Fig. 1—Monitoring depths relative to stage perforations. TVD=true vertical depth. Providing confidence that hydraulic-fracture geometries are relatively confined to target coal seams and do not grow upward into beneficial groundwater aquifers is a primary concern. A hybrid downhole microseismic and microdeformation array was deployed to monitor fracture stimulation of a vertical coal-seam-gas (CSG) exploration well in the Gloucester Basin in New South Wales, Australia, to provide more-accurate insight into overall fracture height. These technologies complement each other by providing unique, far-field determinations of hydraulic-fracture geometry. Increasing community and regulatory concern regarding exploration and production of CSG and fracture stimulation has placed extreme constraints on titleholders in New South Wales, to the point of the government rescinding some exploration permits and titleholders nearing a halt to further exploration. The operator is determined to provide evidence that CSG pilot exploration wells and, in particular, fracture stimulation are not affecting beneficial aquifers or interacting with faults. It is important that the operator be able to provide scientific explanations that are understandable and accessible to the community and assist in regulatory approval processes for the industry. This article, written by Special Publications Editor Adam Wilson, contains highlights of paper , “Hybrid Downhole Microseismic and Microdeformation Monitoring of a Vertical Coal-Seam-Gas Well,” by and SPE, Halliburton, and SPE, and SPE, AGL Energy, prepared for the 2016 SPE Asia Pacific Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition, Perth, Australia, 25–27 October. The paper has not been peer reviewed. ... This article is reserved for SPE members and JPT subscribers. If you would like to continue reading, please , or
Australian researchers used a hybrid downhole microseismic and microdeformation analysis system to monitor fracture stimulation of a vertical coal seam gas (CSG) exploration well in the Gloucester Basin in Australia to ascertain overall fracture height and determine whether or not fractures have grown into beneficial groundwater aquifers. In a paper delivered at the 2016 SPE Asia Pacific Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition, researchers said that the hybrid analysis was a good way to improve far-field measurements of fracture-growth in shallow CSG reservoirs.