Pemex May Squeeze Extra 3 Billion Barrels From Cantarell Field

[Javaman]

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601207&sid=abGF4MyUEKxE

April 8 (Bloomberg) -- Petroleos Mexicanos, the state oil company, may recover an extra 3 billion barrels from its Cantarell field, or 20 percent more than planned, by using a technology that extracts hard-to-reach crude.

Pemex would inject so-called liquid foam to draw out oil from Cantarell’s rock under the process, Heber Cinco Ley, director of the Mexican Petroleum Institute, said in an interview April 6. The technology, which may be ready in three years, would shake loose oil that has seeped back into the rock walls after the field’s pressure fell, he said.

The company’s output fell at its fastest rate since 1942 last year because of slowing production at Cantarell, which has lost pressure after producing almost a third of Pemex’s oil during the past three decades. The company expects to produce only half the 30 billion barrels Cantarell holds. Three billion barrels is enough to supply the U.S. for six months.

“We want to be able to extend this technology to other mature fields in Mexico,” said Cinco Ley, a former deputy director for exploration and production at Mexico City-based Pemex who holds a doctorate in petroleum engineering from Stanford University. “There is still a lot of oil there.”

(this is not a good sign. Mexico's Cantarell field has been in decline for the last 8 years. If they are trying to get at the deep stuff, it's time to really start worrying. The deep stuff is the sour heavy sulfur ridden vary expensive and hard to refine crap oil. This is the stuff huge cargo ships use to run their engines aka bunker fuel. You can refine it into workable oil, but it comes at a massive expense of energy in. This is a article is a wicked spin on the reality of the situation)

[Democracyinkind]

1. Cantarell is the number one candidate for the first big one to bust.

They are not exactly honest when they say "additional 20% percent" since 10 years ago they were talking about a 50 year future of Cantarell. Now they're practically telling us that Cantarell will be wasted soon.

There is alot of speculation that Gharwar (SA) is pretty equal to Cantarell when it comes to further extraction possibility... gotta keep an eye on that.

Necessary post thanks for that!

/- The scandinavians, which have done much groundwork in this area, have published a paper that one of their members wrote as a doctoral thesis.
It links the decline of the largest oil fields to the overall decline in oil production, and offers a very disturbing but realistic outlook. I'm pretty much convinced. When Cantarell and Gharwar blow and nobody starts a serious discussion I'm def. giving up on hoping that this question will ever be adressed adequatly by the people.

[Javaman]

2. Spot on. I'm wondering when salt water starts fouling what's left. nt

[Democracyinkind]

5. I'd be interested in the EIOER for that .. rumor has it they are approaching 1< pretty fast.

... But hey.. who cares about that...

[Javaman]

6. Man, that's scary. I think when we start seeing riots in the streets of

Mexico City when the government either starts cutting really deep into social programs or raises taxes really high to cover the shortfall, I think we will know something is up.

Heck, the people went nuts when the government just floated the idea of opening up the oil industry to private investors.

[Democracyinkind]

8. I don't wanna fear monger but the people I talk to in Mexico do not really

acknowledge the government. Oaxaca has left deep wounds, and like you I am very interested to see what will happen when they can't buy off their anger anymore, and I don't see them having a happy budget without Cantrell.

[Barrett808]

3. That's about 37 days' worth of world oil consumption.

3 billion bbl / ~80 million bbl/day = 37 days

[Democracyinkind]

4. The last shots are always the most craved by the junkies.

... What will the martians think about us when they'll come to record our history.

[Dead_Parrot]

7. They'll probably get a good out of it -

"Guns, Germs, and Oil: The Fate of the Human Species"

[Democracyinkind]

9. Love it. Ever since Collapse I'm hooked.