How is natural gas produced?

Once a site has been selected and permits have been received, it’s time to drill for natural gas. The following stages are involved in the production of natural gas:

Meeting with stakeholders

lease location is selected after consultation with landowners (where applicable)
proposed site is surveyed and necessary assessments (archaeological, soil, environmental sensitivity and wildlife) are completed
agreements with landowners are signed
applications submitted to regulatory agencies for review and approval

Well site clearing/preparation

approvals from regulatory agencies are granted
well location selected with input from landowner
lease is cleared of vegetation and top soil

Drilling

surface hole is drilled
steel pipe called surface casing is inserted into hole and cemented into place to isolate the wellbore from the surrounding geological formation; casing controls the flow of drilling mud and fluid, and prevents groundwater contamination
a blowout preventer is installed; it contains high pressure safety valves designed to seal the wellbore and block the escape of underground gases and fluids to prevent a blowout from occurring
drilling resumes until the desired depth is reached; at each stage additional casing is inserted into the wellbore and cemented into place
the wellbore is logged to ensure it can produce natural gas and to test the cement job
horizontal drilling is often used to reduce impacts on the environment and increase production rates by contacting more of the formation
multi-well pad drilling is the process of drilling a number of wells on one pad site

Water protection during hydraulic fracturing

Completing

after drilling operations have concluded the well is readied for production
production casing – tubular steel pipe connected by threads and couplings - is installed the entire length of the wellbore to control production, and prevent water and rock formations from entering the wellbore
production casing is cemented into place
production tubing – steel pipe smaller in diameter than production casing - is lowered into the casing and held in place by packers; tubing hangs from a wellhead on the surface
to allow the natural gas to flow into the well, holes are made in the casing and the formation by using a wireline to lower a perforating gun, which is a device carrying explosive charges – to the desired depth; an electrical impulse fires the charges to perforate the casing, cement and formation
hydraulic fracturing is done to increase production from the formation; it’s a controlled operation that pumps water, sand and additives (fracturing fluids) into the wellbore and down the casing/tubing under high pressure; as the mixture is forced out through perforations in the wellbore into the surrounding shale rock, the pressure causes the shale to fracture – much like a stone fracturing a windshield, to create pathways that allow the gas to flow from very low permeability reservoirs

Learn more about water use and hydraulic fracturing in our operations.

Production

natural gas flows into the wellbore under its own pressure; crews monitor the flow to determine the placement of the choke which controls the flow of the gas
a production wellhead is installed and the well head is tied into surrounding pipeline infrastructure

Reclamation

after a mature well stops producing natural gas the well is abandoned by plugging it with cement
a well site is reclaimed by cleaning up and restoring it to its pre-existing condition, which can include soil replacement, compacting and reseeding of natural vegetation; once the site is reclaimed to the satisfaction of government authorities a reclamation certificate is issued

Uses of natural gas

Natural gas is a versatile energy source. It has many applications in our daily lives including:

domestic uses like home heating and cooling, cooking, fuel for transportation
steam heat production
electrical generation
manufacturing and industrial uses like producing steel, glass, forest products, clothing, cement, fertilizer and petrochemicals
creating polyethylene polymers, which is the most wildly used plastic

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