Shale oil: the need is there
Today, as a result of the current energy crisis and the high cost of crude oil, attention is once again focusing on the shale lands of the Rockies. Geological studies of the tri-state region of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming have indicated that there are in place reserves of kerogen of 1.8 trillion bbl of shale oil in beds at least 10 feet thick that would yield 15 gal or more per ton of shale processed. About one-third of those reserves, 600 billion bbl, are high-grade deposits that would yield 25 gal or more per ton. Gulf, in partnership with Standard Oil Co. (Indiana), was successful bidder on the first, and richest, tract offered in a federal sale. This tract covers approx. 5,100 acres in Rio Blanco County on the W. slope of the Colorado Rockies. The bid was $210 million--more than $41,000 per acre--making it the highest price ever paid for a federal mineral lease. Estimates of the potential oil production from the tract range from 1 to 4 billion bbl, depending on the price received for shale oil and the technology employed.
- OSTI ID:
- 5199728
- Journal Information:
- Orange Disc; (United States), Journal Name: Orange Disc; (United States) Vol. 21:8; ISSN ORADA
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
040100* -- Oil Shales & Tar Sands-- Reserves & Exploration-- (-1989)
040300 -- Oil Shales & Tar Sands-- Drilling
Fracturing & Mining
BITUMINOUS MATERIALS
CARBONACEOUS MATERIALS
COLORADO
ENERGY SOURCES
FEDERAL REGION VIII
FORECASTING
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
GEOLOGICAL SURVEYS
KEROGEN
LEASING
MATERIALS
MINERAL OILS
MINERAL RESOURCES
NORTH AMERICA
OIL SHALE DEPOSITS
OILS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC MATTER
OTHER ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PLANNING
PRODUCTION
RESERVES
RESOURCES
SHALE OIL
SURVEYS
USA
UTAH
WYOMING