A second wave of shale gas development will shake the world over the next four to six years with Argentina, China, Poland, Ukraine, South Africa, and Australia currently at the forefront.
But not all shales will be commercially viable, and in many regions, geological, commercial, and regulatory challenges will be challenges to development.
To be successful, operators and investors must systematically assess each region and the specific challenges it poses to resource development.
In the late 1990s, rapid advances in horizontal drilling and hydraulic-fracturing technologies unleashed large-scale commercial production of shale gas in the U.S. By 2005, with the development of the Barnett Basin in Texas and the production bonanza that followed, the shale gas revolution was in full swing. Today, shale gas accounts for nearly 35 percent of total U.S. natural-gas production, compared with only 2 percent ten years ago, and it is on course to reach 45 percent in six to eight years. As a result—and depending on whether the government approves natural-gas exports—the U.S. could go from being one of the world’s largest gas importers to one of its largest exporters. Two licenses have been granted so far for liquid-natural-gas export terminals (Sabine Pass, Louisiana, and Freeport, Texas), with at least 15 other applications in the queue.
See full Article: https://www.bcgperspectives.com/content/articles/energy_environment_great_global_shale_gas_development_race/
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