56 ‘Tom Alexander Southwestern Energy Company ‘Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada Jason Baily ‘Sugar Land, Texas, USA Chuck Boyer Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA Bill Clark George Waters (Oklahoma City, Okehoma, USA Valorie Jochen Coitege Station, Taxes Jost Le Calvo Houston, Texas Rick Lewis Camron K. Miller Dattas, Texas John Thaelor Southnestorn Energy Company Houston, Texas Brian E.Toollo Denver, Colorado, USA ‘ais Rv tn 70.8. Coop 208 Sesoborge, aan af ta re, ants Dog / Waren Puan Danaea and, Jane Weln er Marmron Fanaa, Oma (hy Denon Acar aah Hayat Hout. (0, EUPSE eoseape, Es, LAN, HA cS, RA HRA Pa, Pam rae, Sve Sean, Sonedcope SpecveLtn Stnntar, SinMAP LIVE TRA ‘rd ISABE are ars Searbrge "Gola enzal conser suri pailes et trsetane tobe oy sie Spr ‘ange a abauca to 623 irra 2 Syn OH wn do Feoae NA Geof Enlosrs Jot bang Hasse USB Satrwer Heinenaen, Shale Gas Revolution Around the globe, comp: ‘to find the next Barnett Sh resources req ‘more than just finding organi 9S are aggressively pursuing shale resource plays, hoping But developing and producing from these enigmatic th shales and hydraulically ‘fracturing them, As the shale gas revolution gains momentum globally, exploration companies are discovering that an integrated approach is essential to success. ‘Learning from past experience: 3nd continually improving methodologies may not ‘quarantee success, but ts likelihood is greatly improved. From the advent ofthe moder ol and gs indus ‘ny petroleum geolgtts have followed a conven ‘sonal routo for exploration: look for hpdrveasbon souroe rocks, find reservoir quality roeks where Ihydoocarbons ean accurate, identify @ trap- phgmeetanism and then dil a wel, But a revo Ito talking place inthe &P industry. Rocks that in the past were of ite interest, other than aspotental sourc rocks, are today being actively pursed as potential resorts, When considering ‘unconventional resourc play, the foes is on nding organic shal. ‘Tae Barnott Shalo of contra! Tas, USA, is recognized asthe play that initiated the recent Ingavest in developing shales as producing reser ‘ors, This development represen a fndamen- tal. shift in the way exploration companies ‘consider resource plays Te two main enabling technologies that have made shale plays econom- ical sro extonded reac horizontal iting and rovlistage hydraulic facture stimulation However, operators have discovered that there is much more to produeing gas from source rocks than drilling horizontal wells and Bydraulically fracturing them, Engineers and geologists studying shale gas resources find that having a groaior undor standing of a reservoir can lead to process ‘adapiation and roinement of toehniques. I is important to integrate data from many sources and at mang soale to optimally dr, complete and stimulate wells to ptoduee lydrocarbons ‘rom their source rocks, ‘This arlile reviews lessons lesrnod from 80 years of shale development and Joks a some of {he tools used to annlyzo shales Taking an into ‘rated approach to developing its Payotteile Shale play, one operator was rewarded for its cffors, ms ovidoneed by increased gas produc tion and improved operational efficiencies, In snother example, a large production lg study using data from sx major shale basins in the US, uncovered roslts that may impact rilng and stimulation practices. Shale Reservoir Charnetersties ‘Shales are ine-grainod rorks that form from te compaction of it and ela-sz0d parties: Sit ‘oreent ofthe Kart’ sedimentary crust consist of shale, and it is the primary source rock fo rmostof the conventional yrocarbon deposis in ‘tho work? Beesuso shales ar formed from mud ‘hey are often roferted to as mudstones, Shal are differentiated from olher claystones and smudstones in that they are laminated—sinel layered—and fissile, which means they eana 5 2a cael oe cr ra a = cn J cel cat oa = Compl came project re my re ect oe coe sxe sate Ered veh China doysee fom nat Deve Pita) bie tes) ‘Organic shales. St are fine-grained file sedans found in lyors. They may be fractured and ray breakin sheets along cher laminations (inset). Grganierich shales ae characterized by higher ie earbon than other sh are the primary targets levels of total org organie-sich sha inthe rango of 2% t0 10%. Thermally matura poration wa | a per es Pecod ‘america | Amorica | £0"P® | Canral Asia | ATE® | ‘and Asia ore Pe 1 ee eal apa ae eile |esetad saat - me |e r 7 i Tim : : =e La = ate = { % — hema Soni ace fi Lie sume | 7 L cate L ow a Porn ea cat ieee aati om ‘Global distribution of organic merino shales by geologic peviod. Tectonics, geography and climatic conditons contribute tothe deposi of arganic-ich sedimans. Organie-ich marine shales e found across the globe. (Black circles roprosent the number of occurrences for each age} Exploration companies have focused on marine sediments that have sufficient thermal maturity to ‘convert kerogan inta hydrocarbon to develo as recoureo plays. Lecustine shales from shallow, freshwater dapasits (not shown) are also targets of expiration but have not yet proved tobe as prolife as their maine counterparts. (Adapted fram Tourtlo, eference 4) 2 broken or split info sheets along their lami ors (Jef). Depending on their maturity an mineralogy they may also be easily fractured. For all oir abundance, few shale deposi ‘ean be developed as ydrocarbon resoutee pl "The targts for gas shale exploration are ong rich sediments that were doposived in such mamer as to preserve a signifleant fraction the original organic mater tat eventually ser a5 the feedstock for hydrocarbon generat Once generated, much of the hyétorarb remains trapped in the uilralow:permeabii ‘oek matrix, unable to migrate, ‘Organi ie shale formations form under ceil eonitions—tigh levels of onganic matte and law levels of exggen— Modern anelog for orgenic-ic shel. Decay f organic meterilis a bactral process thet occurs under aerobic conditions; imitad anaerobic bacterial atv can also occur under anoxe condons. The Black Sea's stratified with an upper oxdzed layer anda lower anoxic zone Freshwater (green arrows) lows in fram vers, an denser seawtor bie arrow) flows in fram the Medterranoen Sea via the Bosporus Svait Because ofthe efferent salinities and densites, ming is imtod tothe uppermost 100 to TE0 (230 to 490. The mixing botween surface water and bottom water i strongly rastictod tha wotor at the bottom is exchanga¢ aly cnca in e thousand year. Blac, organic sediments accumulate on the bottom. Anaerobic bacteria stp oxygen from suites and give off hnyrogen sud [HS] 98a waste product. The hydragon sulle may react with ron inthe sediments tof rte Fes, whichis raqony cbsaredn anh shale een Adare ron Bogen yoartone generis —> aan Moraga Tarsince [Ondo — Crgeness Dagrase Inoaing apt and ong ‘Maturation stages in hydrocarbon generation. The processes of burial, conversion of organic matter and generation of hyétocarbons ean be ‘summarized in thre steps, laganesis:cherectrtzed by lon-tampareture below 8080 [122°F|—corversion of orgaric mater to kerogen, Beeteria may Aigestand convert some of tho organic mattar into biogenic methane. Ccatagenasis: ganerally occurs as further burial asus in more pressure end Increased heat in the range of 50°C to 150°C [122 to 302], which causes cherical bonds to braak within the shale and the kerogen Metagenesiesthe final stage, invihich heat and chemical changes transform keragen to ‘carbon, During tis stage, lata methane, or dry gas, evolves, alongwith other gases, including COs, Nz and HS. Hydrocarbons produced in earn stages, feventualy convert to mathene, as wall. Temperatures range fom about OPC to 200°C [302° to $82"F and highor. “eal Organi Carbon Weight % Resour Pour <05 Vero wi Peer tz ai Za tod a0 Way gn 31) Wain ‘The relationship borwo total organic carton and resource potenti.