Gas Shales: Energy Rocks with Big Implications

When the Native Americans first showed European explorers hydrocarbon seeps in 17th-century of what is now western New York State, who could have imagined the industry that developed a century later? Modern hydrocarbon production got its start in 1821 with the digging of the first shale gas well near Fredonia, New York. Although research and exploration targeting hydrocarbons in shale continued, it has taken nearly two centuries for shale resources to move front and center in the energy discussion worldwide. Due to a series of technical innovations, particularly horizontal drilling and high-volume hydraulic-fracture stimulation, producing shale gas is now economically feasible in today’s energy market.Shale is a fine-grained detrital sedimentary rock, formed by the compaction of clay, silt, or mud deposited in ancient oceans and lakes. Organic black shale formations, those with more than one percent organic material, are plentiful when compared to conventional hydrocarbon traps. In the USA alone, there are more than 20 identified black shale basins. The Antrim and Barnett shales, which serve as endpoints in the shale spectrum between adsorbed gas production and fracture gas production, prove that multiple exploration models exist for identifying prospective shale prospects. Though the production methods used are similar to conventional oil and gas reservoirs, full exploitation of shale gas creates a few unique challenges for both operators and regulators. In New York State, these unique characteristics have been magnified at the policy level leading to a serious review of drilling practices such as high volume hydraulic fracture stimulation and multiwell drilling pads. When the context shifts to energy economics and security, the role of shale gas as a future fuel source takes on a new importance in the national dialogue. There is compelling evidence that shale resource development will play an important role in the nation’s energy future.