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Bakken Oil Peak by Jean Laherrère

This is a guest post by Jean Laherrère The problem of forecasting future Bakken production is that estimating reserves of shale oil is harder than for conventional oil and is very unreliable because many confuse reserves and resources, and shale oil reserves depend more from economy than from technology. Many estimate the amount of hydrocarbons generated by the source-rock and believe that a significant percentage could be recovered: the study of the main Petroleum Systems in the world estimate than only about 1% will recovered in conventional fields, no more could be expected in unconventional fields. US Shale gas production started in 1821 in Fredonia for lighting when whale oil price was about 2000 $2014/b, but was replaced by conventional oil in 1859 because a largely lower price. How to estimate future production? Drilling activity is a good way to model production with a shift. In my MIT Paris paper […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Texas, N.D. oil push imports down

Bentek Energy, the analytical division of Platts, said July oil production from the Bakken area in North Dakota and the Eagle Ford shale play in Texas increased 3.4 percent year-on-year , or more than 86,000 barrels per day. "Oil production gains from the Bakken and Eagle Ford shale formations are a major reason why U.S. imports of crude oil have dropped to levels not seen since the mid-1990s," Benteck Director of Energy Analysis Jack Weixel said in a statement Thursday. The Energy Information Administration, the statistical arm of the Energy Department, said in its monthly short-term market report total U.S. crude oil production reached 8.5 million barrels per day in July, the highest monthly level since April 1987. The rise in domestic oil production in turn means lower imports of foreign crude oil . EIA said imports nearly halved from 2005 to average 33 percent of the market share […]

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Shell committed to Ukrainian shale

| License Photo Russia’s state media RIA Novosti said it’s received word Royal Dutch Shell remains committed to shale gas reserves in Ukraine despite the violence. "Shell’s interests in shale gas production in Ukraine remain the same, and we will continue to execute all kinds of operations that we can carry out safely," a spokesman told the Russian news agency on condition of anonymity. Shell Chief Executive Officer Ben van Beurden said in early August some of the company’s operations in Europe may be influenced by ongoing crises in Ukraine. As a result, he declared force majeure , releasing the company from contractual obligations because of circumstances beyond its control. Shell in early 2013 signed agreements to produce gas from the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions of Ukraine. Ukrainian forces this week advanced on rebel-held territory in Donetsk . Heavy fighting was reported in the area this week as Ukrainian […]

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North Dakota Hits Records Oil & Gas Production – June 2014

Flared Gas Still High Despite Completion of Tioga Gas Plant Expansion in May 2014 Bakken Oil Well Bakken Oil Well | Click to Enlarge The State of North Dakota hit nearly 1.1-million b/d oil in June 2014, setting a new record, according to the Department of Mineral Resources’ (DMR) August Director’s Cut . During the same month, North Dakota also had record monthly gas production (1,253,154 mcf/d), and the highest recorded number of producing wells (11,079). In April, North Dakota crossed the milestone 1-million b/d oil mark. The Bakken region, which includes portions of western Montana, exceeded the 1-million b/d mark at end of last year according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). It is the fourth region, along with the Gulf of Mexico, Eagle Ford, and Permian basins, producing more than 1 million b/d in the nation. Read more :  North Dakota Hits the 1-Million b/d Mark About 28% of gas […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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North Dakota Hits Records Oil & Gas Production – June 2014

Flared Gas Still High Despite Completion of Tioga Gas Plant Expansion in May 2014 Bakken Oil Well Bakken Oil Well | Click to Enlarge The State of North Dakota hit nearly 1.1-million b/d oil in June 2014, setting a new record, according to the Department of Mineral Resources’ (DMR) August Director’s Cut . During the same month, North Dakota also had record monthly gas production (1,253,154 mcf/d), and the highest recorded number of producing wells (11,079). In April, North Dakota crossed the milestone 1-million b/d oil mark. The Bakken region, which includes portions of western Montana, exceeded the 1-million b/d mark at end of last year according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). It is the fourth region, along with the Gulf of Mexico, Eagle Ford, and Permian basins, producing more than 1 million b/d in the nation. Read more :  North Dakota Hits the 1-Million b/d Mark About 28% of gas […]

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BP Names New CEO of US Shale Unit

BP announced Wednesday that it has named David Lawler chief executive officer of its US Lower 48 Onshore business. Lawler, who brings more than 20 years of industry experience to the role, will begin Sept. 15 and report to Lamar McKay, BP’s Upstream Segment chief executive. Lawler, 46, takes over just months before BP formally establishes a separate business to manage its onshore oil and gas assets in the continental United States. The move is designed to give the business the flexibility it needs to aggressively compete in the rapidly changing market. “With an impressive track record at integrated oil and gas companies as well as independents, Dave is uniquely qualified to lead our onshore business during this exciting transition,” McKay said. “His experience and skills match up perfectly with our goals for the business. I’m confident he will create a competitive and sustainable operation that will be a […]

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A New Frontier for Fracking: Drilling Near the Arctic Circle

Hydraulic fracturing is about to move into the Canadian Arctic, with companies exploring the region’s rich shale oil deposits. But many indigenous people and conservationists have serious concerns about the impact of fracking in more fragile northern environments. Among the dozens of rivers that flow unfettered through the Canadian North, the Natla and the Keele may be the most picturesque and culturally important. They are especially significant to the Dene people of the Sahtu region, which straddles the Arctic Circle in the Northwest Territories. Both of the rivers flow crystal clear out of the Mackenzie Mountains along the Yukon/Northwest Territories border before coming together in their final course to the Mackenzie River. Conoco-Phillips fracking project in Sahtu Photo credit: Conoco-Phillips. A Conoco-Phillips shale oil fracking site in the Sahtu region of Canada’s Northwest Territories. For hundreds — if not thousands — of years, the Mountain Dene people have been […]

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Potential oil window is last gasp for Utica Shale

Tweet YOUNGSTOWN 11 Jim McKinney, senior vice president and general manager from EnerVest, a Houston-based company, said his company believes that with changes in drilling techniques, activity will increase in the oil-rich northern part of the Utica Shale, which includes Trumbull County. “When companies first drilled, they were using the same techniques they were using in the dry- and wet-gas areas of the Utica,” he said. EnerVest has found in Tuscarawas and Guernsey counties that by using more water and sand in the fracking process, there can be success in the oil-rich portions of the Utica, McKinney said. “Oil has different molecules than gas,” he said. Companies were using 200 feet to 250 feet spacing between injections, but for the oil area it needs to be shorter, about 150 feet, McKinney said. “It allows the oil to move more freely toward the well bore,” he said. If the tests […]

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BP Hires Chief to Run its U.S. 'Lower 48' Onshore Business

BP PLC said Wednesday that it hired David Lawler, an executive with U.S. independent petroleum producer Sandridge Energy Inc., to run a separate business unit it is creating for the U.S.’s lower 48 states. The move is part of BP’s plan to restructure its shale-focused U.S. assets in response to the difficulties that it and other big oil companies have had profiting from the shale boom in the country. Mr. Lawler, most recently an executive vice president and chief operating officer of Sandridge, will take over a new business with "separate governance, processes and systems" from the rest of BP, the company said in a statement. He will report to BP’s exploration-and-production chief, Lamar McKay. BP said in March that it would put its lower-48 onshore assets into a new business in an effort to become nimbler and "compete more effectively with the independents," BP CEO Bob Dudley told […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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BP Hires Chief to Run its U.S. ‘Lower 48’ Onshore Business

BP PLC said Wednesday that it hired David Lawler, an executive with U.S. independent petroleum producer Sandridge Energy Inc., to run a separate business unit it is creating for the U.S.’s lower 48 states. The move is part of BP’s plan to restructure its shale-focused U.S. assets in response to the difficulties that it and other big oil companies have had profiting from the shale boom in the country. Mr. Lawler, most recently an executive vice president and chief operating officer of Sandridge, will take over a new business with "separate governance, processes and systems" from the rest of BP, the company said in a statement. He will report to BP’s exploration-and-production chief, Lamar McKay. BP said in March that it would put its lower-48 onshore assets into a new business in an effort to become nimbler and "compete more effectively with the independents," BP CEO Bob Dudley told […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple