Ariz. Admin. Code § R12-7-111 - Intermediate and Production Casing and Tubing Requirements

A. All producing wells shall be completed with production casing set directly above or through the producing interval and cemented by the pump and plug method, or other method approved by the Commission, to protect the zones to be produced. An intermediate string of casing may be required to seal off all potentially productive, lost circulation, and abnormally pressured zones that may be encountered in the well, except those to be produced. The Commission may require casing strings to be cemented from the maximum depth of the casing to at least 50 feet inside the previously run string of casing. For liners, a minimum of 100 feet of overlap between a string of casing and the next larger casing is required.

B. Strings of casing shall stand cemented for at least 12 hours before drilling out the cementing plugs or initiating such tests as the Commission may require.

C. Strings of intermediate and production casing shall be pressure tested to 70% of the manufacturer's rated internal yield pressure or one psi per foot of casing depth, whichever is less. In cases where combination strings utilizing casing of varied grades and weights are used, the above test pressures shall apply to the lowest pressure rated component used. If pressure declines more than 10% in 30 minutes, the casing shall be considered defective and corrective measures shall be applied.

1. In wells drilled with cable tools, casing may be tested by bailing the well dry, in which case the hole shall remain satisfactorily dry for at least one hour before commencing further operations on the well. Results of the above test and any remedial action shall be reported in writing to the Commission within 15 days following the test.

D. All flowing oil wells shall have tubing set as near the bottom as practical with tubing perforations not more than 250 feet above the top of the zone to be produced. Wells may be completed with small-diameter casing, which is generally understood in the industry to be "slim hole" or "tubingless" completions, in lieu of tubing.

E. The operator shall notify the Commission at least 48 hours before setting any casing string so that a representative of the Commission may witness all or a part of the operations required in this Section.

Notes

Ariz. Admin. Code § R12-7-111

Former Rule 110; Former Section R12-7-111 renumbered and amended as Section R12-7-112, former Section R12-7-110 renumbered and amended as Section R12-7-111 effective September 29, 1982 (Supp. 82-5). Amended effective January 19, 1994 (Supp. 94-1).