Fracking - WHAT S IT ALL ABOUT?

Transcription

1 Fracking - WHAT S IT ALL ABOUT?

2 Fracking What does it mean? How did the gas arise? Where is it? How does it work? Why is it worth doing? Why isn t it worth doing? What s the UK Government s position? What s happening now?

3 What does it mean? Fracking is Hydraulic fracturing; - a technique designed to recover gas and oil from shale rock - the process of injecting liquid at high pressure into subterraneous rocks, boreholes etc so as to force open existing cracks and extract oil or gas So what s this Shale rock? Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments of other minerals. Shale is characterized by breaks along thin laminae or parallel layering or bedding less than one centimetre in thickness So what s Sedimentary rock?

4 How did Shale Gas arise?

5 How did Shale Gas arise? Carboniferous

6 How did Shale Gas arise? Typical English Carboniferous Series UK Carboniferous Series Sandstone Coal Measures/Shale Gritstone Limestone (Silurian, Devonian)

7 How did Shale Gas arise? Swamps & Rain Forests

8 Where is it? - Worldwide

9 Where is it? USA

10 Where is it? - Europe Allowed/exploratory drillings Ban/moratorium Heavy restrictions Declared not economically viable No decision/no gas deposits No data/not specified

11 Where is it? - UK

12 Where is it? - UK

13 (Also Ineos & Thrd Energy)

14 How did Shale Gas arise?

15 How does it work?

16 How does it work?

17 How does it work?

18 How does it work? Rotary Steerable Systems (RSS) control the direction of the bit while simultaneously rotating the drill string. It centres around 2 different technologies known as push-the-bit and point-the-bit technologies: Push-the-bit controls the path of the well by physically pushing the bit against the side of the well bore, using a series of moveable metal pads built into a nonrotating portion of the downhole steering tool. The bit can be guided in any direction by pushing 1 or more of the pads against the opposite side of the well bore. In Point-the-bit systems, the bit is attached to a flexible shaft that extends through the tool body. One method uses a series of eccentric rings to deflect the shaft while another uses a set of pistons to push the shaft. The end result is a bit that is always pointing at the targets that the geologists and petroleum engineers identified.

19 How does it work?

20 How does it work? Drilling into eroded face of horizontal strata

21 How does it work? Drilling into dipped strata

22 How does it work? Development site Operational site

23 How does OPERATIONAL SITES it work?

24 Why is it worth doing? IMPACT on CLIMATE: Govt of British Columbia: Fracked gas is "the world's cleanest fossil fuel" and a path to a low carbon future. Compared to oil and coal, natural* gas produces less CO2 gas when it's burned COST: It s cheaper to produce & buy than natural gas, and is much more energy intensive RESERVES: Shale rock is very common; the British Geological Survey (BGS) estimates it makes up 35 per cent of the world s surface rocks. BGS estimates that there is about 1,400 trillion cu.ft of shale gas in the north of England and Scotland alone...enough to meet UK gas demand for more than 400 years based on current consumption VALUE to the ECONOMY: DECC estimates that the industry could be worth billions of pounds, creating more than 60,000 jobs and increasing the UK's energy security ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT: Its production has minimal effect on our environment (compared to coal, oil & natural gas). Burning shale gas instead of oil would cut CO2 emissions by 90% NEED: We can t give up on fossil fuels just yet. Shale gas would play a cleaner, safer role in the transition from fossil fuels to renewables * In North America, shale gas is not what we in the UK call natural gas

25 Why is it worth doing? UK CarbonBrief 2015

26 Why is it worth doing? The UK power mix in Chart by Carbon Brief.

27 Why isn t it worth doing? IMPACT on CLIMATE: Flaring & leakage adds more methane, not less, to the greenhouse gas layer. Shale gas is being more energy intensive than natural gas, containing high amounts of CO2 or hydrogen sulphide. Shale bed methane could result in such huge methane releases that they could help tip the planet into an "alternate climate system." Methane is not only the second most important gas contributing to global climate change but traps heat energy in the atmosphere more effectively than CO2; 33 times more potent than CO2 over a 100 year period or 105 times more powerful over a 20 year period. Short term releases of methane can do more damage than CO2 emissions. One per cent lifetime production leakage in a well produces about the same climate impact as burning the methane twice. The problem comes from leakage. Methane wafts into the air during drilling as well as during frack fluid flowback.

28 Why isn t it worth doing? COST: Natural gas is cheaper than shale gas to produce, esp. when you consider transport, infrastructure upgrades, policing, licensing, subsidies and compensation to local communities. The sale price of shale gas is heavily dependent on fluctuating world oil prices RESERVES: We don t have as much as we thought; a recent report states that we have only 150 potential sites, not 4,000; and US experience indicates that recovery rates may be only 8%-29% VALUE to the ECONOMY: Undermined by extra cost & lower potential yield, not to mention delays through public resistance ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT: Serious concerns not only about methane emissions but also earth tremors, heavy traffic (with associated vibration & pollution), unsightly developments and health issues due to contaminated water supplies: Minor earthquakes have been associated with several fracking operations in the USA and even during exploration in Lancashire (1.5 & 2.2 on Richter scale) Flowback liquid contains a number of contaminants, including radioactive material, heavy metals, benzene, ethylbenzene, toluene and n-hexane and other toxins, some carcinogenic. Salts and radon are also naturally present in some rocks and may also be released during fracking Gas has been observed emitting from some domestic water supplies in the USA NEED: Is it all worth it just for the short term?

29 Why isn t it worth doing? (Flaring releases Methane) (Contaminated water leakage from surface settlement ponds)

30 Why isn t it worth doing? FLAMING FAUCETS: In areas in the USA where fracking has taken place, gas can escape through domestic taps and can be set alight BUT this also happens where NO fracking has taken place! This has been observed since 1845 Typically US sites are remote, and any homes in the area draw water from their own wells The problem usually arises where the wells have been driven down into gas pockets Where fracking has not followed best practice, gas can escape into aquifers, but mostly this isn t to blame for flaming faucets (US Geological Survey)

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32 What s the UK Government s position? Environment Agency s Facts about Fracking Environmental Controls in England : Fracking cannot take place near the surface (> 1000m deep) Fracking cannot take place near drinking water (protected zones) Companies must undertake baseline monitoring (of methane levels) Companies cannot withhold details of chemicals they use (only use those approved by EA) Waste water cannot be stored in unlined pits or open lagoons Fracking waste waters cannot be injected into the ground for disposal (and must be treated) Venting of gas from fracking waste waters is nor allowed (must be stored in sealed containers) Open flares are not allowed (must be enclosed to burn methane)

33 What s the UK Government s position?

34 What s the UK Government s position?

35 What s the UK Government s position?

36 What s the UK Government s position? BBC 2015: The government will do everything it can to help clear the obstacles to widespread fracking. It has already removed many. For example, if local councils take too long deciding on fracking applications such as Cuadrilla's, it will take the decision out of their hands after 16 weeks. It has also changed the rules on property rights - fracking companies no longer need permission from landowners to drill horizontally deep underground. And ministers pushed through plans to allow fracking under national parks. Perhaps most importantly, the government has decided to invoke long-held powers to decide planning appeals on matters deemed of national importance.

37 What s the UK Government s position? UK Government Guidance on Fracking: The Royal Academy of Engineering and Royal Society have reviewed the scientific & engineering evidence on shale gas. It concluded that the health, safety and environmental risks associated with fracking can be managed effectively in the UK as long as operational best practices are implemented an enforced through regulation Public Health England: The risks to public health from exposure to emissions from shale gas extraction are low if operations are properly run & regulated The UK Government Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: The UK government is committed to ensuring we haver secure energy supplies that are reliable, affordable and clean. As part of this, shale gas has the potential to be a home-grown energy resource which can lead to jobs and economic growth, contribute to our security of supply and help us to achieve our climate change objectives

38 What s happening now?

39 What s happening now? Frack Off map Energy experts warn: Government decision to over-rule local authorities would be an absolute gift to the anti-shale lobby; potential for civil unrest, possibly making it virtually impossible to carry out sensible operations Gas companies may question whether to proceed, meaning to all intents and purposes, the shale gas revolution is dead The gas industry has said there will be no US-style revolution in Europe; little interest in market forecasting, some energy consultancies are no longer keeping a close eye on fracking Fracking in the UK is far from a foregone conclusion. We could easily see no fracking at all in the UK Protesters in Lancashire

40 What s happening now? Drilling is so far only at an exploratory phase in the UK, but, according to The Guardian: UK fracking to begin in earnest in 2018 More than 100 licenses have been awarded for exploration across the UK First sites are likely to be in Lancashire & North Yorkshire Other early candidate areas are to be in Cheshire and Nottinghamshire In December 2017 MPs voted to allow fracking at >1200m beneath National Parks, AONBs, Norfolk & Suffolk Broads & World Heritage Sites Legal & technical problems are being encountered by some operators Industry observers said it will take years of exploration before the sector knows whether shale gas can be extracted and sold at a viable price UK Energy Research Centre: Some progress will be made in 2018 but shale gas role in UK gas mix will still not be resolved by end of the year; and Fracking is no longer as prominent in government narratives as it was Perhaps that s a recognition that it s taking longer than they thought and also that the world s changing around it