Flaring.

Can someone with experience answer a question here. My good friend lives by the McRoberts well in Darlington Twp., PA. They drilled, fracked and later came back to get the flowback water.

They never flared. He had thought, as did I, that flaring was necessary after flowback. Can someone please explain whether that is true, or not?

Thanks, in advance.

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Permalink Reply by Frank Nesmith on November 13, 2012 at 1:37am

Thanks... This is a Chesapeake well and they seem to flare their wells. I'm thinking that either the well wasn't that good or maybe because there is absolutely no infrastructure here.

Another thought is that perhaps this is part of the property up for sale by CHK.

Guess time will tell.

Permalink Reply by cheliped on November 13, 2012 at 6:59am

Do landowners receive royalties during the flaring process? 

Permalink Reply by paleface on November 13, 2012 at 10:40am

It was explained to me that flaring is done to draw the water and fracturing solution out of the well,some formations hold the fracturing solution tighter than others and lets go of the solution at a slower rate,so a longer flare period might have to be done.The dry gas can't have water in it,the dry gas can't be compressed with water in it,flaring is also done if presure is to weak to bring the moisture up out of the well,the flare would help to draw the moisture to the suface.Brian how did I do?

Permalink Reply by Brian Powers on November 14, 2012 at 9:09am

paleface - your explanation was very good. During the fracturing process, fluids are forced under pressure into the fracture that is created, and the fluids also can imbibe into smaller naturally occuring fractures or the minute pore throats of the matrix rock. This fluid often becomes trapped and is very slow to flow back into the wellbore. Some additives are sometimes used to reduce the fluid surface tension to aid flowback. Nevertheless, recoveries of more than about 25% of the frac fluid pumped is rare in my experience.

Any fluid that remains in the vertical section of the production tubing exerts back pressure on the formation or fracture face which impedes hydrocarbon flow into the well. Thus the fluid must be swabbed or gas lifted to remove the back pressure and to initiate flow of gas or oil. Flaring in general makes sense, as no operator wants unburned gas to accumulate at surface that might become an explosion risk.

Brian

Permalink Reply by Brian Powers on November 13, 2012 at 12:52pm

chelipad -

The equipment used to regulate or isolate flow during a flaring operation is crude; the orifices used to estimate flow volume do not provide sales quality volumes, therefore, in my opinion and experience, the lessor would not be able to claim royalties during pre=production flaring operations,

 

Brian

Permalink Reply by cheliped on November 13, 2012 at 3:01pm

thanks Brian.  Do you have any input on why the flaring is now going on for such a long time?

Permalink Reply by Jim Litwinowicz on November 14, 2012 at 5:33am

cheliped;  is it just one well being flared? Sometimes they have drilled and completed several wells at one pad and flare them one at a time.

Permalink Reply by cheliped on November 14, 2012 at 6:15am

Jim

I believe there are three or four wells there.  Have you heard anything about them? 

Thanks

Permalink Reply by Jim Litwinowicz on November 14, 2012 at 10:13am

Just the normal rumors of oil and wet gas but who knows? Wish I knew more.

Permalink Reply by Frank Nesmith on November 13, 2012 at 7:50pm

Brian, Could you let us know if there is a technical reason that some wells are flared and some are not? Or, could they just be waiting to do it because there is no infrastructure?

Permalink Reply by paleface on November 14, 2012 at 10:28am

 If the well has good presure and can clear the piping of the well bore to the well head  of fluids and the drilling company uses some of the more efficent fluid recover systems which are used today than the well does not have to be flared.Im waiting on Brians response like you are,he'd be a great teacher.

Permalink Reply by Frank Nesmith on November 14, 2012 at 11:24am

Thanks paleface. You are a good teacher, too. We'll patiently await Brian's response. 

Now, you say "clear the piping of the well bore to the well head  of fluids"; 

does that mean (in layman's terms) that there was enough pressure that none of the water is lying in the pipe from the bottom of the bore to the well head?

I just have land, but you guys give such good explanations.

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