Basics of the Appalachian Basin
What attracts oil and gas companies across the world to the Appalachian Basin? In today’s video, I will discuss the basics of the Appalachian basin with a focus on the location, formations, basic geology, types/amounts of production, major operators, and finally the greatest challenges within the basin. Be sure to check out the video to learn about the basics of the basin, but for those of you pressed for time, below is a quick summary!
The Appalachian Basin extends from upstate New York, down through Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, and into parts of Maryland, Kentucky, and Tennessee. The main focus today in terms of oil and natural gas production is in the Tri-State area which consists of Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. This is where the Utica, Marcellus, and Upper Devonian shale is located most produced.
The Utica shale is seen to extend from central Ohio into West Virginia, Pennsylvania and even into parts of New York. The Marcellus and Upper Devonian shale are also seen and located in those few states. The Utica shale is the deepest of them all with an average vertical depth of 8,000 feet in Ohio whereas the Marcellus shale sits above the Utica shale with an average depth of 6,000-7,000 feet in West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Lastly, the Upper Devonian shale is the least mature of them all and sits a few hundred feet above the Marcellus shale. You will typically expect the Utica and Marcellus shale deepen as you go east until they hit the steep uplift in tectonics, driven by the Appalachian mountain range, in central Pennsylvania.
Different types of oil and gas production windows in the Appalachian basin are common. In Ohio for example, there are three distinct hydrocarbon windows that the Utica shale upholds. Depending on the depths of the formation as well as location, different types of production mixes are experienced. In Ohio you can expect your production to get wetter, producing more condensate and oil as you travel west. This is what makes the Utica shale and the whole Appalachian Basin so prolific and attractive to companies!
Some of the major operators in this region include EQT, Ascent Resources, Antero Resources, Gulfport Energy, Cabot Oil & Gas, and Southwestern Energy. These are all companies who are primarily focused on operating in the Appalachian Basin.
Some of the major challenges that persist within the basin include but are not limited to logistics of trucking, road management, wellpad construction, weather and lastly the value of gas. These are all topics that I go into great detail in the video so if you would like to learn more then please check it out!
Be sure to check out our courses designed to help you learn the basics of our industry. In our courses, we cover the steps of drilling a well, permitting, equipment, the directional drilling process, and so much more. We’ve even got videos! Be sure to check them out at www.OilfieldBasics.com/learn and see what you can discover next.
Tag:appalachia, condensate, drilling, formation, fracing, Marcellus, natural gas, oil, operators, pipeline, production, reservoir, rigs, shale, Upper Devonian, Utica