Villeperdue Field

Michael J. FitzGerald
Toreador Resources Corp, Dallas, TX

In 1954 oil was discovered in the Paris Basin; by 1980 fourteen fields with recoverable reserves of approximately 64.0 MMBO had been confirmed from Lower Cretaceous through Upper Triassic reservoirs. Exploration was based on surface geology and seismic.

Structures in the Paris Basin are extremely low relief. Complicating exploration is a Cretaceous chalk unit that plays havoc with seismic.

The Montmirail #2, drilled by RAP in 1958, established production in Jurassic Dogger carbonates. RAP drilled two wet offsets; a third well drilled up-dip was “tite”. The Mt. #2 produced 7000 BO over the next few years and was shut-in.

In 1980 Triton Oil & Gas farmed-in to the Montmirail-Les Sieges Permit. Analysis of the unsuccessful offsets to the Mt. #2 was initiated by the staff. The Triton exploration team reviewed logs and test information on all Dogger Fields in the basin to determine if key elements had been overlooked. Field mapping indicated that isopach thinning was related to all Dogger production. Mapping combined with test information in the existing fields indicated that the Dogger porosity was variable with “tite” wells located between producers.

In 1982, Triton drilled the Villeperdue #1, 3.5 kilometers southeast of the Mt. #2. Production was established from the same section found in Mt. #2.

Today the Villeperdue Field covers 14,000 acres, and has nearly 200 wells. Proper determination of field characteristics from detailed subsurface mapping, analysis of production information and geophysical mapping led to the discovery of the second largest field in the Paris Basin.