Development of Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania

Abstract

A review of technologies and practices used for exploration and production of natural gas from the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania is given while shedding light on the entire process of natural gas production in the Marcellus Shale region of Pennsylvania. Entailing drilling and completions operations, production operations and transportation of natural gas tied together with regulation and policy in Pennsylvania. Horizontal drilling technology is used in shale play development along with well stimulation which is also needed to produce economically from these wells. This is achieved through hydraulic fracturing. Water is predominantly used for this but the use of other fluids is also being explored. For the transport of natural gas a network is present in Pennsylvania but gathering stations and other infrastructure needs to be setup. This is not easy in Pennsylvania due to the hilly nature of the region. Most common practices are developed locally as is the case in the Marcellus, with local operators and not the big majors heading the development of the Shale play but even they used techniques applied in the Barnett Shale to great success in the Marcellus Shale which goes to prove that a lot can be gained from other similar plays. The history of this region in producing natural gas is more than a hundred years old and so a lot has done in this region with regards to experimentation and technology additions in producing natural gas. Apart from producing and transportation of natural gas, another important aspect is regulation and policy which is strict when it comes to Pennsylvania. Along with this it would be beneficial for companies to develop good relations with residents in the area as these wells typically produce for long periods of time. Typical land restoration projects are now mandatory which all adds upto a higher overall cost of energy. To summarize all the factors needed to produce natural gas in this region economically and safely with leaving as small as a footprint as possible is explored.

Gas fracking: can we safely squeeze the rocks?

“…As compared with CG, UG requires significantly more wells due to the limited area exploited per well (1 km 2 ) and shorter life span (5-15 years), with most of the production occurring over the first six months (IEA, 2012). Each well requires approximately one to two hectares (ha) of land plus road networks (Belvalkar and Oyewole, 2010). Drilling also requires the clearing of land, which has a negative impact on landscapes and biodiversity, and can lead to significant soil erosion and sediment disposition (Adams et al, 2011).…”

Optimized Steerable Motor Design Overcomes Drilling Challenges in Marcellus Shale Unconventional Play

“…The Marcellus Shale is considered to be one of the richest gas fields in North America. It covers several states in the Appalachian basin in the North-East of the USA (Huls 2010;Poedjono et al 2010;Baez et al 2011;Belvalkar et al 2010), as shown in Fig. 7.…”

Systematic Evaluation of Unconventional Resource Plays Using a New Play-Based Exploration Methodology

“…The map depicts the acreages with the highest potential for a successful exploitation of the Marcellus gas shale play based on initial considerations as • mature source rock in the oil and gas windows • high gas content • high adsorbed gas volume investigations presented here can be coupled with preliminary economic estimates to determine if production from the wells meets the capital cost as well as operating cost as described by Belvakar and Oyewole (2010) for the Marcellus play. Among the issues to be considered are transport and liquefaction, because the Marcellus in Pennsylvania produces mainly dry gas and currently there is an interest in natural gas liquids.…”

“…Among the issues to be considered are transport and liquefaction, because the Marcellus in Pennsylvania produces mainly dry gas and currently there is an interest in natural gas liquids. Dozens of processing plants have been announced along with major pipeline placement (Belvakar and Oyewole 2010). Future acreage acquisition could be driven by the location of existing facilities.…”