Petro Views

Worlds Oldest Living Thing!

2012-02-07T07:52:00.000-07:00

Scientists say a patch of ancient seagrass in the Mediterranean is up to 200,000 years old Photo: Getty Images
Australian scientists sequenced the DNA of samples of the giant seagrass, Posidonia oceanic, from 40 underwater meadows in an area spanning more than 2,000 miles, from Spain to Cyprus.

'Oldest living thing on earth' discovered

Belridge Discovery Well April 1911

2012-02-02T11:38:00.000-07:00

Niobrara Activity Denver Basin

2012-02-02T10:34:00.001-07:00

U.S. Industry Tax Rates

2012-01-25T15:55:00.000-07:00

Oil Company Subsidies? Part deux!

2012-01-25T15:44:00.000-07:00

The President, in his State of the Union address has disingenously propagated a description of certain tax benefits received by companies in all manner of industries as "subsidies for big oil".

Here are a few of the items which are being incorrectly identified as “subsidies” inside the beltway:

Intangible Drilling Costs – Companies which engage purely in energy exploration and discovery can recover their costs related to exploration at tax time at a rate of 100%. This lessens the burden on energy providers for the number of “dry holes” which may be found in the process. Integrated companies (i.e. “big oil”) can recover these exploration costs at 70%. Not a subsidy.

Domestic Manufacturer’s Deduction (Section 199) – A deduction (not a credit) equal to 9% of income earned from manufacturing, producing, growing or extracting in the United States, is available to every single taxpayer who qualifies in the U.S. The oil and gas industry, and only the oil and gas industry, is limited to a 6% deduction.

Percentage Depletion – The percentage depletion deduction is a cost recovery method that allows taxpayers to recover their lease investment in a mineral interest through a percentage of gross income from a well. This depletion method is not available to companies that produce oil as well as refine and market it (i.e. “Big Oil”.) This is available to all extractive industries (gold, iron, clay, etc) in the US and is in no way unique to the oil and gas industry.

Aneth Field Carbon Dioxide Flood

2012-01-24T11:15:00.000-07:00

Carbon Dioxide Flooding

2012-01-24T11:13:00.002-07:00

CARBON DIOXIDE FLOODING

Carbon dioxide (CO2) can sometimes beused to enhance the displacement of oil from a reservoir. Carbon dioxide occursnaturally in some reservoirs, either with natural gas or as a nearly purecompound. It can also be obtained as a by-product from chemical and fertilizerplants, or it can be manufactured or separated from power plant stack gas.

Whenpressure in a candidate reservoir has been depleted through primary productionand possibly waterflooding, it must be restored before CO2 injection can begin.To do this, normally water is pumped into the reservoir through injection wellsuntil pressure reaches a desired level, then CO2 is introduced into thereservoir through these same injection wells.

Eventhough CO2 is not miscible with oil on first contact, when it is forced into areservoir a miscible front is generated by a gradual transfer of smaller,lighter hydrocarbon molecules from the oil to the CO2. This miscible front isin essence a bank of enriched gas that consists of CO2 and light hydrocarbons.Under favorable conditions of pressure and temperature, this front will besoluble with the oil, making it easier to move toward production wells.

Thisinitial CO2 slug is typically followed by alternate water and CO2 injection -the water serving to improve sweep efficiency and to minimize the amount of CO2required for the flood.

Productionwill be from an oil bank that forms ahead of the miscible front. As reservoir fluidsare produced through production wells, the CO2 reverts to a gaseous state andprovides a "gas lift" similar to that of original reservoir naturalgas pressure. On the surface, the CO2 can be separated from the produced fluidsand may be reinjected, helping to reduce the amount of new CO2 required for theproject; thus, the CO2 can be recycled.

Thisprocedure may be repeated, known as "huff and puff" until oil production drops below a profitable level.

Gas Storage

2012-01-20T07:41:00.002-07:00

Natural gas in storage is at 3.29 BCF, 20% higher than the 5 year average of 2.742 BCF.

Reasonable Profits Board?

2012-01-20T06:44:00.001-07:00

Dems Propose Reasonable Profits Board to Regulate Oil Company Profits

Six House Democrats, led by Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), want to set up a "Reasonable Profits Board" to control gas profits.
The Democrats, worried about higher gas prices, want to set up a board that would apply a "windfall profit tax" as high as 100 percent on the sale of oil and gas, according to their legislation. The bill provides no specific guidance for how the board would determine what constitutes a reasonable profit.
The Gas Price Spike Act, H.R. 3784, would apply a windfall tax on the sale of oil and gas that ranges from 50 percent to 100 percent on all surplus earnings exceeding "a reasonable profit." It would set up a Reasonable Profits Board made up of three presidential nominees that will serve three-year terms. Unlike other bills setting up advisory boards, the Reasonable Profits Board would not be made up of any nominees from Congress

Pipeline Safety Record

2012-01-19T08:09:00.000-07:00

The American Petroleum Institute tracks pipeline performance; the charts below show that not only are things pretty darn good, they also continue to improve.

U.S Crude Oil Pipeline Map

2012-01-19T08:04:00.000-07:00

API Study: Investments, Jobs Nosedive In Gulf Of Mexico

2012-01-19T07:14:00.001-07:00

API Study: Investments, Jobs Nosedive In Gulf Of Mexico: API Study: Investments, Jobs Nosedive In Gulf Of Mexico
The number of rigs that have left the Gulf of Mexico and the slow pace of issuing new permits have resulted in a steep decline in investment and a major loss of jobs.

Energy Sources and Usage

2012-01-16T08:06:00.000-07:00

Skrugard Seismic Section

2012-01-10T08:34:00.001-07:00

Seismic and 3D CSEM profile across the the Bjørnøyrenna Basin and the Skrugard discovery well 7219/8-1 S. Notice the excellent match between the structural information provided by the seismic section and the resistivity profile with a conductive Tertiary resting on top of a resistive Cretaceous-Jurassic fault block with the Skrugard discovery well 7219/8-1 S. As the downthrown block is conductive, a better understanding of such resistivity variations is an additional key for breaking the basin code. Source: Aker Geo

Perspective view of the Base Cretaceous in the western Barents Sea. In yellow, the highlighted area shown on the expanded figure. Source: Aker Geo

Bjørnøyrenna Basin with the Skrugard discovery. Seismic structural map, Base Cretaceous (bottom) with the magnetic tilt derivative map, reduced to the pole, High Pass filter 15 km, gravity free air anomaly map, HP filter 15 km (middle) and (top) 3D CSEM (Controlled-Source Electromagnetics with a towed dipole transmitter and arrays of sea bottom dipole receivers) anomaly map showing a strong salt induced resistive anomaly close to sea bottom (cross section on page 56). The structural trend in the CSEM map corresponds to an offset in basin overall NNE-SSW trend. Source: Aker Geo

Statoil Havis Skrugard Area, Barents Sea

2012-01-10T07:48:00.000-07:00

Statoil estimates the volumes in Havis to be between 200 and 300 million barrels of recoverable oil equivalents (o.e.). The provisional, updated total volume estimate for the Skrugard and Havis discoveries in PL532 is in the region of 400-600 million barrels of recoverable oil equivalents.

Havis lies approximately 7 kilometres southwest of the Skrugard discovery, made in April of last year. Havis lies within the same production licence, but forms an independent structure. There is no communication between the two discoveries.

Moreover, Havis and Skrugard prove that persistence and long-term thinking bear fruits. Statoil has been exploring in the Barents Sea for more than 30 years and the company has been involved in 88 of a total 92 exploration wells drilled in the area. This has resulted in continuous competence building and a deep understanding of the hydrocarbon systems in the Barents Sea.

Frac Water Composition

2012-01-05T13:13:00.000-07:00

2012-01-03T08:01:00.000-07:00

US Gas Rigs Continue to Tank

Over the past eight reports going back to late October, natural gas rigs have dropped 132 while oil rigs have jumped 123, further entrenching oil's market share in the drilling space. Oil rigs now account for almost 60% of all U.S. drilling, up from 53.3% just eight weeks ago. Comparatively, natural gas drilling makes up less than 40% of U.S. activity, down from 46.2% eight weeks ago.
According to the survey, 802 rigs were drilling for gas, down 16 on the week, down 129 on the year and at its lowest point in almost two years. The report shows 1,201 rigs were drilling for oil, up five on the week, up 430 on the year and above 1,200 for the first time in Baker Hughes records. Miscellaneous rigs, typically associated with geothermal drilling, were unchanged on the week at five.

Views: Strait of Hormuz

2011-12-29T12:28:00.003-07:00

Map of shipping lanes in Strait of Hormuz.

Earthiew of the Strait of Hormuz,

Noble: Cyprus Gas Discovery

2011-12-28T16:13:00.002-07:00

Noble success continues

Noble Energy announced Wednesday a natural gas discovery at the Cyprus Block 12 prospect, offshore the Republic of Cyprus.
The Cyprus A-1 well encountered approximately 310 feet of net natural gas pay in multiple high-quality Miocene sand intervals.
The discovery well was drilled to a depth of 19,225 feet in water depth of about 5,540 feet. Results from drilling, formation logs and initial evaluation work indicate an estimated gross resource range(1) of 5 to 8 trillion cubic feet (Tcf), with a gross mean of 7 Tcf.

Pavillion Field: IPAA response

2011-12-23T14:46:00.000-07:00

December 9, 2011

Dear IPAA Members and Colleagues:
Yesterday, the Environmental Protection Agency released a draft report on natural gas drilling in the town of Pavillion, Wyoming. According to the EPA's press release, "The draft report indicates that ground water in the aquifer contains compounds likely associated with gas production practices, including hydraulic fracturing." The report is still in draft form and needs to be peer-reviewed. The onus is now on EPA to legitimize this report after more than six decades of safely hydraulic fracturing over a million wells. As we have seen time and again, the current EPA has made our industry a primary target.
Most news headlines already have it wrong, instead reporting some conclusive link that hydraulic fracturing contaminates drinking water. Today's New York Times' headline pounces: "E.P.A. Links Tainted Water in Wyoming to Hydraulic Fracturing for Natural Gas."
IPAA filed this week a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to EPA on this draft report, particularly whether it had been "leaked" prior to its public release yesterday.
Energy in Depth, the hydraulic fracturing and environmental issues coalition managed by the Independent Petroleum Association of America, released the following Issue Alert. I thought you might be interested, in case you have questions arise in your communities.
Please feel free to contact us if you comments or questions.
Sincerely,

Barry Russell
President and CEO

Six Questions for EPA on Pavillion
Draft report from EPA in Denver produces lots more questions than answers; EID poses a few of its own
Call it a sign of the “Times,” let’s say, that less than 24 hours removed from the release of EPA Region 8’s report on groundwater sampling near Pavillion, Wyo., nearly a thousand different news stories have been generated -- in 12 different countries, and best we can tell, four different languages. But set aside the breathless headlines for a moment and the triumphant quotes from a small segment of folks committed to ending the responsible development of natural gas, and one’s left with a pretty straightforward question: Is EPA right? And if so, what exactly does that mean moving forward?
Of course, before you can answer the second question, it’d be helpful if you had a good answer for the first. And the truth is, as we sit here today, less than 20 hours A.P. (After Pavillion), we simply don’t. What we do know, however, even at these early stages, is that several of the assertions put forth in EPA’s report yesterday don’t quite square with the facts as they actually exist on the ground out there. Because of that, a number of folks are starting to ask some pretty basic questions about what the agency found and how it went about finding it. Below, a few of the most obvious:
1) Why the huge difference between what EPA found in its monitoring wells and what was detected in private wells from which people actually get their water?

· Contrary to what was reported yesterday, the compounds of greatest concern detected by EPA in Pavillion weren’t found in water wells that actually supply residents their water – they were detected by two “monitoring wells” drilled by EPA outside of town.

· After several rounds of EPA testing of domestic drinking water wells in town, only one organic compound (bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate) was found to exceed state or federal drinking water standards – an additive in plastics and one of the most commonly detected organic compounds in water. According to EPA: “Detections in drinking water wells are generally below established health and safety standards.”

· Bruce Hinchey, president of Petroleum Association of Wyoming: “Let me be clear, the EPA’s findings indicate that there is no connection between oil and natural gas operations and impacts to domestic water wells.” (PAW press release, Dec. 8, 2011)

· In contrast, EPA found “a wide variety of organic chemicals” in its two monitoring wells, with greater concentrations found in the deeper of the two. The only problem? EPA drilled its monitoring wells into a hydrocarbon-bearing formation. Think it’s possible that could explain the presence of hydrocarbons?

· According to governor of Wyoming: “The study released today from EPA was based on data from two test wells drilled in 2010 and tested once that year and once in April, 2011. Those test wells are deeper than drinking wells. The data from the test wells was not available to the rest of the working group until a month ago.” (Gov. Mead press release, issued Dec. 8, 2011)

2) After reviewing the data collected by Region 8, why did EPA administrator Lisa Jackson tell a reporter that, specific to Pavillion, “we have absolutely no indication now that drinking water is at risk”? (video available here)

· Of note, Administrator Jackson offered those comments to a reporter from energyNOW! a full week after Region 8 publicly released its final batch of Pavillion data. In that interview, Jackson indicates that she personally analyzed the findings of the report, and was personally involved in conversations and consultations with staff, local officials, environmental groups, the state and the operator.

· After reviewing all that information, and conducting all those interviews, if the administrator believed that test results from EPA’s monitoring wells posed a danger to the community, why would she say the opposite of that on television?

· And if she believed that the state of Wyoming had failed to do its job, why would she – in that same interview – tell energyNOW! that “you can’t start to talk about a federal role [in regulating fracturing] without acknowledging the very strong state role.” (2:46) A week later, why did she choose to double-down on those comments in an interview with Rachel Maddow, telling the cable host that “states are stepping up and doing a good job”? (9:01, aired Nov. 21, 2011)

3) Did all those chemicals that EPA used to drill its monitoring wells affect the results?

· Diethanolamine? Anionic polyacrylamide? Trydymite? Bentonite? Contrary to conventional wisdom, chemicals are needed to drill wells, not just fracture them – even when the purpose of those wells has nothing to do with oil or natural gas development.

· In this case, however, EPA’s decision to use “dense soda ash” as part of the process for drilling its monitoring wells could have proved a bad one.

· One of the main justifications EPA uses to implicate hydraulic fracturing as a source of potential contamination is the high pH readings it says it found in its monitoring wells. But dense soda ash has a recorded pH (11.5) very similar to the level found in the deep wells, creating the possibility that the high pH recorded by EPA could have been caused by the very chemicals it used to drill its own wells.

· According to Tom Doll, supervisor of the Wyoming Oil and Gas Conservation Commission: “More sampling is needed to rule out surface contamination or the process of building these test wells as the source of the concerning results.” (as quoted in governor’s press release, Dec. 8, 2011)

4) Why is the author so confident that fracturing is to blame when most of his actual report focuses on potential issues with casing, cement and legacy pits?

· The report singles-out old legacy pits (which the operator had already voluntarily placed in a state remediation program prior to EPA's investigation) as the most obvious source of potential contamination. These decades-old pits, which are obviously no longer used, have nothing to do with hydraulic fracturing.

· From the report (page xi): "Detection of high concentrations of benzene, xylenes, gasoline range organics, diesel range organics, and total purgeable hydrocarbons in ground water samples from shallow monitoring wells near pits indicates that pits are a source of shallow ground water contamination in the area of investigation. Pits were used for disposal of drilling cuttings, flowback, and produced water. There are at least 33 pits in the area of investigation."

· From the report’s concluding paragraph: “[T]his investigation supports recommendations made by the U.S. Department of Energy Panel on … greater emphasis on well construction and integrity requirements and testing. As stated by the panel, implementation of these recommendations would decrease the likelihood of impact to ground water and increase public confidence in the technology.” (p. 39)

5) 2-BE or not 2-BE? That is the question.

· EPA indicates that it found tris (2-butoxyethyl) phosphate in a few domestic water wells. What the agency doesn’t mention is that this chemical is a common fire retardant found in plastics and plastic components used in drinking water wells. It’s not 2-BE, which, although also a common material, is sometimes associated with the completions process.

· According to EPA, in one of the eight samples collected, a small amount of 2-BE was detected. Interestingly, two other EPA labs that measured for the same exact compound reported not being able to detect it in the duplicate samples they were given.

· According to Wyo. governor Mead: “Members of the [Pavillion] working group also have questions about the compound 2-BE, which was found in 1 sample … while other labs tested the exact same water sample and did not find it.” (Mead press release, Dec. 8, 2011)

6) Is EPA getting enough potassium?

· Several times in its report, EPA notes that potassium and chloride levels were found to be elevated in its monitoring wells. But just because you have potassium and chloride doesn’t mean you’ve got potassium chloride, a different chemical entirely and one that’s sometimes associated with fracturing solutions. Nowhere in its report does EPA suggest that potassium chloride was detected.

· According to several USGS studies of groundwater quality in the area, variable -- and in some cases, high -- concentrations of potassium and chloride have been detected in Pavillion-area groundwater for more than 20 years. (USGS 1991, 1992)

· Interestingly, the potassium levels detected in EPA’s first monitoring well declined by more than 50 percent from October 2010 to April 2011, while the potassium level in EPA’s second monitoring well increased during that same period. Only natural variations in groundwater flow and/or composition could have accounted for this disparity.

www.energyindepth.org

Colorado snowpack: Dec 19th

2011-12-21T07:31:00.000-07:00

Three Gorges Dam: China

2011-12-17T12:34:00.000-07:00

World Records Set by theThree Gorges Dam

The world’s largest and grandest water conservancy project, the Three GorgesDam has set a series (over 100) of worldengineering records by various indices. It is, or has:-

- theworld’s most effective multi-functional water control system, consisting of adam, a five-tier ship lock, and 26 hydropower turbo-generators;
- the world’s largest power station, total installed capacityreaching 18.2 million kW and annual power generation 846.7 billion kWh;
- the world’s grandest engineering project for water conservancy,earthwork (excavation & backfilling) totaling 134 million m3, concreteconsumption 279.4 million m3, steel reinforcement 463,000 tonnes;
- the world’s greatest floor discharging capacity, up to 102.5 m³/s;
- the world’s largest number of stages of ship locks (staircaselocks, nos. two, each with five stages and a total water head of 113m);
- (yet to be completed) the world’s largest ship lift (dimensionof the basin: 120×18×3.5m), maximum vertical travel distance being 113m,capable of lifting ships of 3000t;
- the world’s largest human resettlement program associated withan engineering project, total population having to be relocated being estimatedat 1.13 million.

Marcellus Cumulative Gas Production West Virginia

2011-12-16T12:31:00.000-07:00

Marcellus Shale
Comingled wells excluded
259 Total wells
212 Vertical, 47 horizontal

Marcellus Shale West Virgina

2011-12-16T11:44:00.000-07:00

The Middle Devonian Marcellus Shale Play has put the Appalachian Basin at the center of a national debate concerning America’s future energy supply. Although it has been received in the region with mixed reviews, this highly organic shale formation has secured itself as a major contributor to the natural gas supply of West Virginia and other states in the Basin. As production continues throughout West Virginia, areas of high production continue to emerge; however, it appears that some of these “sweet spots” may not actually be within the “Marcellus” per se, but rather, in other, overlying Devonian shales.

Time for Energy Secretary Chu to Leave?

2011-12-04T09:03:00.001-07:00

The White House has denied the critics charges of any connection between politics and "green energy" loans, however, recent emails and scrutiny at the Solyndra Congressional Inquiry have discovered a preference given to Democrat donors seeking loans. The emails suggest a correlation beyond just the timing timing of political announcements to questions about the White Houses overall policy of handing out taxpayer money.

The Solyndra hearing revealed a series of questionable actions, 1)the rush to announce the Solyndra loan and 2) the process that lacked appropriate financial oversight. Solyndra investor George Kaiser and other Obama contributors had "unfettered" access to the West Wing of the White House. Additionally, Energy Secretary Chu approved subordination of the Solyndra loans so that taxpayers would be repaid after two commercial firms, a violation of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

The green energy subsidies show that several well connected Democrats obtained taxpayer assistance for environmentally friendly projects. These recipients include: (from Fox news)

-- Solyndra, which received $535 million in loan guarantees and whose chief investor was the George Kaiser Family Foundation. George Kaiser was an Obama campaign bundler.

-- Brightsource Energy, which received $1.6 billion and whose senior adviser is Robert Kennedy, Jr., an early Obama backer;

-- Solar Reserve, which got a $737 million loan, and whose major investor is a company run by Michael Froman, who was a deputy assistant to the president. Froman bundled up to $500,000 for the president's 2008 campaign;

-- Granite Reliable Wind Generation, which received a $168.9 million loan. The company's majority owner is a firm formerly led by Nancy Ann DeParle, now a White House deputy chief of staff and former head of the president's health care communications team during the reform debate; and

-- Abound Solar, which received a loan guarantee worth $400 million. A key investor is billionaire heiress Pat Stryker, who gave $87,000 to Obama's inauguration committee, and hundreds of thousands more to Democratic causes.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/11/16/solyndra-case-reveals-gateway-between-administration-loans-obama-allies/#ixzz1fUqe7CB0

Peter Schweizer, author of "Throw Them All Out", wrote that at least 10 members of Obama's finance committee and more than a dozen of his campaign bundlers took money from administration loan programs.

Secretary Chu approved the Solyndra loan in September 2009. The braniac Nobel prize winner in Physics, testified that he was "not aware" of staffers predictions that Solyndra would go broke and run out of cash by September 2011. He clearly missed the the Office of Management and Budget recommendation that the deal be "notched down". At Solyndra's groundbreaking he announced, "If you build a better solar panel, the world will beat a path to your door."

In March 2010, PricewaterhouseCooppers warned that Solyndra's recurring losses and negative cash flows" raise a substantial doubt about it's ability to continue as a going concern". Chu remained a booster for the project. In May 2010, President Obama appeared at a Solyndra event and proclaimed," the true engine of economic growth will always be companies like Solyndra."

By October, Solyndra CEO Brain Harrison informed the DOE that the company was about to lay off workers. The company shut one of its plants and laid off 40 workers the day after the November elections.
Secretary Chu admits he approved a to put $75 million into Solyndra which included a sweetener that put investors ahead of taxpayers in the payback line that follows bankruptcy. This gambit failed and Solyndra laid off 1,000 workers.

The Nobel prize winner's pet pick was a bust. No scandal? In February 2009, the former Solyndra CEO Chris Gonet set 10 conditions for the Administration to meet to help Solyndra raise an additional $147 million.

No.9. "Fundraising suppport after conditional commitment: Steven Chu visits Solyndra with press interviews (target by end of March)."

Solyndra Scandal key Players

Methane Hydrates World Map

2011-12-03T09:11:00.001-07:00

Methane hydrates occur in polar permafrost regions and marine outer continental margins and represent a potentially enormous energy resource.

Hydrates are naturally occurring crystalline compounds of natural gas enclosed within a cage-like lattice of water ice. Chemists call such structures clathrates. In methane hydrates, water crystallizes in the cubic system, rather than in the hexagonal structure of normal ice. The resulting compound packs a lot of methane in its dense organization. One cubic foot of hydrate contains about 164 cubic feet of methane gas.

With adequate gas concentrations, methane hydrates form and are stable under moderate- to high pressure, low temperature conditions. This Methane Hydrate Stability Zone (MHSZ) typically occurs: 1) on continental margins at water depths greater than about 300 m and bottom water temperatures close to 0° C, where gas hydrate is found from the sediment surface to depths of about

1100 m below the seafloor, and 2) in polar continental regions, where gas hydrate can be present in sediment and permafrost at depths between about 150 and 2000 m.

Early estimates of the total resource were as speculative as they were impressive. Current work using geology-based Total Petroleum System (TPS) assessments still yields very large numbers.

The USGS recently estimated that there are about 85.4 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of undiscovered, technically recoverable gas resources within methane hydrates in northern Alaska alone (Collett, 2009). The Minerals Management service conducted an evaluation of the petroleum system for the Gulf of Mexico and estimated a mean value of 21,444 Tcf with 6,717 Tcf in place in sandstone reservoirs

(Frye, 2008). Mean estimated resource of domestic methane hydrate in place is about 200,000 Tcf (NETL, site accessed 4/28/11).

Source

Two primary source mechanisms have been recognized based on carbon and hydrogen isotopic analysis (Uchida, et al, 2009): microbial decay of organic matter within the gas-hydrate stability zone and thermogenic methane. Thermogenic methane may migrate from thermally mature, deep-seated organic shales, or by leakage from deeper, conventional free gas reservoirs (Lorenson, 2011).

Reservoir

An important difference between methane hydrate accumulations and more conventional gas fields is the nature of the reservoir beds containing the gas: methane hydrate deposits occur in young, relatively unconsolidated sediments where the ice-like hydrate structure holds the gas in place. Methane hydrates occur within a range of reservoir facies, from mudstones to gravels. Sandy siliciclastic reservoirs are considered to be the most favorable for commercial exploitation.

Seal

The seal is provided by the clathrate structure itself. In fact, it is increasingly recognized that the hydrate accumulations may provide a top and lateral seal for deeper free-gas reservoirs outside the methane hydrate stability zone (MHSZ).

Trap

The trapping mechanism, too, is attributed to the arrangement of methane within the clathrate structure. As free gas migrates into the MHSZ, it is chemically trapped within the crystalline configuration of the naturally formed clathrate.

( from Search & Discovery #80193)

Anadarko 's Mozambique 10 TFC Discovery

2011-12-02T13:35:00.001-07:00

• Barquentine-2 was drilledto a total depth of 13,500 feet in Offshore

Area 1 (APC WI 36.5%) of the Rovuma Basin in a water depth of

approximately 5,400 feet. The well encountered more than 230 net feet

of high-quality gas sand in static communicationwith the Barquentine-1

well, located 2 miles to the northwest. The entire reservoir section was

cored and will be used to help optimize the development plan forthe

area. The Barquentine-2 wellbore has been temporarily abandonedand

will be used in a testing program in early 2012.

• Subsequent to quarter end,Anadarko announced the results of the

Camarão-1 well. The appraisal section of the well encountered

approximately 240 net feet of natural gas pay inan excellent-quality

reservoir and confirmed static pressureconnectivity with previously

announced discoveries at Windjammer and Lagosta. The well also

discovered approximately 140 net feet of natural gas pay inshallower

Miocene and Oligocene sand packages. The well was drilled to atotal

depth of 12,630 feet in water depths of approximately 4,730 feet.The

Camarão well has been saved and will be used in the upcoming DST

program.

• Based upon the fivesuccessful penetrations in the complex to

date, the confirmed static pressure connectivity and the numerous

cores that have been analyzed, the company has a high level

of confidence that the Windjammer, Barquentine and Lagosta

complex holds in excess of 10 trillion cubicfeet of recoverable

natural gas resources. Given the increased recoverable resource

base potential of this complex, initial development plans have

been expanded to a minimum of two 5-million-tonne-per-annum

LNG trains with the flexibility to develop additional trains based

upon continued exploration and appraisal success. Once the

first two trains are constructed, this infrastructure is expected

to provide economies of scale that can significantly reduce

expansion costs for additional trains.

• The Barquentine-3 appraisalwell is currently being drilled and

the rig will continue to drill appraisal wells through the end of

2011. The company is in the process of mobilizing a second rig

to Mozambique late in 2011 to conduct an extensive reservoir

testing program and up to seven exploration/appraisal wells

during the next 12 months.

Cost of Cooking Thanksgiving Turkey

2011-11-27T07:53:00.001-07:00

Approximately 46 million turkeys will be put into the oven or deep fired today for the Thanksgiving Day feast.
But how much are Americans expected to spend cooking just that portion of the meal?
The answer is a bit more than you expect.
TXU Energy estimates that nearly 27 million turkeys (26,680,000 to be exact) will be cooked with electricity this Thanksgiving Day holiday.
At 8 kilowatts per hour for up to four hours, you are taking about a whooping $25 million to cook that turkey. And that price isn’t including the 23 million other turkeys that are cooked by gas.

Top Research?

2011-11-25T16:31:00.001-07:00

How to Frac a Gas Well

2011-11-22T14:13:00.001-07:00

The Hydraulic Fracturing Process
Pump Pad, Slurry, & Flush (Repeat as Necessary), and Recover (By BJ)
• A fracturing treatment operation begins by rigging up a high pressure steel treating or
flow line from special high-pressure fracturing pumps to the well and pressure-testing
the equipment for safety.
• The next step is to inject a large volume of special fluid(s) into a prospective
producing formation at an injection rate that will place sufficient stress on the rock to
cause the rock to physically split (fracture) in one or more places. This initial volume
of fluid is termed the “Pad” and typically comprises 20% of total fluid volume.
• The Pad fluid is pumped to create enough fracture width to accept proppant particles.
Proppant is typically comprised of size-graded, rounded and nearly spherical white
sand, but may also be man-made particles.
• Proppant particles are mixed into additional fracturing fluid and the resulting slurry is
pumped into the reservoir, propping open the created fracture(s) so that they will
remain open and permeable after pump pressure is relieved.
• At the end of placing the slurry, a tubular volume of clean “Flush” fluid is pumped to
clear tubulars of proppant and the pumps are shut down.
• Well pressure is then bled off to allow the fracture(s) to close on the proppant.
• The final step in a fracturing treatment is to recover the injected fluid by flowing or
lifting the well.

Frac Gone Wild!

2011-11-22T09:34:00.001-07:00

Thhis not an animated gif.
Have you ever wondered what the visuals look like on hallucinogens? This isn't far off (um, I've read). This is not an animated gif, and nothing is actually moving. It's all in your head. Your trippy, trippy head.
Sadly, I do not know who created this incredible optical illusion—I lost the trail somewhere in the bramble of the internet. But whomever he or she is deserves high praise. You can focus on one swirl and it's stationary, but the other swirls in your periphery start to undulate and twist. Switch to another one, and the same thing is repeated. It's exquisitely executed. I should warn, however, that if you're actually on acid, you will either see nothing moving at all, or the effect will be so powerful that your mind will turn to tapioca. Consider yourself warned

Where does oil come from?

2011-11-21T12:31:00.001-07:00

Ogallala Aquifer vs. Keystone XL Pipeline

2011-11-16T08:48:00.001-07:00

Figure 1

The Ogallala is the largest freshwater aquifer in the world. The maps above show the saturated thickness (vertical distance between the water table and the aquifer floor) of the Ogallala in 1996-97 and the water level changes between 1980 and 1997. The aquifer is depleted in parts of northern Texas and west central Kansas. A large share of Ogallala water lies beneath the Nebraska Sandhills, where the resource remains largely untapped because crop irrigation is uneconomic.

(McGuire et al., 1999)

The Ogallala is composed primarily of unconsolidated, poorly sorted clay, silt, sand, and gravel with groundwater filling the spaces between grains below the water table . The Ogallala was laid down about 10 million years ago by fluvial deposition from streams that flowed eastward from the Rocky Mountains during the Pliocene epoch

Read more: Ogallala Aquifer - depth, important, system, source http://www.waterencyclopedia.com/Oc-Po/Ogallala-Aquifer.html#ixzz1dssFiqIE

The Ogallala is an unconfined aquifer, and virtually all recharge comes from rainwater and snowmelt. As the High Plains has a semiarid climate, recharge is minimal. Recharge varies by amount of precipitation, soil type, and vegetational cover and averages less than 25 millimeters (1 inch) annually for the region as a whole. In a few areas, recharge from surface water diversions has occurred. Groundwater does flow through the High Plains Aquifer, but at an average rate of only 300 millimeters (12 inches) per day.
The depth to the water table of the Ogallala Aquifer varies from actual surface discharge to over 150 meters (500 feet). Generally, the aquifer is found from 15 to 90 meters (50 to 300 feet) below the land surface. The saturated thickness also varies greatly. Although the average saturated thickness is about 60 meters (200 feet), it exceeds 300 meters (1,000 feet) in west-central Nebraska and is only one-tenth that in much of western Texas. Because both the saturated thickness and the areal extent of the Ogallala Aquifer is greater in Nebraska, the state accounts for two-thirds of the volume of Ogallala groundwater, followed by Texas and Kansas, each with about 10 percent.

Nebraska Pipeline Map

2011-11-15T11:54:00.001-07:00

So the Keystone XL Pipeline will change this landscape?

Mad Dog Field

2011-11-14T16:26:00.001-07:00

What is China doing in the desert?

2011-11-14T09:44:00.001-07:00

Considering these can clearly be seen from orbit the formations are raising some eyebrows with geeks trying to figure out what exactly they are for. Are these some sort of alignment or targeting grids for space weapons or what? In one of the photos, you can clearly see a grid of structures with three of them either destroyed or partially standing as if they were for target practice.

There are aircraft placed in the center of this circle. I have no idea what it is, but it reminds me of how the military would test the blast radius of some sort of bomb to see what the damage is like further out from the point of impact. What do you think? Is this a military testing ground or the Chinese equivalent of crop circles?

Keystone XL Pipeline Delayed

2011-11-13T09:05:00.001-07:00

WashPost to Obama: Approve Keystone XL

The Post still doesn’t like fossil fuels, but embraces reality anyway.
About the Keystone XL pipeline that Obama is tying to kill by delaying approval:

The United States must reduce its dependence on fossil fuels, from any source, and it should encourage nations such as China to lower the carbon intensity of their economies, too. Even if that happens, though, the world will continue to use oil, with all the dirty realities that entails. Rejecting Keystone XL would not change that fact. But it would help China lock up more of the world’s oil production, cost infrastructure jobs in the United States and offend a reliable ally. More delay after three years of review is insult enough.

Read the Post editorial.

Green Loan Program or Crony capitalism?

2011-11-13T08:59:00.001-07:00

Schweizer's New Book: 80% of Energy Department's "Green Loan" Program Went to Obama's Backers

When President-elect Obama came to Washington in late 2008, he was outspoken about the need for an economic stimulus to revive a struggling economy... After he was sworn in as president, he proclaimed that taxpayer money would assuredly not be doled out to political friends...

...But an examination of grants and guaranteed loans offered by just one stimulus program run by the Department of Energy, for alternative-energy projects, is stunning. The so-called 1705 Loan Guarantee Program and the 1603 Grant Program channeled billions of dollars to all sorts of energy companies...

...In the 1705 government-backed-loan program [alone], for example, $16.4 billion of the $20.5 billion in loans granted as of Sept. 15 went to companies either run by or primarily owned by Obama financial backers—individuals who were bundlers, members of Obama’s National Finance Committee, or large donors to the Democratic Party. The grant and guaranteed-loan recipients were early backers of Obama before he ran for president, people who continued to give to his campaigns and exclusively to the Democratic Party in the years leading up to 2008. Their political largesse is probably the best investment they ever made in alternative energy. It brought them returns many times over.

...The Government Accountability Office has been highly critical of the way guaranteed loans and grants were doled out by the Department of Energy, complaining that the process appears “arbitrary” and lacks transparency. In March 2011, for example, the GAO examined the first 18 loans that were approved and found that none were properly documented. It also noted that officials “did not always record the results of analysis” of these applications. A loan program for electric cars, for example, “lacks performance measures.” No notes were kept during the review process, so it is difficult to determine how loan decisions were made. The GAO further declared that the Department of Energy “had treated applicants inconsistently in the application review process, favoring some applicants and disadvantaging others.” The Department of Energy’s inspector general, Gregory Friedman, ... has testified that contracts have been steered to “friends and family.”

...These programs might be the greatest—and most expensive—example of crony capitalism in American history. Tens of billions of dollars went to firms controlled or owned by fundraisers, bundlers, and political allies, many of whom—surprise!—are now raising money for Obama again...

Italian Cold Fusion Machine?

2011-11-10T12:37:00.001-07:00

An atom consists of a nucleus of protons and neutrons, with electrons orbiting around.
CREDIT: Dreamstime

View full size image

Italian physicist and inventor Andrea Rossi has conducted a public demonstration of his "cold fusion" machine, the E-Cat, at the University of Bologna, showing that a small amount of input energy drives an unexplained reaction between atoms of hydrogen and nickel that leads to a large outpouring of energy, more than 10 times what was put in.
The first successful cold fusion experiment was reported two decades ago, but the process has forever been met with heavy skepticism. It's a seemingly impossible process in which two types of atoms, typically a light element and a heavier metal, seem to fuse together, releasing pure heat that can be converted into electricity. The process is an attractive energy solution for two reasons: Unlike in nuclear fission, the reaction doesn't give off dangerous radiation. Unlike the fusion processes that take place in the sun, cold fusion doesn't require extremely high temperatures.
But the experimentalists who have supposedly demonstrated cold fusion over the years have been unable to explain the underlying mechanism that drives the miraculous reaction they claim to observe, and so the scientific community has largely turned its back on this line of research. Most physicists — as well as the United States Department of Energy (DoE), academic journals, and the U.S. Patent Office — consider cold fusion machines to be hoaxes, because they say physics rules out the possibility of room-temperature nuclear fusion

Noerthern Lights

2011-11-10T10:05:00.001-07:00

This amazing shot was taken in Norway by Ole Christian Salomonsen. It's one of the many photos featured in National Geographic's upcoming photo book, Visions of Earth

Potash Mining

2011-11-10T09:35:00.001-07:00

This Potash mine is located 20 miles west of Moab. The mine began underground excavation in 1964 and was converted in 1970 to a solar evaporation system. This mine produces between 700 and 1,000 tons of potash per day.
Water is used from the nearby Colorado River in the production of Potash by a company called Intrepid Potash®. Water is pumped through injection wells into the underground mine which dissolves layers of potash more than 3,000 feet below the surface. The resulting "brine" is then brought to the surface and piped to 400 acres of shallow evaporation ponds. A blue dye is added to the ponds to assist in the evaporation process. These ponds are lined with vinyl to keep the brine from spilling back into the Colorado River. A major by-product of this process is salt. The salt is used for water softening, animal feed and oil drilling fluids as well as many other applications.

Decline of Rock Music and U.S Oil Production

2011-11-08T13:34:00.000-07:00

So, our energy future will be determined by "rock stars". C'mon Ozzie, Mick and Keith, get after it!

State Owned Oil Companies vs. the Majors: Which is bigger?

2011-11-08T13:22:00.000-07:00

Life is getting harder for the supermajors. Their edge over their rivals—the ability to extract oil from difficult places—is terrifically useful while prices are high. But since it is terrifically costly to extract oil from difficult places, their competitive advantage fizzles if oil prices fall. If it does, their bumper profits could vanish like a pool of petrol into which a lighted match has been carelessly dropped.

Natural Gas vs. Wind: Which is Greener?

2011-11-07T08:43:00.000-07:00

Why Natural Gas is Greener than Wind Energy

We have an opportunity to actually achieve real energy independence by shifting our efforts away from wind and solar and adopting a natural-gas infrastructure instead. The best part? It won’t require an avalanche of subsidies to succeed, either. All we need to do is get government and its social engineers out of the way.

U.S. Rotary Rig Count

2011-11-06T09:47:00.000-07:00

U.S. Workover Rig Count

2011-11-06T09:39:00.000-07:00

With data provided by Cameron, the workover rig count provides information for the most recent month and for the two preceding months about the number of workover rigs in the eight major regions of the United States. The most recent month’s data from 12 months ago is also highlighted with the percentage change between the two preceding months and the percentage change over the last 12 months.

View the September 2011 Workover Rig Count Table

Thorium Nuclear Energy

2011-11-02T17:55:00.000-06:00

So what is the big deal about thorium?
In 2006, writing in the magazine Cosmos, Tim Dean summarized perhaps the most optimistic scenario for what a Thorium-powered nuclear world would be like:

What if we could build a nuclear reactor that offered no possibility of a meltdown, generated its power inexpensively, created no weapons-grade by-products, and burnt up existing high-level waste as well as old nuclear weapon stockpiles? And what if the waste produced by such a reactor was radioactive for a mere few hundred years rather than tens of thousands? It may sound too good to be true, but such a reactor is indeed possible, and a number of teams around the world are now working to make it a reality. What makes this incredible reactor so different is its fuel source: thorium.

The Universe is flat?

2011-11-02T17:42:00.002-06:00

WMAP has confirmed this result with very high accuracy and precision. We now know that the universe is flat with only a 0.5% margin of error. This suggests that the Universe is infinite in extent; however, since the Universe has a finite age, we can only observe a finite volume of the Universe. All we can truly conclude is that the Universe is much larger than the volume we can directly observe.

Shape of the Universe - NASA

Happy Birthday North and South Dakota

2011-11-02T15:19:00.000-06:00

November 02, 1889

The Dakota Territory

On this day in 1889, North and South Dakota were admitted into the Union. BothNorth and South Dakota have remained mostly rural, being ranked 48th and 46thin population respectively.

Shale Production Forecast

2011-11-01T20:12:00.000-06:00

Taxing America's Largest Corporations

2011-10-28T16:02:00.000-06:00

Steve Forbes on Obama's Anti-Oil Agenda

2011-10-28T14:08:00.003-06:00

Steve Forbes: Obama’s anti-energy agenda kills jobs

“Hisreelection campaign in full swing, President Barack Obama is blaming obstinatecongressional Republicans for his failure to advance a jobs plan in an economythat’s averaged 9 percent unemployment and crossed the $1 trillion deficitthreshold for the third straight year.

Members of Congress on both the right and the left, however, stopped Obama’sAmerican Jobs Act in its tracks. They recognized it for what it was: aglorified repackaging of tax increases that have rightly failed several timesbefore. Undaunted, the White House and some of its strongest allies are comingback for more — adamant that the jobs landscape and our economy would improveif only Congress would pass a national energy tax.

Thirty-seven House Democrats and 14 of their Senate colleagues this month sentseparate letters to the bipartisan supercommittee calling for an end toindustry “subsidies” they claim would save the government $21 billion over 10years.

Before beginning the eye roll for defending Big Oil, consider this: The influxof revenue expected from rolling back these fossil-fuel “subsidies” — close to$90 billion when factoring in the effects on related industries — is actually anational energy tax that will likely come straight from the pockets of Americanconsumers.

By definition, government imposes a tax on an activity or product todiscourage, not incentivize, it. Why, then, would the administration repeatedlytarget one of the only industries that’s actually creating jobs?

This blatantly contradicts the president’s pro-jobs rhetoric.

If the administration were serious about deficit reduction and accelerated jobgrowth, it would partner with our domestic energy producers to help increasetheir employment base — which now encompasses more than 9 million affiliatedjobs — by letting them expand their output. This, in turn, would expand theirgross domestic product contribution, which averages $1 trillion annually.

Instead, Obama has cast the industry as a ruthless competitor for taxpayerhandouts. If this seems exaggerated, take it from the president himself, in hisaddress to a joint session of Congress last month.

“Should we keep tax loopholes for oil companies?” Obama asked. “Or should weuse that money to give small-business owners a tax credit when they hire newworkers? Because we can’t afford to do both.”

What the president knows, but fails to divulge in making his case, is that U.S.oil and natural gas companies do not receive taxpayer subsidies. The provisionshe’s targeting for repeal are the same tax credits and deductions available toa broad swath of other U.S. companies — including a domestic manufacturingcredit and a measure to prevent double taxation on income earned abroad.

If the White House has a reasonable explanation for how raising taxes on oneindustry without broader tax reform can create jobs, I’ve yet to hear it.

Realtax reform that closes loopholes in favor of lower rates is an idea that Isupport wholeheartedly. That’s why I have long advocated the flat tax. In fact,I recently endorsed and continue to advise Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who is nowproposing his own version of the flat tax.

Repealing tax credits and deductions for only one industry, however, is theopposite of tax reform. It’s a classic Washington game of using the Tax Code topick winners and losers.

Criticswill predictably counter that the oil and gas industry, as a pillar of strengthin an otherwise bleak economy, shouldn’t hesitate to pay more taxes.

Thisis preposterous. U.S. oil and gas producers now pay the federal government morethan $86 million a day in taxes, royalties and fees.

Theindustry is taxed at an effective rate of 41 percent. For comparison, theaverage tax bracket for industrial companies is 26 percent. The oil and gasindustry pays its fair share.

Ifthe president were really interested in creating jobs and economic growth, hewould support more domestic energy production rather than punitive taxincreases.

Allowingdomestic producers to responsibly develop abundant energy in offshore andonshore deposits, according to a recent Wood Mackenzie study for the AmericanPetroleum Institute, would create more than 1 million jobs nationwide; channelan estimated $800 billion in additional government revenues; and contribute 10million more barrels of oil and natural gas per day by 2030. Opening more areasin the eastern Gulf of Mexico and along the Atlantic and Alaskan coastlineswould allow companies to bring jobs back to the United States — instead ofhaving to look abroad for investment opportunities.

MostAmericans realize that additional government spending will not stimulatepermanent job growth. If it did, stimulus Parts 1 and 2 would have cured ouremployment ills long ago.

Ifthe administration were serious about job growth and deficit reduction, itwould stand down from its “jobs” plan that would only further handicap anindustry that stands ready to contribute thousands of new jobs.

Otherwise,cue the collective grumbling at the gas pump.”

Chattanooga Shale Isopach

2011-10-28T09:53:00.001-06:00

Chattanooga production is present in Alabama...the shale plays just keep on coming.

Unconventional Resouces......Cheer

2011-10-28T09:39:00.000-06:00

Marcellus Drilling Activity New York style

2011-10-28T09:36:00.000-06:00

Anti-drilling hysteria

Spreading fear to halt progress

Keystone Pipeline

2011-10-28T09:26:00.000-06:00

Obama says he’ll address Keystone Pipeline concerns

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posted at 4:05 pm on October 27, 2011 by Tina Korbe
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Barack Obama is busy, busy, scattering largesse to the populace. Whatever he can say to win votes — he’ll say it. His address in Denver yesterday included not only the announcement of his highly impactful student loan program reforms, but also a testy reassurance that he’s taking into consideration concerns about a proposed pipeline — the Keystone XL — that would run from Canada to Texas:

During an event with young people in Denver, one activist interrupted Obama’s remarks, urging the president to reject the project.
“We’re looking at it right now, all right?” Obama replied. “No decision’s been made and I know your deep concern about it, so we will address it.”
Protesters who held up a banner reading: “Stop the Keystone Pipeline Project” were asked to leave.

Obama has been none too popular with his environmentalist constituency lately — not least because he hired Broderick Johnson, a former lobbyist for the Keystone XL, to be a senior adviser to his campaign. Given that, it’s difficult to envision Obama overriding the countless anti-pipeline protesters — including a number of celebrities — to throw his weight behind the Keystone project. He’ll probably just continue to hear their concerns and delay a decision.
But consider: By the Department of Energy’s own admission, access to Canadian oil sands could significantly reduce our dependence on foreign oil. Some supporters for the pipeline have even made the case that construction and use of the pipeline is more ethical than the continued purchase of oil from a country that discriminates against women. Environmentalists insist the pipeline poses a risk to endangered species because spills could occur — but a State Department report has shown that to be unlikely. (Incidentally, in response to that report, three environmental groups sued the U.S. government this past Tuesday — another element of the Keystone drama that seems likely to push Obama to the left on this issue.) Perhaps most importantly, the pipeline will be a vehicle for the creation of thousands of jobs — the president’s purported top priority.
The only reason for Obama not to support the pipeline project is that it might cost him a few votes with lefty enviros. Oh, right. So, never mind. No wonder he’s delaying his decision.

Politics and Science Don't Mix!

2011-10-26T15:22:00.002-06:00

I'm not picking sides on this, but it follows about how we get the right message out for the oil and gas business. At least we're not dealing with Occupy the Oil Fields.....must be too cold at Prudhoe and too hot in Saudi Arabia. That 9,000 year old joke is a million years old!

Science Words Defined

2011-10-26T14:59:00.000-06:00

The truth is that scientists often say words that do not mean what the general public thinks they mean. And that's a problem. If you're not speaking the same language, miscommunication is inevitable. There's a new paper up in Physics Today, which argues that it's the responsibility of all scientists to think about the colloquial meanings of words and talk in a way the public can understand.

But here's the first step: Making it clear to scientists which words cause communication problems. You can see the list from the Physics Today paper above. Meanwhile, the Southern Fried Science blog has added to the collection, and Southern Fried Science blogger Andrew Thaler is looking for more suggestions. You can add words that you think scientists and public use differently to Thaler's Google Docs spreadsheet. If you've got a good alternative for a confusing word, add that, too.

Pizza Math

2011-10-26T14:50:00.000-06:00

New York Estimated Gas Resources

2011-10-26T14:18:00.001-06:00

New York has a long history of oil and gas exploration. From gas powered street lamps in New York City to drilling along steam beds as "rivers of oil" were believed to underlie streams and creeks! Be prepared for a call from a landman if you own lands in the red area on the map.

China Plans still a go Offshore Cuba

2011-10-26T11:04:00.000-06:00

China-made drilling rig to be in Cuba by end of 2011

HAVANA -- A Chinese-made oil rig is on schedule to arrive off Cuba and begin drilling before the end of 2011, a spokesman for Spanish oil company Repsol YPF said.

Spokesman Kristian Rix would neither confirm nor deny recent reports of delays as the Scarabeo-9 rig travels to the Caribbean island, but he said the project has always been based on a window of time and things are still on schedule.

Repsol holds the rights to an exploration block off Cuba covering more than 1,700 square miles (nearly 4,500 square kilometers), according to its 2010 annual report. Earlier this year it signed a contract with Italy's Saipem SpA to lease the Scarabeo-9 rig for drilling operations in Cuba.

"Where we're at at the moment is we're expecting the rig to arrive in Cuba just before the end of the year, and the plan as it stands is to begin drilling before the end of the year," Rix said.

According to geologic studies conducted by several institutions, some of them U.S.-based, Cuba's reserves in the Gulf of Mexico could be 5 billion to 9 billion barrels of crude.

The Cuban government has designated dozens of blocks in Gulf waters encompassing 43,200 square miles (112,000 square kilometers) where private energy companies plan to drill deep-water test wells.

None of the companies are American, due to Washington's decades-old embargo banning most U.S. business dealings with the communist-governed island, although some U.S. firms have expressed interest in the past.

Some environmental groups, U.S. politicians and academics have expressed concerns about drilling off Cuba after last year's Deepwater Horizon disaster that killed 11 workers and spilled more than 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

Repsol's 2010 annual report says the Sacarabeo-9 complies with U.S. specifications and technical requirements. Cuban officials have also said that the safest, most modern technology will be used.

Earlier this year, Cuba reported its 2010 production totaled 4 million tons of petroleum equivalent, which is oil plus natural gas. That is about 46 percent of

Haynesville "Fairway" and IP's

2011-10-25T15:38:00.003-06:00

The Haynesville shale is characterized by high TOC, good porosity, high gas saturation, low clay content and nanoDarcy permeabilities, all which makes for an exceptional shale gas reservoir. However, recent well IP's have been variable, and given the planned extensive development, it is necessary to de-risk some of the geologic variables to up-grade acreage and optimize well development plans. This was done through a two-part study covering the greater Sabine area of northwestern Louisiana, USA. The first part focused on defining the depositional environment, reservoir characteristics, and facies variation through inorganic element analysis, XRF, XRD, petrography, and biostratigraphic classification of macro- and nanofossils. The second focused on interpretation of present-day stresses and characterization of the natural fracture from core, image logs, and micro-seismic data. Both parts were then integrated to assist in sweet spot definition and well planning and optimization.

Results suggest that the Haynesville’s reservoir properties (clay/calcite content, TOC, perm) are mappable showing trends that can roughly be correlate with IP rates. However, on a well-to-well basis, it is unclear what the contribution of a single property is (e.g., TOC or porosity) to productivity, and hence the predictability of future well rates or location. Similarly, fracture distribution shows mappable trends. These fractures are generally calcite cemented, and hence cannot directly contribute to well productivity unless reactivated during the stimulation. Vertically, fractures occur more extensively in the lower and upper Bossier than in the Haynesville and Mid-Bossier forming a mechanically layered system.

The Haynesville Shale’s proposed or adopted drilling and production units cover 1.5 million acres. That is not including the Texas side. Considering a development spacing of 160 acres per well, that is nearly 90-95k wells, of which only 2000 are drilled.

Fairway Field, East Texas Basin: revved up with Technology

2011-10-25T15:08:00.000-06:00

Fairway (James Lime) Field, in Henderson and Anderson counties, Texas, trapped volatile 48° oil in the Aptian age James Lime member of the Pearsall Formation. The reservoir is a large patch reef complex of varied carbonate facies that grew on a paleobathymetric high in the interior platform of the Lower Cretaceous shelf. For reservoir management purposes, the James is divided into an upper "A" zone with reef-derived skeletal grainstone and/or lagoonal facies with moldic and interparticle porosity, a "B" dense zone of non-porous reef core, and a lower "C" zone composed of uniform fine grainstone. Porosity and permeability average 12.5% and 33 mD in the "A" zone and 12.9% and <1 mD in the "C" zone, respectively, at depths of 9,800 to 10,200 ft. Total net pay averages 56 ft.

Following discovery in 1960, 157 wells were drilled on 160 acre spacing during the initial development phase. In 1963, a high pressure gas gathering system and gas plant were put into operation, and in 1965 a field-wide unit of 28,518 acres was approved, designed to conduct gas and water pressure maintenance operations. An injection project was then initiated to preserve reservoir energy and increase recovery through use of a WAG (water-alternating-gas) miscible recovery process. Additional infill drilling projects were implemented in 1971, 1980, 1991, and 2006 to optimize recovery; to date 237 wells have been drilled, including 3 recent horizontal wells targeting bypassed pay in the upper "A" and lower "C" zones. A large secondary gas saturation developed over the years as the gas recycling program was implemented. Gas sales began in 2000, and gas injection was terminated in January, 2005. OOIP in the James was calculated as 410 MMBO, of which 213 MMBO has been produced. As of Aug. 1, 2007, production was 1220 BOPD, 23,400 BWPD, 70 MMCFD, and 3360 BNGLPD. Field life is projected beyond 2015. (from Webster et al)

Noble: Offshore Israel Update

2011-10-21T10:01:00.000-06:00

Noble-led Israeli well program nearing targets

Published: Oct 6, 2011

Offshore staff
TEL AVIV, Israel – Delek Group has issued an update on various exploration drilling programs it is participating in offshore Israel via its subsidiary Delek Drilling.

According to Noble Energy Mediterranean, operator of the Tamar I/12 lease area, the semisubmersible Transocean Sedco Express should relocate shortly to complete operations on the Leviathan 3 well in the 350/Amit license area.

Drilling of Leviathan 3 had to be suspended following technical problems with the subsea equipment used by the Pride North America rig (since re-named Ensco 5006). Once the well has been re-entered, drilling should be completed by mid-November.

Thereafter, the Transocean Sedco Express will likely drill up to two further exploratory wells before returning to the Tamar I/12 lease area for development work. The PNA drilling rig recently arrived at the Dolphin 1 well site in the 351/Chana license area, and should restart drilling operations here by early December following repairs to the rig’s riser system. Noble estimates the overall cost of this well at $55 million.

Another rig, Noble Corp’s Homer Ferrington, has completed the Noa 2 and Noa 3 offshore wells in the Noa 1/7 lease two weeks ahead of schedule and below the budgeted cost. Noble Energy expects completion work on the Noa North development project to start during the first half of 2012.

Homer Ferrington is currently engaged in exploratory drilling in block 12 off Cyprus.

Post Carbon Future?

2011-10-17T11:45:00.000-06:00

Scientisits find "Brown Dwarfs?

2011-10-15T13:54:00.000-06:00

Brown dwarfs straddle the boundary between stars and planets. Sometimes described as failed stars, they glow brightly when young, from the heat of formation, but cool down over time and end up with atmospheres that exhibit planet-like characteristics. Scientists think that most brown dwarfs may have formed like stars, in isolation from contracting gas clouds, but some of the puniest free-floaters may have formed like planets around a star and later ejected.

The Next Space Race

2011-10-13T11:14:00.000-06:00

The moon may be the answer as an abundant source for nuclear energy.

The World Nuclear Association (WNA) projects possible world expansion of nuclear
generating capability from current base of 387 GWe (441 plants rated @ 880 MWe (Ave) to
1,200-3,000 GWe by 205

Noble Energy: Eastern Mediterranean Activity

2011-10-11T16:09:00.000-06:00

Leviathan Field is the largest discovery in Noble's history at estimated recoverable gas reserves of 16 TCF gross. See earlier post for seismic section through Leviathan. Noble has had continued success, Aphrodite is next!

Estimates of 21st Century World Energy Supplies

2011-10-09T13:32:00.000-06:00

Antelope Sanish Field, North Dakota

2011-10-09T13:14:00.000-06:00

The 2nd Derivative Bakken Structure Map is used to identify areas of maximum flexure. These areas are believed to be at least one of the causes of natural fractures which enhance reservoir attributes.

Deepwater Gulf of Mexico Operators

2011-10-05T16:54:00.000-06:00

Shell, BP, and Anadarko are the big hitters in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico.

Brigham: Three Forks, it just keeps getting better in North Dakota

2011-09-26T08:28:00.000-06:00

Rough Rider Three Forks Well

Brigham announced the successful completion of the Irgens 27-34 #2H Three Forks well at an early 24-hour peak rate of approximately 2,906 barrels of oil equivalent (2,597 barrels of oil and 1.85 MMcf of natural gas). The Irgens 27-34 #2H was completed with 32 frac stages and is located in Brigham's Rough Rider project area in Williams County, North Dakota. The Irgens 27-34 #2H is approximately nine miles to the north northwest of the State 36-1 #2H Three Forks well, which was Brigham's first Three Forks well in Rough Rider and produced at an early 24-hour peak flow back rate of approximately 2,356 barrels of oil equivalent after being completed with 31 frac stages. Of Brigham's six Williston Basin Three Forks wells completed to date, the Irgens 27-34 #2H represents the highest early 24-hour peak rate and further delineates economic Three Forks drilling in Rough Rider.

Deepwater Horizon: Final Report

2011-09-21T16:09:00.000-06:00

Volume I - USCG Final Action Memo on Vol I.pdf

Volume I - Enclosure to Final Action Memo.pdf

The Joint Investigation Team has released it's final report on the Deepwater Horizon explosion, loss of life and subsequent oil spill. The JIT details the evidence that BP, Transocean and haliburton violated a number of federal offshore safety regulations. Surprise!

Who pays taxes?

2011-09-20T12:50:00.000-06:00

Peak Oil Revisited

2011-09-20T09:42:00.000-06:00

Hubbert’s Peak or Yergin’s Plateau?
In 1956, Shell geologist M. King Hubbert correctly predicted that oil production in the United States would reach a peak around 1970. Since his Peak Oil theory fits so well with the Malthusian worldview of “Progressives”, anti-capitalists and anarchists, Hubbert has become a posthumous hero to the Left, an unusual role for a scientist polluted by the filthy lucre of the oil industry.

Hubbert's depiction of Global Peak Oil. From Wikipedia.

Peak Oil’s fundamental assumption is that the supply of oil is finite and fixed. The peak of the oil production curve is reached when half of the total resource base has been produced, so rate vs time exhibits a symmetric bell-shaped curve. Post peak, rate declines rapidly. Hubbert demonstrated a peak for oil production in Texas, and he extended his theory to correctly predict the time (but not the rate) of the peak for the U.S. World oil production is supposed to have peaked in the last five years or so.

Niobrara Formation: NW Colorado

2011-09-13T11:09:00.000-06:00

Niobrara: DJ Basin

2011-09-12T14:01:00.000-06:00

Halliburton vs. BP

2011-09-12T10:28:00.002-06:00

Halliburton files claims in Texas against BP stemming from Macondo

Published: Sep 2, 2011

Offshore staff
HOUSTON – Halliburton has filed claims against BP in a Texas state court stemming from the Macondo incident in the Gulf of Mexico for negligent misrepresentation, business disparagement, and defamation. Halliburton also has moved to amend its claims against BP in multi-district litigation in New Orleans to include fraud.

Halliburton says these allegations are based upon BP providing Halliburton with inaccurate information prior to performing cementing services and BP’s use of an omission of that information in subsequent public statements, filings, and governmental investigations.

Halliburton says it has learned that BP provided Halliburton inaccurate information about the actual location of hydrocarbon zones in the Macondo well. Halliburton says the actual location of the hydrocarbon zones is critical information required prior to performing cementing services and is necessary to achieve desired cement placement.

Coastal Barrier Islands

2011-09-12T07:01:00.001-06:00

Sarir Field, Libya

2011-09-12T06:55:00.000-06:00

The Sarir or, more specifically, the Sarir "C" field lies on the western edge of the Calanscio Sand Sea in southern Cyrenaica and is the largest oil field in Libya. It occurs at the southeastern margin of the Upper Cretaceous-Tertiary Sirte basin or embayment that contains all the major oil fields of Libya and is the most prolific oil-producing basin in North Africa.

Total: Absheron Discovery

2011-09-12T06:52:00.000-06:00

Total strikes major gas discovery in the Caspian Sea

September 9, 2011

Source: Total

Total (NYSE:TOT) announces a major gas discovery in the Caspian Sea in the Absheron block offshore Azerbaijan.

The Absheron X-2 well has encountered more than 500 feet of cumulated net gas pays within high quality sands on the northern flank of a major 270 square kilometres structure. Reservoirs are expected to extend over the entire northern part of the structure.

The well’s first results confirm a potential of several trillion cubic feet of gas and associated condensates.

Technorati verification

2011-09-11T13:00:00.002-06:00

XDUFNET9JWJH

Arctic Map: Shell Operations

2011-09-10T10:09:00.000-06:00

View from the top! More than 400 fields have been discovered in the Arctic region. Today, Alaska, canada, Norway, and Russia are the primary producing areas.

Eco Green Solar

2011-09-09T10:10:00.000-06:00

The Solar Dole

Posted 09/08/2011 06:40 PM ET

Corruption: In the same week a green energy firm that wasted hundreds of millions in taxpayer dollars said it was bankrupt, the White House made a multimillion-dollar loan to another solar power project. Madness reigns.
Last week, Solyndra, which builds industrial solar panels in the Bay Area, announced that it was filing for bankruptcy. The company, whose officials and investors visited the White House at least 20 times and have donated to the Obama campaign, chewed through 1,100 employees and piles of other people's money, including $535 million provided by taxpayers, before it finally succumbed to reality.
President Obama, who can't let go of his party's eco-energy fantasy, toured Solyndra's Fremont, Calif., plant last year. He identified the company as an example of the "positive impacts" of his stimulus plan and called it "a testament to American ingenuity and dynamism." The president and the thinkers in his administration dreaming of a green economy merrily claimed Solyndra would eventually employ 4,000.
What made them think this when Solyndra's own accountants at PricewaterhouseCoopers considered the company's business model to be shaky and expressed "substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern"?
Learning nothing from the Solyndra crackup and the many other green-energy failures, the White House, also last week, handed out an $852 million loan guarantee to the Genesis Solar Project in California. This 1,950-acre slice of federal land in Riverside County filled with parabolic solar panels is supposed to produce enough power — 250 megawatts — to light, heat and cool more than 48,000 homes.
Energy Secretary Steven Chu, who apparently has yet to meet a fossil fuel he can like, no matter how cheap and efficient it might be, stands fully behind the Genesis Solar Project. He wants the public to believe that it "will enable the deployment of clean, renewable sources at scale, which will help bring down the cost of solar power in the years to come."
Chu can be as blindly optimistic as he is blind to the facts about energy. Standing behind yet another poor government choice won't tarnish his professional reputation or ruin his career. But the hard lesson to be learned is that the Genesis Solar Project is bound to be another boondoggle.

How can it not be? If it were a viable project, it would be a magnet for private-sector investment. That it needs government help is an indicator that the market knows it's a venture not worth capitalizing.

Department of the Interior: Offshore Alaska Areas

2011-09-08T08:38:00.000-06:00

Statoil Aldous Field Discovery

2011-09-06T08:22:00.001-06:00

High impact discovery in our core area!

Utsira High, Greater Sleipner area

~140 km west of Stavanger

35 km south of Grane

Water depth: 112 meters

Reservoir depth: ~ 1900 meters

Drilling rig: Transocean Leader

Hebron Field, Offshore Newfoundland

2011-09-05T10:13:00.000-06:00

The Hebron Unit contains separate oil pools in at least four stratigraphicintervals: the Lower Cretaceous Ben Nevis Reservoir, the Lower Cretaceous Avalon Reservoir, the Lower Cretaceous Hibernia Reservoir and the Upper Jurassic Jeanne d’Arc Reservoir. The field was discovered circa 1981 and first oil production is targeted for 2016 or 2017.

U.S. Crude Oil Production

2011-09-05T08:47:00.000-06:00

Interoil: Elk/Antelope Field

2011-09-01T14:16:00.000-06:00

This discovery has created quite a controversy in the investment world. Some big gas numbers have been posted.....is it for real?

Deepwater Statistics

2011-08-30T08:39:00.000-06:00

DEEPWATER STATISTICS

Current Deepwater* Activity

*Deepwater defined as a minimum water depth of 3,000 ft. (914 m).

Number of rigs drilling in deepwater worldwide:	126

Number of deepwater rigs/vessels under construction:	79

(As of 8/20/2011) Total Deepwater Prospects with Drilling/WO Activity
Gulf of Mexico	27
Offshore West Africa	29
North Sea	9
Offshore Brazil	50
Asia- Southeast	13
Offshore Australia	5

Trans Alaska Pipeline Volumes

2011-08-29T08:32:00.000-06:00

Trans Alaska Pipeline Map

2011-08-28T16:08:00.000-06:00

The Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) is the conduit that makes it possible for oil to flow from Prudhoe Bay some 800.302 miles down to the ice-free port at Valdez. From Valdez it can be shipped by tanker (about 25 a month) to customer refineries further south.

Methane Hydrates Resource

2011-08-26T10:02:00.000-06:00

Methane Hydrate -
The Gas Resource of the Future

Methane hydrate is a cage-like lattice of ice inside of which are trapped molecules of methane, the chief constituent of natural gas. If methane hydrate is either warmed or depressurized, it will revert back to water and natural gas. When brought to the earth's surface, one cubic meter of gas hydrate releases 164 cubic meters of natural gas. Hydrate deposits may be several hundred meters thick and generally occur in two types of settings: under Arctic permafrost, and beneath the ocean floor. Methane that forms hydrate can be both biogenic, created by biological activity in sediments, and thermogenic, created by geological processes deeper within the earth.

Libyan Oil Production Decline

2011-08-25T14:49:00.000-06:00

The six month conflict has reduced Libyan oil production from about 1.6 million barrels per day before the start to a meager 50,000 barrels per day now.

Irene: NASA photo

2011-08-25T13:27:00.000-06:00

East Coast Earthquake Explained

2011-08-25T07:19:00.000-06:00

"The USGS says yesterdays East Coast earthquake was caused by an unknown fault line running under D.C. and through Virginia. It is now being called Obama's Fault, though Obama will say it's really Bush's Fault. Another theory is that it was the founding fathers rolling over in their graves, but I believe what we all thought was an earthquake was actually the effects of a $14.6 trillion dollar check bouncing in Washington."

Earthquakes in the United States: Last 7 days

2011-08-23T13:05:00.001-06:00

Who knew?

Virginia Earthquake Map

2011-08-23T12:57:00.000-06:00

Depth is in km.

Seismic Events of the East Coast

2011-08-23T12:54:00.000-06:00

Here is a quick view of earthquake locations in the eastern U.S from 1900-2002. (from USGS)

Niagara Falls, Frozen

2011-08-21T09:41:00.001-06:00

Niagara Falls frozen circa 1902?