Coalbed-methane production in the Appalachian basin
<p data-canvas-width="33.4" data-angle="0" data-font-name="g_font_6">Coalbed methane (CBM) occurs in coal beds of Mississippian and Pennsylvanian…
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Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin By Robert C. Milici and Désirée E. Polyak Chapter G.2 of Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin: Distribution, Geologic Framework, and Geochemical Character Edited by Leslie F. Ruppert and Robert T. Ryder Supersedes USGS Open-File Report 02–105 Professional Paper 1708 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey
Suggested citation: Milici, R.C., and Polyak, D.E., 2014, Coalbed-methane production in the Appalachian basin, chap. G.2 of Ruppert, L.F., and Ryder, R.T., eds., Coal and petroleum resources in the Appalachian basin; Distribution, geologic framework, and geochemical character: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1708, 25 p., http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/pp1708G.2. (Chapter G.2 supersedes USGS Open-File Report 02–105.)
Contents Abstract 1 Introduction 1 CBM Assessment in 1996 2 CBM Assessment in 2002 2 Dunkard Basin 2 Pennsylvania 2 Northern West Virginia and Ohio 3 Pocahontas Basin 3 Black Warrior Basin 4 Conclusions 4 References Cited 4 Figures [Figures follow References Cited]
1. Map of the central and southern parts of the Appalachian structural basin showing oil and gas provinces and assessment units used by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) during the 2002 National Oil and Gas Assessment 9
2. Map showing major coalbed-methane fields and CBM wells of the Dunkard basin 10
3. Chart showing major coal beds of the Dunkard basin 11
4. Map showing cumulative production of coalbed methane for selected counties in the Dunkard basin by 2005 12
5. Map showing location of abandoned anticlinal coalbed-methane fields in northern West Virginia 13
6. Graph showing coalbed-methane annual and cumulative production from 1992 through 2004 in Monongalia County, W. Va., from about 50 wells drilled into the gob of underground mines in the Pittsburgh coal bed 14
7. Graph showing coalbed-methane annual and cumulative production from 1987 through 2005 in the Dunkard basin in Pennsylvania and northern West Virginia 15
8. Map showing cumulative production of coalbed methane for selected counties in the Pocahontas basin 16
9. Graph showing coalbed-methane annual and cumulative production from 1993 through 2004 from the Bradshaw, Slab Fork, and Welch fields in McDowell, Wyoming, and Raleigh Counties, W. Va 17
10. Graph showing coalbed-methane annual and cumulative production from 1988 through 2004 in Virginia 18
11. Graph showing coalbed-methane annual and cumulative production from 1988 through 2005 in the Pocahontas basin in Virginia and southern West Virginia 19
12. Chart showing stratigraphic nomenclature for Lower Pennsylvanian formations, sandstones, and coal beds in coalbed-methane fields in the Pocahontas basin in southwestern Virginia and adjacent West Virginia 20
Conversion Factors Multiply By To obtain Length foot (ft) meter (m) mile (mi) kilometer (km) Volume cubic foot (CF or ft3) cubic meter (m3)
13. Map showing cumulative production of coalbed methane for selected counties in the Black Warrior, Cahaba, and Coosa basins of Alabama by 2003 21
14. Chart showing stratigraphic nomenclature for Lower Pennsylvanian units in the Black Warrior basin, Alabama 22
15. Graph showing coalbed-methane annual and cumulative production from 1980 through 2007 in the Black Warrior and Cahaba basins in Alabama 23 Tables [Tables follow figures]
1. Cumulative production of coalbed methane (CBM) from the Appalachian basin, by county 24
2. Coalbed-methane (CBM) annual and cumulative production from 1980 through 2007 in the Black Warrior and Cahaba basins in Alabama 25 Letter Symbols for Units of Measure BCF billion cubic feet (ft3 × 109) MCF thousand cubic feet (ft3 × 103) MCF/day thousand cubic feet per day MMCF million cubic feet (ft3 × 106) TCF trillion cubic feet (ft3 × 1012) Definitions thousands 103 millions 106 billions 109 trillions 1012
Abstract Coalbed methane (CBM) occurs in coal beds of Missis sippian and Pennsylvanian (Carboniferous) age in the north ern, central, and southern Appalachian basin coal regions, which extend almost continuously from Pennsylvania south ward to Alabama. Most commercial CBM production in the Appalachian basin is from three structural subbasins: (1) the Dunkard basin in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and northern West Virginia; (2) the Pocahontas basin in southern West Virginia, eastern Kentucky, and southwestern Virginia; and (3) part of the Black Warrior basin in Alabama. The cumulative CBM production in the Dunkard basin through 2005 was 17 billion cubic feet (BCF), the production in the Pocahontas basin through 2006 was 754 BCF, and the production in the part of the Black Warrior basin in Alabama through 2007 was 2.008 TCF. CBM development may be regarded as mature in Alabama, where annual production from 1998 through 2007 was relatively constant and ranged from 112 to 121 BCF. An opportunity still exists for additional growth in the Pocahontas basin. In 2005, annual CBM production in the Pocahontas basin in Virginia and West Virginia was 85 BCF. In addition, opportunities are emerging for producing the large, diffuse CBM resources in the Dunkard basin as additional wells are drilled and technology improves. Introduction Coalbed methane (CBM) occurs in coal beds of Missis sippian and Pennsylvanian (Carboniferous) age in the north ern, central, and southern Appalachian basin coal regions, which extend almost continuously from Pennsylvania south ward to Alabama (fig. 1; figures follow References Cited). These three coal regions occur within the southern and central parts of the Appalachian structural basin (Milici, this volume, chap. G.1). The three Appalachian basin coal regions were defined by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in the 2000 resource assessment of selected coal beds and zones (North ern and Central Appalachian Basin Coal Regions Assessment Team, 2001). Most commercial CBM production in the Appalachian basin is from three structural subbasins: (1) the Dunkard basin in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and northern West Virginia; (2) the Pocahontas basin in southern West Virginia, eastern Kentucky, and southwestern Virginia; and (3) the part of the Black War rior basin underlain by coal measures in Alabama (Lyons, 1998; Milici, 2004, which was superseded by Milici, this volume, chap. G.1). Each subbasin is within one of the three Appalachian basin coal regions. In the northern, central, and southern Appalachian basin coal regions, CBM is produced from bituminous coal beds of Pennsylvanian age. CBM production takes place for several reasons: (1) to improve the safety of mines by removing methane in advance of underground coal mining, (2) to obtain commercial amounts of methane from fractured rock wastes (gob) and the breakdown of roof rock left after underground coal mining, and (3) to obtain commercial amounts of methane from coal beds that have not been mined and that serve both as source rocks and as reservoirs for the methane resources. CBM development may be regarded as mature in Ala bama, where annual production from 1998 through 2007 was relatively constant and ranged from 112 to 121 billion cubic feet (BCF) (Alabama State Oil and Gas Board, 2008). An opportunity still exists for additional growth in the Pocahon tas basin, where Virginia’s annual CBM production exceeded 81 BCF in 2006 (Virginia Division of Gas and Oil, 2007). In addition, opportunities are emerging for producing the large, diffuse CBM resources in the Dunkard basin as additional wells are drilled and technology improves. CBM reservoirs commonly occur within their own source rocks (coal) where methane is generated by biogenic or ther mal maturation processes that affect the coal macerals. The methane is adsorbed onto the surfaces of pores and fractures of various sizes within the coal bed, and from there, it may escape into the atmosphere at natural exposures or migrate into production drill holes or mines that have penetrated the formation. The gas produced from coal beds is almost entirely methane, although it commonly contains small amounts of other hydrocarbons, hydrogen, carbon monoxide, carbon diox ide, and nitrogen. Gas obtained from underground mines may contain a considerable amount of gas other than methane. Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin By Robert C. Milici1 and Désirée E. Polyak1 1U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Va.
2 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin Almost all wells drilled into methane-bearing coal-bed reservoirs produce some gas regardless of the structural posi tion of the coal bed at any given location. The gas, however, exhibits little tendency to segregate from formation waters, and the associated water commonly serves as an effective seal. Where present, formation waters are removed by pumping as a CBM field is developed. Removal of the water reduces the pressure within the reservoir and allows the methane to escape from the coal and into the wellbore. In general, CBM fields that were originally defined by separate discoveries appear to grow together or merge as development progresses, and boundaries between fields become obscure as more wells reveal the existence of large, tabular, continuous accumula tions that may persist laterally beneath several counties. This report supersedes USGS Open-File Report 02–105 (Milici, 2002). The second author of this report (Polyak) helped to revise the 2002 report and to add CBM production information for the Appalachian basin up to 2006. CBM Assessment in 1996 In assessing CBM resources, Rice and Finn (1996) identified three regional plays in the northern and central parts of the Appalachian Plateaus: the Northern Appalachian Basin Syncline Play, the Northern Appalachian Basin Anti cline Play, and the Central Appalachian Basin–Central Basin Play. The Northern Appalachian Basin Anticline Play was defined as occurring structurally above the water table, and the Northern Appalachian Basin Syncline Play was defined as occurring below the water table in folded rocks (Patchen and others, 1991). Rice and Finn (1996) reported at the mean 10.4 trillion cubic feet (TCF) as technically recoverable gas for the syncline play, 1.07 TCF for the anticline play, and 3.07 TCF for the Central Basin Play. In addition, they assessed at the mean 2.30 TCF of technically recoverable, undiscovered CBM resources from the Black Warrior basin in the southern part of the Appalachian basin and 0.295 TCF from the Cahaba coal field, which lies within the Cahaba syncline adjacent to the Black Warrior basin within the folded and faulted southern Appalachian Valley and Ridge province. Rice and Finn (1996) estimated 5 TCF as the in-place gas resources of the Central Appalachian Basin–Central Basin Play in southern West Virginia and southwestern Virginia. Subsequently, Nolde and Spears (1998) revised the in-place estimate upward to 6.7 TCF for the Virginia part of the play. Subsequent drilling and multiple completions (perfora tion and fracturing of the coal bed) within stacked coal-bed reservoirs, however, indicate that there is not a strict relation between the location of CBM fields and pools and geologic structure in Pennsylvania; thus, the definition of assessment unit locations on anticlines or synclines (Rice and Finn, 1996) is not valid everywhere (Bruner and others, 1995, reprinted 1998). Other assessment units have been defined. CBM Assessment in 2002 Assessment teams for the U.S. Geological Survey’s 2002 National Oil and Gas Assessment (NOGA; Hatch and others, 2003; Milici and others, 2003; Milici and Hatch, 2004) used the total petroleum system (TPS) concept (Magoon, 1988); within each TPS, assessment units of relatively similar geo logical areas were selected instead of plays. Furthermore, the 2002 NOGA teams used a 30-year timeframe for the assess ment instead of the unrestricted timeframe of Rice and Finn (1996), and they had more exploration and production data than Rice and Finn, who had to use an analog method (Milici, this volume, chap. G.1). The 2002 assessment teams estimated the fractile and mean amounts of undiscovered, technically recoverable CBM resources in three Appalachian regions that were already productive. The principal area of the Dunkard basin that was assessed quantitatively by the USGS in the 2002 assessment is that des ignated as the Carboniferous Coal-bed Gas Minimum Petro leum System (MPS) in western Pennsylvania and adjacent West Virginia (Milici, this volume, chap. G.1; see fig. 2 of this report). That minimum petroleum system is in the northeastern part of the East Dunkard (Folded) Assessment Unit (AU). That area was considered the most likely to be developed within the 30-year timeframe of the USGS assessment. The USGS estimated a mean of about 4.8 TCF of technically recoverable methane for the East Dunkard (Folded) AU (Milici and others, 2003). The area of the Pocahontas basin that is considered most likely to be developed during the next 30 years is the area of the minimum petroleum system within the Pocahontas Basin AU, which includes the producing area in Virginia and West Virginia. In 2002, the USGS assessed this area (at the statisti cal mean) as containing about 3.58 TCF of technically recov erable undiscovered methane (Milici and others, 2003). In 2002, the USGS estimated a mean of about 7 TCF of technically recoverable methane for the Black Warrior Basin AU, which is primarily in the Alabama part of the Black War rior basin (Hatch and others, 2003). About 15.5 TCF of techni cally recoverable undiscovered methane were assessed at the statistical mean in the Appalachian Basin Province and the Black Warrior Basin Province combined (Milici and Hatch, 2004). Dunkard Basin Pennsylvania The Dunkard basin includes parts of Pennsylvania, Ohio, and northern West Virginia. Figure 2 shows the location of some CBM fields in the Carboniferous Coal-bed Gas MPS in the Dunkard basin in southwestern Pennsylvania and adjacent
Chapter G.2 Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin 3 West Virginia. Figure 3 shows generalized stratigraphic nomenclature for Pennsylvanian units in the Dunkard basin. The units include many coal beds. As of 2005, 214 wells were producing CBM from bitumi nous coals in southwestern Pennsylvania (table 1; tables fol low figures at the end of the report). They included 116 wells from the Campbells Mill pool in the Blairsville field (Indiana County), 7 wells in Cambria County, 25 wells in Westmore land County, 3 wells from the Lagonda field in Washington County, 18 wells in Fayette County, and about 45 wells drilled into Pittsburgh gob in the underground mines in the south western corner of Greene County (Pennsylvania Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey, 2006). Figure 4 shows cumulative CBM production for these counties. The Blairsville field (fig. 2) is the most significant com mercial CBM field in Pennsylvania. In this field, CBM is produced from several coal beds commonly completed over a vertical interval of 250 feet (ft) in wells that include the Bakerstown, Brush Creek, Upper and Lower Freeport, Upper, Middle, and Lower Kittanning, Clarion, and Brookville coal beds or coal zones. Markowski (1998) pointed out that the Allegheny Group, which contains the Brookville, Clarion, Lower, Middle, and Upper Kittanning, and Lower and Upper Freeport coal beds or coal zones (fig. 3), is the stratigraphic interval that is most likely to yield commercial quantities of gas in Pennsylvania, as well as in northern West Virginia and Ohio. Because the amount of CBM contained within a coal bed commonly increases with the depth of the coal bed beneath the surface and because commercial quantities of CBM generally occur below 500 ft of overburden, the area of the Dunkard basin where Allegheny Group coal beds may have sufficient cover to produce commercial quantities of gas occurs gener ally where the Allegheny is overlain by the Conemaugh Group (figs. 3 and 4). The Dunkard basin is defined generally by the cropline of the base of the Conemaugh Group (which is the top of the Allegheny Group). Northern West Virginia and Ohio In Wetzel County, W. Va. (fig. 5), methane has been produced from both the Pittsburgh coal bed and, to a lesser extent, the Sewickley coal bed. CBM was first produced from the Pittsburgh coal bed in 1931, when four wells were drilled on the Littleton anticline (fig. 5) (Patchen and others, 1991). Three were completed successfully as gas wells, and no water was reported. Subsequently, the Big Run field was discov ered in 1932 when a well that was first completed in 1905 in a deeper Paleozoic stratigraphic unit was re-completed at a depth of about 1,000 ft in 9 ft of Pittsburgh coal. It produced more than 212 million cubic feet (MMCF) of gas from 1932 until it was abandoned in 1968 when water problems devel oped. Between 1949 and 1965, 35 more wells were drilled in the field; they had initial production rates that ranged from 8 to 60 thousand cubic feet per day (MCF/day). Active develop ment of the field ceased in 1967. In 2004, CBM was produced from about 50 wells in Monongalia County in northern West Virginia (fig. 4) that were drilled into the gob of an underground mine in the Pittsburgh coal bed. Production from this field commenced in 1990 and declined from more than 223 MMCF from 7 wells in 1993 to about 62.5 MMCF in 1999 (West Virginia Geologi cal and Economic Survey, 2006) (fig. 6). In 2000, production increased again to 174.2 MMCF, and in 2002, it reached a maximum of 307.8 MMCF. After 2002, production from this field declined to 180.1 MMCF in 2004. Figure 7 shows the cumulative CBM production in the part of the Dunkard basin in Pennsylvania and northern West Virginia. Annual production was still generally increasing from 1999 through 2005. In Ohio, Wolfe (1997) reported a flow of 300 to 500 MCF/day of gas having a methane content of 91 percent from Vent No. 5 (originally a gob drainage well) at the Nelms-Cadiz Portal underground mine complex in Harrison County. In 1996, the well produced 47.5 MMCF in 61 days; in 1997, it produced 47.5 MMCF; and in 1998, it produced 56.5 MMCF in 6 months on line (Steve O’Pritza, Ohio Division of Oil and Gas, oral commun., June 2000). The mine is reported to be in the No. 6A (Lower Freeport) coal bed. Gas from this vent was used at the mine to run several internal combustion engines. Since 1996, 16 wells have been permitted for CBM explora tion in Harrison County, Ohio. As of June 2000, the status of these 16 wells was that 4 were producing, 2 more were com pleted and were not yet producing, 1 had an active application, and the rest were not drilled (Steve O’Pritza, oral commun., June 2000). Pocahontas Basin The Pocahontas basin includes the coal fields of south western Virginia and southern West Virginia (fig. 8). CBM production from the Pennsylvanian-age coal began commer cially in southwestern Virginia in 1988 (Nolde and Spears, 1998) and in southern West Virginia in 1989 (West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey, 2006). Much earlier, gas was vented into the atmosphere from vertical ventilation holes drilled to degas the coal beds in advance of underground mining or from wells draining underground mine gob. As development within the Pocahontas basin matured, CBM fields were developed when multiple unmined coal beds were drilled, stimulated, and completed. In 2000, 84 wells produced 4 BCF of CBM in southern West Virginia; in 2004, production in the area rose to 10 BCF (fig. 9) (West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey, 2006). In 2004, 2,557 wells produced 66.7 BCF of CBM in Virginia (fig. 10). Figure 11 shows that the cumulative CBM production in the part of the Pocahontas
4 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin basin in Virginia and southern West Virginia was 673 BCF through 2005. Typically, from 6 to 10 coal beds (fig. 12) having a total coal thickness of about 10 to 30 ft are selected and com pleted in each well, and the gas produced is commingled and produced from the wellbore. The coal beds of the Pocahontas Formation are, in general, among the more productive of the Pennsylvanian sequence within the Pocahontas basin. The Pocahontas Formation and its contained coal beds are trun cated by a regional unconformity that cuts downward strati graphically to the northwest, from Virginia into Kentucky, to where only younger formations and coal beds are preserved (Englund and Thomas, 1990). In recent years, several wells have been completed for CBM in Bell and Clay Counties, Ky. (table 1, fig. 8). The wells produced for a short time from coal beds in the Penn sylvanian Breathitt Formation, probably from Lower Elkhorn coals (Brandon Nuttall, Kentucky Geological Survey, written commun., July 2001). The CBM potential of deeper coal beds in eastern Kentucky is relatively untested. Black Warrior Basin CBM production from the Black Warrior basin, in the southern part of the Black Warrior coal field of Alabama (fig. 13), ranked third in the United States in 2006; the most productive basins were the San Juan basin of New Mexico and Colorado and the Powder River basin in Wyoming (U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2007). Like the CBMproducing coal beds in the remainder of the Appalachian basin, those of the Black Warrior coal field in the southern Appalachian basin coal region are of Pennsylvanian age; methane is produced from Early Pennsylvanian coal beds of the Pottsville Formation (fig. 14). Alabama’s CBM production began in 1980, when the first permit for a CBM well was issued by the State. By 2005, a total of 22 coal-bed-degasification fields had been estab lished (Alabama State Oil and Gas Board, 2006); 20 were in the Black Warrior basin, and 2 were in the nearby Cahaba basin (fig. 13). Of the 6,007 wells drilled for CBM by 2004 in Alabama, 3,474 wells remained in production in 2004 (Ala bama State Oil and Gas Board, 2004). Wells commonly are completed in the Black Creek (7 ft cumulative coal thickness (CCT)), Mary Lee (12 ft CCT), and Pratt coal zones (6 ft CCT). In Alabama, annual CBM production for 1993 to 2007 exceeded 100 BCF (fig. 15, table 2), cumulative production through 2007 exceeded 2 TCF, and reserves may exceed 3 TCF (Alabama State Oil and Gas Board, 2008). The northern part of the coal field in Alabama is under lain by a generally thinner coal-bearing stratigraphic section than that in the Black Warrior basin to the south, less coal is mined, and the methane resources of the region have not yet been exploited (Pashin and Hinkle, 1997). The Cahaba basin, which produces much less methane than the Black Warrior basin, lies in an elongated, northeast-oriented synclinal trend (figs. 1 and 13) within the folded and faulted Appalachian Mountains, about 6 miles southeast of the Black Warrior basin (Pashin and others, 1995). Methane production in the Cahaba basin is from coal beds of the Pottsville Formation of Early Pennsylvanian age. Conclusions In Alabama, in the southern part of the Appalachian basin, coalbed-methane development may be regarded as mature; the annual production in Alabama from 1998 through 2007 was relatively constant and ranged from 112 to 121 BCF. Through 2007, cumulative CBM production was more than 2 TCF. An opportunity still exists for additional growth in the Pocahontas basin. In 2005, annual CBM production in the Pocahontas basin in Virginia and West Virginia was 85 BCF. The CBM potential of deeper coal beds in eastern Kentucky is relatively untested. The Dunkard basin is not fully explored. Large, diffuse CBM resources of the northern Appalachian coal region in northern West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania may be better exploited in the future as our geologic understanding of the occurrence of CBM increases and as exploration strategies and drilling and completion technologies improve. References Cited Alabama State Oil and Gas Board, 2004, Monthly field/ plant summaries: Tuscaloosa, Ala., Alabama State Oil and Gas Board Web site at http://www.ogb.state.al.us/ogb/ month_prod_sum.html. (Accessed August 22, 2006.) 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Milici, R.C., 2004, Assessment of Appalachian basin oil and gas resources; Carboniferous Coal-bed Gas Total Petroleum System: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2004– 1272, 98 p., available only online at http://pubs.usgs.gov/ of/2004/1272/. (Accessed August 9, 2006; superseded by USGS Professional Paper 1708–G.1, in this volume.) Milici, R.C., Freeman, P.A., and Bragg, L.J., 2001, Chapter H—A digital resource model of the Lower Pennsylvanian Pocahontas No. 3 coal bed, Pottsville Group, central Appa lachian basin coal region, in Northern and Central Appala chian Basin Coal Regions Assessment Team, 2000 resource assessment of selected coal beds and zones in the northern and central Appalachian basin coal regions (ver. 1.0): U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1625–C, p. H1–H57, on CD-ROM. (Version 1.01 is available online at http:// pubs.usgs.gov/pp/p1625c/.) Milici, R.C., and Hatch, J.R., 2004, Assessment of undiscov ered Carboniferous coal-bed gas resources of the Appala chian Basin and Black Warrior Basin Provinces, 2002: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2004–3092, 2 p. (Also avail able online at http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2004/3092/.) Milici, R.C., Ryder, R.T., Swezey, C.S., Charpentier, R.R., Cook, T.A., Crovelli, R.A., Klett, T.R., Pollastro, R.M., and Schenk, C.J. (all of the U.S. Geological Survey, Appala chian Basin Province Assessment Team), 2003, Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of the Appalachian Basin Province, 2002: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet FS–009–03, 2 p. (Also available online at http://pubs.usgs. gov/fs/fs-009-03/.) Nolde, J.E., 1994a, Coal beds, coal zones, and key strati graphic names in the Pennsylvanian units of southwestern Virginia: Virginia Division of Mineral Resources Publica tion 136, 1 sheet.
6 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin Nolde, J.E., 1994b, Devonian to Pennsylvanian stratigraphy and coal beds of the Appalachian Plateaus province, in Geology and mineral resources of the southwest Virginia coalfield: Virginia Division of Mineral Resources Publica tion 131, p. 1–85. Nolde, J.E., and Spears, David, 1998, A preliminary assess ment of in place coalbed methane resources in the Virginia portion of the central Appalachian basin: International Jour nal of Coal Geology, v. 38, no. 1–2, p. 115–136. Northern and Central Appalachian Basin Coal Regions Assess ment Team, 2001, 2000 resource assessment of selected coal beds and zones in the northern and central Appala chian basin coal regions (ver. 1.0): U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1625–C, on 2 CD-ROMs. (Contains 10 chapters lettered A–J.) (Version 1.01 is available online at http://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/p1625c/.) Pashin, J.C., Carroll, R.E., Barnett, R.L., and Beg, M.A., 1995, Geology and coal resources of the Cahaba coal field: Geological Survey of Alabama Bulletin 163, 49 p., 2 pls. in pocket. Pashin, J.C., and Hinkle, Frank, 1997, Coalbed methane in Alabama: Geological Survey of Alabama Circular 192, 71 p. Patchen, D.G., Schwietering, J.F., Avary, K.L., and Repine, T.E., 1991, Coalbed gas production, Big Run and Pine Grove fields, Wetzel County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey Publication C–44, 33 p. Pennsylvania Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey, 2014, Pennsylvania coalbed methane wells database: Pennsylvania Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey database accessed on May 14, 2014, at http://www.dcnr. state.pa.us/topogeo/econresource/cbm/cbm_stats/index.htm. Pennsylvania Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey, 2007, CBM and water production for 1988–2006: Middle town, Pa., Pennsylvania Bureau of Topographic and Geo logic Survey, table, 41 p., available online at http://www. dcnr.state.pa.us/topogeo/cbm/cbmwaterprod88-06sr.pdf. (Accessed June 2, 2008, no longer available.) Rice, D.D., and Finn, T.M., 1996, Coalbed gas plays, in Appalachian Basin Province (067), in Coal-bed gas play summary, in Gautier, D.L., Dolton, G.L., Takahashi, K.I., and Varnes, K.L., eds., 1995 national assessment of United States oil and gas resources—Results, methodology, and supporting data: U.S. Geological Survey Digital Data Series DDS–30, release 2, 1 CD-ROM. (Also available at http:// certmapper.cr.usgs.gov/data/noga95/prov67/text/prov67.pdf; scroll down to page 64. Accessed September 18, 2014.) Sweet, P.C., and Nolde, J.E., 1999, Coal, oil and gas, and industrial and metallic minerals industries in Virginia, 1998: Virginia Division of Mineral Resources Publication 153, 25 p. U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2007, US coalbed methane; Past, present, and future, panel 2 of 2: U.S. Energy Information Administration poster available online at http:// www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/rpd/cbmusa2.pdf. (Accessed July 11, 2008.) Virginia Center for Coal and Energy Research, 2004 and 2006, Virginia energy patterns and trends—Coal bed methane production by county; Number of coalbed [sic] gas wells by county: Blacksburg, Va., Virginia Center for Coal and Energy Research, tables, available online at http://www. energy.vt.edu/vept/naturalgas/gas_county.asp and http:// www.energy.vt.edu/vept/naturalgas/wells_county.asp. (Accessed in 2004 and on August 22, 2006, and August 4, 2008.) Virginia Division of Gas and Oil [2007], Gas and oil pro duction statistics [for 1999–2006 by county or operator]: Virginia Division of Gas and Oil Web site at http://www. dmme.virginia.gov/DGO/Production/gasoilproductionstats. shtml. (Accessed June 11, 2008. Production statistics are now available at http://www.dmme.virginia.gov/dgoinquiry/ frmmain.aspx, accessed May 21, 2014.) West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey, 2006, WVGES summary data and statistics, coal-bed meth ane (CBM) wells [in West Virginia]: Morgantown, West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey Web site at http://www.wvgs.wvnet.edu/www/datastat/datastat.htm. (Accessed August 22, 2006.) Wolfe, M.E., 1997, Coalbed methane—An untapped energy resource in Ohio: Ohio Geology, summer 1977, available online at http://www.ohiodnr.com/geosurvey/oh_geol/97_ summer/methane.htm. (Accessed August 22, 2006, no longer available.)
Figures 1–15 and Tables 1 and 2
8 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin Figure 1 - R efer to Captio n
Chapter G.2 Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin 9 Figure 1 (facing page). Map of the central and southern parts of the Appalachian structural basin showing oil and gas provinces and assessment units used by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) during the 2002 National Oil and Gas Assessment (Milici and others, 2003; Milici and Hatch, 2004). Figure from Milici (this volume, chap. G.1, fig. 1A). The focus in this report is on coalbed-methane (CBM) production from the major CBM-producing areas in the Appalachians, which are in the Dunkard basin, the Pocahontas basin, and a part of the Black Warrior basin in Alabama; the locations of these basins are generally shown on the map by the assessment units named for them.
10 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin Figure 2. Map showing major coalbed-methane (CBM) fields (names in small black type) and CBM wells of the Dunkard basin. From Milici (this volume, chap. G.1, fig. 12). Locations of CBM wells from Markowski (2000) and Avary (2004). Selected counties are labeled. The Dunkard basin is shown in figure 1; only its northeastern part has CBM fields. Figure 2 - Refer to Capt i on
Chapter G.2 Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin 11 Figure Refer to Caption Figure 3. Chart showing major coal beds of the Dunkard basin. Figure from Milici (this volume, chap. G.1, fig. 4).
12 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin Figure 4. Map showing cumulative production of coalbed methane (CBM) for selected counties in the Dunkard basin by 2005. CBM production data from sources identified in table 1. Figure from Milici (this volume, chap. G.1, fig. 14). BCF, billion cubic feet; MMCF, million cubic feet. Figure 4 - Refer to Cap t i on
Chapter G.2 Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin 13 Figure 5. Map showing location of abandoned anticlinal coalbed-methane (CBM) fields in northern West Virginia (adapted from Patchen and others, 1991). Contours are elevations above sea level, in feet. Figure 5 - Refe r to Ca ption
14 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin Figu re 6 - R efer to Capt ion Figure 6. Graph showing coalbed-methane (CBM) annual and cumulative production from 1992 through 2004 in Monongalia County, W. Va., from about 50 wells drilled into the gob of underground mines in the Pittsburgh coal bed. Data from West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey (2006). MMCF, million cubic feet.
Chapter G.2 Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin 15 Figu re 7 - R efer to Capt ion Figure 7. Graph showing coalbed-methane (CBM) annual and cumulative production from 1987 through 2005 in the Dunkard basin in Pennsylvania and northern West Virginia. Data from Pennsylvania Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey (2007) and West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey (2006). BCF, billion cubic feet.
16 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin Figure 8. Map showing cumulative production of coalbed methane (CBM) for selected counties in the Pocahontas basin. CBM production data from sources identified in table 1. BCF, billion cubic feet; MCF, thousand cubic feet; MMCF, million cubic feet; TCF, trillion cubic feet. Figure Refe r to Capti on
Chapter G.2 Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin 17 Figu re 9 - R efer to Capt ion Figure 9. Graph showing coalbed-methane (CBM) annual and cumulative production from 1993 through 2004 from the Bradshaw, Slab Fork, and Welch fields in McDowell, Wyoming, and Raleigh Counties, W. Va. Production was from about 100 wells in the Beckley and Pocahontas coal beds. Data from West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey (2006). BCF, billion cubic feet.
18 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin Figu re 1 Refe r to Cap tion Figure 10. Graph showing coalbed-methane (CBM) annual and cumulative production from 1988 through 2004 in Virginia. Production in 2004 was from about 2,557 wells. Data from Nolde and Spears (1998), Sweet and Nolde (1999), and Virginia Center for Coal and Energy Research (2006). BCF, billion cubic feet.
Chapter G.2 Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin 19 Figu re 1 Refe r to Cap tion Figure 11. Graph showing coalbed-methane (CBM) annual and cumulative production from 1988 through 2005 in the Pocahontas basin in Virginia and southern West Virginia. Data from West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey (2006) and Virginia Division of Gas and Oil (2007). BCF, billion cubic feet.
20 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin Figure 12 - Refer to Caption Figure 12. Chart showing stratigraphic nomenclature for Lower Pennsylvanian formations, sandstones, and coal beds in coalbedmethane (CBM) fields in the Pocahontas basin in southwestern Virginia and adjacent West Virginia. The selected coal beds listed include those in which wells have been completed for CBM. Data from Arkle and others (1979), Englund (1979), Nolde (1994a,b), and Milici, Freeman, and Bragg (2001). Figure from Milici (this volume, chap. G.1, fig. 18).
Chapter G.2 Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin 21 Figure 13 - Ref er to Cap tion Figure 13. Map showing cumulative production of coalbed methane (CBM) for selected counties in the Black Warrior, Cahaba, and Coosa basins of Alabama by 2003. CBM production data from sources identified in table 1. Well locations from Jack Pashin (Geological Survey of Alabama, written commun., 2003).
22 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin Figure 14. Chart showing stratigraphic nomenclature for Lower Pennsylvanian units in the Black Warrior basin, Alabama. From Pashin and Hinkle (1997). Figure Refer to Caption
Chapter G.2 Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin 23 Figur e 15 - Ref er to Ca p tio n Figure 15. Graph showing coalbed-methane (CBM) annual and cumulative production from 1980 through 2007 in the Black Warrior and Cahaba basins in Alabama. Data from Alabama State Oil and Gas Board (2008). BCF, billion cubic feet.
24 Coal and Petroleum Resources in the Appalachian Basin Table 1. Cumulative production of coalbed methane (CBM) from the Appalachian basin, by county. [Sources of data: Alabama State Oil and Gas Board (2004), Kentucky Division of Oil and Gas Conservation (2004), Pennsylvania Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey (2006), Virginia Center for Coal and Energy Research (2004), Virginia Division of Gas and Oil (2007), and West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey (2006). Terms used: MCF, thousand cubic feet; ND, no data] Basin State and county Year of first production Cumulative production date Number of producing wells as of cumulative production date CBM cumulative production (MCF) Black Warrior Alabama: Bibb1 10/31/2003 Greene 10/31/2003 99,565 Hale 10/31/2003 111,543 Jefferson 10/31/2003 184,658,319 Pickens 10/31/2003 1,873 Shelby 10/31/2003 3,969,067 Tuscaloosa 10/31/2003 3,096 1,310,241,313 Walker 10/31/2003 18,937,713 Subtotal Black Warrior basin 3,853 1,518,019,393 Pocahontas Virginia: Buchanan 1,927 509,961,998 Dickenson 120,524,623 Russell 35,177,817 Tazewell 19,363,221 Wise 10,974,626 Subtotal 3,677 696,002,285 West Virginia: Logan McDowell 18,019,064 Raleigh 563,607 Wyoming 39,406,547 Subtotal 57,989,636 Kentucky: Bell 7,674 Clay 56,478 Leslie ND Letcher ND Subtotal 64,152 Subtotal Pocahontas basin 3,999 754,056,073 Dunkard Pennsylvania: Cambria 197,472 Fayette 494,959 Greene 2,198,704 Indiana 6,597,910 Washington 1,472,837 Westmoreland 322,478 Subtotal 11,284,360 West Virginia: Barbour 146,386 Marion 589,601 Marshall ND 407,711 Monongalia 2,716,830 Wetzel2 2,213,095 Subtotal 6,073,623 Subtotal Dunkard basin3 17,357,983 Appalachian basin total3 8,141 2,289,433,449 1Most production in Bibb County, Ala., was from the Cahaba basin (fig. 1), and so the 583 MCF are not included in the totals for the Black Warrior basin and Appalachian basin. 2Includes production data for the Big Run field from Patchen and others (1991). 3Small amounts of gas produced in Harrison County, Ohio, are not included.
Chapter G.2 Coalbed-Methane Production in the Appalachian Basin 25 Table 2. Coalbed-methane (CBM) annual and cumulative production from 1980 through 2007 in the Black Warrior and Cahaba basins in Alabama. [Data from Alabama State Oil and Gas Board (2008). MCF, thousand cubic feet] Year CBM production (MCF) Annual Cumulative 4,613 4,613 48,526 53,139 1,623,575 1,676,714 3,405,791 5,082,505 6,428,950 11,511,455 8,650,891 20,162,346 13,065,686 33,228,032 17,017,556 50,245,588 19,867,671 70,113,259 23,403,661 93,516,920 36,479,405 129,996,325 67,912,166 197,908,491 91,923,808 289,832,299 105,103,320 394,935,619 111,100,817 506,036,436 112,490,177 618,526,613 112,955,584 731,482,197 113,915,873 845,398,070 116,946,209 962,344,279 114,657,648 1,077,001,927 112,393,459 1,189,395,386 113,527,128 1,302,922,514 115,948,503 1,418,871,017 119,403,160 1,538,274,177 121,443,917 1,659,718,094 116,531,583 1,776,249,677 116,623,703 1,892,873,380 114,980,535 2,007,853,915