Methane Hydrate Production From Alaskan Permafrost Progress Report

• Main Authors: McGuire, Donn, Runyon, Steve, Sigal, Richard, Liddell, Bill, Williams, Thomas, Moridis, George
• Other Authors: United States
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Published: Maurer Technology Inc. (United States) 2005
• Subjects: Natural Gas; 02 Petroleum; Offshore Platforms; Permafrost; Hydrates; Petroleum; Chemistry; Production; Deposition; Drilling; 03 Natural Gas; Gas Hydrates; Arctic Regions; Arctic; Canada; Quadrangle; Ice; Methane hydrate; north slope; permafrost; Alaska
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.2172/839339; https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc787192/

Natural-gas hydrates have been encountered beneath the permafrost and considered a nuisance by the oil and gas industry for years. Engineers working in Russia, Canada and the USA have documented numerous drilling problems, including kicks and uncontrolled gas releases, in arctic regions. Information has been generated in laboratory studies pertaining to the extent, volume, chemistry and phase behavior of gas hydrates. Scientists studying hydrate potential agree that the potential is great--on the North Slope of Alaska alone, it has been estimated at 590 TCF. However, little information has been obtained on physical samples taken from actual rock containing hydrates. This gas-hydrate project is in the final stages of a cost-shared partnership between Maurer Technology, Noble Corporation, Anadarko Petroleum, and the U.S. Department of Energy's Methane Hydrate R&D program. The purpose of the project is to build on previous and ongoing R&D in the area of onshore hydrate deposition to identify, quantify and predict production potential for hydrates located on the North Slope of Alaska. Hot Ice No. 1 was planned to test the Ugnu and West Sak sequences for gas hydrates and a concomitant free gas accumulation on Anadarko's 100% working interest acreage in section 30 of Township 9N, Range 8E of the Harrison Bay quadrangle of the North Slope of Alaska. The Ugnu and West Sak intervals are favorably positioned in the hydrate-stability zone over an area extending from Anadarko's acreage westward to the vicinity of the aforementioned gas-hydrate occurrences. This suggests that a large, north-to-south trending gas-hydrate accumulation may exist in that area. The presence of gas shows in the Ugnu and West Sak reservoirs in wells situated eastward and down dip of the Hot Ice location indicate that a free-gas accumulation may be trapped by gas hydrates. The Hot Ice No. 1 well was designed to core from the surface to the base of the West Sak interval using the revolutionary and new Arctic Drilling Platform in search of gas hydrate and free gas accumulations at depths of approximately 1200 to 2500 ft MD. A secondary objective was the gas-charged sands of the uppermost Campanian interval at approximately 3000 ft. Summary results of geophysical analysis of the well are presented in this report.