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Understanding Shale Gas in Canada What Is Shale Gas?

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Understanding Shale Gas in Canada What Is Shale Gas? Understanding Shale Gas in Canada What is Shale Gas? Shale gas is natural gas, no dierent than what you currently use to heat your home or cook with or use to generate electricity. The gas is naturally trapped within very ne grained sedimentary rocks called shale or mudstone. Millions of years ago, the mud and silt that was deposited in ancient oceans and lakes often contained plant and The organic material through the animal debris. Over time, these same pressure and temperature sediments containing the organic processes generated oil and gas material, were compacted and which in many cases migrated into solidied through burial. With other rock types such as sandstones increasing temperature and pressure and limestones to form conventional to form shale and mudstone. oil and gas reservoirs. The natural gas that is retained within the shale is referred to as shale gas. Shale and mud rich rocks often vary in colour as well as grain size. Colours may vary from dark brown or grey through to black shale (a), like the Utica Formation in Quebec or the shales of the Horn River Basin in British Columbia. In some basins, often the ne grained shale rocks are interbedded with coarser grained siltstones (b). Where structural processes have been at work, the shale rocks can be fractured (c) creating natural pathways for natural gas or oil to ow to the wellbore. (a) (b) (c) How is Natural Gas Stored in Shale? Shale rocks contain very ne grains of The amount of natural gas that is stored minerals separated by very small spaces within shale is variable depending on the called “pores”. Natural gas or oil molecules amount of open pore space, amount of that have been created from the organic organic material present, reservoir material in the rock are trapped within the pressure and thermal maturity of the rock. numerous micro-pores or are attached to Thermal maturity is a measure of how the organic material by a process called much pressure and temperature the rock adsorption. The amount of pore space has been subjected to. It also measures within the shale usually ranges between whether oil or gas has been generated 2-10% allowing a large volume of natural during the process. Core samples are gas to be stored within the rock. often collected to allow laboratory tests to be taken that will measure the amount of organic material present as well as the thermal maturity. 5 nm Desorption from Diusion Through Fluid Flow in the Internal Microporosity the Matrix and Natural Fracture Surfaces Micro- and Mesopores Network (not to scale) TOC vs. Adsorbed Gas GEOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES 180 (Kerogen Conversion and Maturity) 1.2 e e r t n u 160 3 Antrim wells e All Wells Formation t Dry Gas Zone o a W Z e l - i m n e This Well O y=7.226x + 5.0394 t o 140 1.0 m I a Z s 2 s n a R = 0.8689 e G 120 d x n o e 0.8 C d 100 n I High Level Conversion - Expulsion d n e o t r i 0.6 a 80 o t n i d c e m u n i a d t 60 a t n o S o r 0.4 C P Gas Content (scf/t) Gas Content 40 20 0.2 0 Low Level Conversion 0.0 0 5 10 15 20 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Total Organic Carbon (TOC, wt%) Maturity [based on measured vitrinite reectance in oil], % Ro From Jarvie, 2007 Organic material is referred to as TOC or Total Thermal maturity is measured on a vitrinite Organic Carbon and is measured as a reectance scale (% Ro). Maturity of the rock percentage of the rock weight. The amount is controlled by pressure and temperature of gas that can be stored by adsorption burial conditions over time. Maturity of the within the rock is dependent on the amount organic kerogen in the rock will control the of organic carbon present. type of natural gas or oil that is created. Both of these measurements can be used to help determine the amount of natural gas that is present in the rock. Where is Shale Gas Found in Canada? Shale rocks containing natural gas can Marketable resources, as dened by be found in most sedimentary basins CSUG, represent the amount of gas that across the country. The largest may be recovered from production concentration lies within the Western operations. These estimates account for Canada Sedimentary Basin (WCSB) a dened recovery factor for each basin which extends from northeast British as well as discounting for natural gas Columbia to southwest Manitoba. used in the production process. In Other basins are located in the Arctic, addition, marketable resources also Northwest Territories, Yukon, Quebec, reect regions where access to southern Ontario, New Brunswick and resources may be dicult due to Nova Scotia. potential stakeholder, technical, or other issues. Marketable resources for Shale gas resources in Canada are shale gas in Canada are estimated to estimated to be greater than 1100 Tcf range from 128 to 343 Tcf (3.6 to (trillion cubic feet) or 31 x 1012 m3 (cubic 9.7x1012 m3). To put this number in meters) with the majority residing context, in 2009 Canada produced 5.26 within the WCSB. Tcf (149x109 m3) of natural gas. Roughly 50% of the natural gas produced in Canada is exported. The other 50% is used within the country to heat homes and businesses and by industry as a clean energy source for wellsite operations. Shale Resources - GIP Tcf m3 (Gas in Place) (trillion cubic feet) (cubic metres) Arctic Islands Undefined Undefined Besa River Undefined Undefined 12 Cordova Embayment 200 5.6 x10 12 Horn River Basin 500 14.1 x10 12 Maritimes 130 3.7 x10 Ontario Paleozoic Undefined Undefined NWT Cretaceous Undefined Undefined NWT Cretaceous NWT Devonian Undefined Undefined 12 Arctic Islands Utica 181 5.1 x10 Western Canada 12 Sedimentary Basin 100 2.8 x10 NWT Devonian (Colorado Group Only) 12 Besa River TOTAL Shale GIP 1111 31.3 x10 Horn River Basin Cordova Embayment Western Canada Sedimentary Basin (Colorado Group Only) Maritimes Utica Ontario Paleozoic Adapted with the permission of Natural Resources Canada 2010, courtesy of the Atlas of Canada. Distribution of major shale gas basins in Canada A decision to proceed with commercial 0 1 2 development of a shale gas project is the culmination of a process requiring several years of exploration, experimentation and Stage 1: Stage 2: data collection. These stages of Identication of the Early Evaluation exploration require signicant investment Gas Resource Drilling by the company with no assurance of success. While each company has their Land Acquisition and the Seismic surveys to map the securing of seismic and drilling extent of gas bearing own processes for development, in location permits and land use formation(s) and geological general, shale gas development requires agreements. features such as faults or ve stages of exploration and evaluation Initial geophysical and discontinuities that may impact to reach commercial development. Each geochemical surveys in some the potential reservoir. regions. Initial vertical drilling to evaluate of these stages is designed to gather shale gas resource properties - technical information that is then commonly core samples are analyzed and used in the development of collected. the next stage. A summary of these stages and the types of activities that may take place are presented in the adjacent gure. 3 4 5 20 Approximate Time (in years) Stage 4: Stage 5: Stage 3: Pilot Production Commercial Project Pilot Project Drilling Testing Development Reclamation Drilling of initial horizontal Drilling of multiple horizontal Commercial decision to proceed well(s) to determine reservoir wells from a single pad as part and government approvals for properties and completion of a full size pilot project. construction of gas plants, techniques (includes some Optimization of completion pipelines and drilling. level of multi-stage fracturing). techniques including drilling Continued drilling of vertical and multi-stage fracing and wells in additional regions of microseismic surveys . shale gas potential. Pilot production testing. Initial production tests. Planning and acquisition of pipeline right of ways for eld development. All stages of development include stakeholder dialogue and consultation Pace of development is largely dependent on resource complexity, technical success, local circumstances and market conditions Most unconventional natural gas reservoirs tend Hydraulic Fracturing to have lower permeability and require some The purpose of the hydraulic fracturing or method of increasing the amount of reservoir in “fracing” is to either intersect and open existing contact with the borehole. In shale gas, the two natural fractures or create new fractures in the most common methods are horizontal drilling reservoir. This fracture system is necessary to and hydraulic fracturing. create pathways by which the natural gas can ow to the wellbore. Horizontal Drilling Horizontal drilling rst entails drilling a vertical The hydraulic fracturing process consists of well to a predetermined depth above the shale pumping a uid, either a gas or a liquid, with a gas reservoir. The well is then drilled at an suspended proppant (usually sand or ceramic increasing angle until it meets the reservoir beads) down the wellbore at a high rate and interval in a horizontal plane. Once horizontal, the pressure through the perforations which causes well is then drilled to a selected length, which the surrounding rock to fracture or crack. The could extend to as much as 2500m. This portion suspended uid/proppant mixture lls the open of the well, called the horizontal leg, allows fractures keeping them open after the fracture signicantly increased contact of the wellbore pressures are removed.
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