Reducing Freshwater Required | Russell T. Rudy Energy LLC
Hydraulic fracturing (fracking), as the name implies, requires water, and lots of it. While this has always been the case, the shale revolution has moved freshwater requirements from a consideration to a major issue. Historically oil and gas are often found in arid regions and major shale plays such as the Bakken in North Dakota, the Eagle Ford in South Texas, and the Permian Basin in West Texas are not exceptions. A recent article in “Rigzone” relates the challenges faced by operators as they try to reduce or eliminate the volumes of fresh water used in fracking, and the progress that is being made.
As a result of the shale revolution a large number of wells were drilled, which in and of itself, increased the demand for fracking fluids. Further, horizontal wells in shale formations typically have long lateral legs which require multiple fracking stages. With more wells, and more and more fluid required per well, operators had to find a way to reduce the amount of freshwater required.
The amount of water needed to frack a well can vary greatly depending on reservoir pressure, depth, temperature, and saturation. Gas wells generally require more fracking fluid than oil wells, and some areas, such as the Marcellus shale in Pennsylvania, the Barnett shale in North Texas, the Haynesville shale in North Louisiana, and the Eagle Ford all require large volumes of fracking fluids. It is estimated that the amount of water required to frack a well can vary from 2,600 gallons to 9.7 million gallons per well.
The industry is trying to reduce the amount of water required, recycle fracking fluids, and substitute non-potable (brackish or brine in particular) water for freshwater. In some cases, significant progress has been made. For example, Seneca Resources is a net recycler of water in the Marcellus and Utica (located primarily in Ohio) shales. Apache, Halliburton and Schlumberger have all made strides in reducing the amount of freshwater used in fracking, as well.
According to Moin Muhammad with Schlumberger, the company’s proprietary HiWay technology introduced in 2010 has reduced frack water requirements by 25%. Last year the company unveiled a new process which relies solely on brackish and flowback water without compromising well performance. Muhammad is optimistic that economics will facilitate the elimination of freshwater as a frack fluid. He contends that as the costs to acquire, transport and dispose of freshwater increase, the move toward alternatives will accelerate.
To read the article in its entirety, please go to http://www.rigzone.com/news/article_pf.asp?a_id=140625 .
