PKN ORLEN to perform two hydraulic fracturing treatments

The Company has already drilled a total of five wells in search of shale gas, including three vertical and two horizontal ones. The work is most advanced in the Wierzbica (village of Syczyn) and Lubartów (village of Berejów) licence areas. The objective behind drilling the first vertical exploration wells was to collect core samples for laboratory testing. The analysis focused on the physical properties, as well as the content of gas and organic matter held in the shale rocks. The results were promising enough to prompt a decision to continue drilling operations both in Syczyn and in Berejów.

Hydraulic fracturing is to be performed on the horizontal sections that have already been drilled. The first treatment is to be conducted in April 2013 in the Syczyn well situated in the Wierzbica licence area. It is planned to take place on the 1,000-long lateral drilled through gas-bearing shales at the depth of 2,700 metres, and will be divided into ten stages. The works, scheduled to last 10 to 20 days, will be performed by Schlumberger, the company that won the contract.

Preparations for the fracking operation have been under way for many weeks now. First of all, PKN ORLEN drew on the expertise of foreign consultants who prepared a simulation based on the collected data. Then, a design was developed and put out to tender. Given strict technical requirements set by ORLEN Upstream, only companies with adequate technology and equipment resources took part. The contract was awarded to Schlumberger. Cooperation with the subcontractor's specialists and experts with the Oil and Gas Institute of Kraków will continue until the process is completed. Together with ORLEN Upstream's team, they are to provide ongoing oversight of the progress and to monitor the results of the fracking operation, and to take measurements that will help optimise the applied solutions in the future.

“In line with the strategy published at the end of 2012, we intend to step up our upstream projects. We are actively working on the final fracking parameters, but also on scheduling all the other projects,” said Jacek Krawiec, President of PKN ORLEN Management Board.

The operation has been designed to use a water-based fracturing fluid containing quartz sand of appropriate granulation as the proppant that will keep the induced fractures open. Once the process of cracking the rock is over, gas flow obtained from the well will be tested. The test will enable a preliminary appraisal of the gas reserves in the area and their commercial viability. The second hydraulic fracturing operation will take place within the Lubartów licence area.

“Each hydraulic fracturing treatment is designed to match the site-specific geological conditions. Lessons learned during the hydraulic fracturing operation in Syczyn may, however, influence the parameters of the subsequent fracking treatment in Berejów. It is nothing out of the ordinary as regards exploration practice. A broader range of input helps eliminate errors in data interpretation,” added Wiesław Prugar, President of ORLEN Upstream Management Board.

According to PKN ORLEN's revised strategy announced in late 2012, the Company will intensify its hydrocarbon exploration efforts in 2013–2017. Preparations for three other exploration wells are currently under way in the Lublin region. Furthermore, ORLEN Upstream is awaiting assignment of two licences in the Warsaw region acquired from ExxonMobile, which will serve as the platform for its unconventional gas exploration in central and eastern Poland.