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Permalink Reply by Henry on April 22, 2010 at 6:18

DMcC,
Each well has a valve, which can be adjusted to control the flow rate. When the rate is greatly restricted, the well is said to be choked back. So, just think of a valve that can be opened or closed at the will of the operator. Unless the valve is fully open already, the operator can open the valve more, and increase your flow rate. For most Haynesville wells, the pipe is measured in units of 1/64th of an inch. So, if the pipe is fully open, the choke is at 64/64. Most operators seem to run their wells at anywhere between 8/64 and 30/64 (at least that's what I've observed).

There are reasons the operator will not want to run a well with the choke fully open. It can damage the well and ultimately reduce the total amount of gas that can be sold. Also, many operators are choking wells back because the price of gas is low.

And, finally... You need to look at the combination of flow rate, choke size, and pressure to know how good your well is. Petrohawk is running wells on restricted chokes (about 14/64) and getting 8 mmcfe/day out. With a choke of 24/64, these wells might produce 20 mmcfe/day. Also, look for high pressure -- 8,000# or more.

Hope that helps.

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