12-Mar-08 6:00 PM EDT

RPSEA Selects Projects for the Unconventional Resources Program

New Research Will Help Meet U.S. Energy Demand and Lower Costs for Consumers

SUGAR LAND, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (RPSEA) announced today that nineteen proposals have been selected for negotiations leading to an award under the Unconventional Resources Program focused on increasing the supply of domestic natural gas and other petroleum resources.

"The selected projects will provide the technology to enable the substantial domestic resource base of clean-burning unconventional natural gas to make an increasingly important contribution to the nation’s energy needs,” said RPSEA President C. Michael Ming. The 2007 Unconventional Resources Program is designed to bring the resources of America’s leading universities, research institutions and technology innovators to bear on the development of gas shales, tight gas sands and coalbed methane resources by reducing costs, increasing efficiency, improving safety, and minimizing environmental impacts.

While awards under the RPSEA Unconventional Resources Program are open to any U.S.-based organization, most projects involve a team consisting of researchers along with producers or service companies that are in a position to evaluate and apply new technology. Each proposal must provide a minimum of 20% cost share, with up to 50% for field demonstration projects. The selected projects are:

A Self-Teaching Expert System for the Analysis, Design and Prediction of Gas Production from Shales

Project Leader: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Additional Project Participants: Texas A&M University, University of Houston, Anadarko

Advanced Hydraulic Fracturing Technology for Unconventional Tight Gas Reservoirs

Project Leader: Texas A&M University

Additional Project Participants: Carbo Ceramics, Schlumberger, Halliburton Energy Services, BJ Services

An Integrated Framework for the Treatment and Management of Produced Water

Project Leader: Colorado School of Mines

Additional Project Participants: Kennedy/Jenks Consultants, Argonne National Laboratory, Stratus Consulting, Eltron Research and Development, Chevron, Pioneer Natural Gas, Marathon, Triangle Petroleum, Anadarko, Awwa Research Foundation, Stewart Environmental, Southern Nevada Water Authority, Veolia Water, Hydration Technology, Petroglyph Operating Co.

Application of Natural Gas Composition to Modeling Communication Within and Filling of Large Tight-Gas-Sand Reservoirs, Rocky Mountains

Project Leader: Colorado School of Mines

Additional Project Participants: U.S. Geological Survey, University of Oklahoma, University of Manchester, Fluid Inclusion Technology, Permedia Research Group, Williams Exploration and Production Co., ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Newfield Exploration, BP, Anadarko, EnCana Oil & Gas, Bill Barrett Corporation (RPSEA - Webmasters Note: Addition of the last two companies were omitted from press release)

Comprehensive Investigation of the Biogeochemical Factors Enhancing Microbially Generated Methane in Coal Beds

Project Leader: Colorado School of Mines

Additional Project Participants: University of Wyoming, U.S. Geological Survey, Pioneer Natural Resources, Pinnacle Gas Resources, Coleman Oil and Gas, Ciris Energy, Inc.

Enhancing Appalachian Coalbed Methane Extraction by Microwave-Induced Fractures

Project Leader: Pennsylvania State University

Additional Project Participants: Nottingham University

Gas Condensate Productivity in Tight Gas Sands

Project Leader: Stanford University

Gas Production Forecasting From Tight Gas Reservoirs: Integrating Natural Fracture Networks and Hydraulic Fractures

Project Leader: University of Utah

Additional Project Participants: Utah Geological Survey, Golder Associates, Utah State University, HCItasca

Geological Foundation for Production of Natural Gas from Diverse Shale Formations

Project Leader: Geological Survey of Alabama

Improved Reservoir Access through Refracture Treatments in Tight Gas Sands and Gas Shales

Project Leader: University of Texas - Austin

Additional Project Participants: Noble Energy, BJ Services, Anadarko, Jones Energy, Pinnacle Technologies

Improvement of Fracturing for Gas Shales

Project Leader: University of Houston

Additional Project Participants: Daneshy Consultants, BJ Services

New Albany Shale Gas

Project Leader: Gas Technology Institute

Additional Project Participants: Amherst College, University of Massachusetts, ResTech, Texas A&M University, Pinnacle Technologies, West Virginia University, Texas Bureau of Economic Geology, Aurora Oil and Gas, CNX Gas, Diversified Operating Corporation, Noble Energy, Trendwell Energy Corporation

Novel Concepts for Unconventional Gas Development in Shales, Tight Sands and Coalbeds

Project Leader: Carter Technology

Additional Project Participants: University of Oklahoma, University of Houston, M-I LLC

Novel Fluids for Gas Productivity Enhancement in Tight Formations

Project Leader: University of Tulsa

Additional Project Participants: Williams Exploration and Production Co.

Optimization of Infill Well Locations in Wamsutter Field

Project Leader: University of Tulsa

Additional Project Participants: Texas A&M University, Devon Energy

Optimizing Development Strategies to Increase Reserves in Unconventional Gas Reservoirs

Project Leader: Texas A&M University

Additional Project Participants: Unconventional Gas Resources Canada Operating Inc., Pioneer Natural Resources Co.

Paleozoic Shale-Gas Resources of the Colorado Plateau and Eastern Great Basin, Utah: Multiple Frontier Exploration Opportunities

Project Leader: Utah Geological Survey

Additional Project Participants: Bereskin and Associates, GeoX Consulting, Halliburton Energy Services

Petrophysical Studies of Unconventional Gas Reservoirs Using High-Resolution Rock Imaging

Project Leader: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Additional Project Participants: Schlumberger, Chevron, BP

Reservoir Connectivity and Stimulated Gas Flow in Tight Sands

Project Leader: Colorado School of Mines

Additional Project Participants: University of Colorado, Mesa State University, iReservoir, Bill Barrett Corporation, Noble Energy, Whiting Petroleum Corporation, ConocoPhillips

Funding for the projects is provided through the "Ultra-Deepwater and Unconventional Natural Gas and Other Petroleum Resources Research and Development Program," authorized by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 with funding from lease bonus and royalties paid by industry to produce oil and gas on federal lands--for the purpose of maximizing the value of natural gas and other petroleum resources of the United States, by increasing the supply of such resources, through reducing the cost and increasing the efficiency of exploration for and production of such resources, while improving safety and minimizing environment impacts. RPSEA is under contract with the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory to administer the program. RPSEA is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit consortium with over 130 members, including 25 of the nation's premier research universities, 5 national laboratories, other major research institutions, large and small energy producers and energy consumers. The mission of RPSEA, headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas, is to provide a stewardship role in ensuring the focused research, development and deployment of safe and environmentally responsible technology that can effectively deliver hydrocarbons from domestic resources to the citizens of the United States.

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