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Ursa meets with community ahead of commissioners vote

Alex Zorn
  

Ursa Resources Vice President of Business Development Don Simpson, left, watches on as field landman John Doose expalins the company's current and proposed future operations. Around 50 people attended Ursa's community meeting on Wednesday night.
Alex Zorn / Post Independent |

Weeks before the Garfield County Board of County Commissioners will decide whether to allow a small injection within Battlement Mesa’s housing area, Ursa Operating Company went through its updated plans with its neighbors and other members of the Battlement Mesa community.

The company provided updates on its overall plan, including how the first phase is progressing and the status on Ursa Phase II permit applications.

“We’re making great progress,” said Ursa Field Landman John Doose.



To date, 200 wells have been drilled out of the 299 Ursa had planned to drill, a 68 percent completion.

Doose added that Ursa is currently operating two of the four pads it has planned within the Battlement Mesa Planned Unit Development (PUD). The original plan was to drill 14 pads.



The company is working to finish completions on the two pads currently operating within the Battlement Mesa PUD, the BMC B and BMC D Pad, with the BMC B Pad closer to completion.

Twenty-four of 28 wells planned to be located on the BMC D Pad have been drilled, and all 24 located on BMC B pad have been drilled inside of the PUD.

Following completions of B Pad wells, completions will begin on all 28 wells on D Pad.

Doose explained that the company will begin Phase II operations as soon as the applications are approved.

At 9 a.m. Nov. 14, the Garfield County Board of County Commissioners will hold a public meeting to consider Ursa’s Phase II plans and proposals, including the company’s plan to bring a small injection well in the Battlement Mesa PUD. The commissioners are expected to make their decision Nov. 16.

The overall project includes applications for 55 natural gas wells to be drilled at two well pads in the unincorporated residential area, a small injection well at one of the pads, a natural gas pipeline associated with both pads and a temporary water storage facility.

The injection well will be used to dispose of wastewater more efficiently than trucking it away.

Ursa Operations Superintendent Matt Honeycutt said that while every single barrel of produced water in Ursa’s developments in Battlement Mesa is being recycled and used during the completion process, the company will need a fourth injection well in the area to dispose of the water.

Currently, the Watson Ranch Pad and the Speakman A Pad, both outside of the Battlement Mesa PUD, have injection wells. Another injection well will be added to a pad outside of the PUD.

Should the application be denied, Honeycutt said that Ursa will look to put an injection well at the M Pad, which is proposed to be inside the PUD.

“We feel that is the best thing to do for the community rather than truck produced water out of community for the next 20 years,” he added.


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