For over 100 years, wyoming has attracted geologists in search of oil, gas and mineral wealth as well as research geologists challenged by complex geology. A systematic study of natural fractures within the cretaceous mesaverde formation at teapot dome, wyoming indicates that lithology and structural position control outcrop fracture patterns. It explains the background to production geology in the context of oil field subsurface operations. It was the most serious scandal in the countrys history prior to the watergate affair of the nixon administration in the 1970s. In nearly forty years of operation under the doe management, this stripper oilfield produced more than twentytwo million barrels of oil resulting. Figure4 shows the structureof the teapot dome using a crossline from a threedimensional 3d seismic survey mccutcheon, 2003. Towards that end, a combination of federal, academic, and. Aug 02, 2016 geoscience training center cefoga magoon and dow, 1994 inventory of accumulationsinventory of accumulations field name date discovered reservoir rock api gravity api cumulative oil production x10 bbl remaining reserves x10 bbl hardy lucky marginal teapot 1989 1990 1990 1992 boar ss boar ss boar ss boar ss 29 15 18 21 85 5 12 9 big oil. Historical production from the tensleep formation in the teapot dome study area is largely water 99% with less than 1% oil and consists of a strong waterdrive milliken, 2005 and stamp, 2005. Reservoir simulation of co2 sequestration and enhanced oil recovery in the tensleep. Wall creek sandstone at the salt creek and teapot dome oil fields. Jan 30, 2015 energy department sells historic teapot dome oilfield. Geologic and structure map of teapot dome and vicinity. Hydrocarbon source rock characterization, burial history, and.
Teapot dome is a doublyplunging anticline created during the laramide orogeny. Pdf documents opened from your browser may not display or print as intended. At salt creek field, oil and gas has been produced from the sandstones. Reservoir characterization and flow simulation for co2eor in the tensleep formation using discrete fracture networks, teapot dome, wyoming payam kavousi ghahfarokhi the tensleep oil reservoir at teapot dome, wyoming, usa, is a naturally fractured tight sandstone reservoir that has been considered for carbondioxide enhanced oil recovery co2eor and sequestration.
Pdf science and technology goals of the teapot dome field. Gis for oil operations, history, geology, and imagery at teapot. Teapot dome is an asymmetric, doubly plunging, basementcored, laramideage anticline. Government sells teapot dome on the level, this time politico. Geologic assessment of undiscovered oil and gas in the. It has the full spectrum of why a person would pick a career in geology. Rocky mountain oilfield testing center at teapot dome oil field.
The kt boundary consisted of a lower thick claystone layer aka kaolinite layer or kt boundary claystoneand an upper thin layer aka fireball, magic, kt boundary impact layer with a high concentration of iridium, most of the shocked quartz and a composition of. Sale ends department ownership of naval petroleum reserves. Field staff have created a historic map of the 1920s camps townsites in the teapot dome oil field area. Oil production in teapot dome field is from three formations, the shallow shannon formation, at depths of 400 to ft. Currently, the teapot dome oilfield produces oil and gas from more than 500 wells. Teapot dome, the wyoming federal oil reserve that was at the root of 1920s political scandal, is up for sale. Teapot rock is a distinctive sedimentary rock formation in natrona county, wyoming that lent its name to a nearby oil field that became notorious as the focus of a bribery scandal during the presidential administration of warren g. This paper demonstrates how gis provides an environment to analyze oil well production data to determine which reservoir, well depth, and geographic sections produce the most oil. Teapot dome gets its name from nearby teapot creek which in turn was named for teapot rock, 6 miles.
Fracture pattern characterization of the tensleep formation. At the time of transfer out of federal ownership in january 2015, oil production was less than 300 barrels per day. Seal integrity and feasibility of co2 sequestration in the teapot dome eor pilot. An approach to mapping of shallow petroleum reservoirs. Now 93 years later the department of energy is signing papers to take the teapot dome field out of federal hands for the second and final time.
Navy, which had been converting coalfueled ships into oil powered vessels since 1909. Estimating reservoir scale fracture networks in the tight. Energy department sells historic teapot dome oilfield. Teapot dome is an elongate doubly plunging, basementcored anticline cooper, 2001. The assessment of undiscovered oil and gas used the total petroleum system concept, which includes mapping the distribution of potential source rocks and known petroleum accumulations and determining the timing of petroleum generation and migration.
Rocky mountain oilfield testing center at teapot dome oil. Teapot dome field is also known as naval petroleum reserve npr3, which was. Navy, which had been converting coalfueled ships into oilpowered vessels since 1909. The american association of petroleum geologists is an international organization with over 38,000 members in 100plus countries. The teapot dome scandal was an american political scandal of the early 1920s. After obtaining an ftp password, post stack data, well logs, production history, and gis data can be downloaded from the internet. Teapot dome oilfield near the town of midwest, wyoming, has been the testing site of numerous drilling and production techniques since the early 1900s. Using the famous teapot dome oil field in casper, wyoming, usa as a test case, we. Oil testing center, a 10,000acre us department of energy facility located within the naval petroleum reserve no. The famous teapot dome bribe scandal occurred shortly after discovery. The structure is a doubly plunging basementcored anticline that formed during the laramide orogeny, with sediments ranging from cambrian to quaternary. Mar 25, 2016 currently, the teapot dome oilfield produces oil and gas from more than 500 wells.
The teapot dome reserve, part of the once immensely productive salt creek oil field region of wyoming, was one of a few major oilfields in the country that were set aside by the federal government, to be used only in the event of a national crisis or shortage. This dome develops over a northeast dipping basement upthrust along the western edge of the power river basin. An approach to mapping of shallow petroleum reservoirs using. The teapot dome scandal was a bribery scandal involving the administration of united states president warren g. Land use database center for land use interpretation. The salt creek oil field around the town of midwest, wyo. Objectives provide tangible examples of geology to improve conceptual modeling build a model and explore fracturemodeling concepts. This provides a unique opportunity for experiments to provide scientific and technical insight into cosub 2enhanced oil recovery eor and other topics involving subsurface fluid behavior.
Without the rocky mountain oilfield testing center, there would be no data for analysis. Field boundary, roads, streams, facilities, pipelines, wells, geology. Jan 30, 2015 in 1922, president warren hardings interior secretary albert fall found himself in hot water after taking bribes to sell a small oil field in wyoming, as well as one in california. Oil field production geology geoscienceworld books. Next geology field trip petrel fracture modeling in casper.
It involved the secret leasing of federal oil reserves at elk hills, california, and teapot dome, wyoming, by albert bacon fall u. Harding s secretary of the interiorto oil tycoons edward l. Geochemical analyses of oils and gases, naval petroleum. An overview of reproducible 3d seismic data processing and. Secretary of the interior albert bacon fall had leased navy petroleum reserves at teapot dome in wyoming, and two locations in california, to private oil companies at low rates without competitive bidding. A person traveling alone can complete the tour comfortably in. Stratigraphy and sedimentology the main stratigraphic units at teapot dome were identified early in the 20 th. For best results viewing and printing pdf documents, it is recommended that you download the documents to your computer and open them with adobe reader. The salt creek oil field, which produces daily 10,000 barrels of highgrade paraffin oil, is at present the largest proved field in the state of wyoming. Gis for oil operations, history, geology, and imagery at. With a long history of development, beginning in 1970, this field has entered a new phase of development since 2009 with the exploitation of the niobrara formation. Production at teapot dome has dropped greatly since the first production there in october 1922 cooper et al.
History of geologic investigations and oil operations at. Oil production study of the teapot dome field by john c. Wattenberg field is located in the center of the denver basin in northeastern colorado and is one of the largest oil and gas fields in the united states. Pdf reservoir characterization and flow simulation for co 2. Subsurface investigation at teapot dome began in the early 1900s after oil seeps at the surface were drilled and indicated to be economic. Teapot dome well headers directional surveys formation log tops teapot dome base map key to understanding formation codes npr. Wyoming oil and gas fields symposium, powder river basin, 2000 pages 500502. Department of energy has hired denverbased meagher energy advisors to sell. Download the latest version of adobe reader, free of charge. Geology of the tensleep formation, teapot dome teapot dome is an asymmetric, doubly plunging laramideage anticline located near the southwestern edge of the powder river basin in natrona county, wyoming figures 1 and 2. Washington today, the energy department finalized the sale of the historic teapot dome oilfield located 35 miles north of casper, wyoming to stranded oil resources corporation, a subsidiary of alleghany capital corporation.
It also gives practical guidelines as to how a production geologist can analyze the reservoir geology and fluid flow characteristics of an oil field with the aim of improving hydrocarbon recovery. Thanks also to the rocky mountain oilfield testing center, the department. Sinclair buys and quitclaims all existing mining claim rights at teapot dome, and applies for a lease on all of teapot dome. The teapot dome 3d survey is a land 3d data set from wyoming provided by the u. Spe 2404 integrated characterization and simulation of the. Pdf the new teapot dome facility presents a unique opportunity to conduct. In 1922, president warren hardings interior secretary albert fall found himself in hot water after taking bribes to sell a small oil field in wyoming, as well as one in california. S dept of energy field report on the puerto chiquito field are located only a short distance down dip from the outcrop and are not on any structural closure.
The site was listed on the national register of historic places in 1974. Geochemical analyses of oils and gases, naval petroleum reserve no. Hydrocarbon source rock characterization, burial history. Mammoth is secretly awarded a noncompetitive lease covering all of teapot dome, with no restrictions. This structural feature, known as the bothwell syncline, trends parallel to the axis of the salt creek teapot dome anticline. The oil reserves at teapot dome and in california had been set aside at the request of the u. These fields include salt creek field, teapot dome, cole creek, and sage. Baseline studies of surface gas exchange and soilgas. The purposes of this association are to advance the science of geology. Lithology controls fracture, deformation band and fault. Geological survey bulletin 452 1912 jamison the salt creek oil field, natrona county, wyoming state of wyoming geologists office, bulletin 4, series b 1914 trumbull the salt creek oil field, natrona county, wyoming state of wyoming geologists office, bulletin 8, series b.
This gives us a unique opportunity for experiments to provide scientific and technical insight into co 2 enhanced oil recovery and other topics involving subsurface fluid behavior. It was the most serious scandal in the countrys history prior to the watergate affair of. Primary objective of the bothwell syncline federal unit prospect is the oil producing potential of the naturally fractured niobrara formation along the syncline area on the southwest flank of the teapot dome oil field. Geologic assessment of undiscovered oil and gas in the powder. Semantic scholar extracted view of teapot dome field tensleep. Demonstration course manual, rmotc, casper, wyoming. History of geologic investigations and oil operations at teapot. Pdf teapot dome field tensleep formation semantic scholar. Geologically based, it focuses on source and reservoir rock stratigraphy, timing of. The field is surrounded on three sides by sandstone hogbacks of the parkman sandstone member of the mesaverde formation figure3. More information about viewing, downloading, and printing report files can be found here. In comparison, oil is produced on the teapot dome structurally above the.
Teapot dome is located in natrona county, wyoming figure 11. The teapot dome scandal of the 1920s involved national security, big oil companies and bribery and corruption at the highest levels of the government of the united states. Teapot dome was established as a naval petroleum reserve by president. Geochemistry american association of petroleum geologists. Reservoir characterization and flow simulation for co. A total of nine productive horizons are present in the field, with the pennsylvanian tensleep formation being the deepest. Teapot dome, however, is unique in that 3d seismic reflection and drill hole data sets are available to the public. Principal rock formations in teapot dome and salt creek oil fields. Nov 08, 2014 the teapot dome scandal of the 1920s involved national security, big oil companies and bribery and corruption at the highest levels of the government of the united states. An overview of reproducible 3d seismic data processing and imaging using madagascar.
Teapot dome is located near the southwestern edge of the powder river basin, figure 21a. Basic geology for oil exploration linkedin slideshare. Geoscience training center cefoga magoon and dow, 1994 inventory of accumulationsinventory of accumulations field name date discovered reservoir rock api gravity api cumulative oil production x10 bbl remaining reserves x10 bbl hardy lucky marginal teapot 1989 1990 1990 1992 boar ss boar ss boar ss boar ss 29 15 18 21 85 5 12 9 big oil. Teapot dome, the oilfield made famous by a scandal during the harding administration, is used today as a research site for new technologies and processes designed to improve drilling, oil.