U.S. Oil, Natural Gas Proved Reserves Shatter Records in 2017: EIA

SEATTLE (Oil Monster): US proved crude oil and natural gas reserves hit record highs last year, roughly doubling in size over a decade, the US Energy Information Administration reported Thursday.

"Stronger oil and natural gas prices combined with continuing development of shales and low permeability formations drove these new all-time record levels of proved reserves," the agency said in a new report.

The report measured proved reserves, the oil and gas volumes that geological and engineering data show with a reasonable certainty can be recovered from known reservoirs under existing economic and operating conditions.

US crude proved reserves reached 39.2 billion barrels in 2017, up 6.4 billion barrels from 2016, a nearly 20% increase year on year. Crude oil plus lease condensate reserves climbed to42 billion barrels in 2017, up 6.8 billion barrels, or more than 19%, from 2016, EIA said.

The largest statewide increase came from Texas, where producers added 3.3 billion barrels of crude oiland lease condensate on development of the Permian Basin's Spraberry Trend and Wolfcamp/Bone Spring shale play, the EIA said. New Mexico added 1 billion barrels, while the Gulf of Mexico added 729 million barrels, the agency said.

Natural gas proved reserves reached 464.3 Tcf in 2017, up 123.2 Tcf , or 36%, from 2016. The largest statewide increase came from Pennsylvania where producers added 28.1 Tcf of proved reserves, according to the report. Texas added 26.9 Tcf and Louisiana added 18.4 Tcf last year, the EIA said.

"The share of natural gas proved reserves from shale increased from 62% of total U.S. natural gas proved reserves in 2016 to 66% in 2017," the EIA said.

Courtesy: www.spglobal.com