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🛢️ ALE 2335-5BH
KODA Resources Operating, LLC · Divide County, ND · File #42587 · Generated 2026-02-13 12:33
- API
- 3302301721
- Target Formation
- Middle Bakken
- Permit Explained
- Yes
📋 Permit Cycle Assessment
The permit approval (12/29/2025) is conditioned by five direct regulatory signals embedded in APD stipulations and correspondence. The aquifer location and setback geometry are the dominant drivers: the well site overlies a protected aquifer triggering mandatory closed-mud-system and impermeable-liner requirements, plus mandatory field inspection before construction. The Bakken setback (150'/1220') is justified by the drilling plan's production-liner design with wet-shoe cement and frac-out capability. Pool definition (Daneville-Bakken) establishes perforation limits. Remote shutoff device requirement reflects heightened equipment safety control. Cores-and-samples letter (12/29/2025, same date as permit) establishes sample collection protocol from Base of Charles Salt and core delivery requirements within regulatory timelines. Together these signals form a coherent permit-cycle package explaining approval conditions and pre-drilling obligations. No waiver or exception to standard conditions appears in the permit file; the well geometry and completion design directly satisfy all stipulated setbacks and pool constraints.
🔍 Permit Cycle Signals (5)
📄 APD Stipulations section; dated 12/29/2025 cores and samples letter references aquifer location
📅 Unknown - embedded in permit approval (Inferred confidence)
Non-routine condition tied to well-specific environmental risk. Triggers mandatory field inspection contact (Gunther Harms, 701-770-2564) prior to location construction.
📄 APD Stipulations - 'Bakken Setback Summary Statement'
📅 Unknown - embedded in permit (Inferred confidence)
Directly conditions lateral trajectory design. Wet shoe design enables frac-out capability and justifies setback geometry.
📄 APD Stipulations - 'NDIC Field Order Info' (pool definition)
📅 Unknown - pool order referenced (Inferred confidence)
Establishes regulatory pool boundaries affecting perforation and completion design limits.
📄 APD Stipulations - 'Construction Commencement Notification'
📅 Unknown - embedded in permit (Inferred confidence)
Time-gated trigger tied to aquifer inspection requirement. Permits approval does not authorize construction until notification completed and inspection satisfied.
📄 APD Stipulations - 'Permit Review Policy'
📅 Unknown - embedded in permit (Inferred confidence)
Safety control requirement; non-routine elevation suggests risk mitigation tied to location or field conditions.
📖 Historical Context (5)
Affidavit of Surface Use Agreement executed 12/18/2025 (post-permit) between operator and surface owner Albert & Michelle Metz covering drilling, completion, and production operations.
📄 Affidavit of Surface Use Agreement, dated December 18, 2025 · 📅 2025-12-18
Surface use agreement is contingent documentation required for permit validity but executed after permit approval. Establishes operator indemnity obligation and surface damage remedies that persist through production phase. Non-routine because affidavit of pending agreement (dated 2025-11-06) indicates negotiations were ongoing at APD submission; final execution occurred post-approval.
Anti-collision modeling submitted and clearances evaluated for all offset wells in Ale 23 pad (8-well pad across two DSUs)
📄 KLX Directional Drilling Anticollision Report, 10/29/2025; Well Planning Report with formation tops and lateral design · 📅 2025-10-29
Directional drilling design fixes lateral entry point (MD 9,048.1 ft, TVD 8,380 ft in Middle Bakken target) and lateral extent (MD 24,540.6 ft, total 15,493 ft lateral length). Separation factors against adjacent wells (Ale 2335-1BHN, 2BHN, 3BHN, 4BHN, 6BH, 7BH, 8BH, and Ale 23-1 SWD) all exceed minimum thresholds (1.956–23.148 SF). Constraint persists: any future infill or offset drilling within spacing unit must re-verify anti-collision clearances using this design as reference.
Working interest affidavit: operator holds 83.33% WI in 2880-acre DSU (Sections 22, 23, 26, 27, 34, 35, T161N-R103W)
📄 Affidavit of Working Interest, dated 11/06/2025 · 📅 2025-11-06
Operating authority and liability allocation. At 83.33% majority, operator has control of spacing unit development; remaining 16.67% interest holders are subordinated. Non-routine because operator is also majority holder in adjacent northern DSU (51.64%, Sections 2, 3, 10, 11, 14, 15, T161N-R103W and Sections 34, 35, T162N-R103W), creating cross-DSU drilling continuity and coordination obligations.
Waiver request (dated 11/06/2025) for Order 31973 notification requirement because operator controls both source well DSU and adjacent DSU into which wellbore will enter during build phase
📄 Letter to Todd Holweger (NDIC Permit Manager) dated 11/06/2025; Affidavit of Waiver Request dated 11/11/2025 · 📅 2025-11-06 and 2025-11-11
Regulatory relief received (implicit in permit approval without objection). Waiver permits drilling into adjacent DSU without 3-day inter-operator notification delay. However, waiver is conditional on operator controlling both DSUs—if working interest changes, notification obligations may reactivate. Non-routine because it documents a regulatory exemption tied to operator consolidation.
Filter sock and waste material disposal protocol: leak-proof containers on-site from spud, mandatory disposal at authorized facility (13 Mile Landfill, Williston, ND per drilling plan)
📄 NDIC letter on Filter Socks dated 05/30/2025; Drilling Plan section 4 specifies closed-loop system and landfill destination · 📅 2025-05-30 (regulatory notice); drilling plan references closed-loop operations
Operational constraint: all drill cuttings and drilling waste must be containerized on-site and transported to licensed facility. Persists throughout drilling and completion phases. Non-routine because operator is subject to North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality permit requirements for solid waste transport and must maintain manifests.
🔧 Operator Pattern
Multi-well pad development with consolidated working interest across adjacent spacing units
Ale 23 pad comprises 8 wells across two DSUs (3840-acre northern DSU and 2880-acre southern DSU). Operator holds 51.64% WI in northern DSU and 83.33% WI in southern DSU, enabling unified pad development without inter-operator delays. Directional drilling design confirms pad layout with wells Ale 2335-1BHN through 8BH sharing single surface location (NW¼NE¼, Sec 23, T161N, R103W) with coordinated anti-collision clearances. Surface use agreement with single landowner (Metz) covers all wells on pad. Working interest and waiver documentation reflect operator's consolidation strategy—securing majority control enables operational efficiency but also establishes long-term liability and future inter-DSU coordination obligations.
Confidence: High
Permit file contains complete contemporaneous documentation: APD with signed stipulations, dated 12/29/2025; cores-and-samples letter same date; drilling plan with formation tops, casing design, and MWD survey plan; directional anti-collision report with offset well database (dated 10/29/2025); surface use agreement and working interest affidavits (dated 11/06–12/18/2025); regulatory waiver documentation (11/06 and 11/11/2025); and NDIC field inspection requirements clearly identified. No missing dates or contradictions. Aquifer location, setback geometry, and completion design are mutually reinforcing and directly justified by submitted engineering and regulatory correspondence. Pre-permit waiver requests and inter-DSU coordination documents establish operator control of both source and receiving DSUs, supporting permit approval without inter-operator delays.