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  • Shale growth: what if the Permian went CO2-neutral?

    Shale growth: what if the Permian went CO2-neutral?

    Shale growth has been slowing due to fears over the energy transition, as Permian upstream CO2 emissions reached a new high in 2019. We disaggregate the CO2 across 14 causes. It could be eliminated by improved technologies, making Permian production carbon neutral: uplifting NPVs by c$4-7/boe, re-attracting a vast wave of capital and growth. This…

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  • New Diverter Regimes for Dendritic Frac Geometries?

    New Diverter Regimes for Dendritic Frac Geometries?

    The key challenge for the US shale industry is to continue improving productivity per well. The process is increasingly being driven by Oil Majors and using data. This is illustrated by BP’s latest fracturing fluid patents, which optimise successive diverter compositions to create dendritic fracture geometries, to enhance stimulated rock volumes.

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  • Patent Leaders in Energy

    Patent Leaders in Energy

    Technology leadership is crucial in energy. It drives costs, returns and future resiliency. Hence, we have reviewed 3,000 recent patent filings, across the 25 largest energy companies. Our 34-page report outlines the “Top 10 Technology Leaders” in energy, ranging across each sub-sector.

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  • US Shale: No Country for Old Completion Designs

    US Shale: No Country for Old Completion Designs

    2019 has evoked resource fears in the shale industry. They are unfounded. Weak headline productivity is the benign result of changing completion designs. We review 350 technical papers from the shale industry in summer-2019 to rule out systemic issues. Underlying productivity continues improving at an exciting pace.

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  • CO2-EOR in shale: the holy grail?

    CO2-EOR in shale: the holy grail?

    What if there were a technology to sequester CO2, double shale productivity, earn 15-30% IRRs and it was on the cusp of commercialization? Promising momentum is building, at the nexus of decarbonised gas-power and Permian CO2-EOR. This short note highlights the economic opportunity.

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  • Shale: Upgrade to Fiber?

    Shale: Upgrade to Fiber?

    Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) uses fiber-optic cables to “hear” along a shale well, meter-by-meter, in real time. It is transformational for optimising completions and now gaining critical momentum. Our new note outlines the technology, its maturation and how it can help double shale productivity. Economics work at $15/bbl. The service industry is disrupted. Leading companies…

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  • Shale EOR: Container Class

    Shale EOR: Container Class

    Will Shale-EOR add another leg of unconventional upside? The topic jumped into the ‘Top 10’ most researched shale themes last year, hence we have reviewed the opportunity in depth. Stranded in-basin gas will improve the economics to c20% IRRs (at $50 oil). Production per well can rise by 1.5-2x. The theme could add 2.5Mbpd to…

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  • LNG in transport: scaling up by scaling down?

    LNG in transport: scaling up by scaling down?

    Next-generation technology in small-scale LNG has potential to reshape the global shipping-fuels industry. Especially after IMO 2020 sulphur regulations, LNG should compete with diesel. Opportunities in trucking and shale are less clear-cut.

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  • EOG’s Completions: Plugged-In?

    EOG’s Completions: Plugged-In?

    EOG has patented a system to run pressure and temperature sensors in its frac plugs, which are then retrieved at the surface, providing low cost data on each frac stage. The data improve subsequent stages. We estimate the NPV uplifts at $1M/well.

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  • Machine Learning on Permian Seismic?

    Machine Learning on Permian Seismic?

    machine learning on permian seismic

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