As the economy evolves, many experts, including those in extractive industries, are calling on the state of Wyoming to develop more diversified sources of revenue.
As the economy evolves, many experts, including those in extractive industries, are calling on the state of Wyoming to develop more diversified sources of revenue.
CASPER — Iconic images of America’s 19th century oil gushers notwithstanding, only about 10% of typical oil reserves are easily recoverable near the surface.
With the majority of the country’s easy-to-produce oil already tapped, producers are increasingly looking toward enhanced oil recovery techniques (EOR), which cajole oil to the surface through underground injections of water, gas or chemical cocktails.
Such EOR techniques enable producers to extract between 30% and 60% of a reservoir’s holding, according to the Department of Energy.
But leaders in Wyoming believe they can extract more still.
The University of Wyoming this month began its inaugural Wyoming Gas Injection Initiative, a public-private $50 million partnership that aims to bring the latest enhanced recovery research from the laboratory to the oil field.
Private operators and the state will each contribute $25 million.
The producers selected include Ballard Petroleum Holdings, Continental Resources, Devon Energy Corp. and Oxy USA Inc. The research will begin at UW’s Center of Innovation for Flow Through Porous Media, where experts will perform tests on samples of porous oil-bearing reservoir rock and experiment with oil-freeing additives.
The testing could last up to two years, after which companies will begin pilot applications in the field.
“We are one of a select few labs in the world that can replicate reservoir and production conditions while viewing what’s happening at multiple scales,” said Dr. Mohammad Piri, COIFPM’s founder and director, in a statement.
Leaders are hopeful new EOR techniques will yield economic gains while shoring up state revenue.
“From an industry perspective, anytime that we can see advancements in technology or processes that lead to the extraction of more oil within the same wells it’s beneficial, because we can get more out without drilling additional wells,” said Ryan McConnaughey, vice president of the Petroleum Association of Wyoming.
McConnaughey believes strides in EOR research will extend the lifespan of the state’s many legacy wells, bolstering a crucial sector which had as many as 10,120 producing oil wells in 2022.
EOR research also accounted for 58,780 of the state’s total jobs, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. It could also invigorate the state’s balance sheet.
Oil and gas production, one of the state’s top three biggest industries, accounted for more than 40% of the total property taxes levied in Wyoming and approximately 80% of the property taxes levied on all minerals, according to the Petroleum Association of Wyoming, while in recent years, the combined production of crude oil and natural gas production paid 59% of all the severance taxes from the state’s mineral operators.
Let the news come to you
Get any of our free email newsletters — news headlines, sports, arts & entertainment, state legislature, CFD news, and more.
