THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 20. 2013
PAGE 3
STATE
SandRidge plans to drill 100 Kansas wells in 2014
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WICHITA — Unfazed by its counterparts pulling out of Kansas, SandRidge Energy plans to spend $350 million next year to punch an additional 100 horizontal wells and build associated infrastructure in the Mississippi Lime formation in the state, a top executive told The Associated Press.
A SandRidge Energy rig pumps oil near Anthony. SandRidge Energy said it plans to spend $350 million in 2014 to punch an additional 100 horizontal wells and build associated infrastructure in the Mississippi Lime formation in Kansas.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
"So just by that number alone you can gauge our interest in the Kansas area," said David Lawler, executive vice president and chief operating officer for the Oklahoma City-based firm.
His comments in a phone interview last week stand in sharp contrast to Shell Oil Co.'s September announcement that the oil giant would pull up stakes and sell its Kansas assets. The Shell move was the latest in a litany of major oil exploration companies that have given up on the Kansas side of the Mississippi Lime formation.
Using horizontal drilling and a technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking," to coax out oil and natural gas, companies have amassed fortunes from the porous limestone formation in northern Oklahoma and had hoped to do the same in southern and western Kansas. But as major oil players moved out, the focus in the past few months shifted to
the stragglers, such as SandRidge and the speculation regarding its plans for more than 1 million acres of mineral leases the firm had purchased.
SandRidge, which popularized horizontal drilling in the lime formation starting in 2010, has 170 producing wells in Kansas.
Lawler acknowledged his firm took "a pretty aggressive exploration program" when it drilled its first 25 exploration wells in Kansas with mixed results. Some showed really good results — as prolific as wells in Oklahoma — while some did poorly.
But after a shareholder revolt last spring, the company's new management has emphasized improving profitability and scaled back exploration.
"At this point we are taking a more measured approach and ensuring that we understand all aspects of the area that we are drilling in," he said. "So we are going a little slower than we have in the past because the rock does change from county to county in Kansas to a greater degree than in Oklahoma."
There are geological differences between the lime formation below Oklahoma and Kansas, experts say. Unlike Oklahoma, the formation on the Kansas side is typically shallower and varies in
depth, making it more difficult to find the "sweet spot" where oil can be profitably extracted.
SandRidge has had "strong" successes with wells in Barber and Harper counties in south-central Kansas as well as Finney and Hodgeman counties in southwest Kansas, Lawyer said. It plans to let some leases go and add leases in more promising areas. The company expects to operate six rigs in
Kansas next year.
Shell halted its Kansas exploratory drilling program in May and has put its 625,000 acres of mineral leases in Kansas up for sale, the company said.
"While Kansas has potential, other opportunities within the Shell portfolio provided more growth opportunities,"Shell spokeswoman Kimberly Windon wrote in an email.
SandRidge contends that with its lower overhead, it can more efficiently develop its assets in the formation than oil giants like Shell.
"We have been doing very well in that same area and we have the same type of data that Shell has," Lawler said. "We see opportunity across all of Kansas."
POLICE REPORTS
Information based on the Douglas County Sheriff's Office booking recap.
- A 23-year-old female was arrested yesterday on the 1400 block of 22nd Terrace on suspicion of domestic battery and criminal damage to property. No bond was posted.
- A 23-year-old male was arrested Monday on the 2300 block of Alabama Street on suspicion of domestic battery and battery. No bond was posted.
Emily Donovan
NATIONAL
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Supreme Court refuses to block Texas abortion law
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON — A sharply divided Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed Texas to continue enforcing abortion restrictions that opponents say have led more than a third of the state's clinics to stop providing abortions.
The justices voted 5-4 to leave in effect a provision requiring doctors who perform abortions in clinics to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital.
The court's conservative majority refused the plea of Planned Parenthood and several Texas abortion clinics to overturn a preliminary federal appeals court ruling that allowed the provision to take effect.
The four liberal justices dissented.
Justice Stephen Breyer, writing for the liberal justices, said he expects the issue to return to the Supreme Court once the appeals court issues its final ruling.
The case remains on appeal to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans. That court is expected to hear arguments in January, and the law will remain in effect at least until then.
The Texas Legislature approved the requirement for admitting privileges in July.
In late October, days before the provision was to take effect, a trial judge blocked it, saying it probably is unconstitutional because it puts a "substantial obstacle" in front of a woman wanting an abortion.
But a three-judge appellate panel moved quickly to overrule the judge. The appeals court said the law was in line with Supreme
Court rulings that have allowed for abortion restrictions so long as they do not impose an "undue burden" on a woman's ability to obtain an abortion. Writing for the appeals court, Judge Priscilla Owen noted that the Texas law would not end the procedure, only force women to drive a greater distance to obtain one.
Justice Antonin Scalia, writing in support of the high court order Tuesday, said the clinics could not overcome a heavy legal burden against overruling the appeals court. The justices may not do so "unless that court clearly and demonstrably erred." Scalia said in an opinion that was joined by Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas.
Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Antony Kennedy did not write separately or join any opinion Tuesday, but because it takes five votes to overturn the appellate ruling, it is clear that they voted with their conservative colleagues.
are able to provide care. Already, appointments are being canceled and women seeking abortions are being turned away."
Breyer said the better course would have been to block the admitting privileges requirement at least until the court issued its final ruling because some women will be unable to obtain abortions. If courts ultimately find the law is invalid, "the harms to the individual women whose rights it restricts while it remains in effect will be permanent," he said.
Planned Parenthood and several Texas abortion clinics said in their lawsuit to stop the measure that it would force more than a third of clinics in the state to stop providing abortions. After the appeals court allowed the law to take effect, the groups said that their prediction had come to pass.
In their plea to the Supreme Court, they said that "in just the few short days since the injunction was lifted, over one-third of the facilities providing abortions in Texas have been forced to stop providing that care and others have been forced to drastically reduce the number of patients to whom they
"We will take every step we can to protect the health of Texas women."
CECILE RICHARDS
President of Planned Parenthood
Federation of America
The five justices and three appeals court judges who sided with Texas are all Republican appointees. The four dissenting justicees are Democratic appointees. U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel, who initially blocked the provision, is a Republican appointee.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry, a Republican, praised the Supreme Court action. "This is good news both for the unborn and for the women of Texas, who are now better protected from shoddy abortion providers operating in dangerous conditions. As always, Texas will continue doing everything we can to protect the culture of life in our
state," Perry said.
state, Ferry said.
Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said the groups will continue the legal fight:
"We will take every step we can to protect the health of Texas women. This law is blocking women in Texas from getting a safe and legal medical procedure that has been their constitutionally protected right for 40 years. This is outrageous and unacceptable — and also demonstrates why we need stronger federal protections for women's health. Your rights and your ability to make your own medical decisions should not depend on your ZIP code," Richards said.
Tennessee and Utah are the other states enforcing their laws on admitting privileges. Similar laws are under temporary court injunctions in Alabama, Kansas, Mississippi, North Dakota and Wisconsin.
In Texas, 12 abortion providers say they have attempted to obtain hospital privileges for their doctors, but so far none of the hospitals have responded to the requests. That means those clinics can no longer offer abortions, leaving at most 20 facilities open in a state of 26 million people. All of those facilities are in metropolitan areas, with none in the Rio Grande Valley along the border with Mexico. Currently, only six out of 32 abortions clinics in Texas qualify as ambulatory surgical centers, and some have doctors who do not meet the admitting privileges requirement.
Texas women undergo an average of 80,000 abortions a year.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Phil Thiltrickett, an opponent of abortion, prays outside a Planned Parenthood Clinic on Oct. 29 in San Antonio. A federal appeals court judge is considering whether to grant an emergency appeal that would allow the state to enforce a law that could shut down a dozen abortion clinics in Texas.
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