We are protecting health and safety in Weld County by reducing our footprint, greenhouse gas emissions and truck traffic through our Mustang Comprehensive Drilling Plan (CDP). Representing a new era of innovation, it is the first CDP approved by the State of Colorado.
Through the use of advancing technology, we are streamlining development. It now takes only about 7.5 surface acres to deliver the same volume that previously required 400 surface acres – a reduction of more than 95 percent.
This includes tankless production facilities that substantially reduce our fooprint and emissions. Our newest facilities utilize technology that will deliver greenhouse gas emission reductions in excess of 90% from older facility designs.
What is our Comprehensive Drilling Plan
Our Mustang Comprehensive Drilling Plan (CDP) is a blueprint for energy development that is advancing the way we fuel Colorado lifestyles by supporting our goal to minimize our footprint in and around communities. It involves:
- 64,000 acres of farmland southeast of Greeley, Colorado in Weld County, encompassing rural lands with no municipalities within the boundaries
- More than 400 approved horizontal drilling permits
- Plugging and removing more than 1,400 older vertical wells and their production facilities, then reclaiming the land
For more on all the ways we protect, respect and work together with our communities, see our Noble Neighbor Program.
Environmental Benefits of the CDP
Innovation is at the root of our oil and natural gas operations. Through the use of advancing technology in our Mustang CDP, we are streamlining development to increase efficiency, enhance safety and significantly reduce our footprint. The full spectrum of the CDP’s environmental benefits include reductions in emissions, water use, traffic and more.
Reducing emissions
We always strive to be better, and we continue modernizing our field operations in Weld County to reduce air emissions. In the Mustang CDP, we are significantly reducing emissions by:
- Using electricity to power the drilling rig and engines, we eliminate emissions from engine exhaust
- Transporting oil and gas by pipeline instead of trucks, we eliminate truck traffic and emissions
- Keeping oil and gas in pipelines, we eliminate emissions from storage tanks at all phases of development
- Using compressed air instead of natural gas to open and close valves, we prevent the release of methane
- Using one fully electric drilling rig and working with contractors to develop a fully electric frack spread
- Removing more than 1,400 older vertical wells and associated storage facilities, we are eliminating significant existing emissions
Tankless development
The Mustang CDP provides a blueprint for modernizing operations and minimizing the footprint of development in this area. This includes tankless production facilities.
Our newest facilities utilize technology that will deliver greenhouse gas emission reductions in excess of 90% from older facility designs. These improvements include:
- Electrification of engines
- Using compressed air instead of natural gas in pneumatic controllers
- Elimination of tanks from the production location
- Elimination of truck loading
Reducing our footprint
Through the use of advancing technology in our Mustang CDP, we are streamlining development to significantly reduce our footprint. In fact, it now takes only about 7.5 surface acres to deliver the same volume that previously required 400 surface acres – a reduction of more than 95 percent.
Plugging and removing wells
The combination of removing 1,500 vertical legacy wells and nearly 500 tank batteries in Mustang will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 80,000 metric tons of CO2e/year once fully completed. Learn more about our Plug and Removal Program.
Reclaiming the land
Once the older wells are plugged and removed, we will reclaim lands and access roads so surface owners can use the area for agricultural and other purposes. See the map of reclamation areas for full details.
Reducing water use
The CDP provides the opportunity to capitalize on recycling of flowback and produced water to the fullest extent practicable — reducing the amount of freshwater needed for well construction and completions (the process of preparing a well for production).
Supporting crop and wildlife wellbeing
Traditional drilling permits are for two-year periods. Permits within the CDP are for six-year periods. This provides us with the flexibility to develop long-term plans that enable us to work our schedule around seasonal crops and wildlife migration.
Reducing truck traffic
As the single designated operator of the Mustang CDP, we can transport all fluids (oil, natural gas and produced water) by pipeline infrastructure. By doing so, we will eliminate more than 152 million miles of truck traffic and 6.8 million truck trips, not to mention reduce immense amounts of greenhouse gas emissions including:
- 768,000 tons of carbon dioxide
- 2,000 tons of carbon monoxide
- 2,000 tons of oxides of nitrogen
As part of our traffic and safety plan already in place, all designated transportation routes associated with the CDP utilize existing paved roads, such as WCR 49, that have been constructed to accommodate commercial traffic. See the map of access roads for full details.
Over the life of the project, we estimate this will:

Get the facts
The COGCC is a robust resource on Colorado’s first-ever comprehensive drilling plan:
- Final CDP package
- Finding of Suitability
- Topography
- Econode design
- Reclamation areas
- Noble Neighbor fact sheet
To stay informed throughout the project, you can also access our CDP activity notices.
What Government Officials Have to Say
Thank you to Noble for having the vision to see the opportunity and manifest it. I hope you see this plan as I do, as setting forth a landscape-level approach to oil and gas development in which collaboration, planning and infrastructure create a more effective dialogue and development plan.
–COGCC Director Julie Murphy (COGCC Commission Hearing, 10/2018)
The Department commends Noble for their holistic approaches to oil and gas exploration and production. Noble has, and will continue to be, an important leader throughout Colorado. The preliminary CDP is yet another example of that commitment to excellence.
–Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE Letter)
CPW appreciates the pre-application meeting with Noble Energy to discuss ways this development can minimize its effect on sensitive wildlife species in the area by finding locations that allow for responsible energy development.
–Colorado Parks & Wildlife (CPW)
Noble Neighbor Program
The Mustang CDP is part of our Noble Neighbor Program — the initiatives that help ensure we are doing everything we can to protect, respect and work together with the communities we call home.
With a strong focus on community, safety, technology and innovation, programs within Noble Neighbor also include:
Learn more about our Mustang Comprehensive Drilling Plan
You can keep up to date on the latest through our activity notices and by signing up for our Noble Neighbor Newsletter below.