1 Challenger Minerals Inc., Houston, dipped into a natural gas discovery in Viosca Knoll Block 20 in the east-central Gulf of Mexico. The company's #1 OCS-G-25047 wildcat, in the northeast corner of the block in 66 ft. of water, bottomed at 12,600 ft. in Miocene-age rock. This is the only well planned for the block, but Mobile blocks 944 and 988 also are included in the company's plan of exploration. Challenger previously abandoned a well in Block 944 but completed a test in Block 988 flowing gas from Upper Miocene perforations between 5,587-99 ft. The company also plans a pipeline from that well to a proposed "A" platform on Chandeleur Block 3 southwest, according to IHS Energy. 2 Metairie, La.-based Bepco Operating Co. repermitted a wildcat as part of its campaign in southern Webster County, Miss., in the southern Black Warrior Basin. Under the new permit, the company plans to drill its #1 Salt Creek well to look for natural gas in Pennsylvanian to 16,200 ft. in Section 35-20n-9e. The company is drilling its #1 Mt. Zion well about 0.75-mile north in Section 26, also targeting Pennsylvanian at 15,700 ft. Only six wells have been drilled in the county, and none is producing. The nearest commercial production is 15 miles east-southeast in northeastern Oktibbeha County where Maben and Maben South fields produce from Pennsylvanian and Ordovician Knox. 3 Howard Energy Co. Inc., Traverse City, Mich., staked a Niagaran exploratory test almost four miles southwest of Millersburg in irregular Section 5-33n-e3e, Case Township, in southwestern Presque Isle County in northeastern Michigan. The #1-5 State-Case & Hecker directional well is scheduled to be drilled northeast to 3,780 ft. The new well is 1.25 miles south of the Case 29-34n-3e Field, which was discovered in 1986 in a well flowing 391 bbl. of oil and 345,000 cu. ft. of gas a day from Brown Niagaran perforations between 3,426-74 ft. Through 2004, that well had produced 430,291 bbl. of oil, 693.4 million cu. ft. of gas and 14,935 bbl. of water. Howard also plans to drill the #1-12A HD2 State Allis horizontal well in Section 12-33n-2e to 3,860 ft. as a Niagaran test. 4 Traverse City, Mich., independent Jordan Development Co. LLC plans an exploratory well to look at Niagaran zones in the northern reef trend in northwestern Michigan. The #16-8 State-Grant & Karlin will be a 5,900-ft. test almost seven miles northwest of Buckley in Section 8-25n-12w, Grant Township, in southwestern Grand Traverse County. The well is a half-mile northwest of Grant 16-25n-12w Field, which produced 368,500 bbl. of oil, 94.6 million cu. ft. of gas and 54,250 bbl. of water from Niagaran through the end of last year. 5 Adams County, Ill., encountered surging activity as Allied Energy LLC, Norris City, Ill., mapped out a wildcat campaign aimed at Silurian in Section 23-3s-5w. New wells include the #1 Main about 2.1 miles north of Fishhook Field, which produces from Silurian, and 5.8 miles northwest of Baylis; the #2 Main, about the same distance from Fishhook Field but 0.1-mile closer to Baylis; the #3 Main, two miles north of Fishhook Field and 5.7 miles from Baylis; and the #4 Main, two miles north of Fishhook Field and 5.6 miles north of Baylis. 6 Infinity Oil & Gas LLC, Flora, Ill., permitted the #1 D. Grotefendt exploratory well in the western Illinois Basin about three miles northeast of Edwardsville, Ill. The well, in Section 33-5n-7w in western Madison County, is an offset to a dry hole, and the nearest production was 2.5 miles east-southeast at the now-abandoned Marine West Field. That field produced 28,350 bbl. of oil from Devonian and Silurian between 1,600-50 ft. between 1965 and 1978. Infinity plans to drill to 1,800 ft. to test the Trenton formation. 7 Petro Halogen Corp., Grayville, Ill., staked a wildcat to test the Warsaw formation for natural gas at 1,800 ft. in DuBois County, Ind. The company's #1 Rauscher is in Section 30-2s-5w, almost two miles east of Duff Field, a Tar Springs producer, and 4.3 miles west of the town of Huntingburg, Ind. 8 Bakerwell Inc., Westerville, Ohio, has received a permit for a wildcat to Clinton Sand at 3,600 ft. The #1 Brook Hill exploratory test will look for oil and gas in Russell Township, Chagrin Falls Quad, Geauga County, Ohio. The well is a half-mile north of the town of Chagrin Falls and four miles north the nearest production in East Bainbridge Field. 9 Franklin Gas & Oil Co. Inc., Wooster, Ohio, staked three wildcats to look for oil and gas in Trempealeau in Huron County, Ohio. The #1 Gates Unit well will drill to 3,500 ft. in Greenfield Township, Monroeville Quad. That well is 10 miles south-southwest of Norwalk and 12 miles southwest of Hartland Field, which produces from Ohio Shale, Sylvania and Big Lime. The second wildcat is the #1 Kamann Unit, scheduled to 3,500 ft. in Peru Township, Monroeville Quad. That is four miles southwest of Norwalk and seven miles west of Hartland Field. The final wildcat is the #1 Arnett Unit, planned to bottom at 3,900 ft. in Townsend Township, Berlin Heights Quad. 10 Houston-based EOG Resources Inc. is continuing its New York exploration program with four Schuyler County wildcats. The #1 Dixon targeted Black River Lime at 5,600 ft, in Section E, Reading Center Quad, Reading Township, 6.5 miles south of Dundee, N.Y., and 1.1 miles east of an unnamed Black River field. No details have been released on the well results. The company staked the #2 Schiavone to look for gas in the Queenston Shale at 4,880 ft., also in Reading Center Quad, Reading Township. That well is 4.6 miles northwest of Burdett and 3.9 miles north of an unnamed Oriskany field. EOG's third exploratory effort, the #1 Estes, will go to Queenston at 5,470 ft., also in Reading Center Quad, Reading Township, 6.5 miles northwest of Watkins Glen and 1.8 miles east of the unnamed Black River field. The final wildcat, the #1 NNR, in the same quad and township, will look for Queenston Shale gas at 5,325 ft. 5.5 miles south of Dundee and 1.8 miles northeast of the unnamed Black River field. 11 Fortuna Energy Inc., the Horseheads, N.Y., subsidiary of Talisman Energy Inc., Calgary, continued its Trenton/Black River campaign in Steuben County, N.Y. with the #1-A Bauer wildcat. The company is drilling the well to Black River Lime at 10,165 ft. in Section F, Big Flats Quad, Corning Township, 1.3 miles south of an unnamed Trenton field and four miles northeast of South Corning. 12 The Hartville, Ohio-based Great Lakes Energy Partners LLC subsidiary of Range Resources Corp., Fort Worth, Texas, plans a 13,000-ft. Trenton/Black River wildcat in northern Pennsylvania. The company's #1 Stubler-Farr Unit will be drilled in Ridgebury Township, Bentley Creek Quad, in northern Bradford County. It apparently will be the first well in a previously announced three-well wildcat program in the deeper Trenton/Black River plan in the area. The well is 2.8 miles northwest of an unnamed Medina field, 8.5 miles southwest of South Waverly, Penn., and less than 10 miles south of the New York border. 13 PC Exploration Inc., Warrendale, Pa., staked an 8,500-ft. wildcat to look for Oriskany gas in Somerset County, Pa. The #1 Dale H. Nicklow will be drilling in Section I, Kingwood Quad, Turkeyfoot Township, 5.3 miles west of Casselman and 1.1 miles south of an unnamed Oriskany field. 14 Nicholasville, Ky.-based Classic Oil & Gas Resources will drill a couple of new-field wildcats to Devonian at 5,800 ft. in Clear Fork District, Oceana Quad in Wyoming County, W.Va. The #1 Emmett Browning is 5.8 miles southwest of the town of Oceana and 1.2 miles northeast of Mann-Oceana Field, which produces from Rhinstreet. The #1 Kenneth Toler is the same distance from the Rhinstreet field but 0.1-mile farther from Oceana. 15 Nami Resources Co. LLC, London, Ky., continued its wildcat campaign to Clinton at 4,000 ft. in Section 18-D-70e in Pineville Quad in Bell County, Ky. The latest group of filings includes the 38 Lewis Heirs well, which is 1.8 miles northeast of an unnamed Big Lime field and 1.9 miles northwest of Pineville. The #1 Gatliff-Howard is two miles northeast of the Big Lime field and 1.4 miles north of Pineville. The #2 Gatliff-Howard is 1.9 miles northeast of the field and 1.6 miles north of the town. 16 Houston independent Omda Oil & Gas Inc. signed an agreement with Young Oil Corp., Knob Lick, Ky., to participate in Young's drilling program on 46,000 acres of leases in Overton, Pickett, Fentress, Morgan, Scott and Clay counties in north-central Tennessee. Through its Omda Oil & Gas Inc. (Texas) subsidiary, the Houston firm bought a 20% gross (15% net) working interest in the first six wells in the program and has first right of refusal on any remaining wells on the acreage. The fast, shallow wells will be drilled to 2,000 ft.

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