BLENHEIM OIL BORE

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 37, 13 February 1929, Page 4

BLENHEIM OIL BORE

OBSTRUCTION IN WELL. (By Ti'li'smph.—Press Association) XEW PLYMOUTH. Tuesday. Asked by the Press Association representative to make a definite statement recurdir.g the results of the operations at the Blenheim oil bore the chairman of directors. Mr. W. P. Martin, issued a report to-night as follows: —"On February 4. when the bore was uncapped for the purpose of measuring the flow, oil flowed at the rate of 4000 gallons an hour for a period of about a minute and a-half. The How then ceased, due. it is surmised, to what is known as a. gas lock. Oil has not since flowed from the bore. On February 5 two lengths of 7in rasing were withdrawn in the hope of inducing oil to How up inside the "in casing, instead of as before between the "in and 10in casing, because there are no means of leading the oil from the mouth of the bore to tanks when it is emerging from between the two casings.

''Investigations showed water and solid matter to have been driven some distance up the 7in casing by the pressure of gas. and ever since February 5 the drilling out of this debri.s has been persevered with in conjunction with the bailing out of water, with the object of lowering the water pressure. This, it is hoped, will result in oil being induced to flow up the 7in casing when it is sufficiently cleared. The work of drilling anil bailing is now proceeding night and day.''