Critical View of Technology Requirements

1. Critical View of Technology Requirements

2. Overview
• Energy issue with produced water and its associated costs
– Produced water and hydraulic fracturing flowback water is generally
mineralized and contains particulates and dissolved organic compounds
– Water brought to the surface as part of the E&P operation
– Depending on the source, the water amounts can be significant, such as
unconventional plays of coal bed methane or tight sands
• What are the different types of produced water?
• Can produced water be recycled?
• Is the drought in the Western US an issue with energy
development?
• What issues need to be solved in the future?

3. Discussion Outline
• Introduction
• Volumes of produced water
• Water conflicts with energy development
• Role of agriculture
• Cost implications
• Summary

4. The global situation for water is not improving and will
be an impediment to industrialized growth over time.

5. Water Use as a Function of Overall Water Management
Water Use in Western US
Agricultural Use
Municipal
Other
Fracking
 What is the percentage of total fracking and energy development = 0.14%
of total use in the US typical - (example is Colorado)
 Largest use is Agricultural at 85%
 Second highest use is Municipal and Industrial at 7%
 All others is 8%
 This 0.14% equals the amount of water used on an annual basis by the City
of Denver.

6. So what is the issue? Can’t we get more water from
Agriculture?
• Agricultural use is increasing
• Environmental groups are
fighting fracking and energy
development in general
Agricultural use has to increase
• Municipal uses are increasing
• Oil and Gas can out bid all
others
• Water from Agriculture will be a
PR nightmare

7. Projected Water Shortages
Reference: USBR - Water 2025 Study
• Areas of red are
water short
• Note that in the
western US, there
is an opportunity
to utilize
produced water
for beneficial use

8. Projected Produced Water Volumes
Produced Water
Volumes:
• US – 21 Bbbl/yr
• Wyo – 2.36 Bbbl/yr
• CO – 0.38 Bbbl/yr
• Ut – 0.15 Bbbl/yr
Recent data in
Colorado suggests
dramatic increase in
volumes

9. Brackish Water in the US
• Efforts to find new untapped water
supplies in the US
• NAS study on desalination
• Constraints are not the
technology, but the financial,
environmental and social factors
• Participation is needed by all in
the development of this resource
to limit any significant issues
associated with this treatment

10. Inland Desalination a Now-Attainable Solution
Saline Aquifers
Resources

11. Problem
• Drought is
still an issue
• Energy
Development
can demand
water in short
supply

12. What is the impact of the drought on
energy production?
 Availability of water in Permian Basin with
extended drought
 Colorado River basin issues
 Municipal water supplies are stretched already
Lake JB Thomas 0.50% full (0.1% 6
months ago)
EV Spence Reservoir 5.1% full (0.2%
6 months ago)
OH Ivie Reservoir 20.7% full
 Requirement for District is to supply water for
drinking and public safety – water for E&P
operations is not a concern and very limited at this
point
 “If you don’t have water, you can’t attract industry”
– Guy Andrews – Economic Development Director
– Odessa Texas
Full
Reservoir
Current
Conditions

13. Treatment Issues
• Treatment to what
standard?
• Frack water makeup?
• Discharge to a surface
water or tributary
groundwater – 40 CFR
435
• Disposal is Class II
injection well
• Disposal is surface
water pond

14. Beneficial Use of Produced Water
• Upper Colorado River Basin
(Green River Play) – at 2
bbl’s/MCF – 70,000,000 AF or
potentially 500,000 to 1,000,000
AF per year
• Potential users are entities on the
lower Colorado River Basin
• Need all entities within the
Colorado River Basin to cooperate
• Discussions with State Engineers
of the Upper Colorado River Basin

15. Produced Water as an Asset
• Historically, produced water has been treated as a waste
product
– Current methods of disposal – reinjection (Class II Injection
Wells), evaporation ponds and direct discharge – are being
challenged due to adverse environmental impacts
• Plan to turn this wastewater into an asset - a marketable
product - by:
– Treating for surface discharge
– Conceiving a unique water delivery system - augmenting
tributary water supplies with non-tributary water
– Pioneering a path through the numerous legal and regulatory
obstacles

16. Ownership of Produced Water
• Colorado Example
– Tributary – Non-Tributary Groundwater
– HB 1303 – how does this apply in
Colorado
– COGCC Rules (907)
– State Engineer
• Agreement on non-tributary status (Fossil
water in other states)
– CDPHE Technical Review, Permit and
approval
– Landowner issue
– Water Rights & Court
• Other Western States
– Prior appropriation
– First in Use – First in Right

17. Permitting Requirements

18. Example Projects
• Wellington Colorado
Project – Ag irrigation
and hydraulic fracturing
make up water
• CBM Project –
Wyoming – water
reuse and sale of
produced water as
augmentation water
on the Colorado
River
• Energy – Carbon
Capture Project
Wyoming – recovery of
lithium from dewatering
operation

19. Issues that need to be solved in the future
• Brine disposal and potential recovery of
chemicals
• New technologies that will separate salts and
organics at a lower energy requirement
• Better utilization of water and its management
• Adoption of water reuse and recycling

20. Summary & Conclusions – What have
we learned?
 Water use for E&P operations is critical to the future of the
industry
 Produced Water can meet surface water discharge requirements
 State Wide permits are available in some states and allow for
expedited permitting
 Discharge standards can be daunting but with careful design can
be met
 Be aware of what you add to your fracking fluids as this is what
you will need to remove
 Brine reuse and recycling should be considered
 Harvesting of metals should be considered in the future to offset
costs

21. • Water Rights associated with produced water turn this waste
into an asset
• Produced Water Reuse
• Site specific
• Formation will add constituents that might be an issue
• Hydraulic Fracturing Flowback Water Reuse
• Viability highly dependant
• Transportation Economics
• Disposal Economics & Availability
• Treatment Economics (TDS – key driver)
Summary & Conclusions – What have we
learned?

22. Summary & Conclusions – What have
we learned?
 Treatment – becoming more refined
 Customized to influent characteristics & output req.
 Mobile or Centralized depending on volumes and
transportation
 Pre-treatment removal is key to success
 Organics
 Hardness & Metals
 Particulates
 Bacteria Control
 If organics and scaling compounds removed, reuse may be
achieved without TDS removal in some cases
 Water reuse will likely become SOP in many areas