APX Energy, LLC operates principally in the Illinois Basin. The
Illinois Basin is located in portions of Illinois, Indiana,
Kentucky and Tennessee. Major oil production began in 1905 in the
basin, and since then has produced more than 4 billion
barrels of oil. The basin is composed of predominantly
conventional reservoirs that are generally oil prone with small
amounts of non-commercial associated gas. More recent
non-conventional shale gas exploration in the New Albany Shale has
been confined to the eastern portion of the basin. Most oil
reservoirs in the basin are considered conventional, although new
frac techniques and horizontal drilling are changing the way
producers approach the basin.
We are often reminded by
a profound statement made by Parke A. Dickey in 1958, a renowned
petroleum geologist who stated, "we usually find oil in new places
with old ideas. Sometimes, also, we find oil in an old place with
a new idea, but we seldom find much oil in an old place with an
old idea. Several times in the past we have thought that we were
running out of oil, whereas actually we were running out of
ideas." We take this quote to heart as we apply new technologies
to the Illinois Basin.