Page 24: of Offshore Engineer Magazine (Mar/Apr 2013)

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Scientifc results from insist that our warming usgs this second Gulf of climate could cause gas

The drilling rig during the

Mexico feld trip have all hydrates in the Arctic

Mount Elbert stratigraphic been published, but the environment to break test.

intervening years since down (dissociate), the 2009 initiative seem releasing the methane that to have put the brakes on they now trap.

Perspectives momentum for further While acknowledging major initiatives. For the need for further example, there is no talk research, Dr Ruppell does of moving to prepare a not go along with this type production test which of catastrophic scenario. would be the logical She and colleagues have proved the ability of the follow-on from JIP Leg 2, that ConocoPhillips argued that only a fraction formation to release gas probably preceded by a will not be continuing of all likely gas hydrate through depressurization, test in Alaska. It has been its involvement in this deposits are found within the frst time this had announced that no further project, citing among or beneath permafrost. been accomplished on the drilling is planned. This other things the shale gas The top of the gas hydrate

North Slope. implies lack of support priority. stability zone in areas of The DOE has from oil companies, who thick permafrost typically also partnered with would be an essential Lower priority lies at greater than

ConocoPhillips and partner in any further It is pretty obvious from 200m depth, and these

JOGMEC to conduct a test work. A number of factors the last round of DOE permafrost-associated gas of natural gas extraction seem to have coalesced funding, in 2012, that hydrates are expected to from methane hydrate against raising the tempo gas hydrate research be stable for thousands of using a production of research. A tanking does not rate as a high years under most climate technology, developed economy at the time priority on the Obama warming scenarios. through laboratory didn’t help, nor did the Administration’s ‘all The subset of collaboration between Macondo incident, in of the above’ policy to permafrost-associated the University of 2010, which undoubtedly maximize development of gas hydrates that occurs

Bergen, Norway, and brought all oil companies’ US energy resources. in shallow, unglaciated,

ConocoPhillips, for risk adverse instincts A total of $5.5 million circum-Arctic Ocean the 2012 Ignik Sikumi to the fore, and made is being spent on 14 new shelves lies at the same

Gas Hydrate Field gas hydrates seem an research projects under depths. The prevailing

Test in Arctic Alaska. unnecessary journey into the supervision of NETL. conditions may render

The team injected uncertainty. All this, and Admittedly, this is in these gas hydrates more a mixture of carbon the advent of shale gas addition to ongoing susceptible to warming- dioxide and nitrogen opportunities: it could project funding for gas driven dissociation, but into the formation, and hardly fail to engender an hydrate research by the timescales involved demonstrated that this attitude of ‘why bother?’. DOE and a number of and factors that mitigate mixture could promote the government agencies, but The DOE and the the release of this methane production of natural gas. USGS continue to work it is not a lot of money. to the atmosphere make

This test is said to have with BP, and a team Six of these are designed it unlikely that there will been the frst ever feld of participants from to capitalize on the be an Arctic methane trial of a methane hydrate industry, government, and reservoir characterization catastrophe attributable to production methodology, academia, to evaluate and feld work undertaken destabilization of methane whereby CO was test the producibility of during the Gulf of Mexico hydrates, according to 2 exchanged in situ with methane from hydrate in JIP Leg 2, in 2009. Several Dr Ruppel. the methane molecules Arctic Alaska. A Mount other projects are aimed Such debates are just within a methane hydrate Elbert stratigraphic test at further study of the one other indication that structure. Results of the well, drilled in 2007, nature and occurrence gas hydrate study in the depressurization phase of confrmed the existence of gas hydrate in settings US has, for the time being, this project are being used of 60-75% hydrate impacted by changing returned to its home in saturation within reservoir to design the long term climates. This interest the academia after its brief gas hydrate production quality sands in targeted seems partly a response foray into the mainstream test planned for Alaska. stratigraphic intervals. A to the alarmist school of through oil industry

However, it is understood short-term downhole test environmentalists, who support.

OE | March 2013 26 oedigital.com oe_analysis_rev3.indd 26 27/02/2013 11:23