Residual Oil Zone Offers Vast New Resource For CO_2 Flooding

摘要

Carbon dioxide flooding in the United States now produces 260,000 barrels of oil a day (of 280,000 bb1/d worldwide), representing 5.6 percent of U.S. production. Production would be even higher if growth in the Permian Basin was not limited by CO_2 supply. There is an exciting new concept gaining acceptance that could vastly increase the target for CO_2 flooding: residual oil zone (ROZ) flooding. Steve Melzer of Melzer Consulting explained the concept at the annual meeting of the Interstate Oil & Gas Compact Commission in November.