"Jeff Wisnia" wrote in message
...
SteveB wrote:
wrote in message
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Oil rigs seem to be capable of drilling holes inches in diameter
and thousands of feet deep. They can keep these holes amazingly
straight or deliberately curve them.

How do they do this and what does the drill head look like?

Jim


Oilwells are drilled with predetermined goals in mind. The target strata
is not always right under the oil rig. Hence, they use "directional
drilling" to make the bit go in the direction they want it to. That way,
they can puncture several levels of strata with one well to recover as
much oil as they can.

Directional drilling is achieved in many ways. It is far to complicated
to explain here in a few paragraphs. Google it and read away.
Basically, it is just a way to change the direction of a bit to hit a
known reserve. Modern advances allow drillers to make sharper turns. A
drillstem is made of steel, but anything thousands of feet long has flex
in it.


I imagine that has led to some pretty heated discussions (and beyond) when
someone's drill hole ends up under the next door neighbor's property.

Or, am I wrong in assuming that one's oil and mineral rights extend down
to the center of the earth?

And what about draining the oil out of a strata which extends under
someone else's property - through a drill hole that's totally under yours?

The lawyers must eat up this kind of stuff. G

Jeff


It gets complicated, but the mineral rights in tracts are of a vertical
nature. So, you can't like tunnel into your neighbor's property. I don't
know what happens when a reserve lies on a boundary line, and as pumping
occurs, the oil may come from your lease or an adjoining one. Like you say,
lawyers do that stuff.

STeve