BTU Factor and gallons NGL per Mcf

Can someone explain the conversion of  gallons NGL/Mcf into a BTU factor?  Or estimate a BTU factor from gallons/Mcf?  What's the math?   I can estimate the ethane/propane/iso butane/normal butane and natural gasoline percentages in a barrel if required.   Thanks.

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Permalink Reply by Bluflame on March 17, 2014 at 4:41am

This conversation is terrific. Thank you to all the contributors. I wish all GMS postings were of this quality! As an aside, I'm surprised the Marburger pad is not fenced and somehow secured. Someone wanting to do "mischief" to the site could rather easily create a very large problem, probably lager than they could imagine.

 

BluFlmae

Permalink Reply by Philip Thackray on March 17, 2014 at 5:14am

Blu,

Locally (southern Butler County, PA) very few of the Rex or XTO well pads are fenced.  The access road has a gate but you could drive a quad up to the "works" at most any site.  Part of the Marburger B site is on my farm so I just drive a quad across a farm road and I'm there.  The "overview" picture was taken from a high dirt mound that was created when the pad and the fracking pond were built.  It was a great location to watch the drilling and the fracking.  At one point we met with an XTO Well Completion Engineer (designs the fracks) at the site during the fracking.  That was a real Q&A session!!

Phil

Permalink Reply by Philip Thackray on March 17, 2014 at 5:04am

Stan,

Nice graph!  Consistent with what Rex has been publishing.  I believe that the Mcf referred to is the gas volume at the well head.  After the NGLs have been removed the "residual" gas has a shrinkage factor depending upon the quantity of NGLs removed.  See current Rex or Range Corporate presentations.

Phil

Permalink Reply by The Hiker on March 17, 2014 at 11:01am

shdixon:   Thanks a million, that's what I have been looking for.  I'll have to download a ppt. viewer and take a look at this, as well as the Range/REX presentations..... and then get out the calculator and see if it all jives.  Agree with Bluflame; thanks to all for the great stuff.

Permalink Reply by INVICTUS on March 17, 2014 at 5:12am

I agree.

Now we are getting to the core of immediately useful information for the leaseholder.

I'm digging through my photo collection to post some more, and learn some more.

Many thanks to those who generously offer their input.

I'm actually digging out the old chemistry books from school and remembering how to balance out a chemical equation.

Clearly I'll need some serious counseling for acting this way at my age!

Attached (I hope they are) are two photos:

First are Propane tanks? Am I correct?

2nd are the main oil tanks.

But this is a high tech industry and I've much to learn.

Attachments:
Permalink Reply by Philip Thackray on March 17, 2014 at 5:33am

Invic,

There are no propane tanks on local sites.  Is the propane for running the heaters and the compressor?

Where are you and what is the expected output of the well in your area?

The tall tanks on local sites are for water and condensate (oil).

Phil

Permalink Reply by INVICTUS on March 17, 2014 at 5:52am

I don't have a clear answer for the propane yet. I swear guys on the site setting up are all on a need to know basis and really only know their immediate jobs.

output unknown. now in production.

I sent you a private message.

I agree on the tall tanks. the answers I get are consistent with that answer.

Permalink Reply by deer spotter on March 17, 2014 at 11:01am

Invictus: What you are looking at are pressure vessels . Holding hydrates , volatile fluids from usually a small stripper plant.

Permalink Reply by The Hiker on March 17, 2014 at 11:56am

I was told that Markwest/Seneca was putting 1118 BTU gas into the pipeline.  If you use this number with the estimated gas BTU per the published initial and 30 day production numbers for the well, the same NGL gal/Mcf falls out as shown on my friends royalty stub.  Nice little formula. 

Will the gas BTU change over time, or will it remain pretty much the same?  The volume will decrease per the type curve, but will the ratio of gas/NGL's remain constant?

Permalink Reply by deer spotter on March 17, 2014 at 12:46pm

Hiker: What you say is true most pipeline co . have a cut off line a 1100 BTUS. Some co. will rewrite contracts to 1150 BTUS. Not much higher due to internal corrosion in the pipeline. The high  BTUS  come from reinjection of the ethane. Most pipeline co. will have a gas  chromatograph at the sales point set at a certain BTU level. Anything  above that level will close a valve which will not let the production co. feed into the pipeline.

Permalink Reply by INVICTUS on March 18, 2014 at 12:40am

Thanks, Deer spotter. Am I correct in believing that the products in these vessels gets trucked out?

If that is true, are there volume measurements (I'm always looking for "the meter" so I can do an audit) at or near these vessels?

What hydrocarbons are contained here. Does it include Butane? Propane?

I'm curious as to just exactly what the gathering pipeline transports beyond methane and ethane?

Permalink Reply by Philip Thackray on March 18, 2014 at 1:51am

Deer Spotter, Invic,

I agree that those tanks look like the ones at the XTO cryogenic plant where they store the propane/butane after they are extracted from the gas stream.  But that is a 150 million dollar plant spread across many acres (I had the great pleasure to tour the plant).  How could you separate the propane and butane out on a well pad?

D.S. what you mean by "hydrates"?  That is a chemical term meaning "contains water".

Phil

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