Naturally fractured tight gas reservoir detection optimization

The work plan for October 1, 1997 to September 30, 1998 consisted of investigation of a number of topical areas. These topical areas were reported in four quarterly status reports, which were submitted to DOE earlier. These topical areas are reviewed in this volume. The topical areas covered during the year were: (1) Development of preliminary tests of a production method for determining areas of natural fracturing. Advanced Resources has demonstrated that such a relationship exists in the southern Piceance basin tight gas play. Natural fracture clusters are genetically related to stress concentrations (also called stress perturbations) associated with local deformation such a faulting. The mechanical explanation of this phenomenon is that deformation generally initiates at regions where the local stress field is elevated beyond the regional. (2) Regional structural and geologic analysis of the Greater Green River Basin (GGRB). Application of techniques developed and demonstrated during earlier phases of the project for sweet-spot delineation were demonstrated in a relatively new and underexplored play: tight gas from continuous-typeUpper Cretaceous reservoirs of the Greater Green River Basin (GGRB). The effort included data acquisition/processing, base map generation, geophysical and remote sensing analysis and the integration of these data and analyses. (3) Examination of the Table Rock field area in the northern Washakie Basin of the Greater Green River Basin. This effort was performed in support of Union Pacific Resources- and DOE-planned horizontal drilling efforts. The effort comprised acquisition of necessary seismic data and depth-conversion, mapping of major fault geometry, and analysis of displacement vectors, and the development of the natural fracture prediction. (4) Greater Green River Basin Partitioning. Building on fundamental fracture characterization work and prior work performed under this contract, namely structural analysis using satellite and potential field data, the GGRB was divided into partitions that will be used to analyze the resource potential of the Frontier and Mesaverde Upper Cretaceous tight gas play. A total of 20 partitions were developed, which will be instrumental for examining the Upper Cretaceous play potential. (5) Partition Analysis. Resource assessment associated with individual partitions was initiated starting with the Vermilion Sub-basin and the Green River Deep (which include the Stratos well) partitions (see Chapter 5). (6) Technology Transfer. Tech transfer was achieved by documenting our research and presenting it at various conferences