CRUDE PETROLEUM.

North Otago Times, Volume CIII, Issue 13656, 25 August 1916, Page 4

CRUDE PETROLEUM.

OUTFLOW EROM TARANAKI WELLS.- '■■

Drilling operations!!) search'of petroleum in payable quantity, which' have fur a number of years been in progress in the Dominion/havc not during JOl5 resulted in any additional .supplies being tapped, reports the Inspecting .Engineer of -AHlies to the Under-Secretary of Mines. The Taranaki Oil Wells, Ltd! do\v:irilstliel;itti'i'|iart of the year furnished evidence that .1,1100,000 gallons' of| marketable criide oil had been pro-, duced from its wells at Alotiiroa, Tiiranaki, during a period of about eight years, mid in consequence was Awarded the (iovernmeiit bonus offered for the' production of tlie first million gallons of crude oil by any party. The total bonus gained by this eompa'nv amounts lo £IO,OOO. At the'present'time the daily production is less than JIOO. gallons, obtained froni wells Mos. 2, ;i, and 5, the Hon* from nil the productiveSvells having gradually declined to small proportions within a year or two of the tapping of oil-yielding stratum. Drilling operations during .1915 were Njiiliili'd.to Stt. l' 1 well, which lias been enlarged in diameter' to receive lOiii, casing for a depth of 20U0ft,; this well had previously attained'a depth of i'lO'iOl't, .being then lined with. ain. casing . It is now proposed to prove the field by this well at a greater depth Hum hitherto reached. The .obstacle to. the deepening of this company's wells was the small diameter of casing used, At Xo. f (Rotary) well drilling ceased :it a depth of 2514 ft.. This well was commenced with lorn, casing, 1 but was relined with -tin. casing, rendered necessary by reason of-a bit being lost in tlie hole.

The only other active, well-drilling operations were carried on intermittently by the Taranaki Oil Lauds, etc., Company, Ltd.. at its "Blenheim'' well at iloturoa, where, at the end uf 111 15, a hole ;:So*Jl't. in depth, lined with (i.lin. casing, had been drilled. At the-time of writing this borehole' had attained a depth of -1250 ft., and a small quantity of oil was now being yielded.