April 19, 2019 -- Back To The Bakken

A problem the Bakken does not have: water.

The Permian. "The largest challenge to Permian field development. -- Rigzone. Data points:

• this is all about disposal
• even with 100 percent water re-use for completions, which is unlikely, the current salt water disposal infrastructure is expected to hit capacity in the near future
• trucking a major traffic problem in west Texas
• water disposal costs can account for a third of total lease operating expenses in the Permian
• water midstream space is “ripe” for mergers and acquisitions and revealed that it expects the pace of water-related infrastructure deals in the Permian to “pick up considerably” in 2019

That's disposal. What about frack water?

Back in January, Rystad Energy revealed that demand for frac water in the Permian exceeded the total U.S. demand of 2016. The company forecasted at the time that water demand in the Permian will likely surpass 2.5 billion barrels by 2020.

I've lost the bubble on this one, but I believe operators use four to five times the amount of sand to frack a well in the Permian compared to that used in the Bakken, and a corresponding increase in sand requires a corresponding increase in water.

Marathon has cracked the code on using less sand (and thus less water) in the Bakken.

By the way, no mention of earthquakes.

What We Do On The Weekends When Not Blogging About The Bakken;  video by Sophia, Ft Worth Stockyards (Texas)