The great enthusiasm for shale drilling comes largely from. That ever alluring land happens to lie atop the monterey shale formation, a vast rock formation that is believed to hold one of the worlds largest onshore reserves of shale oil. At issue now is the monterey shale, a formation holding more shale oil than anywhere else in the country. The monterey formation is so thick and extensive, and has so much economic as well as scientific importance, that it constitutes a major element in the geology of california. A technique, already widely in use in the oil industry, known as acidizing. They contain a mixture of minerals that formed in a high temperature, low pressure anhydrous environment. The monterey shale, primarily a crude oil formation located in both onshore and offshore southern california at depths between 8,00014,000, is easily one of the most polarizing unconventional formations in north america. The distinct shale reservoirs within the monterey formation that might be subject to further development through fracking have been rather a.
It turned out that it is harder to crack the reservoirs and get the oil flowing from the monterey than from bakken or the south texas formation of eagle ford. Californias monterey shale is supposed to revolutionize oil resources in the united states, with perhaps 15 billion barrels of recoverable oil recoverable, that is, through using the acidizing form of fracking. The company found its early wells to be uneconomic and it moved to sell off its holdings in the early part of 20. Us officials cut estimate of recoverable monterey shale oil. Its a formation that accumulated in deep structural basins during the midmiocene period, says erskine, an expert in the monterey formation s geography. The montereys geology is not an analog for the bakken or eagle ford, said hughes. Youre no goodmonterey shale crude oil busts before it booms. It had been seen as an enormous bonanza, reducing the nations need for foreign oil imports through the use of the latest in extraction techniques, including acid treatments, horizontal drilling and fracking.
Modern prospectors are eyeing the monterey shale formation, a 1,750squaremile resourcerich swath of land in the san joaquin valley. The shale deposits of the monterey are much thicker and much more. A basal sandstone known as the buttonbed is included by some geologists in the monterey, whereas others place it in. To crack the code, companies are busily drilling test wells here, using. The federal government believes the monterey shale, which lies under more than 1,750 square miles of central and southern california, has far more shale oil than anywhere else in the lower 48 states nearly four times the amount of the bakken shale in north dakota. Most of his work focuses on the wonderfully complex miocene monterey formation of california and the spectacular. The monterey formation is a mioceneage unit on the westside of the san joaquin valley that is equivalent to the combined interval of the reef ridge, antelope, mcdonald, devilwater and gould members. A basal sandstone known as the buttonbed is included by some geologists in the monterey, whereas others place it in the underlying temblor formation. May 21, 2014 californias monterey shale not a fracking oil bonanza after all, says energy information administration david herron may 21, 2014 june, 2015 hydraulic fracturing californias monterey shale is supposed to revolutionize oil resources in the united states, with perhaps 15 billion barrels of recoverable oil recoverable, that is. Monterey, california, shale fracking special report. Reduced estimates of oil trapped in monterey shale sfgate.
Uncertain at this point is how much oil remains trapped, where it can be. To crack the monterey shale code, companies are busily drilling test wells, using various fracking and acidization techniques in search of cheaper solutions. In fact they are so small that oil, natural gas, and water have difficulty moving through the rock. Will monterey shale formation revive the california oil.
The sand sticks in cracks formed by the high pressure injection, creating. When it came to oil, the leader by a landslide was the monterey shale, a checkerboard of discrete basins that stretches from southern californias orange county to the eel river watershed north of ukiah. What we dont know is how we can get it out of the ground in an. Downgrading the monterey shale a big blow to the fracking. No fracking bonanza for californias monterey shale, usgs. This is prime farmland, and they have drilled between 200 and 300 wells in the last 10 years in the monterey shale, frantz said. Eia cuts recoverable monterey shale oil estimate by.
Jan 14, 20 californias monterey shale, seen here, has a massive mount of oil and the state could be poised for a boom, if it can safely get the crude out of the ground. San joaquin valleys monterey shale formation may hold 15 billion barrels of. Further drilling will likely provide clearer evidence of the montereys. That much oil is pretty darn significant, that is if one wants to stay wedded to fossil fuels. Dec 29, 20 the monterey formation is geologically complex, a brittle shale rock that has been broken and scrambled for millenniums. Will monterey shale formation revive the california oil boom. The monterey formation is the major sourcerock for 37 to 38 billion barrels of oil in. Luck and wisdom in the monterey shale the motley fool. Age, distribution, and stratigraphic relationship of rock. May 21, 2014 the monterey shale formation contains about twothirds of the nations shale oil reserves.
This is the monterey shale, he says, pointing at a yellowishorange outcropping that looks like the ruins of an ancient miniature city and once lay thousands of feet below the surface of the. Petroleum geologists and engineers, always searching for the next strike, are feverishly seeking the technological fix to unlock those riches. Us officials cut estimate of recoverable monterey shale. Its not widely discussed in publicly, but for some time oil companies have found acidizing more effective in the monterey shale than. The shale of the monterey formation averages nearly 1,900 feet thick and more than 11,200 feet deep, compared to an average thickness of just 22 feet and depth of 6,000 feet for the bakken shale. Age, distribution, and stratigraphic relationship of rock units in the san joaquin basin province, california. Allure of vast oil reserves buried deep in monterey shale. Acidizing could rival fracking in monterey shale sfgate. But when operators in that area finally crack the code, you can bet production will rocket higher.
The type locality is near the city of monterey, california. Californias monterey shale, seen here, has a massive mount of oil and the state could be poised for a boom, if it can safely get the crude out of the ground. With so much positive news out there about everrising production from unconventional oil and natural gas plays. For years, the monterey shale was thought to be americas largest tightoil formation, with at least. Information on the monterey shale natural gas intel.
Jerry brown fired oil regulators for trying to do the right thing. For every passenger vehicle in california today that runs on electricity there are about 70 that run on oil. The monterey shale formation contains about twothirds of the nations shale oil reserves. Monterey shale isnt all its fracked up to be zdnet. It lays out some of the plays fundamental characteristics compared to other tight oil plays. Feb 21, 20 the federal government believes the monterey shale, which lies under more than 1,750 square miles of central and southern california, has far more shale oil than anywhere else in the lower 48. It stated that the largest shale oil formation in america was the monterey play in southern california. The shale of the monterey formation averages nearly 1,900 feet thick and. Acidizing typically involves the injection of high. The federal government believes the monterey shale, which lies under more than 1,750 square miles of central and southern california, has far more shale oil than anywhere else in. The collapse of californias oil industry stands in stark contrast to the u. Lying deep beneath the valleys surface is a trove of shale oil some 15. The shale, which is the oilbearing component of the monterey formation, is very brittle, which is one of the reasons it can be fracked, erskine explains, breaking off a small chunk with his pick. Most of his work focuses on the wonderfully complex miocene monterey formation of california and.
Formation of shale shale, like all sedimentary rocks, forms as a result of the compaction and cementation of materials that have weathered and eroded off of other, preexisting rocks. Monterey shale formation archives california policy center. Dec 08, 20 the distinct shale reservoirs within the monterey formation that might be subject to further development through fracking have been rather a disappointment so far, producing a collective 15,000. Though there could be 15 billion barrels of oil trapped in the monterey shale in. Theres a lot of discussion around the monterey shale that it doesnt require fracking, that acidizing will be enough to open up the rock, said chris faulkner. The monterey formation is an extensive miocene oilrich geological sedimentary formation in california, with outcrops of the formation in parts of the california coast ranges, peninsular ranges, and on some of californias offshore islands.
Gould shale and devilwater shale members of the monterey formation, undifferentiated. Feb 20, 2018 the collapse of californias oil industry stands in stark contrast to the u. Shale can therefore serve as a cap rock for oil and natural gas traps, and it also is an aquiclude that blocks or limits the flow of groundwater. After behl, 2012, used with permission lower monterey formation burnt shale visible on the cliff face at lunada bay a pink to redcolored rock which shows where organicrich rocks have spontaneously combusted and oxidized. Unlike fields such as midwatsunset where the oil deposits are located less than 2,000 feet below the surface, the shale oil in the monterey shale formation is between 6,000 and 15,000 feet down.
Jan 14, 2014 venoco, an independent that held the secondhighest amount of acreage in the monterey shale formation, experienced similar disappointment. May 23, 2014 the monterey s geology is not an analog for the bakken or eagle ford, said hughes. State lawmakers take notice of use in oil exploration companies trying to pry oil from a vast shale formation beneath central california have been pumping powerful acids underground to dissolve. To crack the code, companies are busily drilling test wells here. Commercial oil production from the monterey formation is not. The monterey is so much more geologically complex that there is no. Oil in the shale, formed by the remains of ancient plants and animals, is. The monterey shale formation, which runs from northcentral through southern california, has billions of barrels of oil locked away in its underground nooks and crannies. Shale has a very small particle size, so the interstitial spaces are very small. In those booming oil fields, reserves are pooled in orderly strata of rock. Shale is characterized by breaks along thin laminae or parallel layering or bedding less than one centimeter in thickness, called fissility. According to the us energy information administration eia in 2011, the 1,750squaremile 4,500 km 2 monterey shale formation contained more than half of the united statess total estimated technically recoverable shale oil tight oil contained in shale, as distinct from oil shale resource, about 15.
There could be rapid expansion, they warn, if oil companies find a way to extract petroleum trapped in the states monterey shale formation. It is the prolific source rock for the oil fields in the region. There has been so much talk of a potential fracking boom in california. A somewhat overlooked july report by the united states energy information administration estimating readily recoverable shale oil and gas reserves in the country states that the monterey formation boasts about 15. The monterey shale is unlike other oil shale formations across the united states. Its multiple strata vary distinctly on the lower portion. Monterey shale geology is relatively young and seismically active.
Its not widely discussed in publicly, but for some time oil companies have found acidizing more effective in the monterey shale than fracking. The monterey shale is an oilrich sedimentary formation in california. The secondlargest producer of oil in california is currently a major player in the monterey shale. Now a report says that the hype over the monterey shale. The monterey formation is geologically complex, a brittle shale rock that has been broken and scrambled for millenniums. Behind the fracking boom, the monterey shale bay nature. The first thing gavin newsom needs to do is to actually start regulating, said a. Fracking bill under fire from environmentalists sfgate. This is the monterey shale, he says, pointing at a yellowishorange outcropping that looks like the ruins of an ancient miniature city and once lay thousands of feet below the surface of the earth, until geological activity exposed it to the elements. Shale is a finegrained, clastic sedimentary rock, composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments siltsized particles of other minerals, especially quartz and calcite. May 21, 2014 for years, the monterey shale was thought to be americas largest tightoil formation, with at least. At issue now is the monterey shale, a formation holding more shale oil than anywhere else in the. The monterey had the potential to be one of the most prolific oil producing basins in the united states. The report estimated that the monterey shale formation held 15.
For its own part, california does have the monterey shale formation in the. He is carrying a geologic map of california showing the monterey shale. Wood mackenzie estimates the monterey shale will this year produce about. Nov 05, 2014 fracking the monterey shale formation. In california, oil companies are using fracking to pry oil from the monterey shale, a vast rock formation believed to hold 15. Oct 14, 20 the shale, which is the oilbearing component of the monterey formation, is very brittle, which is one of the reasons it can be fracked, erskine explains, breaking off a small chunk with his pick. Eia cuts recoverable monterey shale oil estimate by 96 pct.
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