Introduction:

Natural gas has a major share in the energy mix of Pakistan. With the increase in human development and
the increasing population, the demand for the natural gas in our country is experiencing an increasing
trend. The ever-widening gap between energy demand and supply and the natural decline in the
conventional natural gas fields can be solved by moving into the unconventional resources which are
enormous deposits and an excellent potential.

In the unconventional portfolio, Pakistan has got significant deposits of Tight Gas, Shale gas, Coal-Bedded
Methane and Gas Hydrates. Among these Tight Gas is the most technologically and commercially
attractive asset for the E&P companies. The tight gas reserves of Pakistan are estimated to be around 27-
40 TSCF.

Tight gas is the dry natural gas trapped in very low permeable reservoirs which cannot be produced at
commercial rates without the use of The value of effective permeability differs from region to region.
For some engineer’s matrix permeabilities of less than 1µd are considered tight while for others
permeabilities of 30 to 50 md are tight. According to the Tight Gas Policy of Pakistan, tight gas is defined
as natural gas that has estimated value of effective permeability less than “1.0 milli Darcy(Md)”

Current State of the Art:

Presently, in Pakistan a few tight gas projects are being undertaken by the national companies and are in
the initial stages of development. With the introduction of Tight Gas (Exploration & Production) Policy
2011, companies are encouraged to invest in this paradigm and offered premium on tight gas
development.

The development of tight gas is largely affected by the attractive gas prices, as extraction requires cutting-
edge technologies for achieving commercial flowrates. Moreover, gas sales price should be higher than
conventional wellhead price. Although, tight gas has a promising potential, developing them is a great
technological and economical challenge that the engineers are required to overcome.

Challenges:
To achieve success in unconventional reservoirs an unconventional thinking and approach is required. The
challenge is to optimize the investments to have increased Estimated Ultimate Recovery (EUR) by
sensitizing well placement, stimulation program, type of well, completion strategies and the most
importantly the economic constraints according to the company’s strategy.

The three major challenges in the development of tight gas reservoirs are:

 Reliable and timely Estimation of Original Gas in Place (OGIP) and Estimated Ultimate Recovery
(EUR) with the uncertainty present in reservoir characterization.
 Implementing the different development strategies that will accelerate and increase the ultimate
field productivity rate.
  The above two challenges must be in accordance with the economic model that maximizes the
NPV and IRR targets of a company.

Motivation and Need:

Tight gas is an area of increasing interest and research in the petroleum industry as more and more focus
is on developing the unconventional resources. A lot of companies continue to use evaluation methods
for conventional reservoirs which when applied to tight gas gives significant reserve assessment to be
incorrect.

Moreover, there is a great room for optimization as a lot of inefficient development is executed. Finding
the right answers to the tight gas problem will be helpful in the energy self-sufficiency of Pakistan.

OBJECTIVES AND DELIVERABLES:

A new method applied to a tight gas field in Pakistan to its reserve estimation using different methods
including decline curves methods and numerical simulation and comparing the results. Fracture
propagation studies and fracture network modelling to efficiently drain the whole reservoir volume.
Moreover, lifetime production performance prediction of a multistage hydraulically fractured horizontal
well to increase the Estimated Ultimate Recovery (EUR) of the field. Finally, development of a powerful
economic model to be applied on the field to maximize the company’s strategic NPV and IRR criterion.

Strategy:

The above stated objectives would be achieved by using recent improved techniques of decline curves
and simulation models using ECLIPSE simulator to predict performance of the field. A probabilistic
approach will be implemented in defining reserves by applying applying different statistical models.

For best field development strategy selection an optimum well placement and recovery per well is to be
sensitized keeping in mind the best economics and the NPV of the field. Excel sheets would be employed
for the economic analysis.

Expected Results:

The results are expected to give a comparative analysis of the reserves estimation techniques suitable for
the field in Pakistan and point out which is the most realistic technique available. The simulation results
will aid in deciding optimum well spacing and type of wells, horizontal section length and well stimulation
program. The economic model will be the major controlling tool for the development decisions.