🛢️ Big Stone 32-29-20 3H

Phoenix Operating LLC · Williams County, ND · File #42089 · Generated 2026-02-13 12:33

API: 3310506627
Target Formation: Middle Bakken
Permit Explained: Yes

📋 Permit Cycle Assessment

The well file contains robust contemporaneous documentation for the permit approval. Multiple regulatory waivers (filter sock container, tubing/packer, open hole logging, drill cutting samples) were submitted and approved between 07/07/2025 and 07/10/2025, prior to the apparent approval date of 09/22/2025. Each waiver carries explicit technical justification and regulatory reviewer sign-off. Commission Order No. 34436 establishes mandatory setbacks and conditions the well geometry (wet shoe with frac-out ability) to casing design and completion strategy. Anticollision analysis and directional planning documents (dated 06/06/2025) support geometry compliance. The Skabo-Bakken Pool formation definition is stated in permit stipulations. No unexplained regulatory gaps identified; the permit cycle is fully justified by pre-drilling submissions and regulatory orders.

🔍 Permit Cycle Signals (5)

Filter Sock Container Waiver approved for drilling phase only

Direct

📄 Sundry Form 257126, dated 07/07/2025
📅 2025-07-10 (Exact confidence)

Operator exempted from maintaining filter media container during drilling operations; operationally specific waiver tied to well execution.

Tubing/Packer Waiver approved with six explicit assurances regarding casing integrity, pressure monitoring, and equipment installation

Direct

📄 Sundry Form 257133, dated 07/07/2025, approved 07/07/2025
📅 2025-07-07 (Exact confidence)

Variance to NDAC 43-02-03-21 conditioned on new API-rated casing, 0.85 safety factor, real-time damage detection, pressure monitoring (300# gauge), and immediate production equipment installation post-flowback.

Open Hole Log Waiver approved referencing offset well BRAGG 32-29-160-98H (NDIC #23601) within one mile for formation correlation

Supporting

📄 Sundry Form 257108, dated 07/07/2025, approved 07/07/2025
📅 2025-07-07 (Exact confidence)

Substitute compliance mechanism based on offset well data; GR-CBL log from TD to ground level required in lieu of open hole suite.

Drill Cutting Samples Waiver approved; vertical samples from offset well Big Stone 32-29-20 1H (NDIC #42087) used instead of vertical section sampling

Supporting

📄 Sundry Form 257115, dated 07/07/2025, approved 07/07/2025
📅 2025-07-07 (Exact confidence)

Pad-based sample consolidation: 30' samples collected from Base of Last Salt to KOP on offset 1H well; resume in curve and lateral on 3H well.

Commission Order No. 34436 setback approval: 150' north/south, 500' east/west within 1920-acre spacing unit (Sections 20, 29, 32, T160N, R98W); production liner with wet shoe and frac-out capability specified

Direct

📄 Application for Permit for New Well—Horizontal, Stipulations section; Permit Review Policy section
📅 2025-09-22 (Inferred confidence)

Regulatory spacing condition tied to well geometry and completion design; wet shoe design with frac-out capability is casing-critical mitigation for setback compliance.

📖 Historical Context (5)

Well drilled 100% in zone (Middle Bakken C and D facies) with 90.73° average dip; landed 26.6 feet into target formation at 9,427.08' TVD
📄 Geological Summary section; Well Summary; Formation Tops table · 📅 2025-12-07
Confirms operational achievement of geological objective; TVD landing places well within 8-foot target window (9,430–9,438' TVD) with no excursions. This geological control affects completion design window and future offset drilling decisions for the pad.

Closed mud system with no cuttings pit requirement (permit stipulation); OBM for curve, brine for vertical/lateral applied; all samples and cuttings to ND Geological Survey
📄 Permit Review Policy Stipulation; Cores and Samples letter dated 07/07/2025 from Ross Edison · 📅 2025-07-07
Environmental and regulatory compliance baseline for well operations; forward operational impact on drilling fluid management, waste handling, and sample disposition protocols throughout remaining pad drilling.

Remote or automatic shutoff devices required on all equipment (permit stipulation)
📄 Permit Review Policy section, Application for Permit · 📅 2025-09-22
Operational safety mandate; applies to all future wells on pad and during completion/production phases. Non-negotiable equipment specification.

Skabo-Bakken Pool formally defined: 50 feet above Bakken top to 100 feet below Three Forks top
📄 Permit Stipulations, NDIC Field Order Info section · 📅 2025-09-22
Pool definition governs future spacing unit delineation, completion interval, and reserves attribution for the well and pad; affects economic and regulatory reporting across remaining wells (1H, 2H, 4H, 5H-LL).

Backbuild/off-spacing approval confirmed: wells enter Bakken from surface in Section 5, T159N, R98W (on pad) but traverse into adjacent spacing units; Phoenix Energy notified as adjacent operator per NDIC Order No. 31973
📄 Letter from Meaghan Coughlan to Todd Holweger dated 06/26/2025; Affidavit of Surface Damage Agreement dated 06/26/2025 · 📅 2025-06-26
Off-spacing geometry is structural constraint on all five pad wells. Directional plan and anticollision analysis are controlling documents; future drilling and completion operations must respect documented trajectory constraints and notifications to offset operator (Phoenix Energy).

🔧 Operator Pattern

Phoenix Operating LLC demonstrates systematic compliance with North Dakota oil & gas regulatory framework through contemporaneous waiver submissions and adherence to stipulated conditions. Operator proactively obtained surface use agreements, coordinated with offset operators, and filed detailed directional and anticollision analyses prior to drilling.
All four waivers (filter sock, tubing/packer, open hole logs, drill cuttings samples) submitted and approved 07/07/2025–07/10/2025, well in advance of spud (11/07/2025). Backbuild notification letter filed 06/26/2025. Drilling operations executed per plan: KOP at 9,130' MD on 12/02/2025, curve landed 12/03/2025 at 9,427.08' TVD, lateral drilled 12/05–12/07/2025 to TD 24,490' MD. MWD surveys and geological steering maintained real-time formation correlation. No post-drilling variances or compliance issues noted in file.

Confidence: High
Well file is complete with permit application, multiple contemporaneous regulatory waivers with explicit approval dates and signatures, directional plan and anticollision analysis, drilling operations summary, geological log, MWD survey data, and core/sample disposition letter. All permit-cycle signals carry exact or inferred dates tied to regulatory orders and operator submissions. Historical signals are supported by operational documents (spud notification, sundry forms, geological summary) with no contradictions. No OCR degradation prevents full analysis.