Neigum, NDIC Engineering Technician) as condition of approval. The 100-foot setback directly modified the permitted wellbore geometry and completion design from original proposal.

Original permit stipulation: 50-foot north setback based on fully cemented shoe with no fracout ability. Revised to 100-foot setback in sundry approval dated 07/23/2025.

Direct

📄 Permit stipulations vs. Sundry Form 259763
📅 2025-07-23 (Exact confidence)

Establishes regulatory iteration cycle. Original permit (referenced in stipulations) required 50-foot setback. Sundry approval (dated 07/23/2025, same day as spud) increased setback to 100 feet and confirmed wet shoe design with specified restrictions on fracture initiation.

Filter sock container waiver approved 06/17/2025 (Sundry Form 253787). Waiver allows elimination of filtration container during all phases except drill-out portion of completions.

Supporting

📄 Sundry Form 253787, Reviewer Comments; Filter Socks Policy Letter dated 05/30/2025
📅 2025-06-17 (Exact confidence)

Represents pre-permit environmental compliance decision. Operator justified waiver based on timing of filtration operations. Approval conditions execution planning for waste management.

Core and sample submission requirement letter issued by State Geologist, June 2025. Samples to begin collection at Base of Last Charles Salt in 30-foot intervals (vertical/build) and 200-foot intervals (horizontal).

Supporting

📄 Letter from Ross Edison, ND Geological Survey, dated 6/16/2025
📅 2025-06-16 (Exact confidence)

Regulatory requirement conditioning drilling operations. Establishes sampling protocol executed during well operations (confirmed in drilling prognosis and geological summary showing samples collected as specified).

📖 Historical Context (3)

Wellbore crosses section boundary from Sec 9 to Sec 4, with bottom-hole location in 150 ft FNL & 1320 ft FEL of Sec 4 (adjacent spacing unit). Operator requested waiver to NDIC Order 31848 affidavit requirement on grounds that Murfin is operator of both spacing units.
📄 Waiver letter to Drillback 31848 (undated, filed in well file) · 📅 Unknown
Establishes cross-unit drilling obligation and regulatory exemption scope. Future drilling decisions in adjacent spacing units (Sec 4) and notice requirements to other operators depend on this clarification of Murfin's control.

Field location construction requires perimeter berm (1215 LF), ditch work (1140 LF), fence (1265 LF), and closed mud system with no cuttings pit per permit stipulations.
📄 Permit stipulations; Construction drawings sheet 1 of 2 · 📅 Unknown
Environmental compliance structure remains in place during operations and future development of adjacent wellbores (1-10H, 1-15H, 1-16H noted on pads). Berm and ditch configuration affects surface footprint and stormwater management for the pad complex.

St. Anthony-Bakken Pool definition per permit: accumulation from 50 feet above top of Bakken to 100 feet below top of Three Forks. Applies across entire spacing unit and adjacent areas.
📄 Permit stipulations, NDIC Field Order reference · 📅 Unknown
Pool boundary definition constrains future drilling targets and conservation order compliance for all wells in the unit and neighboring units under common operator control.

🔧 Operator Pattern

Murfin Drilling Company demonstrates operational control across multiple contiguous spacing units (Sec 9 and Sec 4, T141N R97W) and manages multi-well development from a single pad (1-9H, 1-10H, 1-15H, 1-16H drilling from LC Rambousek pad). Proactive in requesting waivers and modifications to standard requirements (filter sock container waiver, cross-unit affidavit waiver, completion method change) with documented justifications. Complies with core/sample and geologic documentation protocols.
Filter sock container waiver submitted and approved 06/17/2025 with operator justification. Sundry completion method change submitted 07/23/2025 (same date as spud) with updated wellbore diagrams and directional plans. Cross-unit waiver letter filed proactively. Geological summary documents performed drilling operations with on-site mud logging (Core Geologic LLC personnel) and systematic sample collection per state requirements. Multiple planned wellbores (1-10H, 1-15H, 1-16H) staged from single pad, indicating capital-efficient development strategy.

Confidence: Medium
The well file contains comprehensive drilling operations documentation (geological summary, formation tops, bit record, MWD surveys, sample descriptions) and multiple sundry notices with regulator reviewer comments and approval signatures. However, the original permit approval document is absent from the file, preventing direct identification of the permit approval date and baseline conditions prior to the 07/23/2025 sundry modification. The spud date (07/22/2025) and sundry approval date (07/23/2025) are documented precisely, but the timing sequence suggests the sundry may have been approved concurrent with or immediately after spud, raising questions about pre-spud permit authorization. Core regulatory signals (setback requirement, completion design, environmental conditions) are evident in sundry form text and reviewer comments, but the foundational permit stipulations are inferred from references in later documents rather than observed in the original approval.