COGCC Underground Injection
Program & Induced Seismicity
February 2017
Stuart Ellsworth, Engineering Manager
Bob Koehler, UIC Lead , Geologic Advisor
Colorado UIC Permit Process
UIC Well Construction
UIC Permit Support Data
Induced Seismicity
Injection Monitoring
Final Comments
Agenda:
Class II Injection Well Count (active and inactive as of October 2016)
Statewide: 943 UIC wells
374 DISPOSAL WELLS (34 are EPA Tribal)
569 ENHANCED RECOVERY WELLS
Garfield County: 70 UIC wells
70 DISPOSAL WELLS
No ENHANCED RECOVERY WELLS
Colorado UIC Permit
Process
UIC Application Process (Rule 325)
COGCC Rule 325 outlines the application process for
underground injection.
• Form 2 – Permit to Drill
• Form 2A – Oil and Gas Location Assessment
• Form 4 – Sundry Notice
• Form 5 – Drilling Completion Report
• Form 5A – Completed Interval Report
• Form 31 – Injection Permit Application
• Form 33 – Injection Well Permit Application
• Form 26 – Source of Produced Water
• Form 21 – Mechanical Integrity Test
• Form 42 – Notice of Notification (Notice of Hydraulic Fracturing)
• Form 7 – Report of Monthly Injection Volume and Pressure
Form 31 & 33 Support Information • Proposed injection program
• Surface owner agreement
• Notice to surface and mineral owners – within a ¼-mile
• Remedial correction plan for wells – all wells within the ¼-mile for
water migrating
• Maps and listso All wells (oil and gas and water) within ¼ mile of injection well
o Map of producing wells within ½ mile of injection well
o Maps and lists of all surface and mineral owners within ¼ mile of injection well
o Unit area plat (required for enhanced recovery)
• Surface facility plan view
• Water analysis for injection zone (total dissolved solids)
• Well Bore Diagram
• Step Rate Test for fracture gradient
• MIT (Mechanical Integrity Test)is performed• If commercial facility, description of operations and area served
PIERRE SHALE
6
6
UIC Well Construction
GROUND SURFACE
WELLHEAD
CEMENT
SURFACE CASING
INJECTION FORMATIONS
CEMENTED CONDUCTOR
AQUIFER(S)
Wellbore Integrity
Per COGCC Rule 326Per COGCC Rules 207.b. and 608.e
MECHANICAL INTEGRITY TESTApplied pressure monitoring of internal casing
pressure
BRADENHEAD MONITORING TESTMonitoring for internal annulus pressure Bradenhead
valve
TUBING
PRODUCTION CASING
PERFORATIONS
BRIDGE PLUG
PRESSURIZED FLUID
CEMENT BOND LOG
317.o. Requirement to log well. For all new drilling operations, the operator shall
be required to run a minimum of a resistivity log with gamma-ray or other
petrophysical log(s) approved by the Director that adequately describe the
stratigraphy of the wellbore. A cement bond log shall be run
on all production casing or, in the case of a
production liner, the intermediate casing, when
these casing strings are run. These logs and all other logs run
shall be submitted with the Well Completion or Recompletion Report and Log, Form
5. Open hole logs shall be run at depths that adequately verify the setting depth of
surface casing and any aquifer coverage. These requirements shall not apply to the
unlogged open hole completion intervals, or to wells in which no open hole logs are
run.
CEMENT BOND LOG
Per COGCC Rule 317.o requires cement bond logs for all wells.
Top of Cement
Cement Bond Logs to verify placement of cement
UIC Permit Support Data
1. REVIEW THE DRILLING RECORDS FOR:
a) DAILY DRILLING LOGS
b) DRILLING BREAKS
c) LOST CIRCULATION ZONES
d) RATE OF PENETRATION CURVES (ROP)
2. STATIC WATER LEVEL MEASUREMENT
3. REQUEST A TRANSIENT TEST TO DETERMINE INJECTION RATES AND
PERMEABILITY
UIC Data Review
MIV = f h p (1/4 mile)2
f = Porosity
h = Reservoir height
p = PIf = Porosity
h = Reservoir height
1/4 mile 1/4 mile
1) Standard Condition of Approval:
< Maximum Allowable Injection Volume
Zone of Allowed
Injection Rate &
Pressure
Step Rate Test for Fracture Gradient
2) Standard Condition of Approval:
< Maximum Allowable Injection Rate & Pressure
Colorado Geologic Map - Tweto, 1979
Colorado Earthquake and Fault Map
1900 to Current Colorado Earthquakes
Induced Seismicity in
Colorado
Rangely
Large injection volumes
High injection rate
Rocky Mountain Arsenal
Large injection volumes
High injection rate
Low porosity reservoir
Low permeability
reservoir
Paradox Valley
Large injection volumes
High injection rate
Historical Examples of Induced Seismicity in Colorado
Mohr–Coulomb failure criteriont = s tan(f) + So
>M5 Earthquake Prague, Oklahoma
Orange dots: Pre-2011 USGS Seismic
Event > M2.5
Blue Square: Injection Wells
USGS Seismic Events > M2.5
Colorado’s Underground Injection
Program
Area Colorado Earthquakes
Injection Facility
Earthquake EventSnowmass Events
New Castle Events
A review of injection and
earthquake activity near
New Castle, Colorado
Local Earthquakes listed in USGS database
10 Kilometer
5 km
2.5 km
Earthquake
Gas Well
Injection Facility
M 2.1 – Colorado
1990-10-19
M 2.1 - New Castle, CO
2016-10-23
M 2.3 – Colorado
1990-10-19
M 2.9 - New Castle, CO
2016-12-26
M 3.3 - New Castle, CO
2017-1-30
10 Kilometer
5 km
2.5 km
045-21277
PWD Federal 21-6-91IJ Nov 2016 6,254 BW
045-12082
VALLEY FARMS D3
SI Nov 2016
(last IJ June 2016)
045-18532
KOKOPELLI SWD 9-12D
IJ Dec 2016 57,981 BW
045-18493
CIRCLE B LAND 33A-35-692 SWD
IJ Dec 2016 19,033 BW
045-14287
VALLEY FARMS F4
SI Nov 2016
(last IJ May 2016)
045-11169
SCOTT 41D-36-692 SWD
IJ Dec 2016 62,328 BW
045-13803
GGU RODREICK #21B-31-691 SWD
IJ Dec 2016 80,280 BW
Earthquake
Gas Well
Injection Facility
045-06273
CSF #1-10W
SI Nov 2016
(last IJ Feb 2015)
10 Kilometer
5 km
2.5 km
Earthquake
Gas Well
Injection Facility
A
A’
A
A
A’Grand
Hogback
New Castle
Colorado
River
Injection Zone
over 9,611 feet
above Basement
>Depth Basement
17,800’
Injection Zone
8,189’
Field Scout Card
Additional Safeguards
Review of seismicity and PGA
Review of geology, subsurface data
CGS, DWR, CDPHE review for of injection
zone
Special data, test or logs periodically
required:
o Bradenhead test
o Temperature, radioactive or noise logs
o Cased hole integrity logs
o Transit Analysis.
Final Comments
Questions?
A
A’
A A’
Rifle Syncline
Grand Hogback
Valley Farms D3
SI June 2016
Silt
4 Earthquakes
from USGS & COGIS Wells
M 2.1 – Colorado
1990-10-19
M 2.1 - New Castle, CO
2016-10-23
M 2.3 – Colorado
1990-10-19
M 2.9 - New Castle, CO
2016-12-26
Safeguards
Well Construction
Review for seismic activity: USGS
Review for geologic maps
DWR review for of injection zone
Injection volume limits
Injection Pressure less than fracture gradient
Injection Rate
STANDARD CONDITIONS OF APPROVAL
ALL APPROVED INJECTION PERMITS HAVE:
Maximum Allowable Injection Pressure and Rate that is below the injection zone fracture pressure.
Maximum Allowable Injection Volume: this is calculated
to hold the radius of influence of injected fluid to ¼ Mile. The volume may be
increased at a later date with additional review and approval by COGCC.
There may be special data, test or log required periodically.
o Bradenhead test
o Temperature, radioactive or noise logs
o Cased hole integrity logs
o Transit Analysis.
UIC Inspection and EnforcementFOR BOTH DISPOSAL AND SECONDARY RECOVERY
All UIC wells are inspected annuallyo INJECTION PRESSURE IS CHECKED
o ANNULAR PRESSURE IS CHECKED
All UIC wells are pressure tested for casing integrity
every 5-years.
All UIC wells are equipped with a packer and tubing
annulus are inspected for leaks through by opening the
tubing annulus value.
Any well showing abnormal pressure on the tubing
annulus is required to cease injection, be repaired of
abandoned.
Questions?
Injection Monitoring
Temperature Logging
Radioactive Logging
Acoustic Logging
Spinner Survey
Tool
Spinner
Survey
M4.7 Earthquake Guy, Arkansas
Review of surrounding wells
within ¼ miles for remedial
correction plan
Directional
Survey
Wellbore
Diagram
Water Analysis
Total Dissolved Solids =
52,303 ppm
Mud Log
Induction Log for thickness Neutron-Density Log for porosity
H, Reservoir height =33’ f, porosity = 15%
30% 20% 10% 0
Calculation of Maximum Injection
Pressure
FG = (Bottom Hole Step Rate Test Pressure ) Depth Injection
1. Calculate the fracture gradient (FG, psig/ft):
2. Calculate the maximum surface injection pressure (Pmax, psig):
Pmax = [FG - (0.433*Specific Gravity)] * Depth Injection
Hydraulic Gradient, psig/ft = 0.433*Specific GravityFresh Water Gradient = 0.433 psig/ft.
The 2014 Greeley Seismic
Events and SWD-C4A Well
May 31st at ~9:35PM
6 miles NE of Greeley Colorado
M 3.2 Event
2014 Greeley Seismic Events
and SWD-C4A Well
USGS: Did you feel it?Anne Sheehan et al.
University of Colorado
Greeley May 31st quake as
detected on closest
seismograph station
(USGS ISCO) ~70 miles
away at Idaho Springs.
Anne Sheehan et al.
University of Colorado
Anne Sheehan et al.
University of Colorado
Sample seismograms from 5 stations with picks
• M 4.2 event in 1969 located 12 miles SW of
injection site recorded in USGS database.
• Matched filter study to retrospectively search
for waveforms matching M 3.2 event at ISCO
station from January 2013 – May 2014:
- First event a M 0.74 in November, 2013
- Eleven more events between January and end of May,
2014 (ranging from M 0.56 to M 2.3)
Baseline Seismicity
Anne Sheehan and William Yeck
University of Colorado
M 2.6
M 2.4 M 2.3
M 1.8
COGCC interpretation after
Anne Sheehan et al.
University of Colorado
Anne Sheehan and William Yeck
University of Colorado
Plugged back TD to 10,360
feet above a highly fractured
zone.
Post plug back bottom of
hole accepting about 10% of
the injection fluid.
Pre-plug back bottom of
hole accepting about
30% to 50% of the
injection fluid in a
highly fractured zone
C4A Authorized To Re-inject
1. AXPC Traffic Light criteria will apply.
2. Injection resumes at 5,000 barrels of water per day
(BWPD) with a maximum injection pressure of 1,512 psi.
for 20 days.
3. If no M 2.5 seismic events may increase to 7,500 BWPD at
1,512 psi. for 20 days.
4. If no M 2.5 seismic events for 20 days NGL may request an
increased injection rate.
5. NGL will install a permanent seismometer station near the
Well.
2015 to Current Colorado Earthquakes
Area Earthquakes
listed on USGS database