In 1976, 537 wells were completed in New York. This was an 8% increase from 1975 drilling. In known oil and gas fields, 126 oil wells and 304 gas wells were completed; 270 of the gas well completions were in Chautauqua County in the southwestern corner of New York.

Exploratory drilling (44 tests) resulted in 8 new gas field discoveries, one new-pool discovery, and 11 gas field extensions. Seven of the discoveries were in the Silurian Medina sandstone in the western part of the state. The other discovery is in the Ordovician Queenston formation in central New York. The new-pool discovery is in the Devonian Oriskany Sandstone in west-central New York. Ten of the extensions are to Medina gas fields in western New York. One extension is to Queenston gas production in central New York. Two deeper pool tests were drilled to Cambrian sandstones in western New York but found no deep production. The COST G-1 stratigraphic test was drilled in the Georges Bank area off Massachusetts to a TD of 16,044 ft.

Oil production in 1976 was 857,293 bbl and gas production amounted to 9,250 MMcf. The price for New York stripper crude fluctuated from $13.07/bbl to $11.05/bbl and then to $13.82/bbl during 1976. The price for new gas in 1976 was $1.07 and $1.47, summer and winter rates, respectively.

During 1976, 42 crew-weeks of reflection seismograph work were accomplished in New York, down from 46 crew-weeks in 1975.

Leasing was confined mainly to areas in western New York where the Medina sandstone is productive. Gulf leased an estimated 50,000 acres in the southern Catskill area in eastern New York. An estimated 4 million acres was under lease at the end of 1976.

Severe gas curtailment during the winter of 1976-77 has heightened the demand for additional gas supplies. Drilling for more Medina and Queenston gas will continue and the New York part of Lake Erie may be opened for leasing in 1977.