1. Current status of unconventional gas
in the Netherlands & research at TNO
Public perception of unsure potential
Jan ter Heege TNO Petroleum Geosciences
2. Status of oil & gas E&P in the Netherlands
gas field
oil field
gas pipeline
oil pipeline
new gas well
“dry” well
new oil well
unknown
Brief summary of status (January 2014):
Groningen gas field:
-2900 BCM (100 TCF) GIIP
-774 BCM (27 TCF) remaining
Small gas fields:
-270 BCM (10 TCF)
-Increasing contribution tight reservoirs
Oil fields: 47 MCM (296 MMBBL)
Shale gas:
-Best estimate: 175-525 BCM (7-18 TCF)
-Exploration licenses on hold
-No wells drilled targeting shales
Coalbed methane not actively pursued
2013: 33 new wells
Groningen
Schonebeek
3. Unconventional (shale) gas is expected to play a
role in future domestic gas supply
shale gas
EBN’s 30/30 ambition (30 BCM/year from small fields until 2030, EBN 2013)
4. Unconventional gas research @ TNO
sweet spot
identification
smart development
safe production
knowledge provider
& public perception
How much gas
is present?
Where is
the gas
located?
Can the gas
be technically
produced?
Can the gas
be produced
with low
risks &
impacts?
resource
estimates
5. Coalbed methane may add up to 10-110 BCM
(P10-P90), but resource is not actively explored
Selection criteria of inventory:
Area selection: < 1500 m of depth
Definition of exploitation blocks
-fault bounded
-continuous seams within block
Coal thickness from well information
Gas content estimated from adsorption
characteristics
Producible gas estimated by estimating
account recovery & completion factors
6. Two shale formations are targeted for shale gas
Carboniferous (Namurian A)
Geverik Member
Jurassic (Toarcian)
Posidonia Formation
7. Focus of most recent studies is on the Jurassic
Posidonia Formation due to availability of well data
8. Resource estimates for two shale gas targets
suggest 175-525 BCM of producible gas
Expected Ultimate
(EUR, Reserves)
development
Economically
recoverable
(ERR)
Recovery
Exploration drilling
Field
Technically recoverable
(TRR)
Geological analysis
Total Gas Volume (GIP)
Determination of total GIIP (= Free Gas + Adsorbed Gas):
GIIPfree = A x T x tot x Sgas x Fe
GIIPads = A x T x Vads
Monte Carlo simulations using probability density functions
for input parameters:
9. Unconventional gas research @ TNO
sweet spot
identification
smart development
safe production
knowledge provider
& public perception
How much gas
is present?
Where is
the gas
located?
Can the gas
be technically
produced?
Can the gas
be produced
with low
risks &
impacts?
resource
estimates
10. Gas logs & basin modelling suggest that parts of
the Posidonia Fm. are oil or gas mature
100 100,000 ppm
177500 ppm
170000 ppm
(highest
peak in the
Triassic)
Posidonia
Formation
Röt Fringe
Sandstone
Member
Locally high gas contents, but
correlation between regions is difficult
3D basin modelling indicates that
Posidonia is mostly oil mature
11. Recent industry project on Posidonia sweet spots:
Dutch well data versus UK outcrop analogues
13. Unconventional gas research @ TNO
sweet spot
identification
smart development
safe production
knowledge provider
& public perception
How much gas
is present?
Where is
the gas
located?
Can the gas
be technically
produced?
Can the gas
be produced
with low
risks &
impacts?
resource
estimates
15. Upfront hydraulic fracturing simulations to analyse frac
dimensions, interaction natural fractures & gas production
Numerical modelling of
fracture stimulation
Pore Pressure
Within
intersecting
natural fractures
Simulation of fracture dimensions and gas
production (commercial simulator)
16. Smart development: Comparison between hydraulic
fracturing and alternative drilling techniques
Main aspects:
Fishbone wells
(100’s of holes 10-20 m long)
Relatively cheap
Strongly increase contact
with the reservoir
High redundancy
Hydraulic fracturing
(10-20 stages 100’s m long)
Public resistance
Less control on dimensions
More stable?
Fishbones.as
kx~0.1mD, kz~0.001mD
148 24m-long laterals
300 12m-long laterals
Horizontal well only
17. Unconventional gas research @ TNO
sweet spot
identification
smart development
safe production
knowledge provider
& public perception
How much gas
is present?
Where is
the gas
located?
Can the gas
be technically
produced?
Can the gas
be produced
with low
risks &
impacts?
resource
estimates
19. Safe production: Focus on predictions of fracture
dimensions and induced seismicity
Fail State of single fracture
Numerical modeling of
fluid injection in faults
Fail State of multiple fracture zones
20. Unconventional gas research @ TNO
sweet spot
identification
smart development
safe production
knowledge provider
& public perception
How much gas
is present?
Where is
the gas
located?
Can the gas
be technically
produced?
Can the gas
be produced
with low
risks &
impacts?
resource
estimates
21. Providing knowledge & data to industry & public:
For example, status of shale exploration licenses
Map shows onshore presence of potential
shale gas reservoirs + exploration licences
areas where shale gas is the target
All licences areas for
hydrocarbons in the Netherlands
22. Coordination of national and European research
frameworks that include unconventional gas
National joint industry-government research &
innovation program on Upstream Gas
www.upstream-gas.nl
23. Coordination of national and European research
frameworks that include unconventional gas
European Geological Knowledge Base
and Geological Service for Europe
www.eurogeosurveys.org
24. Coordination of EERA shale gas joint program &
EU H2020 M4ShaleGas project proposal
Measuring, monitoring,
mitigating & managing the
environmental impact of
shale gas
www.eera-shalegas.eu
25. Thank you for your attention
Green River
Formation,
Colorado,
USA
Photo:
Susanne
Nelskamp
(TNO)
