The Government Wants to Regulate and Control Hydraulic Fracturing

The process of hydraulically fracturing (fracing) rocks deeply under ground to increase the production or recovery of oil and gas has been done for many decades, with few problems. Do a search on this site to find more information about how this is done and the environmental concerns.
Peter

NAPE: Frac regulation Washington's 'worst threat'

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Aug. 26 -- A move to regulate hydraulic fracturing federally is the “biggest threat our industry has ever seen in Washington,” Bruce Vincent, vice-chairman of the Independent Petroleum Association of America, said Aug. 26.

Joel Noyes, IPAA director of government relations and industry affairs, expressed a low expectation for passage of most of the Obama administrations frenzied agenda, much of which contains negative provisions for oil and gas producers.

The atmosphere in Washington is one of “almost chaos,” said Noyes, and the environment is very partisan. The agenda is so congested because of the Democratic desire to push contentious legislation through before the 2010 election year, he said.

Ninety percent of wells are hydraulically fractured, some dozens of times, Vincent told the Summer NAPE E&P Forum in Houston. In the 60 years that the industry has been fracturing wells under state regulation, no case of fresh water contamination by the procedure has been documented, he said (OGJ Online, July 2, 2009).

Greater frac regulation is coming, predicted William Coates, president, Schlumberger Oilfield Services North America. The question is whether the industry can manage enough input that final rules are formed in a cooperative manner, he said.

Careful Drilling Needed To Produce Shale Gas

It is possible to "steer" a well while it is being drilled, "land" it exactly where desired, and keep the well drilling for thousands of feet within a thin target zone, or "sweet spot"........ and for a lot less than $100,000. I speak from experience.
Peter

NAPE: Drastic improvements needed in shale gas

By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Aug. 26 -- Efficiency improvements of at least an order of magnitude are needed in US shale gas plays because field costs will not stay at the levels to which they have dropped since late 2008, said a speaker Aug. 26 at the Summer NAPE E&P Forum in Houston.

Now that the industry has mastered combination of horizontal drilling and multiple frac stages, the rate of technology growth seems to be slowing, said William Coates, president, Schlumberger Oilfield Services, North America. Taking more measurements in each well may be the key.

Drilling and completion capital costs are not going to stay low, and field service costs may begin to increase within a few months, said Coates.

The proliferation of frac jobs to as many as several dozen per well is inefficient, and most operators don’t take enough measurements in the vertical or horizontal portions of shale gas wells once they have completed their initial reservoir characterization drilling, he said. The move from science mode to gas manufacturing is too abrupt.

Companies should set a goal of obtaining the same ultimate recovery by “doing less,” Coates urged. They must find ways to cut the drilling time of a typical shale well to 7 days from 28, for example, by attaining the capability for a single bit run for the vertical part of the hole and one bit run for the curve and lateral.

Landing the lateral at the depth of the sweet spot at any given well location could result in twice to three times the ultimate recovery if an operator spent an extra $100,000 on measurements, Coates estimated.

Other steps toward efficiency could come in the use of friction reducers and biocides to halve the amount of water required for fracs, laying fiber optic cable outside casing to measure vibration to learn which frac stages are producing, and learning how to conduct fewer inefficient fracs by using log-while-drilling measurements to select perforated intervals.

Colorado School Of Mines Leads The Way In Natural Gas

It's about time America wakes up to the opportunities to create jobs, increase government revenue and provide abundant clean energy from non-foreign sources.
Peter

Mines institute to lead nation in natural gas research

GOLDEN, Colo., Aug. 24, 2009 – Colorado School of Mines has announced the establishment of the Unconventional Natural Gas Institute (UNGI) for the upstream research and development of natural gas, which is clean-burning, helps minimize greenhouse gas emissions, and is in great supply in the United States.

“This lower carbon alternative will contribute to the diversification of our domestic energy supplies. It’s a critical piece in the nation’s energy puzzle,” said Mines President M.W. Scoggins. “Mines is the ideal hub to lead innovative developments in this vital energy arena.”

The UNGI draws from Mines’ unique, specialized expertise in all areas of upstream natural gas research – including petroleum engineering, geology, geophysics, petrophysics, chemical engineering and engineering. And it builds on the school’s already significant research in the area of unconventional natural gas resources, as well as its strong partnerships with industry and government. The institute’s interdisciplinary efforts are directed by Jennifer Miskimins of the Mines Petroleum Engineering Department.

Natural gas is an abundant domestic resource. Based on work directed out of Mines, the Potential Gas Committee recently reported estimates of gas resources increasing from 1,300 trillion cubic feet in 2006 to 1,800 trillion cubic feet in 2008 – with the majority of the increase from unconventional resources such as shale gas.

-MINES-

Contact:

Karen Gilbert, Public Relations Specialist / 303-273-3541 / Karen.Gilbert@is.mines.edu

Marsha Williams, Director of Integrated Marketing Communications / 303-273-3326 / marswill@mines.edu