Gas Board 1982). Citronelle has been the state's largest oil producing field 

 since its discovery, accounting for over 30% of Alabama's production. 



Over half of the natural gas produced from the Citronelle Field is used 

 in the operation of the production facilities at that location. In 1977, 

 44,937 bbl of gasoline and 58,202 bbl of butane were extracted from the 

 natural gas by a liquid extraction plant in Citronelle (Alabama Coastal Area 

 Board and U.S. Dept. of Commerce 1979). The plant, operated by Cities 

 Service, was dismantled in about 1980 (D. Kemp, Cities Service Oil Co., 

 Tulsa, OK, 10 August 1982; pers. comm.) 



Engineers predict that 146 million bbl of oil will have been removed from 

 the Citronelle Field by 1985, which is 39% of the original total reserves. 

 Studies have indicated that the life of the field could be increased another 

 25 or 30 years beyond 1985, and another 100 million bbl of oil produced by 

 implementation of an enhanced oil recovery system (Alabama Coastal Area Board 

 and U.S. Dept. of Commerce 1979). A tertiary enhanced recovery program has 

 since been implemented (R. Raymond, Geological Survey of Alabama, University, 

 AL, 15 March 1982; pers. comm.). A tertiary enchanced recovery system is a 

 method whereby nitrogen gas is pumped underground to force oil to the surface 

 and increase the cumulative yield from the reservoir. Most of the oil 

 produced in Citronelle is transported to storage and refinery facilities in 

 Mobile and then barged to market (Alabama Coastal Area Board and U.S. Dept. 

 of Commerce 1979). 



Oil discoveries in northern Baldwin County in 1965 resulted in the 

 designation of Tensaw Lake Field (Atmore quadrangle). Although it has since 

 been abandoned due to production problems, this field was the first 

 significant discovery in the area in over 10 years, and it was the first from 

 the Paluxy Formation (Lower Cretaceous), at about a 2,562 m (8,400 ft) depth. 

 Between 1965 and 1972 this field produced 164,786 bbl of oil (Masingill and 

 Hall 1979). 



The Tensaw Lake Field generated a great deal of interest because the 

 initial production was water free and highly pressurized, enough to transport 

 the oil to surface production facilities. It was forecast that as many as 50 

 wells would need to be drilled in order to efficiently drain the reserve. 

 Subsequent wells, however, showed that the pressure was insufficient to push 

 the viscous oil to the surface. Pumping was necessary to extract the oil, 

 which increased the amount of accompanying saline water. Although the Tensaw 

 Lake Field was abandoned in 1972, increased petroleum prices may cause its 

 revitalization (Alabama Coastal Area Board and U.S. Dept. of Commerce 1979). 



The first Jurassic (Jurassic period: 180 million to 135 million years 

 before present) production in Alabama, in the Smackover Formation of Choctaw 

 County and in the Nlorphlet Formation of Escambia County, paved the way for 

 the Chunchula and Hatter's Pond (Mobile quadrangle) discoveries in northern 

 Mobile County. At depths of about 5,486 m (18,000 ft), the Chunchula Field 

 produces from the Smackover Formation, while the Hatters Pond Field produces 

 from both the Smackover and Nlorphlet Formations (Masingill and Hall 1979). 

 These finds were made in 1974, but production did not begin until 1976, as a 

 cleansing plant had to be built to separate hydrogen sulfide from the hydro- 



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