Mainland is currently testing the Buena Vista Prospect with the drilling of its Burkley-Phillips No1 well. The well was spudded on recently and has a projected drilling depth of 22,000ft, which will test the Haynesville Shale and potentially shallower productive formations.
This new acreage acquired by Mainland is similar to the Buena Vista prospect, as the prospect was originally developed by an oil company to drill a 20,000ft plus well in the early 1980s. The deep test drilled was not successful in establishing production in the deep target zone, the company said.
However, the driller encountered four to five shallower zones that did calculate to be potentially productive. According to data received by the company, there is a gas zone at approximately 15,000ft that had good porosity and mud log shows. There are three to four different Tuscaloosa oil zones between 13,000ft and 14,000ft that had good mud log shows and porosity, the company added.
This interval includes the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale, an oil-bearing shale known to cover fourteen parishes and counties in Louisiana and Mississippi.
