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Development of publicly owned oil shale lands of United States - prospect for 1980s

Conference · · Am. Assoc. Pet. Geol., Bull.; (United States)
OSTI ID:5752473

The potential for commercial development of shale oil in the US exists principally within the vast acreages of publicly owned oil shale lands in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. The resource that formed as varves in 4 lake beds during the Tertiary occur today as oil shale deposits in the Piceance Basin, Colorado, the Uinta Basin, Utah, and the Green River-Washakie Basin, Wyoming. It is estimated to be a resource that could yield ca. 1.2 trillion bbl of shale oil from the Piceance Basin alone. The authority to lease these public lands for development is defined by the Mineral Leasing Act (MLA) of 1920. The future development of commercial quantities of oil from this publicly owned resource is dependent on (1) administrative decisions to lease oil shale lands for development and (2) amendment of the MLA that would modify existing development practices.

OSTI ID:
5752473
Report Number(s):
CONF-8206143-
Journal Information:
Am. Assoc. Pet. Geol., Bull.; (United States), Journal Name: Am. Assoc. Pet. Geol., Bull.; (United States) Vol. 66:5; ISSN AAPGB
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English