PETROLEUM PRODUCTION 



Onshore petroleum production in Southwest Florida is confined largely to 

 Collier and Lee Counites. Oil and gas are produced in the Sunniland, West 

 Felda, Lake Trafford, Bear Island, Leheigh Park, and Baxter Island fields. In 

 1979, these fields yielded 4,304,333 bbl of crude oil and 353,000 million 

 cubic feet (MCF) of gas. 



The 1943 Sunniland discovery in Collier County was followed by the Lee 

 County West Felda field in 1966 and the Lake Trafford field in Collier County. 

 The Bear Island field in Collier County began production in 1972, and the Le- 

 heigh Park field in Lee County began production in 1974. Table 5 gives esti- 

 mated oil and gas reserves, 1979 production, and cumulative production in 

 Southwest Florida. 



The Sunniland field, the most productive and largest producing field, has 

 37,685,118 bbl in reserve, and produces about 33% of the crude oil in South- 

 west Florida. The West Felda field was the greatest producer in 1979 

 (2,176,321 barrels or 51% of the total crude oil production in Southwest Flor- 

 ida). The West Felda field has a reserve of 142,857,143 bbl. The West Felda 

 field produces the most natural gas; it has 11,428,571 MCF in reserves. Pro- 

 duction in 1975 was 162,428 MCF which was about 67% and 46% of the region's 

 reserves and production, respectively. 



Oil and gas production in Southwest Florida was valued at $42 million for 

 1978 based on $9.23/bbl for crude oil and $0.35/MCF for gas. This income is 

 about 6% of the State's total value of crude oil, natural gas liquids, and 

 natural gas for the same year. 



OCS OIL AND GAS PROJECTIONS 



USGS long-term oil and gas production forecasts for the Gulf of Mexico 

 indicate a gradual decline in production and an ultimate depletion sometime 

 soon after. Since production is not independent of technological innovation, 

 economics and market forces, recovery in old, nearly depleted wells frun steam 

 injections could increase recoverable reserves in existing fields. Break- 

 throughs in oil platform design enabling cheaper and smaller production units 

 could allow small, currently uneconomical fields to become economical for pro- 

 duction. As the complex relationships of technology, economics and market 

 forces change, estimates of recoverable resources also change. 



The Resource Appraisal Group (RAG) of USGS assessed undiscovered recover- 

 able oil and gas resources and developed the production curves shown in 

 Figure 6. The RAG and the Office of Resource Analysis (also in USGS) use 

 occurrence modeling, search modeling, and production modeling. 



Data obtained from research are being used to develop a sophisticated 

 model on the dynamics of petroleum reserves. The Clark-Drew Model is capable 

 of determining (1) the field size distribution of total resources, (2) field 

 size distribution of deposits discoverable at different levels of cost and 

 technology, and (3) production curves over time using various socioeconomic 

 assumptions (U.S. Department of the Interior 1980). 



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