Utica shale
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The '''Utica shale''' formation ranges between 300 and 1,000 feet thick. | The '''Utica shale''' formation ranges between 300 and 1,000 feet thick. | ||
It is an ''Upper Ordovician'' shale that is 440 to 460 million years old. It is considerably deeper than the [[Marcellus shale]] which is part of the ''Middle Devonian'' formation. It is immediately below the [[Lorraine shale]] formation. Utica rocks are porous, thick, brittle and over-pressured. These factors are very conducive to [[Hydro-fracturing|artificial fracture stimulation]]. | It is an ''Upper Ordovician'' shale that is 440 to 460 million years old. It is considerably deeper than the [[Marcellus shale]] which is part of the ''Middle Devonian'' formation. It is immediately below the [[Lorraine shale]] formation. Utica rocks are porous, thick, brittle and over-pressured. These factors are very conducive to [[Hydro-fracturing|artificial fracture stimulation]]. |
Revision as of 17:53, 5 May 2010
The Utica shale formation ranges between 300 and 1,000 feet thick. It is an Upper Ordovician shale that is 440 to 460 million years old. It is considerably deeper than the Marcellus shale which is part of the Middle Devonian formation. It is immediately below the Lorraine shale formation. Utica rocks are porous, thick, brittle and over-pressured. These factors are very conducive to artificial fracture stimulation.
This shale play is located in the Saint Lawrence Lowlands of Quebec, Canada, Montreal and in central New York especially in Chenango, Delaware, Herkimer, Oneida and Otsego Counties. The Canadian and U.S. parts of the play are separated by the Adirondack dome. Utica shale also underlies much of the northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan, but is virtually undeveloped there with the exception of one well drilled in Missaukee County, MI during the winter of 2010.
The Utica shale formation is relatively underdeveloped, so the quantity of natural gas there and its commercial viability are difficult to assess given so little drilling experience. However, there has been apparent success in drilling the Utica shale formation in Quebec Province, Canada in the Saint Lawrence Lowlands.