USGS Gas Hydrates Project
The primary objective of this project was to develop gas hydrate resource assessment methodologies in conjunction with the USGS National Oil and Gas Assessment.Abstract
The Alaska North Slope (ANS) Project was focused on determining what would be the ultimate resource potential of the known gas hydrate and associated free-gas accumulations on the North Slope. This project was designed to (1) provide the scientific foundation for drilling of gas hydrates on ANS and Mackenzie Delta; (2) implement regular assessments of the in-place and recoverable energy resource potential of onshore gas hydrates and associated free gas; (3) understand the environmental impacts of hydrate production in permafrost and marine settings; (4) develop conceptual models for source-migration-reservoir hydrate systems; and (5) develop quantitative source-migration-reservoir models of hydrate occurrence. The ANS task was a cooperative effort with BLM-AK, State of Alaska (DOG-DGGS), and DOE, in which specific accumulations of gas hydrate/free gas accumulations were studied. One goal of this project was to conduct a resource assessment of the technically recoverable gas hydrate resources on the North Slope, which was completed in 2008. This was the first time that any gas hydrate resource assessment included anything other than in-place numbers. Gas hydrates represents a potentially vast energy resource, but much is still unknown about its occurrence, distribution, formation, and recovery. Study of gas hydrates on land, in an area that will likely see the first development of gas hydrates (ANS), has facilitated our understanding of these resources.
Products
| Title | Type |
|---|---|
| Energy Resources Program - Gas Hydrates | Project Website |
Contacts
Collett, Timothy S., 303-236-5731Status: completed
Start Year: 2003
End Year: 2007
Project Sites
Location
Kuparuk RiverPrudhoe Bay
USGS Mission Area and Program
Energy and Minerals → Energy ResourcesKeywords
Human Dimensions > Economic ResourcesHuman Dimensions > Economic Resources > Oil/Gas Production
Solid Earth > Natural Resources
Solid Earth > Natural Resources > Gas Hydrates
Solid Earth > Natural Resources > Natural Gas