San Juan Newsletter, July 2000
Executive Summary
Following is an overview of activity in the San Juan Basin. Gas volumes produced in the
San Juan Basin averaged 4,196 MMcf/d for the third quarter of 1999. Average coal seam
volumes for April were 1,728 MMcf/d. In May 2000, flows from the San Juan Basin to El
Paso, Transwestern and PNM totaled 3,626 MMcf/d, which is 161 MMcf/d more than in May 1999
and 134 MMcf/d more than in May 1998. Spot prices at the Blanco Hub for June averaged
$3.87 per MMBtu, which is 81 cents more than in May. During the month of May, there were a
total of 71 "Notices of Intention to Drill", 1 workover, 29 gas well
completions, 0 oil well completions and 31 plugged and abandoned wells.
Background
The San Juan Basin is one of the most prolific gas producing regions in the country,
located in northwestern New Mexico and southwestern Colorado. It is roughly a circular
area of about 15-20 thousand cubic miles of sedimentary rock. The basin currently produces
just over 4 Bcf/d. Over 26,000 wells have been drilled in the basin, with approximately
20,000 wells currently producing. They range in depth from 2,000 feet to over 7,500 feet.
The major producing formations in this basin are the Dakota, Mesa Verde, Pictured Cliffs
and the Fruitland coal. Current remaining recoverable reserve estimates for north-western
New Mexico are 12.9 Tcf. The development of the Fruitland coal seam resource starting in
1988 dramatically changed this basin. Currently, almost 65% of the total production from
this basin is from this one resource. |
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