Western Oklahoma sits on top of one of the most remarkable oil and gas basins in America. The Anadarko Basin stretches from central Oklahoma westward into the Texas Panhandle. It is ancient — some of the rock layers at the bottom of the basin formed over 500 million years ago. And it is deep — in some places the basin's sedimentary rock goes down more than 30,000 feet. That is almost six miles underground. No other sedimentary basin in North America is that deep.

How Did the Anadarko Basin Form?

The Anadarko Basin formed through a process geologists call rifting — the pulling apart of the earth's crust. About 550 million years ago, what is now Oklahoma started to pull apart. The crust sank in the middle, creating a deep trough. Over hundreds of millions of years, that trough filled with sand, mud, and the remains of marine life. All that material hardened into rock. The layers near the bottom of the basin were squeezed under enough heat and pressure to turn organic material into oil and gas.

What Formations Are in the Anadarko Basin?

Because the Anadarko is so deep, it contains dozens of oil and gas formations at different depths. Here are some of the most important:

  • Woodford Shale. One of the oldest and most widespread formations in the basin. It sits at depths of 6,000 to 18,000 feet depending on location. The Woodford generated much of the oil and gas in the basin over millions of years and is now a direct drilling target for the SCOOP play.
  • Springer Formation. A sandstone and shale package just above the Woodford. A good oil producer in the SCOOP area.
  • Sycamore Limestone. A tight carbonate formation between the Woodford and Springer. A newer target in the SCOOP play that has shown strong results.
  • Meramec. A tight limestone and silty rock formation in the shallower parts of the basin. The main STACK target. Produces both oil and natural gas liquids.
  • Red Fork Sandstone, Tonkawa Sandstone, Chester. Older conventional sandstone formations at moderate depths. These were the primary targets for Oklahoma drilling from the 1920s through the 1980s.

What Is the SCOOP Play?

SCOOP — South Central Oklahoma Oil Province — targets the deep Woodford, Springer, and Sycamore formations in south-central Oklahoma. Wells here can be 14,000 to 17,000 feet deep. They are expensive to drill but can produce large amounts of oil and gas. The SCOOP play kicked off around 2012 and remains active today.

What Is the STACK Play?

STACK — Sooner Trend Anadarko Canadian Kingfisher — targets shallower formations in north-central Oklahoma, primarily the Meramec and Woodford in Canadian, Kingfisher, and Blaine counties. STACK wells are not as deep as SCOOP wells, which makes them somewhat cheaper. The play was very active from 2014 to 2019 and continues today at a lower pace.

How Long Has Oklahoma Been Producing?

Oklahoma has been producing oil since 1859. The first major boom happened at the Glenn Pool near Tulsa in 1905. The state has been an oil and gas producer continuously for over 100 years. That means the Oklahoma Corporation Commission's records contain well data going back more than a century. Old conventional wells drilled in the 1950s and 1960s recorded formation tops and oil shows that are still useful today for SCOOP and STACK targeting. ScoutTickets.io tracks OCC records to help you find these hidden gems in Oklahoma's deep history of production.