To increase recovery of natural gas from naturally fractured tight reservoirs.
Advanced Resources International
Location:
Arlington, Virginia 22201
This effort integrates seismic, aeromagnetc and other geophysical data to develop a methodology for predicting and detecting natural fractures in tight gas reservoirs. The tool will be able to assess the orientation, intensity and permeability of natural fractures, which are the key flow paths in tight sand formations. The primary focus of this project is on known natural gas producing areas of the Piceance Basin and other basin areas of the Rocky Mountain region.
This project has successfully demonstrated the value of conducting an in-depth natural fracture study of low-permeability gas reservoirs in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States. The project CD-ROM is still a much sought-after product based on the continuing requests received at NETL and the interest shown at professional meeting exhibits.
This study and others have shown that the resource and reserve potential in the Rocky Mountain States is very large. Economically viable production of natural gas from tight reservoirs can be achieved in formations that have been adequately fractured by geologic processes. These fractures then provide the flow channels necessary to extract the trapped gas. Specific accomplishments from this project are described below.
This project was completed in 1999. A CD-ROM entitled "Detection and Analysis of Naturally Fractured Reservoirs" released at the 1998 AAPG Annual Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah is available upon request from NETL.
$3,705,637
$510,427
ARI - Vello Kuuskraa (703-528-8420 or advancedres@intr.net)
NETL - William Gwilliam (304-285-4401 or william.gwilliam@netl.doe.gov)
A CD-ROM entitled "Detection and Analysis of Naturally Fractured Reservoirs" released at the 1998 AAPG Annual Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah is available upon request from NETL.