REGIONAL CORRELATION AND DEPOSITIONAL HISTORY USING WELL LOG AND CORE DATA OF THE MIDDLE DEVONIAN MARCELLUS POSEIDON 8M WELL, WESTMORELAND COUNTY, PA, USA

Natural gas producers have invested billions in Pennsylvania Ohio and West Virginia to establish significant gas production from the Marcellus Shale and the deeper Ordovician Utica-Point Pleasant intervals. The Marcellus Shale is the largest natural gas play in the United States producing and together with the Utica-Point Pleasant account for more than 28% of current total US gas production. Commercial gas production has been reported from several other Devonian shale units in the Appalachian region, including the Rhinestreet, Levanna and Geneseo-Burket units. However, these younger and shallower shale units remain underdeveloped and represent future opportunities.

The Geneseo-Burket shale similar to the Marcellus is one of the most highly radioactive and organic-rich of the Devonian shale units, yet little is in the public domain as to its stratigraphic distribution, depositional history, geomechanical properties, and geologic controls on gas production.

The main objective of the research is to examine the geologic characteristics of the Geneseo-Burket Shale from wells in southeast Pennsylvania and northern West Virginia. A complete core of the Geneseo-Burket from a well in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania is integrated with CT-scans, geochemical data and well logs. The results provide an improved understanding of the lithology, vertical and regional depositional patterns, contacts with the underlying Tully Limestone and overlying Penn Yan Shale, the stratigraphic distribution across the Appalachian basin and ultimately the potential resources.