UNSPSC 71121628: Ultra short radius directional well drilling services

Drilling wells which typically have a curvature radius of less than 20 feet, usually dug outwards from a previously drilled vertical well.

UNSPSC 71121628 Ultra short radius directional well drilling services is a Commodity code capturing the plugging, drilling, and site restoration work that state and local governments—primarily environmental and natural resource agencies—solicit for orphaned and decommissioned oil and gas wells. State and local buyers under this code are narrowly concentrated: the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy and the Mississippi Oil and Gas Board dominate the recent activity, along with smaller procurement bodies such as the Texas General Land Office, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. The work being solicited involves comprehensive well abandonment services including site supervision, equipment operation, casing and tubing installation, cementing, wireline services, waste disposal, heavy equipment operations, and site restoration—often on federally funded orphan well remediation programs under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Representative recent solicitations include the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy's direct solicitations for three tranches of orphan well plugging in Gratiot and Montcalm Counties (38 total wells across four notices posted July 16, 2026, with proposals due July 21, 2026), and the Mississippi Oil and Gas Board's Invitation for Bids for plugging and reclamation of multiple orphaned oil and gas wells across five counties (posted March 6, 2026, proposals due April 13, 2026). All Michigan solicitations restrict bidding to vendors prequalified through prior RFPs and require mandatory pre-bid meeting attendance; Davis-Bacon prevailing wage requirements apply across both states' programs.

Geographic activity centers on the Great Lakes region (Michigan dominates with four concurrent solicitations in July 2026) and Mississippi, with secondary activity in Texas and Illinois. The Michigan orphan well program appears to be the most active and consistent buyer under this code, having issued multiple tranches of direct solicitations within a two-week window in mid-July 2026. Prequalification requirements and mandatory pre-bid meetings signal established contractor pools and mature procurement processes; winning bidders face unit-price competition on detailed 68-line pricing matrices and technical scoring on key personnel, business-owned equipment, experience, and vendor questions. Davis-Bacon and prevailing wage mandates are standard, with liquidated damages ($250–$2,000 per day), performance bonds, and 80-point technical scoring minimums typical of award criteria. This code shows strong, concentrated activity among state environmental agencies managing federal remediation programs with recurring procurement cycles.