Society of Petroleum Engineers Permian Basin

EOR is Gaining New Interest in

Unconventional Basins 

Dr. Stuart L Scott, Texas Tech University 

ABSTRACT - Over half of US oil production comes from low permeability sands and shale plays in the Permian, Williston and Eagle Ford Basins with an estimated original-oil-in-place (OOIP) of over 3 trillion barrels. So far, this production has been limited to “drill and drain” methods with the associated rapid decline and meager oil recoveries, leaving well over 90% of the OOIP in the reservoir.  Recently, Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) has been gaining attention as a possible way to boost recovery and production from existing wells using existing infrastructure.    However, EOR projects have traditionally been hindered by both economic and technical challenges.  This presentation discusses the potential of EOR in Unconventionals and highlights Huff & Puff methods that recently have been investigated.  These methods include gas injection, surfactant injection, y-grade injection, gas-surfactant co-injection and other methods. This presentation provides an update on the status of industry efforts and a comparison of the economics of the various methods, some of which can add reserves at a cost of less than $20/BO. Finally, methods of enhancing artificial lift, to provide faster recovery of injected water in gas lift wells, are highlighted.   Note the window may close for EOR on many wells, as thousands of horizontal wells in US basins have aged, are producing at low rates and are moving toward plugging and abandonment (P&A). Fortunately, some EOR methods have emerging as cost effective means of boosting base production and are moving into widespread adoption in 2026.        

Dr. Stuart L. Scott is the Herald W. Winkler Chair of Petroleum Engineering at Texas Tech University (TTU).   Prior to joining TTU, he was the Principal Artificial Lift Advisor for ConocoPhillips in the Permian.  Before rejoining ConocoPhillips, Scott worked for PetroleumETC and founded EOR ETC.  From 2008 to 2016, he managed the deepwater artificial lift technology program for Shell Oil and served several years as Shell’s Global Artificial Lift/Pumping Principal Technical Expert (PTE). Before joining Shell, Scott held the Bethancourt Professorship of Petroleum Engineering at Texas A&M University, was a faculty member at Louisiana State University, and worked for Phillips Petroleum Company in a variety of roles. He is a Distinguished Member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) and a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME).  Scott served as Chair of the ASME Petroleum Division Executive Committee 2022-2023.    Scott holds a B.S. in Petroleum Engineering, an M.S. in Computer Science, and a Ph.D. in Petroleum Engineering all from the University of Tulsa.