Conduct a detailed natural gas ultimate recovery growth (UGR) analysis of the Texas Gulf Coast Basin and East Texas.
Objective: In July 1996, the University of Texas at Austin expanded its Research and Development efforts to assess reserve growth on a play basis and to quantify the role of technology already applied as well as amenability of the specific play to future technology applications.
Detailed natural gas ultimate recovery growth (URG) analysis of the Texas Gulf Coast Basin and East Texas has been undertaken. The key to such analysis was determined to be the disaggregation of the resource base to the play level. The project has developed a realistic and play-specific measurement of remaining URG potential by natural gas resource volume. Through such assessment the longer term potential of natural gas URG as a contributor to future gas supply from the Texas Gulf Coast Basin and East Texas has been determined. Within Texas itself, the Gulf Coast Basin and East Texas comprise 67 percent and 58 percent of natural gas annual production and proved reserves, respectively. The Texas Gulf Coast Basin comprises Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) Districts 1 through 4 and Offshore State waters. A total of 7,484 fields existed in the original 1996 Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Oil and Gas Integrated Field File (OGIFF) data base. This data set was reduced to 1,372 fields that had 1996 natural gas ultimate recovery estimates greater than 10 Bcf and at least 2 years of data. This reduced data set represents 94 percent of the total 1996 natural gas ultimate recovery for the 7,484 fields. East Texas comprises RRC Districts 5 and 6 and a few fields extending into 3. A total of 1,447 fields existed in the original 1996 EIA OGIFF data base. This data set was reduced to 235 fields that had 1996 natural gas ultimate recovery estimates greater than 10 Bcf and at least 2 years of data. This reduced data set represents 96 percent of the total 1996 natural gas ultimate recovery for the 1,447 fields.
Major research objectives include: (1) developing a realistic and play-specific measure of remaining URG potential by natural gas resource volume for the Texas Gulf Coast Basin and East Texas, (2) an assessment of the technology necessary and most amenable to realizing the URG resource, and (3) assessing the economics of converting the resource to reserves. Through such assessment the longer term potential and cost of URG as a contributor to future natural gas supply from the Texas Gulf Coast Basin and East Texas can be determined. Further, the methodology for such an assessment can be verified and codified for wider extrapolation to other natural gas resource areas with significant URG potential.
University of Texas at Austin
This project has been completed and a final report is provided below.
$425,000
$50,000
NETL - Gary L. Covatch (304-285-4589 or gary.covatch@netl.doe.gov)
Final Report [PDF-6657KB]