Assessment of Vaca Muerta Formation Shale Oil: Production Decline-Curve Analysis

Nicolás Gutierrez Schmidt
Head of Department of Reservoirs, Dirección de Hidrocarburos: Provincia Neuquén—República Argentina

This study is the evaluation of shale oil reservoir (F. Vaca Muerta) located in the Neuquén Basin and compares the participation of emerging unconventional oil production over conventional oil production corresponding to the Neuquén Province. The most reliable technique indicates that rate/time decline-curve analysis, presents decline curves and forecasts on production data gathered from shale wells of the central area of the basin have a fair degree of consistency. The analysis of production data is based on calculate decline rates for the first months and the parameters decline exponent (b) and a nominal decline rate (Di) of Arps Curves that result in a better correlation wells that are currently in production and thus estimate the cumulative production of oil for a period of 25-years for vertical wells (three hydraulic fracturing stage) and application to horizontal wells (whit lateral extension of 1000 meters and ten hydraulic fracturing stage).

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90165©AAPG 2012 GEOSCIENCE TECHNOLOGY WORKSHOP, 2-4 December 2012, Buenos Aires, Argentina