The Mississippian in Kansas: An Update

Rex Buchanan, Interim Director K. David Newell, Ph.D.

Kansas Geological SurveyUniversity of Kansas

Lawrence, Kansas

Mississippian rocks, Cherokee County

(www2.nau.edu/rcb7/namM345.jpg)

Kansas Rock Column

and hydrocarbon pay zones

J urassic

Cretaceous Niobrara Chalk

Dakota Formation

Triassic

LITHOLOGYAGE

Desmoinesian

Permian

Virgilian

Missourian

Cedar Hills SandstoneStone Corral anhydrite

Hutchinson salt

Chase Group

Lansing &Kansas City Groups

Marmaton &Cherokee Groups

Pen

nsylv

an

ian

Mississippian

Ordovician

Viola LimestoneSimpson GroupArbuckle GroupReagan Sandstone

Precambrian

Council Grove Group

Cambrian

Atokan

Chesteran

Morrowan Kearny Formation

Shawnee &Wabaunsee Groups

(basal Penn. unconformity)

500 mapprox scale

UNITS

Top of MSSP is at 3658

Weathered chert (with weathering rinds – light around dark interiors)Can be seen in chert clasts

Cherty limestones are very typical of the MSSP

This may be the type of dark, non-porous organic-rich limestone that will produce oil, if hydrofractured

Mississippian Pay Zone MineralogyBerexco Wellington KGS #1-32

Silicified sponge spicule

Silicified filled pore space • Plain light (10x

zoom); • Pore space filled by

blue epoxy• Fine grained

dolomite with silica cement, minor pore space

• Silicified sponge spicule

• Most of pore spaces filled with chert

3670.6’

TS provided by Datta & Barker, KSU

50

40

30

20

10

0

45

35

25

15

5

100

40

20

0

30

10

INTENTS-TO-DRILL for HORIZONTAL WELLSin SOUTHERN and WESTERN KANSAS

(half-month time increments - May 2011 through July 2013)

NUMBER OF INTENTS-TO-DRILL IN A SIX-COUNTYTIER ALONG THE OKLAHOMA STATE LINE

(HORIZONTAL INTENTS IN RED, ALL INTENTS IN GRAY)PERCENTAGE OF INTENTS THAT ARE HORIZONTAL WELLS

# ofPermits

20

10

0

15

5

June,2011

Aug,2011

Oct,2011

Dec,2011

Feb,2012

Apr,2012

June,2012

Aug,2012

NUMBER OF INTENTS-TO-DRILL FOR HORIZONTAL WELLSIN WESTERN KANSAS

90

%

80

60

70

50

# ofPermits

Oct,2012

Feb,2013

Dec,2012

Apr,2013

June,2013

Aug,2013

June,2011

Aug,2011

Oct,2011

Dec,2011

Feb,2012

Apr,2012

June,2012

Aug,2012

Oct,2012

Feb,2013

Dec,2012

Apr,2013

June,2013

Aug,2013

June,2011

Aug,2011

Oct,2011

Dec,2011

Feb,2012

Apr,2012

June,2012

Aug,2012

Oct,2012

Feb,2013

Dec,2012

Apr,2013

June,2013

Aug,2013

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

2010 2011 2012

Monthly Production from Modern Horizontal Wells in KS(bbls of oil equivalent; [6000 cfg = 1 BOE])

BOE/mo.

YEAR162 wells reportingproduction

BOE/day

18 wells reportingproduction

250,000

300,000

350,000

400,000

6.7 % of KansasO&G production

production fromwells first reportiing

in 2012

production fromwells first reportiing

in 20110

450,000

500,000

1 well reportingproduction

5,0004,0003,0002,0001,000

6,0007,0008,0009,000

10,00011,00012,00013,00014,00015,000

02013

production fromwells first reportiing

in 2013

550,000

16,00017,00018,000

226 wells reportingproduction

08

/20

10

09

/20

10

10

/20

10

11

/20

10

12

/20

10

01

/20

11

02

/20

11

03

/20

11

04

/20

11

05

/20

11

06

/20

11

07

/20

11

08

/20

11

09

/20

11

10

/20

11

11

/20

11

12

/20

11

01

/20

12

02

/20

12

03

/20

12

04

/20

12

05

/20

12

06

/20

12

07

/20

12

08

/20

12

09

/20

12

10

/20

12

11

/20

12

12

/20

12

01

/20

13

02

/20

13

03

/20

13

04

/20

13

Month/Year

0

50

100

150

200

250

Da

ily P

rod

uct

ion

pe

r w

ell

(by

mo

nth

), w

ell

nu

mb

ers

number of wellsavg production (boepd) per well

Production and Numbers -- Recent Kansas Horizontal Wells

Water Usage

Mississippian-related Web sites

Recent Rule Changes

• Landspreading/KCC, KDHE

• Frack fluid disclosure/KCC

The Mississippian in Kansas: An Update

Rex Buchanan, Interim Director rex@kgs.ku.edu

K. David Newell, Ph.D.Kansas Geological Survey

University of KansasLawrence, Kansas