Posted on 04/29/2014 1:07:59 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
The Obama administration is quite partial to taking credit for the widespread economic benefits of the shale boom — brought on by the freshly deployed technology of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling — despite the fact that the lion’s share of the production increase has happened on state and private lands while the federal government has deliberately slow-walked new drilling leases on the third of the surface area of the United States it controls (and let’s not even get started on the offshore drilling opportunities it has actively thwarted). This rule has held particularly true in Nevada, where the feds own over 80 percent of the land and have been fairly passive-aggressive in only processing a few mining and drilling permits here and there — which is a damn shame, because eastern Nevada sits atop the Chainman shale play and could potentially benefit enormously from the widespread introduction of hydraulic fracturing.
In 2005, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated that the Chainman formation could have as much as 1.598 billion barrels of oil and 1.836 trillion cubic feet of natural gas sittin’ pretty underground, and it looks like energy companies are finally getting around to exploring the possibility further — mostly on private land so far, but with at least the tiniest bit of cooperation from the federal government, via the AP:
In a state world-famous as a gold producer, Houstonbased Noble Energy Inc. is looking deep underground to make big bucks from previously untappable oil deposits, spending up to $130 million to identify the possible rewards.
The venture is still in its early stages, with company representatives saying they have yet to assess the true potential, but word is out it could be significant. …
“What’s unique about Nevada is it really is a frontier area,” said Kevin Vorhaben, Rockies business unit manager for Noble Energy. “It’s a chance to get in and really do the right thing for oil and gas development. We’re excited to be in Nevada.” …
Noble’s activities target a checkerboard of private and public land in northeastern Nevada generally located between Elko and Wells north and south of Interstate 80. Sixty-seven percent of the 580-plus square-mile area is privately owned, with the remaining public land managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.
The BLM is currently processing environmental assessments for Noble to drill up to 20 wells at Mary’s River, 4 miles northwest of Wells and up to another 20 just west of Jiggs. Fracking would be used to complete all wells drilled.
The two exploratory wells already drilled, with fracking already conducted at one, are located on private land about 17 miles east of Elko.
It’s too soon to know if Nevada will be the next North Dakota or Texas when it comes to shale development and economically viable extraction, but at least the federal government isn’t totally trying to stand in the way of progress here. That’s something, I suppose.
Something the rats will try to take credit for in November.
Didn’t Reggie Love explain that The Bamster has been into exploratory franking for some time now?
What about the tortoises?
Oil and gas companies that include Cabot Oil & Gas Corp., EOG Resources Inc., Noble Energy Inc. and St. Mary’s Exploration are also making sounds and movements into the Chainman shale play in eastern Nevada, which Gilmer describes as a world-class Mississippian age, Devonian oil source rock. Nevada production has been completely sporadic, with only a few areas where they found oil that wasn’t dead. But some of the wells in railroad valleys were some of the biggest producing wells of their time, with the play both underneath the mountain thrust and in basin and range areas.
“That is a play both underneath the thrust under the mountains and the basin and range areas.”
US Shale Plays to Watch in 2014
http://www.rigzone.com/news/oil_gas/a/130291/US_Shale_Plays_to_Watch_in_2014/?all=HG2
November 27, 2013
The key word is “exploratory”; they won’t allow actual drilling. Plus they are probably only allowing this where there is reason to believe that there are no deposits.
Heads up people! This may be part of the Bundy Ranch story. from my sources, not all is as it seems.
2 wells drilled and 40 more planned per the article.
RE: Didn’t Reggie Love explain that The Bamster has been into exploratory franking for some time now?
Can somebody explain to me what Reggie Love’s position is in the Obama administration and how much he is paid for it?
Sure! They are only 150 miles apart. Why not use Free Republic to start a baseless rumor?
“Reggie Love’s position?”
Knees?
It looks like”His Dingyness”Is “Calling In Some Chits”????
FR has been Baseless Rumor Central for years. Why stop now?
FR infiltrated by lib hacks seeing who will rise to the bait. The usual suspects, usually.
I spent half of Thursday going over the whole situation with a guy who has spent two years researching te issue. I have spent five years (actually more) uncovering the Harry Reid web of corruption.
So to put it bluntly, you are full of horse crap. I am in on the Bruce Gamett story, the Reid solar story, the Reid Searchlight land story, the Jeremy Johnson bribe story, the Conforte story, and many others.
Put up what you know and the skin you have in the game or buzz off.
Yeah, I think this play will turn out to be the real thing but maybe too late to enjoy the current high prices. That is, this play —which I think is as big as intimated —won’t go into production in volume before 2018-19. And maybe not much of it at that because of federal lands lock down.
But by that time oil prices are not likely to be high as they are now.
The drilling in the Chainman shale is 150 miles away from the Bundy Ranch.
Other oil potential may exist in his area, but it isn’t this one.
Why does the term “exploratory fracking” make me grin?
The boy-king is allowing this? Thank you, oh great and mighty Oz.
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Figure 10. Mean total organic carbon (TOC) content of samples from wells and outcrop for the Mississippian Chainman Formation and equivalent rocks and the Phosphoria Formation