34 NOVEMBER 2022 WorldWide Drilling Resource® For more information call: (270) 786-3010 or visit us online: www.geothermalsupply.com All New! Atlantis-Pro Vault • Traffic-Rated Capable • Simple installation • Trouble-free operation Groundwater Week Booth 685 Between 2010 and 2012, the Haynesville held the title of the largest play in the U.S. by production, peaking at about 7 Bcfd before declining to less than 4 Bcfd in 2016. Production declined from 2012 to 2017 as operators shifted their focus to more economic positions, but the play has recently experienced a renaissance as a core group of producers improved cost efficiencies, growing production in 2021 by 1.6 Bcfd over the year before. Output from the Appalachian giant Marcellus tied with the Haynesville in 2012, but as Haynesville declined, the Marcellus kept growing. The play saw a steady increase until 2020, when output started flattening due to ongoing takeaway capacity constraints. Despite the limited room to grow, the play remains the king of North American gas supply, at least for now. To compare, back in 2020, Marcellus produced 13.8 Bcfd more than the Haynesville, while this spread is expected to decrease to 8.6 Bcfd in 2023. The Utica, which lies beneath the Marcellus in Appalachia, was late to the party but experienced a steep ramp-up from 2014 to 2019, increasing output from 1.2 to 7.5 Bcfd. After 2019, production in the play remained flat or decreased slightly, as operators in the region have prioritized the Marcellus over Utica, and all have had to cope with bottlenecks and delays associated with the Appalachian pipeline system. When you compare these major basins to other players on the global stage, the scale of their contributions comes into focus. If it was a standalone country, the Appalachian Basin would be the third largest gas producer globally, with 34 Bcfd, behind only the U.S., including Appalachia, and Russia. The Haynesville is expected to produce about 18 Bcfd, surpassing the total from major gas player Qatar and closing in on China and Canada in the league table. Looking ahead, it appears these basins have a lot more gas to give. The Marcellus has the largest undrilled leased acreage of the three at 6.7 million acres. As policymakers seek ways to boost domestic output, the Marcellus has plenty of remaining commercial acreage and inventory to unlock, should takeaway constraints eventually ease in the Northeast. On the opposite end of the scale, the Haynesville has the least undrilled acreage at 1.8 million acres. In terms of remaining gas reserves, the Marcellus has by far the most resources of the four, with close to 380 trillion cubic feet (cf) of natural gas. The Haynesville follows, with 202 trillion cf. Rystad Cont’d from page 27.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDk4Mzk=