Study of Gas Production Potential of New Albany Shale (Group) in the Illinois Basin

HASENMUELLER, N. R., W. S. BOBERG, J. COMER, and Z. SMIDCHENS, Indiana Geological Survey, Bloomington, IN, W. T. FRANKIE and D. K. LUMM, Illinois State Geological Survey, Champaign, IL, and T. HAMILTON-SMITH and J. D. WALKER, Kentucky Geological Survey, Lexington, KY

The New Albany Shale (Devonian and Mississippian) is recognized as both a source rock and a gas-producing reservoir in the Illinois basin. The first gas discovery was made in 1885, and was followed by the development of several small fields in Harrison County, Indiana, and Meade County, Kentucky. Recently, exploration for and production of New Albany gas has been encouraged by the IRS Section 29 tax credit. To identify technology gaps that have restricted the development of gas production from the shale gas resource in the basin, the Illinois Basin Consortium (IBC), composed of the Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky geological surveys, is conducting a cooperative research project with the Gas Research Institute (GRI).

An earlier study of the geological and geochemical aspects of the New Albany was conducted during 1976-1978 as part of the Eastern Gas Shales Project (EGSP) sponsored by the Department of Energy (DOE). The current IBC/GRI study is designed to update and reinterpret EGSP data and incorporate new data obtained since 1978. During the project, relationships between gas production and basement structures are being emphasized by constructing cross sections and maps showing thickness, structure, basement features, and thermal maturity. The results of the project will be published in a comprehensive final report in 1992. The information will provide a sound geological basis for ongoing shale-gas research, exploration, and development in the basin.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #91005 © 1991 Eastern Section Meeting, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, September 8-10, 1991 (2009)