Drilling for Shale

There are two key well design features which differentiate a shale well from a normal well. The horizontal drilling through the shale interval to maximise the amount of rock to be completed and the hydraulic fracturing process which is required to get economic gas rates from the well.

Development wells are typically horizontal through the target shale; the length of the horizontal section can be 4000' or greater, this allows for several sequential fracture stimulation treatments to be run to enhance productivity. The hydraulic fracturing process is a critical component in making a shale well successful. This is done by pumping water into the well bore, at pressure, to create and propagate a fracture in the surrounding rock formation down hole. This is crucial in low permeability rock as it exposes more of the formation to the well bore and greater volumes of gas can be produced by the increased surface area. Without hydraulic fracturing the wells would not produce at an economically feasible rate.