Assessment of Appalachian Basin Oil and Gas Resources: Utica-Lower Paleozoic Total Petroleum System

Overview of the potential and identified petroleum source rocks of the Appalachian basin, eastern United States

“…A close examination of these data shows that, in some cases, different analyses from the same wells (or at least from wells in close proximity to each other) yielded different TOC values. Consequently, the delineated areas of ≥1 percent and ≥3 percent may not strictly reflect all of the data displayed in this figure or in Wallace and Roen (1989), Ryder andothers (1998), andPatchen andothers (2006); rather, they summarize the results of these four studies. Geology is simplified from Schruben and others (1998).…”

“…In this study, recent USGS work by Milici (2005), Ryder andothers (2005, 2007), and Milici and Swezey (2006) has been compiled with older work to develop a synthesis of the petroleum source rock potential for the Appalachian basin. Previously unpublished work by Repetski and others (2008; also see chapter F.1 of this volume) formed the basis for the interpretation of the source rock potential of the Ordovician and Devonian strata ( fig.…”

Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of the Ordovician Utica Shale of the Appalachian Basin Province, 2012

“…For this assessment, black shale facies of the Utica are combined with equivalent units -Antes Shale in central Pennsylvania and the Point Pleasant Formation in Ohio and Pennsylvania (Patchen and others, 2006). Thickness of the black shale facies is as much as 700 ft in southwestern Pennsylvania (Patchen and others, 2006) and New York (Ryder, 2008), but typically ranges from 150 to 350 ft (Ryder, 2008).…”

“…The Utica source rocks are within a thermal region that generates oil between a CAI of 1 to 2 and generates gas above 2 ( fig. 3; Ryder, 2008).…”

“…The Utica Shale Oil AU ( fig. 1) is defined by the presence of the Utica Shale and equivalents based on Ryder (2008) and Patchen and others (2006). It is limited to an area of the Utica that has a thermal maturity greater than a CAI of 1 (Repetski and others, 2008) and TOC content greater than 1 wt% (Wallace and Roen, 1989; [EUR (estimated ultimate recovery per well), well drainage area, and success ratios are from U.S. shale oil and shale gas analogs.…”