Kyiv Post: Shell not planning to extract shale gas during development of Yuzovska field

Oil company Shell does not plan to extract shale gas in Ukraine as a part of the realization of a Product Sharing Agreement (PSA) on the division of hydrocarbons extracted on the Yuzovska field (Kharkiv and Donetsk regions), the company's press service told Interfax-Ukraine on June 8, 2012.

"The gas beds on the Yuzovska field are formed by compact sandstone and not shale rock," the company said, citing Chief Engineer Mykhailo Hretsky.

He said that the main differences between shale gas and compact sandstone were their depths and the methods of their extraction. Usually horizontal wells are used to extract shale gas at shallow depths (1.5-2 kilometers). Gas from compact sandstone is extracted using vertical or slope wells around five kilometers deep, he said.  MORE