Oil & Gas Pro

Declining Fresh Water Resources in Texas

In Texas, we are starting to see reports (media mainly) of declining fresh water acquifers due in large part to the drought we have been in, but the large volumes of fresh water required for frac jobs is getting attention.  A lot of folks are saying that a water debate is going to come to a head soon, and the various water districts may seek to place limits on the use of water for frac jobs.  This will obviously slow development of Texas shale plays.  So I am curious if anyone knows of testing being done to figure out how to use produced salt water for the frac jobs.  I've asked some industry folks about it, and everyone says the salt water reduces (or destroys) the effectiveness of the frac chemicals, but in my layman's brain it seems like a matter of chemistry that could be figured out.  Curious if anyone has any thoughts on this?

Tags: Texas, frac, shale, water

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Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by dbob on August 2, 2011 at 4:04
Ben

There are multiple issues with reusing produce saltwater for frac jobs. These issues can include formation chemistry and frac water chemistry, e.g. will the mixing of the produced water with the formation result in scaling? Another issue is biofouling and H2S production - will the bugs in the produced water lead to additional microbial activity in the target formation, causing fouling and/or H2S production? Is the salt in the produced water compatible with the frac chemical mix.

Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by Ben Elmore on August 2, 2011 at 4:17
And I guess with gas prices as they are, noone has figured out a cost effective way to treat and desalinate the produced water.  Maybe the answer will be to turn to fresh water alternatives, such as LPG, but companies are unlikely to do that while fresh water is readily available and cheap. 

Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by Two Dogs, Pirate on August 2, 2011 at 4:05
Ben I am thinking real strongly about buying GasFrac Energy Services (GSFVF.PK) stock. With the  water problems in South Texas, water may become more expensive than oil. TMS Guy commented  in the  TMS group that the propane frac may not swell  the clay like water does. Sounds like this could be  a good thing where clay could be a problem and the frac fluid is reusable.

Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by Ben Elmore on August 2, 2011 at 4:14
Two Dog that is an interesting product.  I assume right now it is more expensive than water?

Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by Two Dogs, Pirate on August 2, 2011 at 4:32

Yes it is more expensive but can be reused. It can also be  flared off thus saving disposal expense. From what I have read it pushes farther out into the formation than water.


Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by Ben Elmore on August 2, 2011 at 5:07
I saw the company just entered the US market this year, so I guess time will tell if the use of LPG catches on, but intuitively I would think it would in light of the droughts and fresh water concerns. 

Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by dbob on August 2, 2011 at 4:31
Ben,

I genrally udnerstand Gas Frac to be cost competitve with water, when you include the flowback handling and disposal costs.
Send me a friend request and I can give you some additional background on some of the freshwater issues.

Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by Skip Peel - Mineral Consultant on August 2, 2011 at 5:25
Each horizontal Haynesville well requires in the approximate range of 5 to 6 million gallons of fresh water to complete.

Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by dbob on August 2, 2011 at 5:40
Skip

I think that value is a bit dated, and tends to be closer to true in LA. I know of wells with more than 13.5 million gallons of water use, not including drilling, and have good reason to believe the average is closer to 8 million gallons per well, not including drilling. There is some variability between operators.

Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by Skip Peel - Mineral Consultant on August 2, 2011 at 9:36
If you're talking a 12 to 14 stage frac in LA., those are the latest numbers I have.  As operators gain approval for units other than the usual one mile square section, there will be longer laterals and more stages.  Those are currently few and relatively new. Now don't go taking any water out of Toledo Bend for those Texas horizontals, dbob.  I have a tournament to fish in September. LOL!

Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by Dan Arnold on August 2, 2011 at 6:36
If I remember correctly, EnCana has been a leader in desalinization technology. That may become cost effective sooner, rather than later.

Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by dbob on August 2, 2011 at 9:50
SRA Texas anecdotally reports that Toledo Bend is as low as it has ever been at this time of year. Hopefully that just means all the fish will be in one place during the tourney...

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