BHP Finds 5 Trillion Cubic Feet Of Natural Gas Off Trinidad -- October 25, 2017; Update On ExxonMobil And Vaca Muerta

I cannot keep up with natural gas discoveries. So, I have to cut and copy this from previous posts:

From an earlier post regarding natural gas reserves:

Now, let's go back and re-run the numbers that were posted earlier:

• that recent huge Mediterranean natural gas find: 30 trillion cubic feet
• Barnett, revised USGS figures: 53 trillion cubic feet
• Utica, newly revised figures: 782 trillion cubic feet
• Marcellus, EIA revised estimates: 65 trillion cubic feet, "proved" reserves

• October 18, 2017, Haynesville: USGS survey -- 300 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, up from roughly 70 trillion cubic feet in its last survey in 2010.

• Bakken/Three Forks, USGS estimate: 7 trillion cubic feet
• Qatar: 800 trillion cubic feet, wiki, conversion

I did all that to post this story: BHP finds 5 Tcf of gas off Trinidad. In the area where this was discover the Trinidad energy minister said this: The blocks hold an estimated 10 trillion-40 trillion cf of gas and 2bn-8bn bl of crude. So, better than the Bakken, but then the Bakken is an oily play.

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Vaca Muerta Update

To quote Dorothy Parker, "What fresh hell is this?"

Day in, day out, it's bbls of crude oil. But not for ExxonMobil in South America, apparently. For them, it's "cu m/day: which I assume is cubic meters per day.

So, now the conversion at this site or this site:

11 cu m/day = 69 bbls/day

So 11 million cu m/day is 69 million bbls/day. I guess.

69 million bbls/300 horizontal wells = 230,000 bbls/day/well. Really?

Whatever.

Here's the article from The Oil & Gas Journal:

ExxonMobil Corp. is to launch a Vaca Muerta pilot project that could lead to a staged development of about 300 horizontal wells with an estimated production of 11 million cu m/day once completed.

Argentina’s Neuquen province has approved the company’s 35-year development for Los Toldos I South Block 85 km northwest of Anelo and 175 km northwest of Neuquen City. Initial project investment is $200 million, said ExxonMobil Exploration Argentina SRL (EMEA), which will operate the block with 80% interest. Gas y Petroleo del Neuquen SA and Tecpetrol each hold 10%.

And then this:

The initial investment calls for a pilot project that brings as many as seven wells to production, the construction of production facilities, and development of export infrastructure.

So, $200 million for the initial investment gets one seven wells.

$200 million / 7 wells with infrastructure = $30 million / well.

But 230,000 bbls @ $50/bbls = $12 million / day / well --- in three days the well will be paid for.
  
I can only assume my calculations are off.

It is said that Vaca Muerta has the world’s second-biggest reserves of shale gas and fourth-biggest of shale oil. When I update the Vaca Muerta, I update it here.

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And In Russia, It's Tonnes

From Reuters:

Russia will increase its oil output by 3.5-4.0 million tonnes in 2018 if a global deal between OPEC and non-OPEC producers to reduce production is not extended, Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Wednesday.

Conversion? Maybe later. But probably not.