Unconventional gas: potential energy market impacts in the European Union

In the interest of effective policymaking, this report seeks to clarify certain controversies and identify key gaps in the evidence-base relating to unconventional gas. The scope of this report is restricted to the economic impact of unconventional gas on energy markets. As such, it principally addresses such issues as the energy mix, energy prices, supplies, consumption, and trade flows. Whilst this study touches on coal bed methane and tight gas, its predominant focus is on shale gas, which the evidence at this time suggests will be the form of unconventional gas with the most growth potential in the short- to medium-term. This report considers the prospects for the indigenous production of shale gas within the EU-27 Member States. It evaluates the available evidence on resource size, extractive technology, resource access and market access. This report also considers the implications for the EU of large-scale unconventional gas production in other parts of the world. This acknowledges the fact that many changes in the dynamics of energy supply can only be understood in the broader global context. It also acknowledges that the EU is a major importer of energy, and that it is therefore heavily affected by developments in global energy markets that are largely out of its control.JRC.F.3-Energy securit

A Comprehensive Techno-Economic Framework for Shale Gas Exploitation and Distribution in the United States

Over the past years, shale gas has turned into one of the most significant sources of energy in the United States. Technological advancements have provided the energy industry with the necessary tools to allow the economic exploitation of an enormous volume of natural gas trapped in shale formations. This has boosted the domestic gas production and generated a boom in other sectors of the economy in the country. However, major challenges are involved in the development of shale gas resources. A drastic decline of wells’ productivity, the costs involved in the gas production and distribution facets, and the volatile behavior of the energy market represent some of the complexities faced by a gas operator. In this context, the utilization of a comprehensive frameworks to analyze and develop long-term strategies can represent a meaningful supporting tool for shale gas operators. The main objective of this research work is the development and implementation a novel techno-economic framework for the optimal exploitation and delivery of shale gas in the United States. The proposed framework is based on an interdisciplinary approach that combines data driven techniques, petroleum engineering practices, reservoir simulations and mathematical programming methods. Data analysis algorithms are implemented to guide the decision-making processes involved in the unconventional reservoir and define the predominant trends of certain exogenous parameters of the system. Petroleum engineering practices and reservoir simulation models are required for a realistic description of the formations and the proper definition of strategies to extract the gas from the shale rock. Finally, the mathematical programming is required for describing the surface facilities design and operations to ensure the allocation of the shale gas in the different commercialization points. The output of this framework will provide the optimal operations and infrastructure by maximizing the net present value (NPV). To demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed decision-making structure, a case study based on the liquid-rich region of the Marcellus play is considered in this work. The application of the proposed framework depicts the influence of reservoir complexities and external factors in establishing optimal strategic decisions for the exploitation, processing and allocation of shale gas. The coordination of the different facets including the drilling and completion activities and the design and operation of the surface facilities has a key role in maintaining the economy of a shale gas venture above its economic threshold

Shale Gas Roundtable: Deliberations, Findings, and Recommendations

In response to the desire of regional, multi-sector leaders to elevate and inform the regional energy dialogue, the Shale Gas Roundtable was created in the fall of 2011 to fulfill a three-part mission related to unconventional oil and gas production, transport, and use: Building and sustaining relationships among relevant cross-sector stakeholders to better support diverse regional environmental protection, community quality of life, and economic development goals; Identifying high-priority focus areas through consensus-building dialogue, extensive research, and shared goals for the region; and Assessing the focus areas and developing ideas and recommendations that promote the improved management of and outcomes from regional unconventional oil and gas development

Independent Expert Scientific Panel – Report on Unconventional Oil and Gas

No abstract available

Disclosing water-energy-economics nexus in shale gas development

Shale gas has gained importance in the energy landscape in recent decades. However, its development has raised environmental concerns, especially, those associated with water management. Thus, the assessment of water management aspects, which inevitably impact the economic aspects, is crucial in evaluating the merits of any project exploiting this energy source. This paper provides a review of the economic and environmental implications of shale gas development around the world. Furthermore, to demonstrate the interplay between the various technical, environmental and economic factors in concrete terms, we report on a specific set of case studies conducted using an integrated decision-support tool that has been implemented to model and optimize shale gas development projects. The case study results confirm that the gas breakeven price decreases with expansion in scale of the shale gas development, i.e. increasing the number of well-pads in the system. However, scale also increases the options for water re-use and recycle in drilling and fracturing operations, which can result in lower freshwater withdrawal intensity. Moreover, under water scarcity scenarios, the choice of well-pad designs that are inherently less water intensive was found to be more cost-effective than water re-use or/and recycle strategies at reducing net freshwater demand. Similar trends were observed when the impact of wastewater quality, i.e. total dissolved solids concentration, on the optimal development strategy of shale gas plays was investigated. The results of these case studies reveal that greater efforts are needed at characterizing freshwater availability and wastewater quality for the evaluation of both the economic and environmental aspects of shale gas development

Full Field Reservoir Modeling of Shale Assets Using Advanced Data-Driven Analytics

Hydrocarbon production from shale has attracted much attention in the recent years. When applied to this prolific and hydrocarbon rich resource plays, our understanding of the complexities of the flow mechanism (sorption process and flow behavior in complex fracture systems - induced or natural) leaves much to be desired. In this paper, we present and discuss a novel approach to modeling, history matching of hydrocarbon production from a Marcellus shale asset in southwestern Pennsylvania using advanced data mining, pattern recognition and machine learning technologies. In this new approach instead of imposing our understanding of the flow mechanism, the impact of multi-stage hydraulic fractures, and the production process on the reservoir model, we allow the production history, well log, completion and hydraulic fracturing data to guide our model and determine its behavior. The uniqueness of this technology is that it incorporates the so-called “hard data” directly into the reservoir model, so that the model can be used to optimize the hydraulic fracture process. The “hard data” refers to field measurements during the hydraulic fracturing process such as fluid and proppant type and amount, injection pressure and rate as well as proppant concentration. This novel approach contrasts with the current industry focus on the use of “soft data” (non-measured, interpretive data such as frac length, width, height and conductivity) in the reservoir models. The study focuses on a Marcellus shale asset that includes 135 wells with multiple pads, different landing targets, well length and reservoir properties. The full field history matching process was successfully completed using this data driven approach thus capturing the production behavior with acceptable accuracy for individual wells and for the entire asset

Life-cycle assessment of greenhouse gas emissions from unconventional gas in Scotland

Publisher PD

Spatially-resolved Assessment of Land and Water Use Scenarios for Shale Gas Development: Poland and Germany

The analysis presented in this report focuses specifically on two issues of potential concern with respect to shale gas development in EU member states using hydraulic fracturing technologies: pressure on freshwater resources, and land use competition. Potential alternative technologies, such as “dry fracking”, are not considered, because they are still at the research and development stage. We reviewed available literature in order to identify important variables that may influence the land and water requirements associated with shale gas development. We further derived a range of representative values spanning worst-, average- and best-case scenarios for each variable. We then coupled specific technology scenarios (incorporating these variables) regarding water and land use requirements for shale gas development from 2013-2028 with spatially-resolved water and land availability/demand modeling tools (i.e. using the European Land Use Modelling Platform (LUMP)). Scenario analyses (intended to represent worst-, average- and best-case assumptions) were subsequently implemented that incorporate a subset of the identified variables for shale gas development in the Lower Paleozoic Baltic-Podlasie-Lublin basin in Poland and for Germany as a whole from 2013-2028. In addition, we undertook a screening-level risk assessment of potential human and ecosystem health impacts attributable to accidental or operational release of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing of shale formations, as well as the average gaseous emissions (per active well) associated with shale gas development activities that might be anticipated within a shale play. Finally, we developed a qualitative discussion of necessary considerations to support future air quality impact assessments for shale gas development activities.JRC.H.8-Sustainability Assessmen

International Developments in the Field of Unconventional Gas and Oil Extraction: Update 2017

The last few years have witnessed a wealth of studies, reports and assessments being published in many EU member states, by national and international organisations and in the research community on economic, environmental and human health related aspects of unconventional oil and gas exploration and production. Many R&D initiatives are also underway. This report attempts to provide a survey of several of such studies and initiatives, with a focus on the years 2015, 2016 and early 2017. Principally, reports and studies from public bodies and scientific institutes were covered. Additionally, several papers published in peer-reviewed journals were included. A review of the quality of the studies covered, the accuracy of their claims and their possible limitations was not carried out. This report is therefore only meant to provide a compilation of their summaries, without any endorsement of the findings reported in any of the studies and assessments covered in the report.JRC.C.3-Energy Security, Distribution and Market