HERE WE GO AGAIN - THE LAST PARAGRAPH SUMS IT UP PRETTY WELL - Calgary Herald article, June 15, 2012

Apache discovers huge shale gas reservoir in northern B.C.

 

Firm calls find best on continent


One of three companies planning a $4.5-billion liquefied natural gas terminal at Kitimat on Thursday announced an "outstanding" new shale gas discovery in British Columbia's remote and largely unexplored Liard Basin.

The find by Apache Corp. is estimated to contain enough gas in itself to justify doubling the size of the Kitimat terminal it's proposing with partners Encana Corp. and EOG Resources. The company is calling it the best and highest quality shale gas reservoir in North America, based on the volume of gas three test wells are producing.

Apache, the second largest U.S. independent oil and natural gas producer by market value, said the tests suggest it has 48 trillion cubic feet of marketable gas within its Liard Basin properties.

By way of comparison, all companies active in the Horn River Basin, one of three other major shale gas basins that are in B.C., have marketable gas of 78 trillion cubic feet, giving one company alone a natural gas find that is twothirds the size of the entire Horn Basin.

One well alone produced 21 million cubic feet of gas a day over a 30-day period, the company said.

"This is enormous," said Gordon Currie, senior oil and gas analyst at Salman Partners. "Those are big, big numbers."

Based on Apache's calculations, the Liard could provide B.C. with enough gas to export "for many, many years to come," Currie said.

Bill Mintz, director of public affairs at Apache, said the Liard discovery provides the firm with enough gas to meet the needs of any future expansion at its proposed LNG terminal. Apache and its partners plan a five-million-tonne-a-year LNG plant which, if supply and demand warrant it, could be doubled to 10 million tonnes a year. The Liard alone could provide that additional five million tonnes of LNG.

The Liard find - tempered by low natural gas prices in North America - is not only large, but the Apache test wells are producing more gas from fewer hydraulic fractures, six per well, as opposed to 20 in the nearby Horn River Basin.

One of the Apache wells, D-34-K, "is one of the best shale wells we have seen in any play," Apache president Steven Farris said in making the announcement at the company's annual investors day.

"Our analysis indicates that the formation characteristics are remarkably consistent across this large basin," he said.

A slide presentation on the find says the drilling in the Liard is "believed to be the most prolific shale gas resource test in the world."

The Liard Basin is in northeastern B.C., west of the Horn River basin. Most drilling activity is taking place in the central part of the basin, 110 kilometres northwest of Fort Nelson, B.C.

According to a B.C. ministry of energy and mines report on shale gas activity in that province, it remains a relatively unexplored area covering 1.25 million hectares. Apache has drilling rights to 180,000 hectares.

"The good news is; they've discovered lots of natural gas up in northeastern British Columbia and you guys should be exporting that gas for many years to come," said Currie. "The bad news is that they have identified a lot of gas in northeastern B.C. and elsewhere and it has seriously depressed the price of the commodity."

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Permalink Reply by DrWAVeSport Cd1 on June 18, 2012 at 14:15

parker,

I just received a very generous offer to "buy" 2.4% of my royalty points...and, from a reputable O&G Co.  A Very nice offer, for these days prices...

It makes me think... What's Up????

I'm still unleased with CHK as unit holder and still not selling.

Remember, UMOs get a little bit of a perk... Tangible & Intangible Expenses.  And believe me...CHK expenses are unbelievably high.

Paying for all those Blue "Thunder" tee-shirts.  LOL  (Just a Joke.) 

Permalink Reply by Hopeful About Natural Gas on June 18, 2012 at 9:44

This is a near perfect arrangement for Canada - export from BC to Asia. They will make a fortune from it. We will not.


Wasn't it the Republicans in Congress who turned down tax credits for natural gas investments?  The price of gas will not rise until there are many new uses for it. New technologies need and deserve targeted (and time limited) tax breaks.

Permalink Reply by Terry L. Antee on June 19, 2012 at 4:30

Do you mean write offs for investments in Oil or Gas.  They exist, it was obamo trying to do away with them.

Permalink Reply by Keith on June 19, 2012 at 15:44

I don't think we need subsidies, government investments or any intrusion in the free market, unless someone is cutting me a big check that is. If natural gas is going to take the place of oil as the energy choice of the future( I think it will) it will be because it's like oil was in the past.

Don't forget oil was super CHEAP it was abundant and it was easy. Oil was so cheap that America grew by leaps and bounds fueled by cheap gasoline. Our citizens felt entitled to it and they thought companies were obligated to sell it to them cheaply. Gasoline prices weren't even an afterthought until the 1970's and not again until the early 2000's.

So everyone wanting natural gas to take it's place as the fuel of choice has to realize that it has to be cheap and easy for everyone and then people and business will flock to it. It's not a fad like beanie babies or cabbage patch dolls, it's necessary to power our future in America and maybe the world. I hate to say it but even crack dealers know you have to get the future addicts hooked on the product before you can capitalize on ever increasing sales.

Permalink Reply by Keith on June 20, 2012 at 2:28

No that's why we the people should quit begging for lobbyist and congressmen to go get more pork.

This country is going broke and it's time to stop the madness. Viable industries certainly don't need to continue the madness that's for sure.

Permalink Reply by Keith on June 20, 2012 at 12:41

WIth the aftermath Fukushima still ongoing I think Japan will be a big consumer of natural gas. They probably aren't willing to take more chances with nuclear at this point.

Permalink Reply by Max on June 21, 2012 at 11:57

Looks like BC has part of the pie also.  Their physical location gives them an edge when it comes to the shipping cost of LNG.

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