Over 2,300 truck trips are typically required to drill and develop an oil well in North Dakota. After completion, it is important to sustain year-round access to maintain the well and get the oil to market. Unfortunately, at many well sites in North Dakota there is little paved access and often clay soil and shallow groundwater conditions that make access difficult during certain times of the year.

AET works with oil producers in the North Dakota and Upper Midwest region to design all-weather drilling pads and access roads. Soil-cement stabilization with a gravel-working surface has been a cost-effective solution, allowing producers to get drilling rigs and materials into the site and oil out.

The Franklin Oil Pad site included above and below ground oil piping, pumps, controls, storage tanks, and oil wells. AET developed soil-cement mix design recommendations based upon laboratory testing of soil samples collected from our geotechnical borings of the site. The geotechnical report also included recommendations for site corrections, pad grading, fill placement, and compaction and foundation design. During construction, AET followed up its services and reporting with quality assurance testing to support a successful result.