Scary Thought

[DesertMarine]

Still plenty of room in the rural areas.  Cities are being ruined by too many people.  Desert areas are being drilled for oil and gas like crazy but still plenty room left.

[Rastus]

Still plenty of room in the rural areas.  Cities are being ruined by too many people.  Desert areas are being drilled for oil and gas like crazy but still plenty room left.

That would be out west...where you are.  It's disappearing rapidly in other places. 

Oil and gas will be gone in 25-50 years.....I worked the stuff out of Farmington and Durango a while....there's going to be a lot of those wells going to start getting plugged out in 10-15 years.  Then we'll have to restore the land. 

New Mexico is a beautiful state...what part are you in?

[DesertMarine]

I am in Carlsbad, the southeast part.

[tombogan03884]

That would be out west...where you are.  It's disappearing rapidly in other places. 

Oil and gas will be gone in 25-50 years.....I worked the stuff out of Farmington and Durango a while....there's going to be a lot of those wells going to start getting plugged out in 10-15 years.  Then we'll have to restore the land. 

New Mexico is a beautiful state...what part are you in?

From what I've seen passing through Texas and Ca. oil drilling areas that doesn't seem like much of a job, take down the pumps and cover the holes and you're done. Or did I miss something.*

* I passed through these areas, you work in the industry. If I'm wrong, please set me straight. 

[DesertMarine]

From what I've seen passing through Texas and Ca. oil drilling areas that doesn't seem like much of a job, take down the pumps and cover the holes and you're done. Or did I miss something.*

* I passed through these areas, you work in the industry. If I'm wrong, please set me straight. 

Working on, around, with oil rigs is diry hard work.  Welders are making a killing on oil rigs, lots of work.  I have friends and nephews working on the rigs.  I would not want to do it.

[Sponsor]

[jaybet]

How about this?
http://www.thepickensplan.com/

[Rastus]

From what I've seen passing through Texas and Ca. oil drilling areas that doesn't seem like much of a job, take down the pumps and cover the holes and you're done. Or did I miss something.*

* I passed through these areas, you work in the industry. If I'm wrong, please set me straight. 

Oh, you have to pull the rods, if any and tubing.  Set plugs, pump cement.  Then you cut the casing off below plow depth...greater than 3' anyway.  Cost is about $60k to $80k per well for those gas wells from 5,000 to 8,000 feet deep around Farmington and Durango.  That includes money to remove all of the equipment, clean up everything and reslope and plant the area where the well was. 

Not bad...the worst thing is getting the permits to abandon and the overall government relations...then of course the government must approve your procedure...then every now and then you get some jerk like Michael ran into on the shooting range and they try to layer a couple of hundred thousand dollars in improvements to their area on you until you get a lawyer and tell them to pound sand.  Mostly the government guys are really good to work with....it's just when they send out some starry eyed idiot from DC to straighten things out the real problems start....then you have to acquaint them with contract law and criminal law to show them how exposed they are to damages for being stupid.  Asked an MMS representative once to confirm he was instructing me to perform a felony to avoid issuance of a fine and so long as his legal department delivered the demand I was alright with it...well, that one went away pretty quick.... 

Offshore, cost is about $180k to $300k  per well, if on a platform with other wells in shallow water.  Costs offshore can easily top $1,000,000 and that doesn't include platform removal which can be several million more.  I had to cut the wells off 16 feet below the mudline.  If you have to mob out for a single well that can't be abandoned without a rig...you can spend that million plus some. 

[DesertMarine]

[Not bad...the worst thing is getting the permits to abandon and the overall government relations...then of course the government must approve your procedure...then every now and then you get some jerk like Michael ran into on the shooting range and they try to layer a couple of hundred thousand dollars in improvements to their area on you until you get a lawyer and tell them to pound sand.  Mostly the government guys are really good to work with....it's just when they send out some starry eyed idiot from DC to straighten things out the real problems start....then you have to acquaint them with contract law and criminal law to show them how exposed they are to damages for being stupid.  Asked an MMS representative once to confirm he was instructing me to perform a felony to avoid issuance of a fine and so long as his legal department delivered the demand I was alright with it...well, that one went away pretty quick.... 

I was one of those government guys, not in oil though, and you are right.  Starry eyed idiots just out of college or the enviornmentals are something else.  Hard part is how many abandoned oil/gas wells are out there that were not restored at all.  I have been out of it for eight years, so I am not up to date as to what is going on.   

[tombogan03884]

Knew I'd get the straight scoop from you guy's. Thank you for the education. I keep telling people, this site should be worth college credit