Relation of Mission Canyon Stratigraphy To Oil Production in North-Central North Dakota

Nineteen oil fields in Renville and western Bottineau Counties, North Dakota, produce or have produced from the upper Mission Canyon (Mississippian) Formation. The trap for the production is primarily stratigraphic. The production occurs within rocks of six distinct, mappable sedimentary cycles herein named, in descending order: Bluell beds, Sherwood beds, Mohall beds, Glenburn beds, Wayne beds, and Landa beds. Proper recognition and use of this cyclic framework are essential for interpreting the sedimentary history of the upper Mission Canyon. Structural, isopachous, and lithofacies studies can be used to outline optimum areas to seek production within each cycle.