Hydraulic Fracturing Technology Opens New Oil and Gas Reserves in Eagle Ford Shale

admin Business Specialist January 12, 2012 0

A new oil and gas play that spans from southwest Texas to the Dallas/Fort Worth area has become one of the hottest new investments for oil and gas companies. Only recently discovered in 2008 and named after the Dallas suburb where it was first discovered, the Eagle Ford Shale was one of the most targeted areas for oil and gas in 2010.

Shale Formation Conditions for Drilling

The EagleFord Shale is not considered a traditional source of oil or gas. Instead of typical areas where resources can be more easily accessed, shale formations can be rich in oil and natural gas but were inaccessible to energy companies until the last few years.

The Eagle Ford Shale varies from 4,000 to 14,000 feet below sea level, deepening towards the east. Oil has been taken from the shallower, western parts of the play while natural gas in the main resource taken from the deeper portions. The difficulty in gathering oil or gas from this shale comes from its low permeability; the oil in this area is not easily retrieved because it is caught in the rock. Fortunately, the shale in this area in very brittle, meaning it responds very well to hydraulic fracturing.

What Hydraulic Fracturing Does

To bring the oil or gas to the surface, companies drill down to the shale and begin drilling horizontally through a section. This horizontal section is where the hydraulic fracturing occurs. Workers first send explosives into the end section of the well to penetrate the concrete and steel casing that surrounds the well in order to protect the water sources hundreds of feet above it.

Image via Flickr

Next, workers send a mix of water, sand, and chemicals into the well under extreme pressure. The pressure pushes the water mixture out of the penetrations and into the shale. The water forces open the natural weaknesses of the shale, and the sand keeps these openings from collapsing once the water has been collected again. With these openings in such a pressurized system, the oil or gas can be naturally pulled out of the shale and to the surface.

After the discovery of the Eagle Ford Shale, drilling permits in the area skyrocketed from 33 permits in 2008 to 1,229 permits in 2010. The sophisticated techniques of hydraulic fracturing, along with new discoveries of oil and gas reserves in new shale formations, bring the country to a new era of energy production on American soil.

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