Assessment of Undiscovered Oil and Gas Resources in the Cherokee Platform Province Area of Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri

Abstract

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently completed a geology-based assessment to estimate the amount of undiscovered, technically recoverable petroleum resources in the Cherokee Platform Province area of southeastern Kansas, northeastern Oklahoma, and southwestern Missouri. In this study, three total petroleum systems (TPSs) containing four assessment units (AUs) were defined and include the: (1) Desmoinesian Coal TPS, with the Desmoinesian Coalbed Gas AU; (2) Woodford/Chattanooga TPS, with the Woodford Shale Oil AU, and the Woodford Biogenic Gas AU; and (3) Paleozoic Composite TPS, with the Paleozoic Conventional AU. The Desmoinesian Coalbed Gas AU is a major gas producing unit with the largest potential for additional continuous gas resources. The AU boundary is, in part, defined by the extent, depth, and thickness of the coalbeds. The estimated mean total volume of undiscovered coalbed gas is 10 trillion cubic feet of gas (TCFG), with a fractile (F95–F5, respectively) range from 4.1 to 20.6 TCFG. The Woodford Biogenic Gas AU is located along the eastern side of the province near the Ozark Uplift, and is restricted to the area where the Woodford/Chattanooga Shale is at depths of 1,250 ft or less. The mean assessed volume of biogenic gas is 416 billion cubic feet of gas (BCFG), with a fractile range from 90 to 993 BCFG. The self-sourced Woodford/Chattanooga Shale, a primary hydrocarbon source rock in this area, has the greatest potential for oil production and was assessed to have a mean shale-oil volume of 460 million barrels of oil (MMBO), with a fractile range from 195 to 924 MMBO. The final AU evaluated is the Paleozoic Conventional AU that includes Cambrian through Permian strata. Most oil production in this area has been from Pennsylvanian sandstone deposits. In this AU, it is estimated that there are potential remaining undiscovered conventional resources of 3 MMBO, 140 BCFG, and 4 million barrels of natural gas liquids (MMBNGL). Overall, in this assessment, there are 3 continuous (unconventional) AUs and one conventional AU with estimated mean total volumes of 463 MMBO, 11.2 TCFG, and 35 MMBNGL in the area of the Cherokee Platform Province.

AAPG Datapages/Search and Discovery Article #90259 ©2016 AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, June 19-22, 2016