1. n. [Drilling]

An exploration well. The significance of this type of well to the drilling crew and well planners is that by definition, little if anything about the subsurface geology is known with certainty, especially the pressure regime. This higher degree of uncertainty necessitates that the drilling crews be appropriately skilled, experienced and aware of what various well parameters are telling them about the formations they drill. The crews must operate top-quality equipment, especially the blowout preventers, since a kick could occur at virtually any time. If a wildcat is especially far from another wellbore, it may be described as a "rank wildcat."

See related terms: blowout preventer,  offset well,  tight hole