Petroleum geologist predicts long, slow demise of Bakken
By Jack Dura
Farmer Staff Writer
As the Bakken region experiences an uptick in activity, one expert says the shale play is starting to tap out.
Petroleum geologist Art Berman posits in his article, “The Beginning of the End for the Bakken Shale Oil Play,” that declining Bakken oil production likely isn’t reversible as evidence of deteriorating well performance, changing gas-oil ratios and increasing water cut mean an ultimate demise for North Dakota’s oil patch.
“Much of the reservoir energy from gas expansion is depleted and decline rates should accelerate,” Berman wrote. “More drilling may increase daily output for a while but won’t resolve the underlying problem of poorer well performance and declining per-well reserves.”
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