WorldLeaders inShale
GasReserves
No.1 China
No.2 Argentina
No.3 Algeria
No.4 UnitedStates
sand is pumped into the well, effectively pressurizing the
borehole and fracturing the surrounding rock. The fluid
fills thepotential fissures, and the resin-coated sandworks
as aprop tokeep the fissure from sealingonce thepressure
releases the hidden gas. Round sand is used to provide a
porous substance throughwhich the oil and gas can flow
easily. Proprietaryproppant sandsmadewithPlenco resins
continually improve petroleum yields every day.
Without hydraulic fracturing, asmuch as 80 percent of
unconventional production from such formations as gas
shaleswouldbe practically impossible.
The following slide from Plenco’s new marketing
PowerPoint illustrates the process while the YouTube
videoprovides a visual and audio story inmuchmore
detail, if you want to learn more about the process of
hydraulic fracturing. You will understand where sand
coatedwithPlencophenolic resins areused in theprocess
andwhy they are critical to entire process. Jus
66Percent ofWisconsinitesHeat their HomeswithNatural Gas
InWisconsin, two-thirds of our homes are heated by natural gas, larger than
the national averageof 58percent. The impact of fracking on natural gas
prices has resulted in dramatic price drops of 80percent in recent years.
EnergyConsumption inWisconsin
66%
11%
11%
4%
8%
Natural Gas
Electricity
Fuel Oil
Propane
Other
Source: U.S. Department of Energy
In2011, theUnitedStates produced8.5million cubic feet
of natural gas from shale gaswells.At an averagepriceof
$4.24 per thousand cubic feet, that's a value of about $36
billion due to shale gas alone.
At its peak in 1980, the oil and gas extraction sector
supported 267,000 employees, based on data from the
Federal ReserveBankof St. Louis. Asmore easily tapped
oil reserves grew scarcer and domestic oil production
gradually declined over the following two decades, so did
employment,with thenumberof employees inoil andgas
extraction shrinkingbymore thanhalf, to118,400 in2003.
Since 2003, employment has climbed steadily, slowing
only slightly during 2009 and reaching 198,400 by
December 2012 – an increase of more than 67 percent.
While other industries have sputtered in the aftermathof
the 2008 recession, oil and gas has been a remarkably
bright spot in the U.S. economy, with employment at the
endof 2012 at itshighest since1987.A2012 studyby IHS
Global Insight concluded. “The shale gas contribution to
GDP was $76.9 billion in 2010, will increase to $118
billion by 2015, and will nearly triple to $231 billion in
2035, all in 2010 dollars.”
Source: U.S. Energy InformationAgency
Quoted by TheWashingtonPost Sept. 5, 2013.
4
