Region: Northern Midcontinent Nemaha Uplift Province This description of the Nemaha Uplift Province is from the U. S. Geological Survey 1995 National Assessment of United States Oil and Gas Resources (available on CD-ROM from the U.S.G.S. as Digital Data Series DDS-30, Release 2).

Nemaha Uplift Province

Introduction

The Nemaha Uplift Province extends from southeastern Nebraska to south-central Oklahoma. It consists of 23 counties; all boundaries of the province follow county boundaries. The province is about 450 mi long (north-south) by 110 mi wide (east-west) and has an area of 16,100 sq mi.

Petroleum exploration in the Nemaha Uplift Province began before the turn of the century. Gas was discovered in Cowley County, Kans., as early as 1902. The first discovery larger than 1 MMBOE was in 1903 in Cowley County, Kans. (Dexter field). More than 45,000 wells have been drilled in the province and 194 fields larger than 1 MMBOE have been discovered. Discovered resources as of the end of 1990 have been more than 2.4 BBO and over 6.1 TCFG. Among the largest fields in the province are Oklahoma City field (more than 750 MMBO and more than 2.4 TCFG), in Cleveland and Oklahoma Counties, Okla.; El Dorado field (more than 300 MMBO), in Butler County, Kans.; and Crescent-Lovell field (more than 850 BCFG), in Kingfisher and Logan Counties, Okla.

The plays were erected for the Nemaha Uplift Province primarily by grouping the reservoir rocks by age. Thus, the reservoirs and prospects in the pre-Woodford Paleozoic rocks are in the Pre-Woodford Paleozoic Play, except for those significantly below the top of the Arbuckle Group, which are in play the Internal Arbuckle/Reagan Play. Woodford Shale reservoirs are part of a regional unconventional play, the Woodford/Chattanooga/Arkansas Novaculite of Midcontinent Play, described under the Anadarko Basin Province. The Pennsylvanian and Permian reservoirs are divided into two plays by primary trap type. The Pennsylvanian-Permian Structural Play includes Pennsylvanian or Permian reservoirs or prospects with structural or combination traps. The Pennsylvanian Stratigraphic Play includes Pennsylvanian, primarily but not exclusively Desmoinesian, reservoirs with stratigraphic traps. Another play assessed within the Nemaha Uplift Province is the Precambrian Midcontinent Rift System Play. Coal-bed gas resources were not assessed for this province.

Acknowledgments

Scientists affiliated with the American Association of Petroleum Geologists and from various State geological surveys contributed significantly to play concepts and definitions. Their contributions are gratefully acknowledged.

References

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