Gas Hydrate Drilling Projects
Geotek and the World of Gas Hydrate
Geotek Coring has provided services acround the globe to the wide ranging academic and commercial gas hydrate community. Academic projects, national governments, and oil companies have all engaged Geotek Coring to help plan and execute gas hydrate expeditions. Although pressure coring is a key part of all hydrate projects, Geotek has provided complete quantitative analysis packages for some field expeditions.
Geotek Coring’s experience in gas hydrate drilling expeditions.
Resource Assessments for National Governments
Many countries have prudently begun to examine the potential gas hydrate resource in their environs. Geotek has participated in 20 field expeditions including multiple national programs for China, India, Korea, Japan, and the USA. China has been particularly active, and Geotek has delivered a full gas hydrate quantification service on four gas hydrate drilling expeditions since 2007 which culminated in their successful gas hydrate production test in 2017. A further expedition is planned for the summer of 2018.
Geohazard Assessments for Oil Companies
Locations with known gas hydrate in marine sediment have typically been avoided for subsea installation and borehole siting due to the risk of equipment or borehole loss. Geotek Coring can provide a service to determine the presence–or critically, absence–of gas hydrate within a formation. A full gas hydrate quantification service was provided by Geotek offshore Malaysia, which allowed a major oil company to assess the risk of producing oil from a location that may have contained a gas hydrate hazard.
Fundamental Gas Hydrate Research with Academic Organizations
Gas hydrate in marine and arctic sedimentary formations is an important component of the global climate system. Understanding the formation and dissociation of gas hydrate in natural environments allows predictions to be made about atmospheric warming, slope stability, and tsunami generation. Geotek Coring provided pressure coring, handling, and analysis services on Ocean Drilling Program Leg 204 to Hydrate Ridge and International Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 311 to the Cascadia Margin to improve our understanding of gas hydrate.
