SPE General Meeting

t      Topic:    The Hierarchy of Flow in Stimulated Shale Reservoirs and Its Implications for Improved Hydrocarbon Recovery

Speaker:    Hossein Kazemi, Colorado School of Mines

Date:        Wednesday - November 21, 2012

Time:        11:30 am

 Place: Denver Athletic Club

 Cost: $25.00 ($30.00 at the door, if space is available)
Reservation Deadline: Noon, Monday November 19, 2012.  Deadline for reservations has been changed to Noon on the Monday before the General Meetings. or Call 303-620-9080 for reservations.

Abstract:

Careful measurements of core permeability in Bakken or Eagle Ford shale indicate that matrix permeability is typically in the micro- and nano-Darcy range. These permeabilities are too low to support the economic flow rates that have been achieved in these reservoirs. It is the prevalent opinion of reservoir engineers that the production success is due to multi-stage well stimulation, which, in essence amounts to “rubblizing” the reservoir rock near the horizontal well bores to create adequate near-wellbore stimulation to support economic production rates.  In this talk we will present a multi-level flow hierarchy for primary production — from nano-pores to micro-fractures to the wellbore. For enhanced oil recovery similar hierarchy, in reverse order, is necessary to produce additional oil from the tight matrix. However, the conventional displacement processes are inapplicable in unconventional shale reservoirs.  Nonetheless, we will present some general guidelines as to what might be the best approach for enhanced oil recovery in unconventional shale reservoirs.

Biography:

Hossein Kazemi is the Chesebroʼ Distinguished Professor of Petroleum Engineering at Colorado School of Mines (CSM) and Co-director of Marathon Center of Excellence for Reservoir Studies (MCERS).  He received B.S. and Ph.D. degrees in petroleum engineering the University of Texas at Austin. Kazemi is a member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), a Distinguished and an Honorary Member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE). He has published technical papers and has served as Distinguished Author and Speaker for the SPE. He retired from Marathon Oil Company in 2001 after serving as Research Scientist, Senior Technical Consultant, Director of Production Research, Manager of Reservoir Technology, and Executive Technical Fellow at Marathon Petroleum Technology Center in Littleton, Colorado. At CSM he teaches graduate courses and supervises research in reservoir modeling, well testing, and improved oil and gas recovery processes.