Well vs. Lease/Unit & Where Formation/Pool Splits Are Required (US + Canada + Offshore)
Last verified: September 3, 2025
Anyone importing public production data into decline/valuation tools need to know whether a the data is reported at the well level or at the lease/unit level. Additionally, it is imperative to understand whether volumes are split by formation, pool, or reservoir.
The good news is that WellDatabase lets you export data at whatever granularity makes sense. It's not always easy to find the correct level to export data, but we've got you covered.This article provides a practical reference for major US states, US federal offshore (OCS), and Canadian provinces, plus quick tips for PHDWin imports.
US onshore
Key: Formation/Pool Split? reflects whether monthly disaggregation by formation/pool/reservoir is required (not just a formation on the well header).
| State |
Formation/Pool Split? |
Reporting Level |
Cadence |
| Colorado |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
| Alaska (land) |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
| Wyoming |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
| North Dakota |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
| New Mexico |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
| Texas |
No |
Lease |
Monthly |
| Louisiana |
No |
Lease |
Monthly |
| Oklahoma |
No |
Lease |
Monthly |
| Kansas |
No |
Lease |
Monthly |
| Pennsylvania |
No |
Well |
Monthly (unconv); Annual (conv) |
| Ohio |
No |
Well |
Quarterly (unconv); Annual (conv) |
| Utah |
No |
Well |
Monthly |
| AL, CA, FL, IN, MI, MT, NE, NV, SD, VA, WV, WY |
No |
Well |
Monthly |
US federal offshore (OCS)
| Region |
Formation/Reservoir Split? |
Reporting Level |
Cadence |
| Gulf of Mexico (Federal) |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
| Pacific OCS (Federal) |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
| Alaska OCS (Federal) |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
Canada (provinces & offshore)
| Jurisdiction |
Formation/Pool Split? |
Reporting Level |
Cadence |
| Alberta |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
| Saskatchewan |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
| British Columbia |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
| Manitoba |
No |
Well |
Monthly |
| Canada Offshore |
Yes |
Well |
Monthly |
WellDatabase Notes
- All production in Texas is reported by lease, however, gas leases are required to be single well leases. If you are working exclusively with gas wells in Texas, the lease vs well export will be the same.
- Formation / Reservoir is stored with each monthly production record. This means you can always export by reservoir if desired and states that do not report by formation will still export correctly.
- All lease volumes are allocated to the wells within the lease. This is a calculation and not directly reported, so while you can always export at the well level, just know that the values are calculated.
- Leases exist in states that report at a well level. While exporting at the lease level is possible in these cases, it is not advised, as it makes the data less granular.
- All quarterly and annual production numbers are distributed through the reported period. This process does not simply divide the production evenly over the months in the period. We create a model of the decline over the period and calculate the production by each month. This allows you to better fit a decline to these wells.
PHDwin Import Cheat Sheet
- Monthly, well-level jurisdictions → import as per-well monthly time series (one case per well).
- Lease/unit identifiers (e.g., TX oil lease, OK PUN, LA LUW, KS lease, etc.) → import one case per lease/unit to match reported data. Well-level allocated data is available if desired, but it is a calculation based on multiple factors and not directly reported.
- Mixed cadence (e.g., OH HZ quarterly, PA conventional annual) → Export these as you would for monthly cadence. The production for these cases is distributed over the reported period (see notes above).
- Per-completion states/regions (e.g., CO Form 7, US OCS) → exporting by reservoir and modeling each completion separately is ideal. If desired, you can export the summed production for the lease or well. The reservoir in this case will be listed as the "Primary Reservoir", which is defined as the most recent producing reservoir or highest volume reservoir in the case of commingled production.
- Commingling across pools/reservoirs (e.g., NM C‑107/C‑107A) → typically handle this in the same fashion as per-reservoir. All commingled production is reported by the regulatory body and not calculated by WellDatabase.
Notes & caveats
- Regulators sometimes update forms, portals, or naming (e.g., COGCC → ECMC). Confirm latest filing instructions before exporting data if you have questions
- This guide focuses on regulatory production reporting (not tax/royalty/purchaser-only reporting).