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New Mexico (SWS)

Explorer Article By Heather Saucier

High Prospects for Helium in Arizona’s Holbrook Basin

The need for helium is growing and supplies in the United States are dwindling, creating an economic opportunity for geoscientists whose knowledge and skills are ideal for this niche industry. In Arizona, known for its helium-rich formations, a growing number of companies are leasing land and drilling for the gas.

Added on 01 March, 2023

Explorer Article By Barry Friedman

Predicting and Mitigating Induced Seismicity

Question: If the science of predicting the risks and mitigation of induced seismicity, figuratively speaking, was a glass of hydraulic fracturing injection fluid, would it be half full or half empty? The answer is . . . yes. One on hand, geoscientists are getting better about predicting the when and where of seismicity; on the other, there is a lot more seismicity in a lot more places that have to be predicted.

Added on 01 September, 2022

Explorer Historical Highlights By Raymond Pierson

The San Juan Basin at 100 Years

Natural gas was first commercially discovered in the San Juan Basin of New Mexico in 1921, making this year the Basin’s centennial. The first San Juan Basin natural gas strike occurred one mile south of Aztec, N.M., when the Aztec Oil Syndicate completed their No. 1 State. Production was found at a depth of about 1,000 feet. The gas discovered south of Aztec was piped into town and used domestically throughout most of the 1920s. This was the first commercial use of natural gas in New Mexico or the San Juan Basin. Located in northwest New Mexico and southwest Colorado, the San Juan is one of the largest gas basins in the United States, along with the Marcellus in the Appalachian Basin and the greater Hugoton Field of Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas.

Added on 01 December, 2021

Explorer Article By Barry Friedman

The Quest for the Best in the Permian Basin

If you have ever wondered what Robert Southey, who wrote “Goldilocks,” Lewis Carroll, who wrote “Alice in Wonderland,” and W.H. Adams, widely credited with discovering the Permian Basin, have in common – and you would be forgiven if you haven’t – then this month’s AAPG Global Super Basins Leadership Conference will be the occasion to find out. Because someone from Chevron has been thinking about that very comparison – both from the perspective of how the company is working to use the Permian as a template for future exploration and also because it sums up the state of affairs in 2020 about as well as anything.

Added on 01 January, 2021

Bulletin Article By Hugh Daigle,Kehua You,P. Kevin Meazell,Peter B. Flemings,Stephen C. Phillips,Yi Fang

Geochemical characterization and classification of crude oils of the Permian Basin, west Texas and southeastern New Mexico

Analysis of 50 oil samples indicate the presence of 5 genetic groups in the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico. The results of the study have established a fundamental basis for developing play combinations, which embrace genetically similar oils.

Added on 21 December, 2020

Explorer Article By Heather Saucier

'We Need Explorationists for New Minerals'

As companies work toward developing alternative sources for a world with ever-increasing energy demands, energy minerals are moving to the forefront of the conversation. AAPG’s Energy Minerals Division finds itself in the spotlight these days for its work in prospecting alternative energy sources, such as geothermal and hydrates, for commercial use. “We’ve got good momentum right now with interest in alternative energy,” said Ursula Hammes, AAPG Member, EMD president and president at Hammes Energy and Consultants.

Added on 01 December, 2020

Explorer Emphasis Article By David Brown

Super Basins and Sustainability

Do super basins have a role in sustainable development? The short answer is, Yes. Super basins can be part of a sustainable energy and environmental future for the planet. A more complex answer is: It depends on how you define “sustainable.” In the view of the oil and gas industry, sustainability has an economic component and an environmental component. Hydrocarbon-based energy is essential for a sustainable world economy in that view, and it will be for a long time to come.

Added on 01 November, 2020

Explorer Article By David Brown

Source of Confusion

Understanding source rock provides a key to evaluating the hydrocarbon potential of super basins and an important tool for basin exploration. Geologists get the basics right, in general, but sometimes they might be thinking about source rock the wrong way. They are definitely talking about it in the wrong way.

Added on 01 August, 2020

Explorer Article By David Brown

Gulf of Mexico Still a Standout for Super Basin Exploration

Super basins around the world offer plentiful opportunities for exploration and development, even with the temporarily reduced financial outlook of the oil industry. Ask explorationists to pick a favorite in today’s environment and the popular choice is almost a cheat. The Gulf of Mexico isn’t just a super basin. It’s a huge expanse of prospects and possibilities, of proven resources and potential reserves. An onshore, near-shore, offshore and deepwater exploration province that is really a vast collection of basins and geological features.

Added on 01 July, 2020

Explorer Article By David Brown

Can Big River Theory Explain the Permian’s Prolific Production?

The history of the Permian Basin reads like a detective novel in reverse. Geoscientists know how the story turns out. They’re trying to determine exactly how it started. Robert Stern, a professor of geosciences at the University of Texas at Dallas, thinks he and a group of fellow scientists have solved one important part of the mystery. Stern. “We know oil is limited by the nutrients. Oil just doesn’t suddenly appear,” he said. That raises the question, “How did all those nutrients get there?”

Added on 01 April, 2020

Online e-Symposium

Thursday, 2 October 2014, 2:00 p.m.–3:00 p.m.

Concepts of Scale: Horizontal Development of Wolfcamp Shale Oil of the Southern Midland Basin

This course is ideal for individuals involved in Midland Basin exploration and development. Successful development of Wolfcamp shale oil relies on complex inter-relationships (ultimately interdependencies) within and between a wide variety of scientific disciplines, financial entities, and company partnerships.

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