How much gas is in the Marcellus Shale?
According to the USGS assessment, the Marcellus Shale contains about 84 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered, technically recoverable natural gas and 3.4 billion barrels of undiscovered, technically recoverable natural gas liquids.
Undiscovered resources are those that are estimated to exist based on geologic knowledge and theory, while technically recoverable resources are those that can be produced using currently available technology and industry practices. Whether or not it is profitable to produce these resources has not been evaluated.
The Marcellus Shale assessment covered areas in Kentucky, Maryland, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Related Content
Why is the USGS resource assessment for Marcellus Shale so low, compared to the Energy Information Administration and the petroleum industry’s assessments?
What is the difference between assessed “resources” and “reserves”? Why doesn’t the USGS assess both?
When will the full USGS study of the Marcellus shale gas be available?
What are the different columns on a USGS oil and gas resource assessment table?
Factors controlling Li concentration and isotopic composition in formation waters and host rocks of Marcellus Shale, Appalachian Basin
In this study, water and whole rock samples from hydraulically fractured wells in the Marcellus Shale (Middle Devonian), and water from conventional wells producing from Upper Devonian sandstones were analyzed for lithium concentrations and isotope ratios (δ7Li). The distribution of lithium concentrations in different mineral groups was...
Phan, Thai T.; Capo, Rosemary C; Stewart, Brian W.; Macpherson, Gwen; Rowan, Elisabeth L.; Hammack, Richard W.
Characterization of the Marcellus Shale based on computer-assisted correlation of wireline logs in Virginia and West Virginia
The Middle Devonian Marcellus Shale in the Appalachian basin extends from central Ohio on the west to eastern New York on the east, and from north-central New York on the north to northern Tennessee on the south. Its thickness ranges from 0 feet (ft) where it pinches out to the west to as much as 700 ft in its eastern extent. Within the Broadtop...
Enomoto, Catherine B.; Olea, Ricardo A.; Coleman, James L.
Information relevant to the U.S. Geological Survey assessment of the Middle Devonian Shale of the Appalachian Basin Province, 2011
The U.S. Geological Survey recently assessed the potential for natural gas resources in the Middle Devonian Marcellus Shale of the Appalachian Basin Province. The Marcellus Shale was assessed as a continuous gas accumulation using a methodology identical to that used in the assessment of shale and other continuous-type assessment units throughout...
Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of the Devonian Marcellus Shale of the Appalachian Basin Province
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) estimated a mean undiscovered natural gas resource of 84,198 billion cubic feet and a mean undiscovered natural gas liquids resource of 3,379 million barrels in the Devonian Marcellus Shale within the Appalachian Basin Province. All this resource occurs in continuous...
Coleman, James L.; Milici, Robert C.; Cook, Troy A.; Charpentier, Ronald R.; Kirshbaum, Mark; Klett, Timothy R.; Pollastro, Richard M.; Schenk, Christopher J.
Water Resources and Natural Gas Production from the Marcellus Shale
The Marcellus Shale is a sedimentary rock formation deposited over 350 million years ago in a shallow inland sea located in the eastern United States where the present-day Appalachian Mountains now stand (de Witt and others, 1993). This shale contains significant quantities of natural gas. New developments in drilling technology, along with higher...
Soeder, Daniel J.; Kappel, William M.
Appalachian Basin Energy Resources — A New Look at an Old Basin
Appalachian coal and petroleum resources are still available in sufficient quantities to contribute significantly to fulfilling the nation’s energy needs, according to a recent study by the U.S. Geological Survey.
USGS Releases Unconventional Gas Estimates for Five East Coast Basins
Using a geology-based assessment method, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated a mean undiscovered natural gas resource of 3.9 trillion cubic feet and a mean undiscovered natural gas liquids resource of 135 million barrels in continuous accumulations within five East Coast Mesozoic basins, according to a new USGS report.
USGS Releases New Assessment of Gas Resources in the Marcellus Shale, Appalachian Basin
The Marcellus Shale contains about 84 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered, technically recoverable natural gas and 3.4 billion barrels of undiscovered, technically recoverable natural gas liquids according to a new assessment by the U. S. Geological Survey (USGS).
Marcellus Shale Drill Rig
A drill rig at a well site in the Marcellus Shale gas play of southwestern Pennsylvania.
Marcellus shale in central New York showing Cherry Valley limestone
Exposure of the Marcellus shale in central New York showing the Cherry Valley limestone (grey-colored rock) between the Union Springs and Oatka Creek shales of the Marcellus.
Marcellus Shale Assessment Units
Map of the Appalachian Basin Province showing the three Marcellus Shale assessment units, which encompass the extent of the Middle Devonian from its zero isopach edge in the west to its erosional truncation within the Appalachian fold and thrust belt in the east.
Marcellus Shale Storage Tanks
Storage tanks for produced water from natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale gas play of western Pennsylvania.
Marcellus Shale Outcrop in Highland County, Virginia
A Marcellus Shale outcrop in Highland County, Virginia, shows at the surface the object of shale gas development drilling in nearby states. Assessing undiscovered gas resources, like the USGS 2011 assessment of the Marcellus Shale, uses geologic mapping of outcrops like this in addition to extensive drilling, production, and geophysical data.