Helis Oil & Gas Company has agreed to a phased approach to its project in St. Tammany, starting only with a conventional vertical well, the Times-Picayune reports.
St. Tammany Parish officials announced the scaled-back plans Tuesday afternoon.
The proposal calls for Helis to drill down 13,000 feet vertically, and to analyze the findings over three to four months.
The company has agreed to proceed with hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, only if commercially-viable quantities of oil are found to be present.
