OIL DRILLING

Evening Star, Issue 24103, 26 January 1942, Page 7

OIL DRILLING

NO ABANDONMENT OF PROGRAMME POWERFUL UNITS TO BE USED (P.A.) AUCKLAND, January 26. i Notwithstanding the extension of hostilities to the Pacific zone, information ho had received showed clearly that the large_ oil, companies were determined to go right ahead with their programmes in search of oli in New Zealand, staled the Minister of Mines, Mr Webb, when interviewed to-day. “ In these times,” said Mr Webb, “ one cannot always be as specific as one would like, but I know that one large company will shortly be operating in this country with an extremely powerful unit which has incorporated in it the very latest jmprove’ments in drilling technique.” ' The Minister said this company had a wonderful drilling record in other parts of the world, because it recognised that the essential need was a super, rig of proven capacity to drill successfully and quickly the very deepest of wells with the minimum of trouble or delay, and therefore at a relatively low overall cost. ” We have just read a reliable and extremely interesting account of the drilling programme carried out by this company. One of its super, rigs put down and completed seven wells in a period of 49 weeks, the total depth drilled being 81,140 ft, or an average of 11,591 ft for each well in seveii weeks. This is exceptionally smart work, and we could hardly conceive it possible in this country..” The Minister said that although drilling conditions might be difficult in New Zealand, there was every reason to believe Hint even here remarkably good drilling would be obtained. Operations were still proceeding at Midhirst, but the bore 'at Morcre bad been abandoned. It, bad to bp remembered that all over the world a large proportion of (be wells drilled bad proved to he dry. “ Let’s hope the next one will prove to be wet,” said the Minister, adding that it was unnecessary to point out (be enormous benefit it would be (o the Dominion it. a flow of oil were discovered in commercial quantity. He believed everyone was wholeheartedly behind the Government in its efforts to make a real attempt to discover oil in this country.