An Assessment of the Net Fluid Balance in the Alberta Basin

Mahendra Samaroo, Rick Chalaturnyk, Maurice Dusseault, Richard Jackson, Arndt Buhlmann and Hans Custers
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Mahendra Samaroo: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2R3, Canada
Rick Chalaturnyk: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2R3, Canada
Maurice Dusseault: Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada
Richard Jackson: Geofirma Engineering, Ottawa, ON K1R 1A2, Canada
Arndt Buhlmann: Alberta Department of Energy, Edmonton, AB T5K 2G6, Canada
Hans Custers: Alberta Department of Energy, Edmonton, AB T5K 2G6, Canada

Energies, 2022, vol. 15, issue 3, 1-32

Abstract: Net fluid balance in the Alberta Basin has been negative over the last 60 years because extensive fluid production has consistently exceeded injection during this period. However, future gigaton-scale carbon sequestration, among other activities, can result in future cumulative fluid injection exceeding extraction (i.e., a positive net fluid balance). The in-situ net fluid balance (i.e., total fluids produced minus total fluids injected) in this basin over the period 1960–2020 shows that a liquids deficit of 4.53 × 10 9 m 3 and a gas deficit of 6.05 × 10 12 m 3 currently exist. However, fluid deficits are more significant in the upper stratigraphic intervals (located more than 1 km above the Precambrian Basement) than in the stratigraphic intervals located within 1 km of the Precambrian Basement in most geographic regions. This observation indicates that greater sustainable injection capacity for large-scale fluid injection may exist in the upper stratigraphic intervals (located at more than 1 km above the Precambrian Basement), reducing the potential for generating induced seismicity of concern. Additionally, while fluid depletion rates consistently increased over most of the last 60 years in the Alberta Basin, this trend appears to have changed over the past few years. Such analysis of regional net fluid balance and trends may be useful in assessing regional sustainable fluid storage capacity and managing induced seismicity hazards.

Keywords: net fluid balance; sustainable injection capacity; induced seismicity hazard; Alberta Basin; basin-scale depletion; basin-scale re-pressurization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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